1 Corinthians 11:23

The context

Paul is correcting a communal meal in Corinth where factions have turned the supper into an occasion of humiliation for the poor. Before he rebukes the practice he restates the tradition, and he insists that what he hands on he first received. The wording places the meal on the night of the betrayal.

What it establishes

It establishes that Paul understands himself as a link in a chain of transmission rather than an originator, and that the meal is anchored to a specific night in the passion. It also ties the practice to the Lord's own action.

What it does not establish

It does not resolve the presence debates. Nothing here defines what the bread and cup are, or how the Lord is present in them. Whether received from the Lord means a direct revelation or a tradition traced to him is also disputed, and the verse does not decide it.

Short note, first pass, October 2026. Corrections welcome.

Cited in these answers

• It should be called Paulianity – for centuries Christians have presented the ideas of Paul as the teachings of Jesus, and that’s a mistake. It was all Paul’s INTERPRETATION. Check the data.

Part of Scripture, Opened — the exegetical layer behind every citation on this site. Scripture quotations are from the ESV.