1 Corinthians 11:23
in 1 Corinthians 11For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night He was betrayed, took bread,
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
For I received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which he was betrayed took bread;
KJV
For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread:
⋯
This verse in 1 Corinthians 11
Commentary
19 notes on this verseIn like manner, when treating of the gospel, we have proved from the sacrament of the bread and the cup the verity of the Lord's body and blood in opposition to Marcion's phantom; whilst throughout almost the whole of my work it has been contended that all mention of judicial attributes points conclusively to the Creator as to a God who judges.
This site's exposition
For I received from the
on 1 Corinthians 11:23-25
The account opening I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you is the earliest written record of the Last Supper, older than the Gospels, and its verb recurs at 15:3. The church has long divided over how Christ is present in the bread and cup: really and substantially, spiritually to faith, or as a memorial sign. Every reading shares the command, do this in remembrance of Me, anamnesis, an active calling to mind.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers5 voices
By "received" Paul means that he was taught.
A commentator
Apostolic ConstitutionsApostolic Constitutions (Book VIII), Section 2, XII · Written before 380.
proposed
Being mindful, therefore, of those things that He endured for our sakes, we give You thanks, O God Almighty, not in such a manner as we ought, but as we are able, and fulfil His constitution: "For in the same night that He was betrayed, He took bread" [1 Corinthians 11:23] in His holy and undefiled hands, and, looking up to You His God and Father, "He broke it, and gave it to His disciples, saying, This is the mystery of the new covenant: take of it, and eat. This is my body, which is broken for many, for the remission of sins." In like manner also "He took the cup," and mixed it of wine and water, and sanctified it, and delivered it to them, saying: "Drink all of this; for this is my blood which is shed for many, for the remission of sins: do this in remembrance of me. For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you do show forth my death until I come." Being mindful, therefore, of His passion, and death, and resurrection from the dead, and return into the heavens, and His future second appearing, wherein He is to come with glory and power to judge the quick and the dead, and to recompense to every one according to his works, we offer to You, our King and our God, according to His constitution, this bread and this cup, giving You thanks, through Him, that You have thought us worthy to stand before You, and to sacrifice to You; and we beseech You that You will mercifully look down upon these gifts which are here set before You, O God, who standest in need of none of our offerings. […]
Now concerning the Thanksgiving (Eucharist), thus give thanks. First, concerning the cup: We thank thee, our Father, for the holy vine of David Thy servant, which Thou madest known to us through Jesus Thy Servant; to Thee be the glory for ever. And concerning the broken bread: We thank Thee, our Father, for the life and knowledge which Thou modest known to us through Jesus Thy Servant; to Thee be the glory for ever. Even as this broken bread was scattered over the hills, and was gathered together and became one, so let Thy Church be gathered together from the ends of the earth into Thy kingdom; for Thine is the glory and the power through Jesus Christ for ever. But let no one eat or drink of your Thanksgiving (Eucharist), but they who have been baptized into the name of the Lord; for concerning this also the Lord hath said, Give not that which is holy to the dogs. But after ye are filled, thus give thanks: We thank Thee, holy Father, for Thy holy name which Thou didst cause to tabernacle in our hearts, and for the knowledge and faith and immortality, which Thou modest known to us through Jesus Thy Servant; to Thee be the glory for ever. Thou, Master almighty, didst create all things for Thy name's sake; Thou gavest food and drink to men for enjoyment, that they might give thanks to Thee; but to us Thou didst freely give spiritual food and drink and life eternal through Thy Servant. Before all things we thank Thee that Thou art mighty; to Thee be the glory for ever. Remember, Lord, Thy Church, to deliver it from all evil and to make it perfect in Thy love, and gather it from the four winds, sanctified for Thy kingdom which Thou hast prepared for it; for Thine is the power and the glory for ever. Let grace come, and let this world pass away. Hosanna to the God (Son) of David! If any one is holy, let him come; if any one is not so, let him repent. Maran atha. Amen. […]
The blessed Paul, recalling the most sacred mystery of that supper, makes known no other cup than the one called the new covenant by the Lord: "For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you."
Moreover, the blessed Apostle Paul, chosen and sent by the Lord, and appointed a preacher of the Gospel truth, lays down these very things in his epistle, saying, "The Lord Jesus, the same night in which He was betrayed, took bread; and when He had given thanks, He brake it, and said, This is my body, which shall be given for you: do this in remembrance of me. After the same manner also He took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. For as often as ye eat this bread and drink this cup, ye shall show forth the Lord's death until He come." But if it is both enjoined by the Lord, and the same thing is confirmed and delivered by His apostle, that as often as we drink, we do in remembrance of the Lord the same thing which the Lord also did, we find that what was commanded is not observed by us, unless we also do what the Lord did; and that mixing the Lord's cup in like manner we do not depart from the divine teaching; but that we must not at all depart from the evangelical precepts, and that disciples ought also to observe and to do the same things which the Master both taught dud did. The blessed apostle in another place more earnestly and strongly teaches, saying, "I wonder that ye are so soon removed from Him that called you into grace, unto another gospel, which is not another; but there are some that trouble you, and would pervert the Gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any otherwise than that which we have preached to you, let him be anathema. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be anathema."
12 more voices on this verse
The Church Fathers1 voice
"For I received of the Lord," saith he, "that which also I delivered unto you: how that the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed, took bread: And when He had given thanks, He brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is My Body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me." Wherefore doth he here make mention of the Mysteries? Because that argument was very necessary to his present purpose. As thus: "Thy Master," saith he, "counted all worthy of the same Table, though it be very awful and far exceeding the dignity of all: but thou considerest them to be unworthy even of thine own, small and mean as we see it is; and while they have no advantage over thee in spiritual things, thou robbest them in the temporal things. For neither are these thine own." However, he doth not express himself thus, to prevent his discourse becoming harsh: but he frames it in a gentler form, saying, that "the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed, took bread." And wherefore doth he remind us of the time, and of that evening, and of the betrayal? Not indifferently nor without some reason, but that he might exceedingly fill them with compunction, were it but from consideration of the time. For even if one be a very stone, yet when he considers that night, how He was with His disciples, "very heavy," how He was betrayed, how He was bound, how He was led away, how He was judged, how He suffered all the rest in order, he becometh softer than wax, and is withdrawn from earth and all the pomp of this world. […]
The Medieval Church3 voices
After rebuking the Corinthians for their unbecoming behavior, when they came together to take the Eucharist, the Apostle now deals with the sacrament itself. First, he discusses the dignity of this sacrament; secondly, he urges the faithful to receive it reverently (v. 27). In regard …
Why does he mention the mysteries and that supper? Very fittingly, in order to convince that your Master deemed all worthy of one and the same table, yet you reject and despise one of your own kind. How does he say that he received from …
Remember, he says, that He delivered this sacrament to you last of all, moreover on the night in which He was handed over to slaughter, and He did not exclude His betrayer from the table, yet you despise your brother. You were taught to give …
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
For I have received of the Lord,.... The apostle observes unto them the rule, use, and end of the Lord's supper; his view in it is, to correct the disorders among them, and to bring them to a strict regard to the rule which had such a divine authority stamped upon it; and to observe to them, that in that supper all equally ate and drank; and that the end of it was not a paschal commemoration, but a remembrance of Christ, and a declaration of his sufferings and death.
Of the author--our Lord Jesus Christ. The king of the church only has power to institute sacraments. The time of the institution: It was the very night wherein he was betrayed; just as he was entering on his sufferings which are therein to be commemorated.
1 Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ. 2 Now I praise you, brethren, that ye remember me in all things, and keep the ordinances, as I delivered them to you. 3 But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — verbatim-scripture
The Nineteenth Century5 voices
A commentator
Charles Spurgeon1834–1892
The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 2638: “The Right Observance of the Lord's Supper” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition) · Written before 1892.
WE have no respect whatever for the ordinances of men in religion. Anything that is only invented by churches, or councils, is nothing whatever to us. We know of two ordinances instituted by the Lord Jesus Christ—the Baptism of Believers and the Lord's Supper. And we utterly abhor and reject all pretended "sacraments" of every kind. And because we observe these two ordinances, and these two, only, we are the more concerned that they should be properly used and duly understood, and that they should minister to the edification of those who participate in them.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
His object is to show the unworthiness of such conduct from the dignity of the holy supper. I--Emphatic in the Greek. It is not my own invention, but the Lord's institution. received of the Lord--by immediate revelation (Ga 1:12; compare Ac 22:17, 18;
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
A commentator
Charles Spurgeon1834–1892
The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 2638: “The Right Observance of the Lord's Supper” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition) · Written before 1892.
proposed
WE have no respect whatever for the ordinances of men in religion. Anything that is only invented by churches, or councils, is nothing whatever to us. We know of two ordinances instituted by the Lord Jesus Christ—the Baptism of Believers and the Lord's Supper. And we utterly abhor and reject all pretended "sacraments" of every kind. And because we observe these two ordinances, and these two, only, we are the more concerned that they should be properly used and duly understood, and that they should minister to the edification of those who participate in them. We would have those who are baptized understand what is meant by that expressive rite—that they, being dead with Christ, should also be buried with Him and rise with Him into newness of life. And when we observe the Lord's Supper, we feel a deep and earnest desire that none should come to the Table in ignorance of the significance of the observance—or that, at least, ignorance may not be an occasion of eating unworthily—but that we may comprehend what we are doing and understand the spiritual meaning of this pictorial instruction by which the Lord Jesus Christ would, even until the end of the age, remind His Church of His great Sacrifice upon the Cross. I. So, first, I will speak briefly concerning THE FORM OF THE LORD'S SUPPER. We do not think that it is at all material where that supper is held. It is just as valid and helpful in your own private apartments, in your bedroom, or in your parlor, as it is in any place where Christians usually congregate.
I have received of the Lord - It is possible that several of the people at Corinth did receive the bread and wine of the eucharist as they did the paschal bread and wine, as a mere commemoration of an event. And as our Lord had by this institution consecrated that bread and wine, not to be the means of commemorating the deliverance from Egypt, and their joy on the account, but their deliverance from sin and death by his passion and cross; therefore the apostle states that he had received from the Lord what he delivered; viz. that the eucharistic bread and wine were to be understood of the accomplishment of that of which the paschal lamb was the type - the body broken for them, the blood shed for them. The Lord Jesus - took bread - See the whole of this account, collated with the parallel passages in the four Gospels, amply explained in my Discourse on the Eucharist, and in the notes on Matthew 26.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
For ... - In order most effectually to check the evils which existed, and to bring them to a proper mode of observing the Lord’s Supper, the apostle proceeds to state distinctly and particularly its design. They had mistaken its nature. They supposed it might be a common festival. They had made it the occasion of great disorder.
The words behind it
21 Greek wordsEvery Greek word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Greek | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ἐγὼ | ego | I myself | G1473 → | 839 times |
| γὰρ | gar | for | G1063 → | 1039 times |
| παρέλαβον | parelabon | received | G3880 → | 49 times |
| ἀπὸ | apo | from | G575 → | 640 times |
| τοῦ | tou | the | G3588 → | 19766 times |
| κυρίου | kuriou | Lord | G2962 → | 711 times |
| ὃ | ho | that which | G3739 → | 1405 times |
| καὶ | kai | also | G2532 → | 9120 times |
| παρέδωκα | paredoka | I delivered | G3860 → | 119 times |
| ὑμῖν | humin | to you | G4771 → | 2973 times |
| ὅτι | hoti | that | G3754 → | 1292 times |
| ὁ | ho | the | G3588 → | 19766 times |
| κύριος | kurios | Lord | G2962 → | 711 times |
| Ἰησοῦς | iesous | Jesus | G2424 → | 908 times |
| ἐν | en | in | G1722 → | 2738 times |
| τῇ | tea | the | G3588 → | 19766 times |
| νυκτὶ | nukti | night | G3571 → | |
| ᾗ | he | in which | G3739 → | 1405 times |
| παρεδίδετο | paredideto | He was betrayed | G3860 → | 119 times |
| ἔλαβεν | elaben | took | G2983 → | 257 times |
| ἄρτον, | arton | bread, | G740 → | 97 times |
ἐγὼI myself
egoG1473 →839 times
γὰρfor
garG1063 →1039 times
παρέλαβονreceived
parelabonG3880 →49 times
ἀπὸfrom
apoG575 →640 times
τοῦthe
touG3588 →19766 times
κυρίουLord
kuriouG2962 →711 times
ὃthat which
hoG3739 →1405 times
καὶalso
kaiG2532 →9120 times
παρέδωκαI delivered
paredokaG3860 →119 times
ὑμῖνto you
huminG4771 →2973 times
ὅτιthat
hotiG3754 →1292 times
ὁthe
hoG3588 →19766 times
κύριοςLord
kuriosG2962 →711 times
ἸησοῦςJesus
iesousG2424 →908 times
ἐνin
enG1722 →2738 times
τῇthe
teaG3588 →19766 times
νυκτὶnight
nuktiG3571 →
ᾗin which
heG3739 →1405 times
παρεδίδετοHe was betrayed
paredidetoG3860 →119 times
ἔλαβενtook
elabenG2983 →257 times
ἄρτον,bread,
artonG740 →97 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
5 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
1 Corinthians 15:3For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,
it leads to
- 1 Peter 2:24
He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. “By His stripes you are healed.”
- Galatians 1:4
who gave Himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father,
- Isaiah 53:1–12
Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
- 1 John 2:2
He Himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.
- Galatians 1:12
I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.
- 1 Peter 2:24
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies3
On this verse
On this chapter
About 1 Corinthians

This page draws on 17 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Apostolic Constitutions, Apostolic Constitutions (Book VIII), Section 2, XII; Charles Hodge, An Exposition of the First Epistle to the Corinthians; Charles Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 2638: “The Right Observance of the Lord's Supper” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition); Cyprian, Epistle LXII; Didache, The Didache, Chapters 9-10; Fulgentius of Ruspe, LETTER 14, TO FERRANDUS 40; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Calvin, Commentary on the Epistles of Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians; John Chrysostom, Homily on 1 Corinthians 27; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Oecumenius, PAULINE COMMENTARY FROM THE GREEK CHURCH; Tertullian, Against Marcion Book V; Theophylact of Ohrid, Commentary on 1 Corinthians and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on 1 Corinthians.
