Comparing 1 Corinthians 4:7-8

Who says that you are any better than other people? What do you have that wasn’t given to you? If you were given what you have, why are you bragging as if it weren’t a gift?

You already have what you want! You’ve already become rich! You’ve become kings without us! I wish you really were kings so that we could be kings with you.
GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)
Meaning-for-Meaning (Closest Natural Equivalence)

For who sees anything different in you? What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?

Already you have all you want! Already you have become rich! Without us you have become kings! And would that you did reign, so that we might share the rule with you!
English Standard Version (ESV)
Word-for-Word (Formal Equivalence)

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For what gives you the right to make such a judgment? What do you have that God hasn’t given you? And if everything you have is from God, why boast as though it were not a gift?

You think you already have everything you need. You think you are already rich. You have begun to reign in God’s kingdom without us! I wish you really were reigning already, for then we would be reigning with you.
New Living Translation (NLT)
Thought-for-Thought (Functional Equivalence)

For who do you know that really knows you, knows your heart? And even if they did, is there anything they would discover in you that you could take credit for? Isn’t everything you have and everything you are sheer gifts from God? So what’s the point of all this comparing and competing? You already have all you need. You already have more access to God than you can handle. Without bringing either Apollos or me into it, you’re sitting on top of the world—at least God’s world—and we’re right there, sitting alongside you!
The Message (MSG)
Paraphrase (Retelling)

Visit our Bible Translation Guide for more information about the major differences between the clear, natural English of God’s Word and other translations.