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1 Corinthians 11 · a question people ask

"For there also must be factions among you" (11:19). Why must there be?

In the text

The verse says only this: "For there also must be factions among you, that those who are approved may be revealed among you." (11:19). It comes right after "I hear that divisions exist among you, and I partly believe it." (11:18). The chapter doesn't say who those who are approved are, or how they will be revealed, and these notes don't either.

The verses

“For first of all, when you come together in the assembly, I hear that divisions exist among you, and I partly believe it. For there also must be factions among you, that those who are approved may be revealed among you.”
1 Corinthians 11:18-19 · World English Bible

From Favor's study of 1 Corinthians 11

1 Corinthians 11: Received from the Lord

The chapter that tells of the Lord Jesus, the bread and the cup (11:23-25) also says of their coming together, "each one takes his own supper first" (11:21), and then, "when you come together to eat, wait for one another" (11:33).

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Last reviewed October 8, 2026. Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Every answer cites the verses it rests on. What we believe · All Bible questions