I appeal to you: Greek, like many other languages, has various verbs with the meaning “ask.” Some are more formal than others, like the English “request.” The most important verbs of “asking” in Paul’s letters are parakaleō which is used here, and erōtaō which is used in Phil 4.3. Both of these are relatively informal. The word deomai, which is used in 2 Cor 5.20 and 10.2, is more formal or official. In each case, however, the context determines the shade of meaning to be given in translation. In the present verse Paul uses parakaleō with no particular emphasis, except that it is placed at the beginning of the sentence and the section. Other ways to translate this phrase are “I strongly urge you,” “I beg you,” or “I say using strong words.”
Brethren: as Revised Standard Version shows, there is no “my” (Good News Bible) in Greek. Good News Bible supplies this for stylistic purposes, as it is good natural English to use a possessive pronoun with words indicating family relationships. Translators in other languages will need to determine what is natural in their own languages. “Brothers” (Good News Bible) here, as in other places in 1 Corinthians, refers to “fellow Christians,” not actual family members. See 1 Cor. 1.1 on the translation of brother.
By the name of is literally “in the name of.” In Jewish thought someone’s name involved his power and personality. This meant that when an important person sent someone else to speak or act in his name, that messenger must be heard and obeyed as if the one who sent him were there in person. Good News Bible‘s rendering “By the authority of” conveys the meaning well in English; but in some languages it may be necessary to say, for example, “on behalf of.” Paul speaks here as an apostle, that is, someone sent by Christ (see the comments on 1 Cor. 1.1).
That all of you agree is literally “that all of you say the same (thing).” But the rest of the verse shows that Paul is not asking the Corinthian Christians to recite some fixed saying or formula, but rather to agree in their minds. Other ways of expressing this clause are “that all of you see eye-to-eye” or “that all of you have the same mind (or, heart).”
The relation between the last three clauses of this verse needs to be made clear. Literally, the structure is: (a) in order that you all say the same (thing), (b) and that there be no divisions among you, (c) but that you be united. On the surface it looks as if Paul is contrasting (a) and (b) with (c). If we examine this verse more closely, however, it becomes clear that (a) is a general statement that (c) repeats in greater detail. (b) says the same thing as (c), but in a negative way. It may be helpful, then, to begin a new sentence at the end of (a), so that the contrast between (b) and (c) may be clearer. Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente does this: “… I request you to put yourselves in agreement. Let there be no quarrels among you, but be united….”
The Greek word that is translated dissensions is the origin of the English word “schism,” but it does not yet have this technical meaning. In Mark 2.21 it is used to describe a tear in a garment. Similarly, the word that is translated united in verse 10 is used in Mark 1.19 of mending nets that have been torn.
We want to stress that Paul is writing to all the Christians in Corinth. There were not separate churches or denominations as in a modern city. Paul is speaking here about divisions in the “thoughts” and “purposes” of the Christians. Some of them were showing loyalty to a particular leader, and this was destroying the unity of the church. This is the point of Good News Bible‘s “so that there will be no divisions among you.” At this point in the letter Paul is trying to prevent divisions from arising in the future, although later in the letter he speaks about divisions that have already arisen (see, for example, 11.18-19).
Some translators will need to render the English noun “divisions” (Good News Bible) by a verb or verbal expression. One could say “so that you will not divide yourselves into groups.”
There is no great difference in meaning between the expressions same mind and same judgment. These two terms are used in the Greek to add emphasis, and translators must consider whether the same is true in their own language. If there is a distinction, the word for mind (Good News Bible “thought”) suggests “perception,” “understanding,” “insight” as compared with judgment.
Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians, 2nd edition. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1985/1994. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .