Revised Standard Version understands this verse as being merely an aside by Paul. The dashes in Revised Standard Version are equivalent to parentheses. However, it also seems that Paul is expanding on the beginning of verse 5. God enriched the Christians in Corinth more and more as the Christian message took deep root in their lives. Revised Standard Version shows this fact by the use of even as (New Revised Standard Version “just as”), although Good News Bible omits a connective word in order to divide the sentence. In any case, the meaning seems to be that people received spiritual gifts as the result of Christian preaching.

Good News Bible‘s translation “has become … firmly established” is probably more correct than Revised Standard Version‘s confirmed (New Revised Standard Version “strengthened”). The context does not seem to contain the idea of one thing’s being confirmed or guaranteed by another. Translators in some languages will need to render the passive expression “firmly established” as, for example, “God has firmly established … in your lives.” One may even use a more idiomatic expression and say “The message about Christ has put its roots down firmly in your lives” or “God has caused the message about Christ to put its roots….”

The Greek word translated testimony also means “witness,” implying then that the testimony is “about” Christ rather than “by” him. Good News Bible brings this meaning out clearly by saying “the message about Christ.”

The Greek may mean either among you or “in you” (Good News Bible). Since much of this letter is concerned with relations of Christians with one another, among you suits the wider context better. The Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch first edition made this wider context more explicit by rendering this as “in your (local) church.” One may also say “among you who believe in Christ.”

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 .