Aide

Bible School · Understanding Paul's letters · Class 11 of 33

Holiness in Corinth: discipline, lawsuits, the body, marriage

1 Corinthians 5–7 · about 25 minutes · Holiness in Corinth

By the end of this class you should be able to

Read the passage

5It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that is intolerable even among pagans: A man has his father’s wife. 2And you are proud! Shouldn’t you rather have been stricken with grief and have removed from your fellowship the man who did this? 3Although I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit, and I have already pronounced judgment on the one who did this, just as if I were present. 4When you are assembled in the name of our Lord Jesus and I am with you in spirit, along with the power of the Lord Jesus, 5hand this man over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved on the Day of the Lord. 6Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven works through the whole batch of dough? 7Get rid of the old leaven, that you may be a new unleavened batch, as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. 8Therefore let us keep the feast, not with the old bread, leavened with malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and of truth. 9I wrote you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people. 10I was not including the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters. In that case you would have to leave this world. 11But now I am writing you not to associate with anyone who claims to be a brother but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or a verbal abuser, a drunkard or a swindler. With such a man do not even eat. 12What business of mine is it to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? 13God will judge those outside. “Expel the wicked man from among you.”

Open 1 Corinthians 5 in the reader (BSB)

6If any of you has a grievance against another, how dare he go to law before the unrighteous instead of before the saints! 2Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases? 3Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life! 4So if you need to settle everyday matters, do you appoint as judges those of no standing in the church? 5I say this to your shame. Is there really no one among you wise enough to arbitrate between his brothers? 6Instead, one brother goes to law against another, and this in front of unbelievers! 7The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means that you are thoroughly defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated? 8Instead, you yourselves cheat and do wrong, even against your own brothers! 9Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who submit to or perform homosexual acts, 10nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor verbal abusers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. 11And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. 12“Everything is permissible for me,” but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible for me,” but I will not be mastered by anything. 13“Food for the stomach and the stomach for food,” but God will destroy them both. The body is not intended for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. 14By His power God raised the Lord from the dead, and He will raise us also. 15Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never! 16Or don’t you know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one with her in body? For it is said, “The two will become one flesh.” 17But he who unites himself with the Lord is one with Him in spirit. 18Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a man can commit is outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body. 19Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20you were bought at a price. Therefore glorify God with your body.

Open 1 Corinthians 6 in the reader (BSB)

7Now for the matters you wrote about: It is good to abstain from sexual relations. 2But because there is so much sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman her own husband. 3The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. 4The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife. 5Do not deprive each other, except by mutual consent and for a time, so you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again, so that Satan will not tempt you through your lack of self-control. 6I say this as a concession, not as a command. 7I wish that all men were as I am. But each man has his own gift from God; one has this gift, another has that. 8Now to the unmarried and widows I say this: It is good for them to remain unmarried, as I am. 9But if they cannot control themselves, let them marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion. 10To the married I give this command (not I, but the Lord): A wife must not separate from her husband. 11But if she does, she must remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband. And a husband must not divorce his wife. 12To the rest I say this (I, not the Lord): If a brother has an unbelieving wife and she is willing to live with him, he must not divorce her. 13And if a woman has an unbelieving husband and he is willing to live with her, she must not divorce him. 14For the unbelieving husband is sanctified through his believing wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified through her believing husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but now they are holy. 15But if the unbeliever leaves, let him go. The believing brother or sister is not bound in such cases. God has called you to live in peace. 16How do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband? Or how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife? 17Regardless, each one should lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him and to which God has called him. This is what I prescribe in all the churches. 18Was a man already circumcised when he was called? He should not become uncircumcised. Was a man still uncircumcised when called? He should not be circumcised. 19Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing. Keeping God’s commandments is what counts. 20Each one should remain in the situation he was in when he was called. 21Were you a slave when you were called? Do not let it concern you—but if you can gain your freedom, take the opportunity. 22For he who was a slave when he was called by the Lord is the Lord’s freedman. Conversely, he who was a free man when he was called is Christ’s slave. 23You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men. 24Brothers, each one should remain in the situation he was in when God called him. 25Now about virgins, I have no command from the Lord, but I give a judgment as one who by the Lord’s mercy is trustworthy. 26Because of the present crisis, I think it is good for a man to remain as he is. 27Are you committed to a wife? Do not seek to be released. Are you free of commitment? Do not look for a wife. 28But if you do marry, you have not sinned. And if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. But those who marry will face troubles in this life, and I want to spare you this. 29What I am saying, brothers, is that the time is short. From now on those who have wives should live as if they had none; 30those who weep, as if they did not; those who are joyful, as if they were not; those who make a purchase, as if they had nothing; 31and those who use the things of this world, as if not dependent on them. For this world in its present form is passing away. 32I want you to be free from concern. The unmarried man is concerned about the work of the Lord, how he can please the Lord. 33But the married man is concerned about the affairs of this world, how he can please his wife, 34and his interests are divided. The unmarried woman or virgin is concerned about the work of the Lord, how she can be holy in both body and spirit. But the married woman is concerned about the affairs of this world, how she can please her husband. 35I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, but in order to promote proper decorum and undivided devotion to the Lord. 36However, if someone thinks he is acting inappropriately toward his betrothed, and if she is beyond her youth and they ought to marry, let him do as he wishes; he is not sinning; they should get married. 37But the man who is firmly established in his heart and under no constraint, with control over his will and resolve in his heart not to marry the virgin, he will do well. 38So then, he who marries the virgin does well, but he who does not marry her does even better. 39A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to marry anyone she wishes, as long as he belongs to the Lord. 40In my judgment, however, she is happier if she remains as she is. And I think that I too have the Spirit of God.

Open 1 Corinthians 7 in the reader (BSB)

01Background

In to 7 Paul turns from the divisions of to 4 to problems of conduct and to questions the Corinthians had written to him. The church met in a city known for wealth and sexual freedom, where meals in pagan temples and sexual relations outside marriage were part of ordinary social life. Many members came from this background (), and others had absorbed a view of spiritual freedom that treated the body as unimportant. Some scholars suggest that a group in the church believed that being 'spiritual' meant that what was done in the body no longer mattered morally; the slogans quoted in point in that direction.

The letter was written from Ephesus about AD 54 or 55. and 6 respond to a report that reached Paul (; ), while begins a reply to the matters the Corinthians had written about (), the first of several answers to the church's own letter. Paul also refers to an earlier letter in which he told them not to associate with sexually immoral people (), and he clarifies what he meant.

The social setting matters. Incest with a stepmother was forbidden under both Jewish law (; ) and Roman custom; Paul says it was shocking even among pagans (). The lawsuits in were brought before secular courts, where the wealthy and well-connected had the advantage and where litigation was one way for those of rank to compete. reflects questions about marriage, singleness and divorce in a city where some thought celibacy was holier and others thought marriage unnecessary, and Paul writes of the present distress (), whose nature is debated.

02Outline

  1. The immoral man and the church's responsibility; old leaven, new batch
  2. Lawsuits before unbelievers; the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom; 'such were some of you'
  3. The body is for the Lord; flee sexual immorality; you are a temple
  4. Marriage, mutual rights, the unmarried and the widowed, divorce and mixed marriage
  5. Remain in the calling in which you were called
  6. The unmarried, the time that is short, undivided devotion, widows

03How to read it

First Corinthians is a letter in which Paul answers specific questions and quotes the Corinthians' own views. Reading well means noticing the voices. In 6:12 'All things are lawful for me' and in 'food for the stomach and the stomach for food' appear to be Corinthian slogans which Paul accepts in part and then qualifies (not all things are helpful). In 7:1 'It is good for a man not to touch a woman' is widely taken as a Corinthian view that Paul quotes and answers, though some interpreters read it as Paul's own first judgment. Where translations place quotation marks, they reflect these decisions.

Paul also distinguishes the sources of his teaching: in he gives a command not his own but the Lord's, pointing to the teaching of Jesus on divorce (), and in he gives his own judgment his own, not the Lord's. This does not make the second less authoritative, since Paul claims the Spirit of God for his judgment (), but it shows he knows where Jesus gave explicit teaching and where he applies it to a new case. Finally, the concessions in () show that Paul distinguishes what is required from what is wise.

A caution: single words in these chapters are debated. The terms in translated in various ways (malakoi and arsenokoitai) are discussed in the tradition note.

04What the text says

. Paul has heard of sexual immorality among them of a kind not found even among Gentiles: a man has his father's wife. Instead of grieving, they are arrogant. Paul has already judged the man: when the church gathers in the name of the Lord Jesus, they are to deliver him to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord. The phrase is debated, but it clearly means expulsion from the fellowship, and the aim is restorative. A little leaven leavens the whole lump, so they are to clean out the old leaven, since Christ our Passover lamb has been sacrificed. The Passover image ties the church's holiness to the cross. Paul clarifies his earlier letter: he did not mean avoiding the immoral of this world, which would require leaving the world, but anyone bearing the name of brother who persists in such sin. God judges outsiders; the church judges those inside. The chapter ends with a line from Deuteronomy: purge the evil person from among you.

. A believer with a grievance against another should not go to law before the unrighteous. The saints will judge the world and angels, so they are competent to judge trivial cases, and it is better to be wronged than to wrong a brother. Paul lists those who will not inherit the kingdom of God: the sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, malakoi, arsenokoitai, thieves, the greedy, drunkards, revilers and swindlers. Then he says that such were some of them, but they were washed, sanctified and justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of God. The three verbs describe the past action of God.

. Paul takes up the slogan 'All things are lawful for me', replying that not all things are helpful and that he will not be mastered by anything. Food and stomach are for each other, but God will destroy both; the body is not for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. God raised the Lord and will raise us. Our bodies are members of Christ. To join with a prostitute is to become one body with her, for Scripture says the two become one flesh (). But whoever is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him. So flee sexual immorality: every other sin is outside the body, but the immoral person sins against his own body. The body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within, received from God. They are not their own but were bought with a price, so they are to glorify God in their body.

. Answering the Corinthians' letter, Paul says that because of the temptation to sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband. Each owes the other conjugal rights, and neither has sole authority over his or her own body; this mutuality is notable in the ancient world. They should not deprive one another except by agreement for a time, for prayer. Paul wishes all were as he is, unmarried, but each has a gift from God. To the unmarried and widows he says it is good to remain single, but if they cannot exercise self-control they should marry. To the married he gives the Lord's command: the wife should not separate from her husband, nor the husband divorce his wife. If she separates, she should remain unmarried or be reconciled. To the rest he speaks his own judgment: a believer with an unbelieving spouse who consents to stay should not divorce, since the unbeliever is made holy through the believer. But if the unbeliever separates, the brother or sister is not bound; God has called them to peace.

. Each should remain in the situation in which God called him. The circumcised should not seek to remove the marks, nor the uncircumcised be circumcised, for what matters is keeping God's commandments. A slave should not be concerned about it, but if he can gain freedom, he should avail himself of it (the Greek of is ambiguous: it can also mean 'make use of slavery'). Each was bought with a price and should not become slaves of men.

. Concerning virgins, Paul has no command from the Lord but gives his judgment. Because of the present distress it is good to remain as one is. The appointed time has grown short, and the form of this world is passing away, so he wants them free from anxieties and devoted to the Lord without distraction. The passage about a man and his virgin () is unclear and is read as concerning an engaged couple, a father and his daughter, or a spiritual marriage. A widow is free to marry, only in the Lord, but Paul judges her happier if she remains as she is, and he thinks he too has the Spirit of God.

05Key terms

sexual immorality porneia
Sexual conduct outside marriage as defined in the law of God; a broad term that covers adultery, prostitution and incest (; , 18).
one flesh mia sarx
From , the union of man and woman in marriage. Paul says a union with a prostitute is also a real joining ().
bought with a price ēgorasthēte timēs
Language of the slave market. The believer has been purchased by Christ's death and belongs to him (; ).
concession syggnōmē
Permission or allowance, not a command (). It shows Paul distinguishing what he commands from what he allows.
gift charisma
A gracious gift. Paul says both marriage and singleness are a gift from God ().
distress anagkē
Pressure or necessity (). It may refer to a local crisis or to the pressures of the last days.

06In the whole Bible

These chapters teach that the body matters. In the Corinthian view the body was disposable; in Paul's view it belongs to the Lord and will be raised, as the Lord was raised (). That is why sexual conduct is a theological question, concerning union with Christ and the temple of the Holy Spirit. The doctrine of the resurrection, argued at length in , already underlies . The believer's identity is set out in the three verbs of , washed, sanctified and justified, which draw on baptism, holiness and the verdict of acquittal, and are given in the name of Christ and by the Spirit.

They also teach that holiness is a community responsibility. The church is a lump of dough in which a little leaven spreads, and it must judge its own members while leaving the judgment of outsiders to God. The goal of discipline is the person's salvation () and the purity of the church.

teaches that marriage and singleness are both good gifts, and that devotion to the Lord is the aim of each. Within the Bible this joins and the teaching of Jesus on marriage () with his affirmation of those who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom (). Paul's remark that the form of this world is passing away places all decisions under the coming of Christ.

07Where Christ is

Christ is the Passover lamb (). This is one of the clearest New Testament statements that Jesus fulfils the Passover of Exodus 12: the lamb whose blood marked the houses and delivered Israel is Christ, and the feast is now the life of the church. Paul also uses Jesus' own teaching on divorce (), which shows that the apostle regards the words of the Lord as authoritative. The body of believers is the body of Christ: the members of the Corinthians are members of Christ (), and to be joined to the Lord is to be one spirit with him ().

Christ is the one who bought them with a price (), a statement that points to his death as redemption. The three verbs of are done in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of God. The resurrection of the Lord is the pattern and promise for the bodies of believers (). The 'Lord' in these chapters is the one who commands, to whom the body belongs and who will return; the whole conduct of the Corinthians is placed in relation to him.

08How traditions read it

Two matters divide Christians here.

  • The first is divorce and remarriage (). The Catholic Church holds a valid marriage between baptised persons to be indissoluble, grants annulments when a marriage was not valid, and in some cases dissolves marriages involving a non-baptised party, a practice called the Pauline privilege after . The Orthodox Churches permit remarriage in some circumstances by pastoral 'economy'. Protestant churches vary: many allow remarriage after adultery (; ) or desertion by an unbeliever (), others allow it more widely, and some do not allow it while a former spouse lives.
  • The second is the meaning of malakoi and arsenokoitai in . Traditional Catholic, Orthodox and evangelical readings take them to refer to men in same-sex acts, noting that arsenokoitēs seems built from the wording of and 20:13 in the Greek Old Testament. Some scholars, among them John Boswell and Dale Martin, argue that the words are less specific. This class follows the first reading as the more widely held, and notes that Paul's list covers many sins and ends with the statement that such were some of them.

09Review questions

  1. What is the situation in , and what does Paul tell the church to do and why?
  2. Why does Paul speak of Christ as the Passover lamb in , and how does that shape his instruction about the old leaven?
  3. What arguments does Paul give in against believers taking each other to court?
  4. What reasons does Paul give in for saying the body is not for sexual immorality?
  5. What distinction does Paul make in between the Lord's command and his own judgment, and what does he say about mutual rights in marriage?

Prepared with AI assistance. A scholar's review is still to come; if you spot anything to correct, please tell us.

Your notes

Only you can see your notes.

Ask a question about this class

0/600
Places and dictionary for this chapter ▾

Dictionary

Sign in to keep your progress← Previous