CHAPTER 5
A Case of Incest.*1It is widely reported that there is immorality among you, and immorality of a kind not found even among pagans—a man living with his father’s wife.a2And you are inflated with pride.* Should you not rather have been sorrowful? The one who did this deed should be expelled from your midst.3I, for my part, although absent in body but present in spirit, have already, as if present, pronounced judgment on the one who has committed this deed,b4in the name of [our] Lord Jesus: when you have gathered together and I am with you in spirit with the power of the Lord Jesus,5you are to deliver this man to Satan* for the destruction of his flesh, so that his spirit may be saved on the day of the Lord.c
6d Your boasting is not appropriate. Do you not know that a little yeast* leavens all the dough?7* Clear out the old yeast, so that you may become a fresh batch of dough, inasmuch as you are unleavened. For our paschal lamb, Christ, has been sacrificed.e8Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.f
9* I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people,10not at all referring to the immoral of this world or the greedy and robbers or idolaters; for you would then have to leave the world.g11But I now write to you not to associate with anyone named a brother, if he is immoral, greedy, an idolater, a slanderer, a drunkard, or a robber, not even to eat with such a person.h12For why should I be judging outsiders? Is it not your business to judge those within?13God will judge those outside. “Purge the evil person from your midst.”i
* [5:1–6:20] Paul now takes up a number of other matters that require regulation. These have come to his attention by hearsay (1Cor 5:1), probably in reports brought by “Chloe’s people” (1Cor 1:11).
* [5:1–13] Paul first deals with the incestuous union of a man with his stepmother (1Cor 5:1–8) and then attempts to clarify general admonitions he has given about associating with fellow Christians guilty of immorality (1Cor 5:9–13). Each of these three brief paragraphs expresses the same idea: the need of separation between the holy and the unholy.
* [5:2] Inflated with pride: this remark and the reference to boasting in 1Cor 5:6 suggest that they are proud of themselves despite the infection in their midst, tolerating and possibly even approving the situation. The attitude expressed in 1Cor 6:2, 13 may be influencing their thinking in this case.
* [5:5] Deliver this man to Satan: once the sinner is expelled from the church, the sphere of Jesus’ lordship and victory over sin, he will be in the region outside over which Satan is still master. For the destruction of his flesh: the purpose of the penalty is medicinal: through affliction, sin’s grip over him may be destroyed and the path to repentance and reunion laid open. With Paul’s instructions for an excommunication ceremony here, contrast his recommendations for the reconciliation of a sinner in 2Cor 2:5–11.
* [5:6] A little yeast: yeast, which induces fermentation, is a natural symbol for a source of corruption that becomes all-pervasive. The expression is proverbial.
* [5:7–8] In the Jewish calendar, Passover was followed immediately by the festival of Unleavened Bread. In preparation for this feast all traces of old bread were removed from the house, and during the festival only unleavened bread was eaten. The sequence of these two feasts provides Paul with an image of Christian existence: Christ’s death (the true Passover celebration) is followed by the life of the Christian community, marked by newness, purity, and integrity (a perpetual feast of unleavened bread). Paul may have been writing around Passover time (cf. 1Cor 16:5); this is a little Easter homily, the earliest in Christian literature.
* [5:9–13] Paul here corrects a misunderstanding of his earlier directives against associating with immoral fellow Christians. He concedes the impossibility of avoiding contact with sinners in society at large but urges the Corinthians to maintain the inner purity of their own community.
a. [5:1] Lv 18:7–8; 20:11; Dt 27:20.
b. [5:3] Col 2:5.
c. [5:5] 1Tm 1:20.
d. [5:6] Gal 5:9.
e. [5:7] Ex 12:1–13; Dt 16:1–2; 1Pt 1:19.
f. [5:8] Ex 12:15–20; 13:7; Dt 16:3.
g. [5:10] 10:27; Jn 17:15.
h. [5:11] Mt 18:17; 2Thes 3:6, 14; 2Jn 10.
i. [5:13] Dt 13:6; 17:7; 22:24.
FAQs
In 1 Corinthians 5, Paul confronts the church for ignoring an ongoing case of incest by a member of the church. Instead of feeling sad about the sin in which this man was openly indulging, the Corinthians continued to be proud of themselves and judgmental of others.
What is the explanation of 1 Corinthians 1 5? ›
Those who believe in Jesus Christ are those who are 'in Christ. ' Their lives are rooted in God through Christ. Paul reminds his converts of this when he gives thanks that they have been enriched 'in him' (1:5), that is, 'in Christ'. The lives of the Corinthian believers are lived as gift in the rich sphere of Christ.
What does Paul mean in 1 Corinthians 5 5? ›
Here, Paul details a grievous sin: the believers in Corinth have failed to rebuke a member who is committing incest with his father's wife. They must remove him from the church and turn him over to Satan in hopes of his ultimate salvation.
What problems did the Corinthian Church experience in chapter 5? ›
However, the problem in 1 Corinthians 5 is that the Corinthian church had a sexual ethic that was even worse than the world's. Paul call us to “judge” those inside the church and leave the judgment of those who do not know Jesus to God (1 Corinthians 5:12-13).
What is 1 Corinthians telling us? ›
1 Corinthians 1–11.
Paul warns against divisions within the Church and emphasizes the importance of unity among Church members. He warns members against sexual immorality, teaches that the body is a temple for the Holy Spirit, and encourages self-discipline.
Why is leaven bad in the Bible? ›
Usually, leaven or yeast is understood to symbolize something negative. For instance, Jesus warned his disciples to "be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees" by which he meant their teaching that resulted in hypocritical and faith-denying lives (Matthew 16:5-12).
What does it mean that the husband is sanctified by the wife? ›
This was so because the believing mate would affect the unbeliever positively. "Sanctified" (Gr. hagiadzo) means to be set apart for a special purpose. God has set aside the unsaved spouse of a believer for special blessing some of which comes through his or her mate (cf. Exod.
What separate you from the love of God? ›
Rom. 8 Verses 38 to 39
[38] For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, [39] Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
What is the only thing that counts is faith through love? ›
Galatians 5:6-7 New International Version (NIV)
For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.
What does 1 Corinthians 5 verse 10 mean? ›
Specifically, the church must not accept the fellowship of those who persist in blatant, stubborn sin. Non-believers, in contrast, aren't subject to that judgment. Paul insists that Christians must not even share a meal with someone who identifies as Christian but refuses to stop participating in sin.
Paul has been clear: Christian churches must remove from their community those known to be participating in obvious sin. They should not associate with such people if those people claim to be Christians.
What does Paul teach us? ›
Paul believed that this world is temporal and that Jesus is coming back. One day, our King is returning to make all things new, judge every deed, word and thought. Acts teaches that Christ will establish an eternal Kingdom in which He will reign forever and we will worship Him without the presence of sin.
What is the main message of 1 Corinthians 5? ›
We expect the world to boast about sin and be proud of sin, but the church should mourn over sin. We should not gloat or gossip when a believer falls, but we should mourn. In this passage, the Corinthians were boasting that their church was open-minded and tolerant.
What was the sin of the Corinthian church? ›
It seems that the Corinthian church had become notorious for the sexual immorality they permitted. The city of Corinth was infamous for this kind of immorality in the ancient world. Not far from the city, on the highest peak of the nearby mountains, stood the temple of Aphrodite – the Greek goddess of love and beauty.
What was the most significant problem among Corinthian Christians? ›
Among the myriad problems in the Corinthian church were: claims of spiritual superiority over one another, suing one another in public courts, abusing the communal meal, and sexual misbehavior. Paul wrote to demand higher ethical and moral standards.
What is the message that Paul wants the church in Corinth to understand? ›
Paul writes to the church in Corinth to address some big problems: division, sexual misconduct, confusion about food and worship practices, and controversy surrounding Jesus' resurrection. Paul says these issues can be resolved because Jesus is alive.
What is the main purpose of 1 Corinthians? ›
First Corinthians contains a frank discussion of the church and the issues that impacted real people in the first century. The Corinthian church was corroded with sin on a variety of fronts, so Paul provided an important model for how the church should handle the problem of sin in its midst.
Does 1 Corinthians 5 apply to family members? ›
I want to suggest that Paul's instructions in 1 Corinthians 5:11 are not intended to rupture relations within the biological family, though that is precisely what they are intended to do within the spiritual family. Two scriptural lines of thought are relevant.
What is the lesson of 1 Corinthians 5 6 8? ›
In 1 Corinthians 5:6–8, Paul demonstrates how these festivals point forward to Christ: Christ is our ultimate Passover lamb who was sacrificed for us (1 Cor. 5:7). He has sanctified us by his blood, so that the wrath of God passes over us.
