1 Corinthians — Chapter 6
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1Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law before the unjust, and not before the saints?
2Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?
3Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?
4If then ye have judgments of things pertaining to this life, set them to judge who are least esteemed in the church.
5I speak to your shame. Is it so, that there is not a wise man among you? no, not one that shall be able to judge between his brethren?
6But brother goeth to law with brother, and that before the unbelievers.
7Now therefore there is utterly a fault among you, because ye go to law one with another. Why do ye not rather take wrong? why do ye not rather suffer yourselves to be defrauded?
8Nay, ye do wrong, and defraud, and that your brethren.
9Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,
10Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
11And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.
12All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.
13Meats for the belly, and the belly for meats: but God shall destroy both it and them. Now the body is not for fornication, but for the Lord; and the Lord for the body.
14And God hath both raised up the Lord, and will also raise up us by his own power.
15Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid.
16What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh.
17But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit.
18Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.
19What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
20For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.
1Dare any of you, having a matter against his neighbor, go to law before the unrighteous, and not before the saints?
2Or know ye not that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world is judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?
3Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more, things that pertain to this life?
4If then ye have to judge things pertaining to this life, do ye set them to judge who are of no account in the church?
5I say [this] to move you to shame. What, cannot there be [found] among you one wise man who shall be able to decide between his brethren,
6but brother goeth to law with brother, and that before unbelievers?
7Nay, already it is altogether a defect in you, that ye have lawsuits one with another. Why not rather take wrong? why not rather be defrauded?
8Nay, but ye yourselves do wrong, and defraud, and that [your] brethren.
9Or know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with men,
10nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
11And such were some of you: but ye were washed, but ye were sanctified, but ye were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and in the Spirit of our God.
12All things are lawful for me; but not all things are expedient. All things are lawful for me; but I will not be brought under the power of any.
13Meats for the belly, and the belly for meats: but God shall bring to nought both it and them. But the body is not for fornication, but for the Lord; and the Lord for the body:
14and God both raised the Lord, and will raise up as through his power.
15Know ye not that your bodies are members of Christ? shall I then take away the members of Christ, and make them members of a harlot? God forbid.
16Or know ye not that he that is joined to a harlot is one body? for, The twain, saith he, shall become one flesh.
17But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit.
18Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.
19Or know ye not that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit which is in you, which ye have from God? and ye are not your own;
20for ye were bought with a price: glorify God therefore in your body.
1When any of you has a legal dispute with another, does he dare go to court before the unrighteous rather than before the saints?
2Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world is to be judged by you, are you not competent to settle trivial suits?
3Do you not know that we will judge angels? Why not ordinary matters!
4So if you have ordinary lawsuits, do you appoint as judges those who have no standing in the church?
5I say this to your shame! Is there no one among you wise enough to settle disputes between fellow Christians?
6Instead, does a Christian sue a Christian, and do this before unbelievers?
7The fact that you have lawsuits among yourselves demonstrates that you have already been defeated. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated?
8But you yourselves wrong and cheat, and you do this to your brothers and sisters!
9Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived! The sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, passive homosexual partners, practicing homosexuals,
10thieves, the greedy, drunkards, the verbally abusive, and swindlers will not inherit the kingdom of God.
11Some of you once lived this way. 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“All things are lawful for me”—but not everything is beneficial. “All things are lawful for me”—but I will not be controlled by anything.
13“Food is for the stomach and the stomach is for food, but God will do away with both.” The body is not for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body.
14Now God indeed raised the Lord and he will raise us by his power.
15Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Should I take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? Never!
16Or do you not know that anyone who is united with a prostitute is one body with her? For it is said, “The two will become one flesh.”
17But the one united with the Lord is one spirit with him.
18Flee sexual immorality! “Every sin a person commits is outside of the body”—but the immoral person sins against his own body.
19Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?
20For you were bought at a price. Therefore glorify God with your body.
1Dare any of you, having a matter against his neighbor, go to law before the unrighteous, and not before the saints?
2Don’t you know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world is judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters?
3Don’t you know that we will judge angels? How much more, things that pertain to this life?
4If then, you have to judge things pertaining to this life, do you set them to judge who are of no account in the assembly?
5I say this to move you to shame. Isn’t there even one wise man among you who would be able to decide between his brothers?
6But brother goes to law with brother, and that before unbelievers!
7Therefore it is already altogether a defect in you, that you have lawsuits one with another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded?
8No, but you yourselves do wrong, and defraud, and that against your brothers.
9Or don’t you know that the unrighteous will not inherit God’s Kingdom? Don’t be deceived. Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor male prostitutes, nor homosexuals,
10nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor slanderers, nor extortionists, will inherit God’s Kingdom.
11Such were some of you, but you were washed. But you were sanctified. But you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and in the Spirit of our God.
12“All things are lawful for me,” but not all things are expedient. “All things are lawful for me,” but I will not be brought under the power of anything.
13“Foods for the belly, and the belly for foods,” but God will bring to nothing both it and them. But the body is not for sexual immorality, but for the Lord; and the Lord for the body.
14Now God raised up the Lord, and will also raise us up by his power.
15Don’t you know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them members of a prostitute? May it never be!
16Or don’t you know that he who is joined to a prostitute is one body? For, “The two”, he says, “will become one flesh.”
17But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit.
18Flee sexual immorality! “Every sin that a man does is outside the body,” but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body.
19Or don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own,
20for you were bought with a price. Therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.
Summary
Paul rebukes believers for suing each other in pagan courts, warns that the unrighteous will not inherit God's kingdom, and declares the body is a temple of the Holy Spirit — "you are not your own, for you were bought with a price."
Authorship & Background
Map & Geography
- No specific geographic locations are referenced in this chapter.
Commentary
- Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Guzik examines the lawsuits, the vice list, "such were some of you," the body as temple, and the command to flee fornication.
- Charles Spurgeon: Sermon: "Such Were Some of You" on v.11 (MTP Vol. 10, No. 648) "Such WERE some of you — past tense. Were. Not are. The Gospel changes people. Fornicators become pure. Drunkards become sober. Thieves become generous. Idolaters become worshippers. That is the power of 'washed, sanctified, justified.' If the Gospel cannot change you, it is not the Gospel." Sermon: "The Body as Temple" on vv.19-20 (MTP Vol. 22, No. 1381) "Your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost — God lives in you. Would you take a temple and use it for filth? Would you drag God's dwelling place through the mud? That is what sexual sin does — it defiles the temple. Glorify God in your body — it is not yours."
Videos
The Bible Project — 1 Corinthians Overview
Animated overview of the book's literary structure, themes, and theological message. Excellent visual introduction. (Approx. 8 minutes)
Reflection
- 1. "Why do ye not rather take wrong?" (v.7). Paul says it's better to be cheated than to damage the church's witness through lawsuits. Where might you need to absorb a wrong rather than fight for your rights — for the sake of the Gospel?
- 2. "Such were some of you" (v.11). Whatever your past — whatever sins defined you — the Gospel says "WERE." Past tense. You are washed, sanctified, justified. Are you living in your new identity or still identifying with your old one?
- 3. "Flee fornication" (v.18). Not "resist" — FLEE. Joseph fled Potiphar's wife (Genesis 39). The strategy for sexual temptation is not willpower but distance. What do you need to flee from? What boundaries do you need?
- 4. "Your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost... ye are bought with a price" (vv.19-20). Your body belongs to God — purchased by Christ's blood. How does knowing your body is God's property change how you treat it — what you put in it, what you do with it, where you take it?
- 5. Paul says believers will "judge the world" and "judge angels" (vv.2-3). If you're qualified for that, surely you can handle disputes among yourselves. How does your future role affect how you view present conflicts?
- 6. The vice list (vv.9-10) includes sins that are common and culturally accepted today. Paul says those who practice these things "shall not inherit the kingdom." How do you hold this truth with both conviction and compassion?
- 7. "All things are lawful... but I will not be brought under the power of any" (v.12). Freedom means nothing masters you. What has power over you — a substance, a habit, a screen, a relationship? If it masters you, you're not free.
- 8. Sexual sin is unique — "he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body" (v.18). Why is sexual sin uniquely destructive? How does the "one flesh" principle (v.16) explain why sexual sin damages so deeply?
- 9. "Glorify God in your body" (v.20). Your body is for God's glory — not just your spirit, not just your mind — your BODY. What does it look like to glorify God with your physical body today?