1 Corinthians 6

Paul rebukes the Corinthians for taking one another to court before unbelievers, and reminds them of who they now are in Christ. He then warns against the sins that mark life outside God’s kingdom, and calls them to honor God with their bodies. The body belongs to the Lord and is a temple of the Holy Spirit.

1 Corinthians 6:1

Paul is shocked that believers would ask pagan courts to settle quarrels between Christians. The church is meant to be a family of holy people, and the world’s judges are no place to carry its disputes.

BSA: saints (“holy ones, set apart ones”): Believers belong to God and are set apart, so they should bring their disputes to one another. unrighteous (“unjust, wicked”): Paul sets those outside Christ against the community God has made holy.

1 Corinthians 6:2-3

Paul reminds them of their future role. Believers will share in Christ’s judgment of the world and even of angels. Those who will be given such weight then should be able to settle small matters now.

BSA: trivial (“small, insignificant”): Next to the judgment of the world, ordinary quarrels are small matters.

Greek: κρινοῦσιν (krinousin, G2919) — “will judge.” The word means to sort out and decide a case. It is the same word Paul uses for their present disputes, so the contrast between the two is sharp.

See also: Daniel 7:22; Matthew 19:28.

1 Corinthians 6:4-5

Paul asks whether the church has no one with good judgment. Even the least respected believer would be a better judge than a pagan magistrate. He says this to shame them into seeing how far they have fallen.

BSA: arbitrate (“judge, decide, settle disputes”): Paul wants a wise fellow believer to help settle matters within the family.

1 Corinthians 6:6-7

Suing a brother before unbelievers damages the church’s witness. Paul says that the quarrel itself is already a loss. It would be better to suffer a wrong than to harm Christ’s reputation or a brother’s.

BSA: defeated (“suffering loss, experiencing defeat”): Even winning a suit leaves something lost, because love and unity are lost.

Greek: ἥττημα (hēttēma, G2275) — “defeat, failure, loss.” The word describes a falling short and a loss. Paul says the lawsuit is itself a spiritual failure, whoever wins.

See also: Matthew 5:39-40.

1 Corinthians 6:8

Their conduct is worse than being wronged, because the Corinthians are doing the wronging themselves. They cheat the very people they should love as brothers.

BSA: cheat (“defraud, deprive of rights”): The word means taking what rightly belongs to another, which is a direct harm to a fellow believer.

1 Corinthians 6:9-10

Paul warns that a life ruled by these sins does not belong to God’s kingdom. His list covers sexual sin, false worship and the sins of greed, drink and cruel speech. He warns them not to be fooled into thinking that such a life is compatible with belonging to God.

BSA: inherit (“receive as a gift, obtain”): The kingdom is a gift given to God’s children, and not something earned. deceived (“led astray, misled”): Paul says that false comfort about sin is a real danger.

See also: Galatians 5:19-21; Ephesians 5:5.

1 Corinthians 6:11

Some of the Corinthians had lived like this, but God has changed them. They were washed clean, set apart as his own and counted righteous, through Jesus and by the Spirit. Their past does not define them.

BSA: washed (“cleaned, purified, freed from sin”): Their guilt and defilement have been cleansed away. sanctified (“made holy, set apart”): They now belong to God and are dedicated to him. justified (“declared righteous, made just”): God has accepted them as right with him.

Greek: ἀπελούσασθε (apelousasthe, G628) — “you washed yourselves clean.” The form suggests a once-for-all cleansing that they received. Many take it as a picture of the cleansing God gives at conversion.

See also: Titus 3:5-7.

1 Corinthians 6:12

Paul quotes a Corinthian slogan, which is partly true, since Christians are free. But freedom must be tested by two questions. Does it do good? Does it make me a slave? A freedom that enslaves is no freedom at all.

BSA: mastered (“brought under the power, controlled”): Even a permitted thing becomes a bad master if it controls me. beneficial (“profitable, expedient”): Freedom is to be used for what truly helps, not simply for what is allowed.

See also: 1 Corinthians 10:23.

1 Corinthians 6:13-14

Another slogan says that the body’s appetites are just natural, like hunger. Paul answers that food and stomach are passing, but the body has a lasting purpose. It is for the Lord, and God will raise it, as he raised Jesus.

BSA: destroy (“bring to nothing, make useless”): Food and the stomach belong to this passing life, but the body itself is promised resurrection.

Greek: σῶμα (sōma, G4983) — “body.” Paul often uses this word for the whole person as lived in the world. So the way we use the body is a matter of the whole life, and not only of the flesh.

See also: Romans 8:11.

1 Corinthians 6:15

Believers belong to Christ so completely that their bodies are his limbs. To join such a body to a prostitute would drag Christ himself into the act. Paul’s horror shows how seriously he takes the matter.

BSA: members (“parts, limbs”): Our bodies are living parts of Christ, so what we do with them involves him.

See also: 1 Corinthians 12:27.

1 Corinthians 6:16-17

Sexual union is no passing act. Scripture says it makes two people one flesh. In the same way, whoever is joined to the Lord shares one spirit with him. Our union with Christ is deep, and it excludes rival unions.

BSA: unites (“joins, becomes one with”): The verb means being glued or bound closely to someone.

Greek: κολλώμενος (kollōmenos, G2853) — “joining oneself, clinging.” The word literally means to be glued to something. Paul uses it for both the bond with the prostitute and the closer bond with the Lord.

See also: Genesis 2:24.

1 Corinthians 6:18

Paul’s advice is simple: run away. Sexual sin is different in kind because it involves the body in a unique way. It joins a person to another and sins against his own body, which belongs to Christ.

BSA: Flee (“including adultery and idolatry”): The gloss says the command is broad in scope, covering the whole range of sexual sin.

Greek: φεύγετε (pheugete, G5343) — “flee, run away from.” This is a present command, meaning keep on running. Paul tells them to run from this temptation rather than to argue with it.

See also: Genesis 39:12.

1 Corinthians 6:19

The Christian’s body is God’s temple, because the Holy Spirit lives in it. A temple is holy ground, set apart for God. This gives the body dignity, and it means that it is not a place for casual sin.

BSA: temple (“sacred place of worship, inner sanctuary”): God dwells in the believer much as he once dwelt in the holy place of the sanctuary.

See also: 1 Corinthians 3:16.

1 Corinthians 6:20

We belong to God because he paid for us. The price was the cross. Since he owns us, our bodies are to be used to show his worth. The chapter ends with the gift of belonging to him.

BSA: bought (“purchased, redeemed”): The picture is of a slave bought out of bondage and now belonging to a new master.

Greek: ἠγοράσθητε (ēgorasthēte, G59) — “you were bought (in the marketplace).” The word comes from the marketplace where slaves were sold. Paul is saying that Christ has paid the full price for his people.

See also: 1 Peter 1:18-19; 1 Corinthians 7:23.