1 Corinthians 5:1-13 Lesson 319

1 Corinthians 5:1-13
Lesson 319

Read both the "King James Bible" and the "New Living Translation."

In this lesson:

Immorality in the church (5:1-3).
Paul's advice (5:4-5).

From this passage through verse 6:20 (lesson 320), immorality,
fornication, infighting, and lawsuits plague the church in Corinth.

What is -

Passover -
Passover is the annual Jewish holiday commemorating the fearsome miracle that convinced the Egyptians to let their Israelite slaves go free after four hundred years of bondage. God sent "the destroyer" (Exodus 12:23) to punish the Egyptians for not freeing their slaves. The destroyer passed harmlessly over the homes of the enslaved Israelites who marked their houses with the blood of a sacrificial lamb but killed the firstborn of all Egyptians, "man and beast" (Exodus 12:12-14). This is seen as a foreshadowing of the sacrificial death of Jesus on the cross. Like the lamb's blood being shed to save the Israelites, Jesus' blood was shed to save us. The following day, the Israelites were given their freedom and followed Moses to the promised land. To begin each Passover holiday, a sacrificial lamb is killed and roasted without breaking any of its bones (Exodus 12:46; Numbers 9:12). The Passover feast is then prepared with bitter herbs (representing the bitterness of slavery) and sweet spices (representing the sweetness of freedom) and followed by the Feast of the Unleavened Bread (Exodus 23:15; Leviticus 23:5-8). The two feasts eventually became one holiday (Mark 14:1), beginning on the fourteenth day of the seventh month (Abib) and lasting one week as prescribed in Deuteronomy 16:1-3. Jewish men were required to "appear before the Lord" (Exodus 23:17) on Passover, so thousands of Jews came to Jerusalem each year to celebrate their liberation and offer a religious sacrifice. Passover is sometimes called simply the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Exodus 23:15; Mark 14:1; Luke 22:1). An interesting point is that Jesus was sacrificed on the cross the same day the Passover lambs were sacrificed in the Temple. Like the sacrificial lambs, not a bone in Jesus' body was broken (John 19:36). To learn more about the Passover and its importance, read Exodus 12:1-30; 12:43-50;
13:1-22; and Deuteronomy 16:1-8.

Study Tip:

Be wary of all interpretations of the Bible, including these lessons.
Let God speak to you, then form your own conclusions.

The First Epistle of Paul The Apostle To The Corinthians

The King James Bible

1 Corinthians 5:1-13
Immorality in the church

1 It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father's wife.

2 And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you.

3 For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present, concerning him that hath so done this deed,

4 In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ,

5 To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.

6 Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?

7 Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:

8 Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

9 I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators:

10 Yet not altogether with the fornicators of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters; for then must ye needs go out of the world.

11 But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolator, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.

12 For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? do not ye judge them that are within?

13 But them that are without God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person.

Margin notes:

"Have his father's wife." (5:1) - One of Corinth's church members was fornicating with his stepmother. The church was aware of the situation and knew better. For over 1400 years, Leviticus 18:8 and Deuteronomy 22:30 warned against this sin.

"Ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned." (5:2) - "You are proud, and have not mourned." The Corinthians had not removed the man who slept with his stepmother from the church. Instead, they were proud of how tolerant and accepting they were. But allowing sin to flourish in a church is destructive.

"He that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you." (5:2) - "The man who's done this should be removed (from the church)."

"For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already." (5:3) - Although Paul was not in Corinth, he had already judged this man.

"Deliver such an one unto Satan." (5:5) - Paul is not threatening eternal damnation; only God has that power. Rather, he is advising that such a blatant sinner be removed from the church to encourage their repentance. For example, in 1 Timothy 1:20, Paul "delivered" Alexander and Hymeneus to Satan until they learned "not to blaspheme." Read Matthew 18:15-18 to learn what Jesus taught about wayward church members.

"Your glorying is not good." (5:6) - "Your bragging is not good." The Corinth church boasted how tolerant they were that one of their own lived with his father's wife.

"Leaven." (5:6) - When baking, a yeast or other fermenting agent is added to the dough to make it rise. A small piece of dough from each baking session was put aside to make the next baking rise. Paul is using the analogy of leaven to show how just one sinner (leaven) can affect an entire church (lump). See Matthew 16:5-12 for Jesus' thoughts on the subject and Galatians 5:7-10 to read how Paul explained it to the Galatians.

"Purge out therefore the old leaven." (5:7) - "Therefore, clean out the old leaven." This is a reference to old yeast being used in a new baking to make the dough rise. Just as a small amount of old leaven will cause bread to rise, a few sinners can corrupt a church. Paul is advising them to remove the man living in sin with his stepmother.

"For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us." (5:7) - This means that Christ died for us.

"Sincerity and truth." (5:8) - Means purity of motive.

"I wrote unto you in an epistle." (5:9) - Paul warned the Corinthians against consorting with unrepentant sinners in an earlier, missing epistle (called the lost letter). Some Bible scholars believe that the first letter was fused into 2 Corinthians.  Corinth was "sin city." It's reputation was so low, that throughout the Roman Empire anyone living in sin was said to be "Corinthianized." But remember, sinners should not be treated as enemies but be admonished as brothers until they turn their lives around (2 Thessalonians 3:14-15).

"Covetous." (5:10) - Means greedy, gluttonous, insatiable, having a strong desire to possess things that belong to somebody else.

"Idolaters." (5:10) - People who worship idols.

"Railer." (5:11) - One who slanders. Similar lists of sinful behavior can be found in 1 Corinthians 6:9, Romans 1:28-32, Romans 13:13, Galatians 5:19-21, Ephesians 5:5, Colossians 3:5, 1 Timothy 1:10, and 2 Timothy 3:2.

"Put away from among yourselves that wicked person." (5:13) - Paraphrased from Deuteronomy 19:19.

New Living Translation

1 Corinthians 5:1-13
Paul Condemns Spiritual Pride

1 I can hardly believe the report about the sexual immorality going on among you-something that even pagans don't do. I am told that a man in your church is living in sin with his stepmother.

2 You are so proud of yourselves, but you should be mourning in sorrow and shame. And you should remove this man from your fellowship.

3 Even though I am not with you in person, I am with you in the Spirit. And as though I were there, I have already passed judgment on this man

4 in the name of the Lord Jesus. You must call a meeting of the church. I will be present with you in spirit, and so will the power of our Lord Jesus.

5 Then you must throw this man out and hand him over to Satan so that his sinful nature will be destroyed and he himself will be saved on the day the Lord returns.

6 Your boasting about this is terrible. Don't you realize that this sin is like a little yeast that spreads through the whole batch of dough?

7 Get rid of the old "yeast" by removing this wicked person from among you. Then you will be like a fresh batch of dough made without yeast, which is what you really are. Christ, our Passover Lamb, has been sacrificed for us.

8 So let us celebrate the festival, not with the old bread of wickedness and evil, but with the new bread of sincerity and truth.

9 When I wrote to you before, I told you not to associate with people who indulge in sexual sin.

10 But I wasn't talking about unbelievers who indulge in sexual sin, or are greedy, or cheat people, or worship idols. You would have to leave this world to avoid people like that.

11 I meant that you are not to associate with anyone who claims to be a believer yet indulges in sexual sin, or is greedy, or worships idols, or is abusive, or is a drunkard, or cheats people. Don't even eat with such people.

12 It isn't my responsibility to judge outsiders, but it certainly is your responsibility to judge those inside the church who are sinning.

13 God will judge those on the outside; but as the Scriptures say, "You must remove the evil person from among you."

This second Bible text from the "New Living Translation" (Tyndale House, Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois) is a paraphrase and not an accurate word for word translation of the Bible. However, it is a helpful tool when read with the "King James Version."

Today's Question:

1. Why weren't people in Corinth church concerned that one of their members was living with his stepmother? (5:1-2)

Have questions? I'll do my best to answer them.

Answer: (Do you agree?)

1. Church members were not concerned because of confusion over what was expected of them as Christians. Some believed that liberty in Christ meant they were no longer bound by laws.  Because they excepted Christ as their Messiah and were forgiven of their sins, some lowered their resistance to sin.  Their spiritual pride told them that they were saved and therefore had a license to do whatever they pleased. Blatant, unrepentant sin corrodes the spirit and divides the church.


Application thought for the day:

Are you guilty of any of the sins Paul outlines in verse 5:11?
Each of us has evil desires and vulnerabilities.
Tell God you are sorry and ask His forgiveness.

Promise God (and yourself) that you will fight
temptation and pray for His divine guidance and strength.

Thanks to the writings and commentary of John Wesley and Adam Clarke. Also, "The Layman's Bible Study Notebook" by Irving Jensen published by Harvest House Publishing, Irvine, California; the "Life Change Series" published by NavPress books, Colorado Springs, Colorado; the "Life Application Study Bible" published by Tyndale House Publishing, Carol Stream, Illinois; the "Quest Study Bible" published by The Zondervan Corporation, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "Robertson's New Testament Word Studies;" "The MacArthur Bible Commentary" by John MacArthur published by Thomas Nelson, Nashville, Tennessee; "Wisdom of the Bible" CD by Topics Entertainment, Inc., Renton, Washington for their inspiring pictures; "My utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers published by Barbour Publishing, Inc., Uhrichsville, Ohio; The "Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge" by Reuben Archer Torrey; "Hope For Each Day" by Billy Graham published by J. Countryman, a division of Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, Tennessee; "Easton's Bible Dictionary" by Matthew George Easton; "Unger's Bible Dictionary" by Merrill F. Unger, published by Moody Press, Chicago, Illinois; "Halley's Bible Handbook" by Henry H. Halley, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "The Everyday Bible" published by World Wide Publications, Minneapolis, Minnesota; "The Living New Testament" published by Tyndale house; "The New Living Translation" published by Tyndale House; "The New Testament" translated from the Latin Vulgate, published by Guild Press, New York, New York; BibleGateway.com for all their wonderful links; and of course the "King James Bible." All were critical in putting these lessons together.
© 2022 evolke

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