1 Corinthians 5
Big idea: A case of incest the church not only tolerates but boasts over. Paul renders the verdict the community should have reached — remove the man, for his ultimate salvation — then generalizes: sin spreads like yeast, and a Passover people must be an unleavened people. Finally he corrects a misreading of his earlier letter: separation applies to unrepentant insiders, not to outsiders, who are God's to judge.
The first application of ch. 4's closing question (rod or gentleness). The 'judge insiders, not outsiders' principle sets up ch. 6's double scandal — suing insiders before outsider judges.
5:1–5 — The case and the verdict
The report: a man has his father's wife — immorality beyond even pagan tolerance. Worse than the sin is the community's posture: arrogance where there should be mourning and removal. Paul, present in spirit, has already judged: assembled in the Lord's name and power, hand the man over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.
1 It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and such sexual immorality as is not even named among the Gentiles, that one has his father’s wife. 2 You are arrogant, and didn’t mourn instead, that he who had done this deed might be removed from among you. 3 For I most certainly, as being absent in body but present in spirit, have already, as though I were present, judged him who has done this thing. 4 In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together with my spirit with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, 5 you are to deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.
5:6–8 — Purge the yeast
Why one case demands action: yeast leavens the whole lump. The command is to become what they are — purge the old yeast, since 'you are unleavened' already, because Christ our Passover has been sacrificed. So keep the feast: not malice and wickedness but sincerity and truth.
6 Your boasting is not good. Don’t you know that a little yeast leavens the whole lump? 7 Purge out the old yeast, that you may be a new lump, even as you are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, has been sacrificed in our place. 8 Therefore let’s keep the feast, not with old yeast, neither with the yeast of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
5:9–13 — Inside, not outside
Correcting a misread earlier letter: 'don't associate with the immoral' never meant withdrawing from the world's sinners — that would require leaving the world. It means not keeping company, not even eating, with a so-called brother who persists in immorality, greed, idolatry, slander, drunkenness, or extortion. The church judges its inside; God judges the outside. Verdict, from Deuteronomy: put away the wicked man from among yourselves.
9 I wrote to you in my letter to have no company with sexual sinners; 10 yet not at all meaning with the sexual sinners of this world, or with the covetous and extortionists, or with idolaters, for then you would have to leave the world. 11 But as it is, I wrote to you not to associate with anyone who is called a brother who is a sexual sinner, or covetous, or an idolater, or a slanderer, or a drunkard, or an extortionist. Don’t even eat with such a person. 12 For what do I have to do with also judging those who are outside? Don’t you judge those who are within? 13 But those who are outside, God judges. “Put away the wicked man from among yourselves.”
Scripture text: World English Bible (public domain).
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