1 Corinthians6

Paul rebukes the Corinthian believers for taking their disputes to secular courts, reminding them that saints will judge the world and should be able to resolve their own matters. He warns that the unrighteous, including fornicators and idolaters, will not inherit the kingdom of God, but reminds them of their cleansing in Christ. The apostle then emphasizes that believers' bodies are members of Christ and temples of the Holy Ghost, urging them to flee fornication and glorify God with their bodies, for they are bought with a price.

Believers Should Not Sue One Another

1
How dare one of you with a complaint against another go to court before pagan judges and not before God’s people? ​
2
Don’t you know that God’s people are going to judge the universe? If you are going to judge the universe, are you incompetent to judge these minor matters? ​
3
Don’t you know that we will judge angels, not to mention affairs of everyday life? ​
4
So if you require judgments about matters of everyday life, why do you put them in front of men who have no standing in the Messianic Community? ​
5
I say, shame on you! Can it be that there isn’t one person among you wise enough to be able to settle a dispute between brothers?
6
Instead, a brother brings a lawsuit against another brother, and that before unbelievers!
7
Actually, if you are bringing lawsuits against each other, it is already a defeat for you. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated? ​
8
Instead, you yourselves wrong and cheat; and you do it to your own brothers!

The Unrighteous Will Not Inherit the Kingdom

9
Don’t you know that unrighteous people will have no share in the Kingdom of God? Don’t delude yourselves — people who engage in sex before marriage, who worship idols, who engage in sex after marriage with someone other than their spouse, who engage in active or passive homosexuality, ​
10
who steal, who are greedy, who get drunk, who assail people with contemptuous language, who rob — none of them will share in the Kingdom of God. ​
11
Some of you used to do these things. But you have cleansed yourselves, you have been set apart for God, you have come to be counted righteous through the power of the Lord Yeshua the Messiah and the Spirit of our God. ​

Sexual Immorality Defiles the Body

12
You say, “For me, everything is permitted”? Maybe, but not everything is helpful. “For me, everything is permitted”? Maybe, but as far as I am concerned, I am not going to let anything gain control over me. ​
13
“Food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food”? Maybe, but God will put an end to both of them. Anyhow, the body is not meant for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord is for the body. ​
14
God raised up the Lord, and he will raise us up too by his power. ​
15
Don’t you know that your bodies are parts of the Messiah? So, am I to take parts of the Messiah and make them parts of a prostitute? Heaven forbid! ​
16
Don’t you know that a man who joins himself to a prostitute becomes physically one with her? For the Tanakh says, “The two will become one flesh”; ​
17
but the person who is joined to the Lord is one spirit. ​
18
Run from sexual immorality! Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the fornicator sins against his own body. ​
19
Or don’t you know that your body is a temple for the Ruach HaKodesh who lives inside you, whom you received from God? The fact is, you don’t belong to yourselves; ​
20
for you were bought at a price. So use your bodies to glorify God. ​

Study Notes for 1 Corinthians 6

Verse 1

Paul addresses the scandal of Christians using pagan Roman courts ('the unjust') to settle financial and personal disputes, rather than seeking resolution within the community of believers ('the saints').

Verse 2

The idea that believers will 'judge the world' (perhaps participating in the final judgment alongside Christ) establishes the spiritual competence and authority of the church to handle internal conflicts.

Verse 3

Judging angels is an even higher spiritual task, further emphasizing the shamefulness (v. 5) of the Corinthians’ inability to resolve simple earthly matters.

Verse 4

This verse is likely sarcastic. Paul is highlighting the absurdity that they are taking their disputes to those 'least esteemed' (unbelieving judges) rather than appointing even the least experienced believer to mediate.

Verse 7

Paul introduces the higher ethical standard of self-sacrifice. It is a fundamental 'fault' (moral failure) to sue a fellow believer; it is better to suffer financial loss or injustice than to damage the reputation of the church.

Verse 9

Paul transitions from relational ethics (lawsuits) to personal ethics (sexual sin) by providing a vice list, characteristic of Hellenistic ethical teaching, defining those who stand outside the realm of God’s redemptive grace.

Verse 10

The list includes various forms of sin—sexual, idolatrous, and economic—demonstrating that persistent patterns of unrighteousness in any area disqualify one from inheriting God’s kingdom.

Verse 11

This powerful statement contrasts the Corinthians’ sinful past ('such were some of you') with their present status achieved through Christ: they are 'washed' (cleansed), 'sanctified' (set apart), and 'justified' (declared righteous).

Verse 12

Paul addresses a Corinthian slogan used to justify license: 'All things are lawful unto me.' He accepts the premise of freedom but limits it with two criteria: spiritual profitability ('expedient') and avoiding enslavement ('brought under the power of any').

Verse 13

The Corinthians tried to equate sex with food, arguing both are temporary and morally neutral. Paul rejects this, asserting that the body is not temporary but destined for the Lord and resurrection, giving it profound moral significance.

Verse 14

The bodily resurrection of Christ serves as the guarantee and pattern for the future resurrection of believers, reinforcing the importance of bodily sanctity in the present life.

Verse 15

Because believers’ bodies are intrinsically linked to Christ ('members of Christ'), sexual union with a prostitute is a profound spiritual desecration, treating Christ’s body parts as common or unholy.

Verse 16

Paul quotes Genesis 2:24 ('two shall be one flesh') to show that sexual union is never merely physical; it creates a deep, binding, and relational unity, making fornication a serious violation of self and God.

Verse 17

In contrast to the physical union with a prostitute, the believer is joined to the Lord in a spiritual union, underscoring the incompatibility of engaging in both relationships.

Verse 18

Paul uniquely isolates sexual sin ('flee fornication'). While other sins are often external actions (e.g., theft, slander), fornication is described as a sin committed 'against his own body,' violating the sacred trust of the Spirit’s indwelling (v. 19).

Verse 19

This verse provides the ultimate theological basis for purity: the body is not personal property but the sacred dwelling place ('temple') of the Holy Spirit, placed there by God.

Verse 20

The phrase 'bought with a price' refers to the redemption secured by Christ’s death. Since believers are owned by God, their bodies and spirits must be used to glorify Him, fulfilling the purpose of their salvation.

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