In chapter five, Paul turns his attention to a serious moral issue within the Corinthian church that had gone unaddressed. A member of the congregation was involved in a sexual relationship considered immoral even by the standards of the surrounding pagan culture, yet instead of responding with grief or corrective action, the church had tolerated it with a sense of pride or indifference. Paul is deeply troubled that such behavior was allowed to continue without discipline.
Paul instructs the church to take decisive action by removing this individual from the community until repentance occurs, using the image of yeast in dough to illustrate how unchecked sin can spread and corrupt the whole congregation. He reminds them of the picture of Christ as the Passover lamb, urging the church to live with sincerity and truth rather than allowing malice and wickedness to remain unaddressed among them.
The chapter closes by clarifying the purpose of church discipline. Paul explains that believers are not called to judge outsiders or those outside the faith, but they do have a responsibility to address serious, unrepentant sin within the church community, so that the integrity and witness of the church can be preserved.
Chapter 5 (BBE)
1 It is said, in fact, that there is among you a sin of the flesh, such as is not seen even among the Gentiles, that one of you has his father’s wife.
2 And in place of feeling sorrow, you are pleased with yourselves, so that he who has done this thing has not been sent away from among you.
3 For I myself, being present in spirit though not in body, have come to a decision about him who has done this thing;
4 In the name of our Lord Jesus, when you have come together with my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus,
5 That this man is to be handed over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may have forgiveness in the day of the Lord Jesus.
6 This pride of yours is not good. Do you not see that a little leaven makes a change in all the mass?
7 Take away, then, the old leaven, so that you may be a new mass, even as you are without leaven. For Christ has been put to death as our Passover.
8 Let us then keep the feast, not with old leaven, and not with the leaven of evil thoughts and acts, but with the unleavened bread of true thoughts and right feelings.
9 In my letter I said to you that you were not to keep company with those who go after the desires of the flesh;
10 But I had not in mind the sinners who are outside the church, or those who have a desire for and take the property of others, or those who give worship to images; for it is not possible to keep away from such people without going out of the world completely:
11 But the sense of my letter was that if a brother had the name of being one who went after the desires of the flesh, or had the desire for other people’s property, or was in the way of using violent language, or being the worse for drink, or took by force what was not his, you might not keep company with such a one, or take food with him.
12 For it is no business of mine to be judging those who are outside; but it is yours to be judging those who are among you;
13 As for those who are outside, God is their judge. So put away the evil man from among you.
Important Verses
1 Corinthians 5:1 Paul identifies a specific case of sexual immorality within the church that the congregation had failed to address, setting up the central concern of the chapter.
1 Corinthians 5:6 He warns that boasting about tolerating sin is inappropriate, comparing sin’s influence to yeast that spreads through the whole batch of dough if left unchecked.
1 Corinthians 5:7 Paul calls the church to remove the old, corrupting influence, referencing Christ as the Passover lamb who calls believers to a new and pure way of living.
1 Corinthians 5:11 He clarifies that believers should not associate closely with someone claiming to be a believer while living in open, unrepentant sin, emphasizing accountability within the church.
1 Corinthians 5:13 The chapter ends with the reminder that judging those outside the church is not the believers’ responsibility, but they are called to address sin within their own community.
