Immorality Defiles the Church

It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and such sexual immorality as is not even [a]named among the Gentiles—that a man has his father’s (A)wife! (B)And you are [b]puffed up, and have not rather (C)mourned, that he who has done this deed might be taken away from among you. (D)For I indeed, as absent in body but present in spirit, have already judged (as though I were present) him who has so done this deed. In the (E)name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together, along with my spirit, (F)with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, (G)deliver such a one to (H)Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord [c]Jesus.

(I)Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that (J)a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Therefore [d]purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed (K)Christ, our (L)Passover, was sacrificed [e]for us. Therefore (M)let us keep the feast, (N)not with old leaven, nor (O)with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

Immorality Must Be Judged

I wrote to you in my epistle (P)not to [f]keep company with sexually immoral people. 10 Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go (Q)out of the world. 11 But now I have written to you not to keep company (R)with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner—(S)not even to eat with such a person.

12 For what have I to do with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? 13 But those who are outside God judges. Therefore (T)“put away from yourselves the evil person.”

Footnotes

  1. 1 Corinthians 5:1 NU omits named
  2. 1 Corinthians 5:2 arrogant
  3. 1 Corinthians 5:5 NU omits Jesus
  4. 1 Corinthians 5:7 clean out
  5. 1 Corinthians 5:7 NU omits for us
  6. 1 Corinthians 5:9 associate

Paul Condemns Spiritual Pride

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

Even though I am not with you in person, I am with you in the Spirit.[b] And as though I were there, I have already passed judgment on this man in the name of the Lord Jesus. You must call a meeting of the church.[c] I will be present with you in spirit, and so will the power of our Lord Jesus. Then you must throw this man out and hand him over to Satan so that his sinful nature will be destroyed[d] and he himself[e] will be saved on the day the Lord[f] returns.

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? 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.[g] So let us celebrate the festival, not with the old bread[h] of wickedness and evil, but with the new bread[i] of sincerity and truth.

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[j] 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.”[k]

Footnotes

  1. 5:1 Greek his father’s wife.
  2. 5:3 Or in spirit.
  3. 5:4 Or In the name of the Lord Jesus, you must call a meeting of the church.
  4. 5:5a Or so that his body will be destroyed; Greek reads for the destruction of the flesh.
  5. 5:5b Greek and the spirit.
  6. 5:5c Other manuscripts read the Lord Jesus; still others read our Lord Jesus Christ.
  7. 5:7 Greek has been sacrificed.
  8. 5:8a Greek not with old leaven.
  9. 5:8b Greek but with unleavened [bread].
  10. 5:11 Greek a brother.
  11. 5:13 Deut 17:7.