1 Corinthians Chapter 5 Breakdown

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 a man has his father’s wife!

Leviticus 18:8 (NIV)

Do not have sexual relations with your father’s wife; that would dishonor your father.

Paul claims there are reports of the Corinthian believers of sexual immorality, but of a kind that not even gentiles take part in. These believers were sleeping with their mothers. This directly violated one of the commands given in the Law of God. Remember back in chapter three, Paul talks about defiling one’s body, which is the Temple of God, this is one of the laws in which believers were breaking which was defiling the temple of God.

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

Leviticus 18: 29

Everyone who does any of these detestable things—such persons must be cut off from their people.

The teachers in Corinth are proud of this deed their people are committing when they should be saddened because of the fact they can be removed from their congregation. These men broke one of Gods laws. Paul not only says these men should not be breaking this law of God, but also discusses the exact punishment for breaking this law.

3 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.

While Paul is not in Corinth, he has judged the men who were breaking this law according to the prescribed judgment found in the word of God.

4 In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together, along with my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.

Now Paul instructs them to gather together as a church body, in the name of Yeshua, for this man’s sin give him over to Satan for the destruction of his flesh. In destroying his flesh, his spirit may be saved at the return of Yeshua.

6 Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump?

The Corinthians thinking this sin is acceptable is nothing considered good. One bad member being not only tolerated but celebrated will cause the rest of the members to become lawless as well.

7 Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us.

Because of this, cut this man off from the congregation. Become a new church without this sinful behavior considering Christ was sacrificed for our sin.

8 Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

Do not go into the feast days as a lawless body, but go into this feast as unleavened or without sin and participate with sincerity and truth.

9 I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people.

Paul has already told them to not associate with sexual 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 out of the world.

It is not the sexually immoral or the other sinners who are not part of the body of believers they are told not to associate with, but rather those within the body of Christ. If you are a believer, you should not be committing these sins.

11 But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner—not even to eat with such a person.

Don’t even eat with a person who calls themselves a believer but continues in these sinful deeds.

12 For what have I to do with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside?

It is not the people of the world we need worry about judging, but those who are of Christ. We need only worry about keeping believers in line with God’s Word.

13 But those who are outside God judges. Therefore “put away from yourselves the evil person.”

God Himself will judge those who are not part of His body. Paul then quotes from a number of places in Torah when he says “put away from yourselves the evil person”.