1 Corinthians 5
1 Sexual exploitationa is actually heard of among you! And it’s a kind of sexual exploitation that isn’t even done among other people groups:b Someone havingc his father’s wife. 2 You’re even proud of it!d Instead, shouldn’t you have been beyond grieved so that the one who practiced this act would be removed from among you?e 3 Even though I’m physically absent, I’m present in the Life-breath,f and I’ve already assessedg the person who did this the same as if I were present. 4 When you gather with each other as representatives ofh our Lord—along with me, the power of the Life-breath of our Lord Jesus is also with you— 5 to hand over this person to the Adversaryi for the destructionj of natural impulsesk so that the Life-breath will be restoredl on the Day of the Lord.m 6 Your self-congratulationn about ito isn’t admirable.p Don’t you realize a little yeast spreads through the whole batch of dough? 7 Clean out the old yeast so that you can be a fresh batch of dough, since you are unleavened.q You see, Christ was sacrificed as our Passover lamb.r 8 So then, may we celebrate the festival not with old yeast, or harmfuls and oppressivet yeast, but rather with genuine and true unleavened bread.
9 I wrote to you in my letter not to be involvedu with sexually exploitative people.v 10 I wasn’t at all referring to the sexually exploitative people of this world systemw (or those who are greedy and never satisfiedx or who idolize material thingsy) because then you would be obligated to get out of the world system. 11 Rather, I’m specifically writing to you not to be involved with someone who calls themselves a member of the Family if they are sexually exploitative, greedy, idolize material things, are verbally abusive, are habitually drunk, or can never be satisfied;z don’t even share a meal with such a person. 12 You see, what right do I have to assessaa someone outside the community?bb Don’t you assesscc those who are within the community? 13 God will assessdd those outside; remove the harmful personee from among you.ff
FOOTNOTES:
a Traditionally, ‘sexual immorality.’ In literature outside of Jewish and Christian writings, it was used exclusively for commercial sex trade. Porneia shares a root with perneimi, which means ‘to sell.’ Porne is the word for a female sex worker, which in the cultural context would always have been someone exploited and failed by the patriarchal society. Jewish and Christian writers seem to expand the meaning to refer to approaches to sex that objectify and exploit people in a variety of ways.
b Traditionally, ‘Gentiles.’ The word ethnoi literally means ‘nations’ (like ‘nationalities’ not ‘countries’) or ‘people groups’ and is where the English word ‘ethnicity’ comes from. It is usually—but not always—used in the Bible to refer to people groups other than the one to which the speaker belongs. Typically, it refers to people who are not Jewish; however, in this context the audience is largely not Jewish, so it is being used to refer to people who do not follow either Christ or Torah.
c The word ‘have’ here is ambiguous without context. It could refer to having sex with or to marrying. It’s not clear whether the father is alive or if this is his widow. This situation could look like a number of scenarios: 1) someone is having sex with their father’s wife, 2) someone took in their father’s widow and is having sex with her, or 3) someone married their father’s widow. The reason the last one would be exploitation is that they could easily have chosen to care for the widow without needing to marry and have sex with her. Based on the usage of the same wording in 1 Corinthians 7:2 where it is clearer that it is referring to sex, it is likely to mean the same here. In any case, the person is using this woman for her body.
d Or ‘puffed up’ or ‘self-inflated’
e Reference to Deuteronomy 22:30
f Or ‘present in spirit’
g Traditionally, ‘judged’
h Literally, ‘in the name of’
i The word satanas was not a name. It meant ‘adversary’ in the sense of prosecutor or opponent. It carries the meaning of someone who is against another, trying to sabotage their efforts and their wellbeing, and against someone as a plaintiff in court. It is an enemy, but also someone accusing another of wrongdoing, whether truly or falsely. It’s not just about pointing out something bad, but actively moving to cause adversity for someone else. The concept of Ha Shatan in the Hebrew Bible was not the evil archnemesis of God that Christian teaching has turned it into. It was described as a member of the council of spiritual beings whose role was to test people to see how genuine they were. The clearest example of this is in the book of Job.
j Or ‘death’ or ‘ruin’
k Traditionally, ‘flesh.’ The Greek sarx literally means the stuff bodies are made of but is often used metaphorically for other things, such as being human, in reference to family or ethnic connection, impulses grounded in self-preservation instinct and shortsighted gain, and often, instincts to behave with aggression and domination. See the examples of these impulses in verse 12.
l Traditionally, ‘save.’ This word can be translated a number of ways, with all of them about taking action to create or protect wellbeing. Options include, ‘liberate,’ ‘restore,’ ‘heal,’ ‘protect,’ ‘rescue,’ and others. The New Testament’s thematic focus is on restoring the people to their calling to represent God and live with love and justice, bringing them back to those things from where they’ve wandered in other directions, liberating them from the powers of the world and death.
m See 1 Corinthians 1:8, 3:13, and 4:3.
n Traditionally, ‘boasting’
o The words “about it” are added for clarity.
p Traditionally, ‘good.’ Like the word ‘good’ in English, the word kalos in Greek has a number of uses, though in the Bible, they are typically about something along the lines of being honorable, admirable, beautiful or something that is in healthy or undamaged condition.
q This is a reference to the unleavened bread made annually at Passover as a sign of God’s faithfulness. See Exodus 12:14-20
r See Exodus 12:21-27
s Traditionally, ‘malice’ or ‘wickedness.’ The word kakos does not have to do with being ‘bad’ in the sense of breaking the rules or being noncompliant to an authority figure. It has to do with causing harm to others, often with a sense of malice or hostility.
t Traditionally, ‘wickedness’ or ‘evil.’ The Greek term poneros, includes a range of meanings beyond moral depravity, including harm, decay, and burden. Rooted in ponos—which conveys toil, suffering, and hardship—poneros emphasizes oppressive, harmful conditions. Rather than simply moral "evil," this term often indicates harmful external impacts, focusing on social and personal harm rather than abstract judgment.
u The Greek word sunanamígnumi literally means "to mix together" or "to associate closely." The word implies a deliberate and ongoing closeness or involvement, rather than incidental or superficial interaction.
v Traditionally, ‘sexually immoral people’ or ‘fornicators.’ In literature outside of Jewish and Christian writings, it was used exclusively for commercial sex trade. Porneia shares a root with perneimi, which means ‘to sell.’ Porne is the word for a female sex worker, which in the cultural context would always have been someone exploited and failed by the patriarchal society. Jewish and Christian writers seem to expand the meaning to refer to approaches to sex that objectify and exploit people in a variety of ways. This word is masculine, pornos, which refers to someone who uses another person’s body for sex, commercially or otherwise.
w This word kosmos has been translated as ‘world system.’ It is not about physical existence as opposed to heavenly realms or life after death. It is about existing in the universe at all or about being present in the way things are within ‘the world as we know it.’
x Or ‘swindlers’ or ‘extortioners.’ Literally, ‘those who are rapacious’ or ‘those who are ravenous.’
y Traditionally, ‘idolaters’
z Or ‘swindlers’ or ‘extortioners.’ Literally, ‘those who are rapacious’ or ‘those who are ravenous.’
aa Traditionally, ‘judge’
bb The words “the community” are added for clarity.
cc Traditionally, ‘judge’
dd Traditionally, ‘judge’
ee Traditionally, ‘evil.’ The Greek term poneros, includes a range of meanings beyond moral depravity, including harm, decay, and burden. Rooted in ponos—which conveys toil, suffering, and hardship—poneros emphasizes oppressive, harmful conditions. Rather than simply moral "evil," this term often indicates harmful external impacts, focusing on social and personal harm rather than abstract judgment.
ff See 1 Corinthians 5:2