How can any one of you with a case against another dare to bring it to the unjust for judgment instead of to the holy ones? 2 Do you not know that the holy ones will judge the world? If the world is to be judged by you, are you unqualified for the lowest law courts? 3 Do you not know that we will judge angels? Then why not everyday matters? 4 If, therefore, you have courts for everyday matters, do you seat as judges people of no standing in the church? 5 I say this to shame you. Can it be that there is not one among you wise enough to be able to settle a case between brothers? 6 But rather brother goes to court against brother, and that before unbelievers? 7 Now indeed [then] it is, in any case, a failure on your part that you have lawsuits against one another. Why not rather put up with injustice? Why not rather let yourselves be cheated? 8 Instead, you inflict injustice and cheat, and this to brothers. 9 Do you not know that the unjust will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators nor idolaters nor adulterers nor boy prostitutes nor sodomites 10 nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor robbers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 That is what some of you used to be; but now you have had yourselves washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.
Paul wrote to the Christian community at Corinth telling them that they should be able to reconcile differences with each other without going before unrighteous, unjust, Pagan judges in Roman courts. Minor disputes and crimes could be judged within some communities in the Greco-Roman world at that time. Major disputes were brought before the Roman governor as was the ‘dispute’ between the Jewish leaders and Jesus. If the elect, those reconciled to God through the blood of His Son, are to be judges in the end times (Dan 7:22), are none of them competent in this age to judge ordinary cases (Mt. 19:28)? The wicked angels will also be judged by the righteous at the Parousia (2 Pt. 2:4; Jude 1:6). Appointing unjust judges to judge everyday matters in the God’s holy community is a failure in the community.
There should not even be such cases in the community. A Christian who sues his brother sues himself because of the unity of the Body of Christ (Rom 12:5). Members of the community are being unjust to each other, and the unjust will not inherit the kingdom of God (Gal. 5:21). Paul lists the vices the Corinthian practiced before they were baptized and set apart in Christ (1 Cor 1:2).
Almighty God, through
our baptism you brought us into the unity of the Church built with the wood of
the cross and cleansed with the blood of Christ. Help us to live in your peace, uplifting each
other and bearing each other’s wounds.
Protect us from sin so that we will not be judged but sit in judgment at
the Parousia. This we pray through
Christ our Lord. Amen!
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
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