1 Corinthians 5

1 [Now I want to discuss another matter]. It has been {People have} reported to me, and I believe that it is true, that some people among you have been acting in a sexually immoral way, in a way that is so bad that not even (pagans/people who do not know about God) act that way. People tell me that a man is living with his stepmother (OR, his father’s other wife).

IT is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father’s wife.

2 You should be sad about what that man is doing! He should have been expelled {[You] should have expelled him} from your congregation! [But you] have not [done that], so (how can you be proud, [thinking that you are spiritually mature?]/it is disgusting that you are proud, [thinking that you are spiritually mature]!) [RHQ]

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

3 As for me, I have already decided [how you should] punish that man. And even though I am away from you, my spirit is with you, and you should do as I would do if I were there with you.

For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present, concerning him that hath so done this deed,

4 [What I have decided is that] when you have gathered together with the authority [MTY] of our Lord Jesus, and my spirit is with you, and the power of our Lord Jesus [is with you],

In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ,

5 you should hand that man over to Satan. Then Satan can injure/punish his body, in order that [he will turn away from his sinful behavior] and his spirit will be saved on the day when the Lord [returns] [MTY].

To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.

6 It is not good that, [while you are letting that immoral man continue to be in your congregation], you are boasting [about being spiritually mature]. (You know that a small amount of yeast affects all the bread dough [MET] [into which it is put] {[a woman puts it]}./Do you not know that a small amount of yeast affects all the bread dough [MET] [into which it is put]?) [RHQ] [Similarly, one person who continues to sin will have a bad effect on all the congregation].

Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?

7 So, [just like we Jews] expel the old yeast [from our houses during the Passover celebration] in order that we may have a fresh batch of dough without yeast in it [MET], [you must expel such evil people from your congregation]. Do [that so that you can truly be holy people], as [I know that] you really are. Remember that Christ was sacrificed {sacrificed himself} [so that God could spare us from being punished for our sins, just like the Jews sacrificed lambs during] the [first] Passover celebration [so that God would spare their firstborn sons from being killed].

Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:

8 So let us celebrate [the fact that God has freed us from being punished us for our sins] [MET], [just like the Jews] in [later years] celebrated Passover [to celebrate God freeing them from being slaves in Egypt. They made sure that there was] no old yeast in the dough. [They ate bread that] had no yeast in it. [Similarly], [we should make sure that there are no people in our congregations] [MET] [who act] maliciously [toward others] or [act] wickedly. Instead, [make sure] [MET] [that all those in our congregations are ones who act] sincerely and [speak] truthfully.

Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

9 In the previous letter that I wrote to you, I said that you should not associate with sexually immoral people.

I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators:

10 I did not mean that you should not associate with unbelievers who are immoral, or who desire things that belong to others, or who (forcefully seize things that belong to others/are swindlers), or who worship idols. You would have to leave this world [to avoid all people] like that.

Yet not altogether with the fornicators of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters; for then must ye needs go out of the world.

11 But now [I am stating clearly that] when I wrote, I [meant that] you should not associate with those who say that they are fellow believers, if they are sexually immoral or if they desire and forcefully seize things that belong to others, or worship idols, or slander others, or become drunk. You should not associate with people like that, and you should not even eat with them!

But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.

12 It is certainly not [RHQ] my business to judge people who are not believers and who do not belong to [Christian congregations]. But it certainly is [RHQ] your business to judge those who are in [your congregation]!

For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? do not ye judge them that are within?

13 God is the one who will judge those who are not believers. [Do as the Scriptures command]: “Expel the wicked person from your midst!”

But them that are without God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person.