I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators … the covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters … if any man is called a brother … with such an one no not to eat. For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? do not ye judge them that are within? But them that are without God judgeth…. (1 Corinthians 5:9-13)
Because 1 Corinthians 5:13 informs us it’s Yahweh1 who judges non-Christians, this passage is often employed as alleged evidence that Christians are never to have anything to do with administering civil judgments upon non-Christians. This, in turn, would also eliminate implementing government based upon God’s moral law, governed by biblically qualified Christian men. In other words, 1 Corinthians 5:13 is used to condemn Christian involvement in advancing God’s kingdom by means of a biblical government, such as occurred in 17th-century America.2
How does God judge lawbreakers?
In Isaiah 33:22, we’re not only informed that God is our king and lawgiver, but that He’s also our judge. As Creator, He has the ultimate authority to judge mankind. So how does God judge non-Christians who violate His law? Of course, everyone’s eventually judged eternally by God Himself. But how does He do so in time and history?
Romans 13:3-4 reveals that one of the methods of His doing so is by means of civil government. Paul depicts those responsible for this duty as ministers, or servants, of God. Consequently, if 1 Corinthians 5:13 eliminates Christians from judging non-Christian lawbreakers, it also eliminates Christians from serving as judges in civil government. Consequently, the position depicted by Paul as servants of God in Romans 13 must be filled exclusively by non-Christians.
However, the government Paul depicts in Romans 13 is a biblical civil government.3 Would anyone dare suggest that a biblical civil body politic is to be governed by non-Christians?4 Consequently, there must be more to 1 Corinthians 5:13 then first meets the eye.
More “contradictions”
Not only is the usual interpretation of 1 Corinthians 5:13 incompatible with Romans 13:1-7, it also conflicts with what immediately follows it in 1 Corinthians 6:
Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? … Know ye not that we shall judge … things that pertain to this life? If then ye have judgments of things pertaining to this life, set them to judge who are least esteemed in the church. (1 Corinthians 6:2-4)
What appears to be a contradiction by Paul in his first epistle to the Corinthians is solved in his second epistle to the Corinthians:
We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete. (2 Corinthians 10:5-6, NASB)
1 Corinthians 10:6 declares a time was coming when Christians would not only punish their own but all disobedience. This cannot be referring to disobedience in the church because Paul declares this is to occur when the Christians’ obedience is complete, or fulfilled. If the punishment is here referring to that which is to be meted out upon Christians, why would Paul wait to do so after the Christians become obedient? When someone is obedient, you don’t punish them for their disobedience, but instead reward them for their obedience.
Instead, Paul is referring to the future when the Christian ecclesias5 would be large enough and potent enough to have established biblical governments over society through which all violations of God’s law—by Christians and non-Christians alike—would be adjudicated by biblically qualified judges, in similar fashion as found prescribed in Exodus 18:
And thou shalt teach them ordinances and laws…. Moreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens: And let them judge the people at all seasons. (Exodus 18:20-22)
Past and future ecclesias
According to 1 Corinthians 6:1-2, Christian ecclesias were expected to judge themselves. But the time for governing society had not yet arrived when Paul penned 1 Corinthians 5:9-13, nor when he penned 1 Corinthians 6:2-4, nor even when he penned 2 Corinthians 10:4-6. But he understood there would in fact be a time when this would occur under the watch of future diligent kingdom ambassadors, like those right here in 17th-century Christian Colonial America:
The Portsmouth, Rhode Island, Compact, 1638
We whose names are underwritten do hereby solemnly in the presence of Jehovah incorporate ourselves into a Bodie Politick and as He shall help, will submit our persons, lives and estates unto our Lord Jesus Christ, the King of Kings, and Lord of Lords, and to all those perfect and most absolute laws of His given in His Holy Word of truth, to be guided and judged thereby.
Fundamental Agreement of the Colony of New Haven, Connecticut, 1639
Agreement; We all agree that the scriptures hold forth a perfect rule for the direction and government of all men in duties which they are to perform to God and to man, as well in families and commonwealth as in matters of the church; so likewise in all public officers which concern civil order, as choice of magistrates and officers, making and repealing laws, dividing allotments of inheritance, and all things of like nature, we will, all of us, be ordered by the rules which the scripture holds forth; and we agree that such persons may be entrusted with such matters of government as are described in Exodus 18:21 and Deuteronomy 1:13 with Deuteronomy 17:15 and 1 Corinthians 6:1, 6 & 7….
In 1 Corinthians 5:13, Paul does not limit Christians from governing society. When coupled with Romans 12:21-13:7, 1 Corinthians 6:2-4, and 2 Corinthians 10:4-6, his statement instead anticipates the times when Christians would do precisely that.
Related Posts:
“Ten Reasons Why Romans 13 is Not About Secular Government, Part 1”
1. YHWH, the English transliteration of the Tetragrammaton, is most often pronounced Yahweh. It is the principal Hebrew name of the God of the Bible and was inspired to appear nearly 7,000 times in the Old Testament. It was unlawfully deleted by the English translators. In obedience to the Third Commandment and the many Scriptures that charge us to proclaim, swear by, praise, extol, call upon, bless, glorify, and hold fast to His name, we have chosen to memorialize His name here in this document and in our lives. For a more thorough explanation concerning important reasons for using the sacred name of God, see “The Third Commandment.”
2. America’s Greatest Constitution
Chapter 3 “The Preamble: WE THE PEOPLE vs. YAHWEH” of Bible Law vs. the United States Constitution: The Christian Perspective
3. “Ten Reasons Why Romans 13 is Not About Secular Government, Part 1”
4. “Ten Reasons Why Romans 13 is Not About Secular Government, Part 3”
“Ten Reasons Why Romans 13 is Not About Secular Government, Part 4
5. Ecclesia is poorly translated “church” in our English Bibles. Instead, ecclesia refers to a Christian community in the fullest sense of the word, governed by biblically qualified Christian overseers, such as depicted by Paul in Romans 13:1-7.
I agree with your post, but question how we are to judge non Christians when are not to be involved with secular government. How do we put Christians in the judges seat? Are we to wait until the current government fails, then set up a new one?
Brian, thanks for responding.
The answer is pretty much found right in this article.
Contemporary American Christianity, at best, is where the 1st-century ecclesias were at–in their infancy. Consequently, they are not even close to being at the point to be able to judge outsiders. Most of them what Paul depicts in 1 Corinthians 6, not even able to judge themselves properly.
Worse, most of what today’s known as Christian, isn’t even yet Christian, not to mention they’re opposed to everything that eventually makes this possible.
We’ve got a lot of teaching to do to do–2 Corinthians 10:3-5–taking dominion of hearts and minds before we get to the point you’re asking about. In the meantime, we need to be establishing local ecclesias of fellow believers who are faithful to Christ and subordinate to each other, preparing them and future generations with Yahweh’s law to be future judges over society.
I hope this helps.
So, in other words, the best we can do at this time is be diligent to study the whole word of God, and the Law, Statutes and Judgments; and study with other’s who likewise are subordinate to the total moral will of God; and teach our posterity?
Study ourselves, study with fellow believers, and teach our posterity?
And, of course, try to educate the bulk of today’s antinomian, anti-dominion alleged Christians every chance we get. There’s an army already there, if we can only wake them up.
@ Mr Weiland
I am currently listening to your recent sermon on Cyrus and Trump… which is especially interesting to me because since 1993 God has led me to study Cyrus and Babylon. This study is important because in Revelation, Babylon was chosen as the symbolic name of the end-time globalist evil empire. There is also much Cyrus symbolism in Revelation.
My study also led me to realize the OT 70 years of Babylonian rule was repeated in the NT. I also believe we are now living in the third [and last] 70 year Babylonian cycle.
In the first 70 year cycle, Babylon allied with Edom to conquer Jerusalem and destroy the temple. While Israelites were in Babylonian captivity, Edomites moved into the holy land.
In the second 70 year cycle, Edomite-jew Herod teamed up with Rome to conquer Jerusalem [37BC] and become king of Judea. Herod proceeded to murder the Israelite royal heirs, disinherited true Israelites, totally destroyed the second temple, even removing the foundation stones to rebuild Herod’s third temple and tried to murder God’s Temple made without hands, the Christ child.
Here in the third 70 year cycle, true Israelites, God’s European Christ-bearing people, have again become disinherited and in captivity… and Edomite-jews have again taken over the holy land.
The first OT 70 years of Babylonian rule ended when Cyrus conquered Babylon and returned Israelites to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple.
The second 70 year cycle ended with the death and resurrection of God incarnate, Jesus Christ, and true Israelites becoming Christians [fulfilling Isaiah 65:15 prophecy.]
While Trump may have some Cyrus qualities… and he did begin his campaign June 2015, 70 years from the end of WW2 and ironically Trump is now age 70… only the second coming of Jesus Christ can truly save us from globalist Babylon and bring us home to New Jerusalem.
I don’t know if you remember, but I sent you an email back in January 2015 that relates to Cyrus and also outlined much of what I have said above.
.
Just finished Part 1 of Trump and Cyrus… love it !
Btw… Isaiah 45:5 does say that God chose Cyrus before Cyrus knew God.
My take is that “Darius the Mede” in the book of Daniel is actually Cyrus [some Bible scholars believe that too.] If so, Cyrus came to know God via God’s miracle saving Daniel from the lion’s den. The Apocrypha book, “Bel and the Dragon”, appears to relate the same incident and the king’s conversion. In that version the king is Cyrus.
http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/apo/bel001.htm
Part 2 Trump and Cyrus = Wow, Outstanding !
The secular humanistic America that Trump wants to “make great again” is Babylon.
That is why his slogan makes me think of Jeremiah 51:9 = “We would have healed Babylon, but she can not be healed…”
Isaiah 1:21 = ” How is the faithful city become an harlot! ”
This is what once Christian America has become, the globalist harlot, “Babylon the Great”, mother of harlots and abominations of the earth [Rev 17:5]… “Babylon the Great” is fallen, is fallen… [Rev 18:2]
The irony is… Cyrus was God’s king who made the ancient city of Babylon fall… not with an overwhelming army in a direct frontal attack. Instead Cyrus waited until the Babylonians were celebrating a festival, partying drunk in the streets, Cyrus covertly diverted the water from the Euphrates river so his troops could secretly enter the city of Babylon in a surprise attack by going under Babylon’s wall that was too strong to breach. Cyrus’ troops pretended to be fellow Babylonian revelers while they made their way through the city streets to the palace. In other words, Cyrus diverted the water of the Euphrates river and stole Babylon like a thief [similar Cyrus imagery is in Rev 16.] Btw… Cyrus conquered Babylon in a similar fashion as David conquered Zion, secret invasion along a water course.
… wow… it just occurred to me…
the irony of Trump “draining the swamp.”
Thanks Attossa for your insights and encouraging words.
For anyone wanting to access the two-part series mentioned here,
“Donald J. Trump: Cyrus or Nimrod? Part 1” can be found at http://bibleversusconstitution.org/tapelist.html#trump.
“Donald J. Trump: Cyrus or Nimrod? Part 2” can be found at http://bibleversusconstitution.org/tapelist.html#trump2.