Physical and/or Spiritual Exclusion? Ecclesial Discipline in 1 Corinthians 5

Abstract

When Paul asks for the incestuous man at Corinth to be handed over to Satan is he calling for mere physical expulsion from the community or is he calling for something more? We argue in this paper that the nature of the man's offense—i.e., an ostentatious display of sexual immorality that also receives theological justification from the perpetrator—demanded a harsher sentence beyond mere physical exclusion. Drawing on the book of Job, we show that the disciplinary practice Paul advocates in 1 Corinthians 5 is a spiritual practice that aims to remove the spiritual protection enjoyed by the incestuous man while he remained in the body of Christ, thereby exposing him to Satan's attacks. Paul's hope was that the affliction suffered by the man at the hands of Satan as a result of this exposure would lead to his repentance and ultimate salvation.

‘A Little Yeast Leavens the Whole Batch of Dough’: Incest and Pollution in 1 Corinthians 5

“…5. 30 As noted in the introduction, many scholars position incest within a framework of sin and thereby conclude that repentance or cessation of sin makes salvation possible (Murphy-O’Connor 1982: 170; Moses 2013: 190; Waters 2015: 249). Repentance does represent an appropriate response to sin in the New Testament (e.g., Mk 1.4; Lk.…”

“…Scholars frequently understand the man’s practice of incest as sin and suppose that Paul’s directives punish or discipline him. 1 This disciplinary action, many scholars suggest, addresses the issue of sin by encouraging the incestuous man to repent and turn from his sinful behavior (Murphy-O’Connor 1982: 170; Moses 2013: 190; Waters 2015: 249). But Paul does not say that the man sins or mention repentance as part of the solution, nor is it clear why incest, uniquely in 1 Corinthians, should require both expulsion and destruction from Satan.…”