Was the sin in 1 Corinthians 5 a public or private matter in the Corinthian church?
It was a public matter. Paul writes that the sin was reported commonly, not done in a corner, and the whole Corinthian congregation knew about the man involved. The open, widely known nature of the immorality made it a matter for the church’s corporate attention, not a private offense.
Les explains that 1 Corinthians 5 is not a pretty chapter, but Paul writes to the same congregation he had been dealing with. The sin was “reported commonly,” meaning it was not being done in a corner but was open. The whole Corinthian congregation, whether large or small, knew about him. Paul identifies it as fornication or immoral activity, a case so grave that even pagan Gentiles would not do it: a man had his father’s wife. Because it was openly known, it was a public matter requiring the church’s attention.
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.
More Questions
What was the sin in 1 Corinthians 5 that Paul was addressing?
The sin described in this passage was a stepson and his stepmother actually living together as husband and wife, which is what the commentators pretty much agree on.