Второе отделение. Обличение и исправление нравственных недостатков (1Кор.5 и 1Кор.6)

1. Reproof for indifference to the sin of incest (1 Cor. 5:1-13) a) Conviction of the Corinthians for indifference to the incestuous man and the trial of him (1 Cor. 5: 1–8), with the addition of b) instructions on the cleansing of Christian society from all obvious sinners (1 Cor. 5: 9–13) a) The denunciation of the Corinthians and the trial of the incestuous man (1 Cor. 5: 1–8) In his denunciation of the incestuous person, Saint Paul aa) first shows the greatness of sin and condemns the indifference to it of the Corinthian Christians (1 Cor. 5, 1-2); bb) then pronounces the judgment of excommunication on the incestuous (1 Cor. 5:3–5), and c) finally lays out the reasons why this should be done with him, and should be acted this way in relation to every sinner and sin (1 Cor. 6–8). aa) The gravity of the incestuous sin and the condemnation of the indifference of the Corinthians (1 Cor. 5, 1–2) 1 Corinthians 5:1. You can hear fornication in you, and such is fornication, as it is not publicly known, like someone who has a desire to have a wife. “From nowhere” - ολως - at all, or the fidelity and certainty of hearing means, or its everywhere, or both: true hearing goes everywhere. Photius in Ekumenius says that ““not at all heard” is the voice of one who is amazed by this rumor and who is disgusted by it and sick about it, as if like this: wow! what a disgrace! Theodoret understood this expression in the same way, for in response to the words: “I can’t hear fornication in you,” he writes: “The Apostle made it sufficient to see the excessiveness of indecency; for, he says, this should not be heard.” "Can be heard in you." “The apostle directs the power of reproach as much as possible against everyone. He doesn’t say: why does such and such commit adultery? but: “there is no sense of asceticism in you,” so that they, considering themselves completely free from accusation, would not remain inattentive, but would see that their entire society is subject to conviction and their entire church is not free from accusation, and therefore would be zealous in piety. This is the kind of thing that no one will say, says that such and such is indulging in adultery, but that in the Corinthian church such a crime is being committed, “as it is not called in public.” The Apostle often reproaches believers with the example of the pagans, so that “they should not walk as other pagans walk” (Eph. 4:17). But here the reproach is the strongest. If it is unforgivable to sin in the same way as the pagans, then to surpass the pagans in this regard, tell me, what is a great sin? With them, he says, not only do they not do anything similar, but they are “called lower.” You see how important he considers this crime? If they allow this kind of immorality, which the infidels not only do not do, but also do not know, then the greatness of their sin is inexpressible” (St. Chrysostom). “What even those trained in demonic teachings did not dare to do, you dared to do” (Theodoret). With this thought, the expression “in you” takes on an extremely reproachful meaning. “You, believers, have been granted such sacraments, have received unspeakable blessings, and have been called to heaven. Do you see what indignation, what anger his words are filled with? If he had not felt strong anger, he would not have spoken to everyone, but would have said this: I heard that so-and-so is committing adultery, punish him. But now it’s not like that, but directs speech against everyone. Perhaps he would have expressed himself more leniently if they had written to him about it; but since they did not write, and thereby showed that they were covering up sin, it was necessary to use a more striking image of speech” (St. Chrysostom). “For no one is afraid of having a wife.” After the death of his father, he took his stepmother as his wife. They notice that other types of incest are marked in pagan laws, but this one is not marked. So he is unnatural! “But why didn’t he say: a man commits adultery with his wife? “He did not want to express too low a sin, so he spoke about it with some modesty and not directly, but at the same time he again expressed the importance of the crime, showing that something was happening among them that Paul did not even allow himself to name directly. Therefore, he continues to use the same image of speech: “who did this deed”; again he is ashamed and does not allow himself to say directly, just as we are in the habit of doing regarding too base actions. He does not say: stepmother, but: “I miss my wife,” in order to touch them more deeply. When the names themselves are sufficient for denunciation, then he uses them without adding anything else” (St. Chrysostom). “And in this one should marvel at the apostolic wisdom. He did not say: stepmother, because this name expresses some kind of hostility, but “the father’s wife,” that is, taking the place of the mother, united with the father after his own mother, becoming for his parent the same as the one who gave birth to him was” (Theodorit). 1Cor.5:2. And you will become proud, and no more than a poster, may the one who did this deed be removed from among you. “And you will become proud.” What? – Of course, not a sin and not a sinner, since he is a sinner (St. Chrysostom, etc.); but in general, you think highly of yourself and get worked up. The vice of an incestuous person is so great that it overshadows all your good qualities; nothing to be proud of. I should have come to terms with it and cried a long time ago. “Do not mind that only one commits adultery; no, this is a sin common to all of you” (St. Chrysostom). Or: you are proud of some bright, worldly side of this criminal, for example, wealth, learning. You stared at these illusory virtues and were proud that this is the kind of person you have, but you didn’t notice that he is so obscene that he disgraces you all and should be kicked out. Theodoret believes that he was one of the teachers and, perhaps, the leader of some party; why he writes: “they began to think highly of themselves, as having a learned mentor.” Saint Chrysostom also thinks that they were proud of the sinner’s learning: “And you will become proud.” The Apostle did not say: such a sin, for this is foolish, but the teaching of a sinner. However, he did not express this clearly, but omitted the intervening thought in order to touch them more deeply. And look at Paul's prudence. He first laid down external wisdom and showed that it is insignificant in itself, even if it were not connected with sin, and then he speaks about sin. If he had proven the greatness of spiritual gifts in comparison with an incestuous man, who, perhaps, was distinguished by external wisdom, he would not have done anything important; but by deposing it without regard to sin and showing that it was insignificant in itself, he proved its extreme worthlessness. Therefore, he made such a judgment about her in advance, and then began to talk about sin. However, he does not deign to speak with the incest himself, which expresses the excessive dishonor of his act, but tells others that they should cry, sob and be ashamed; and you, he says, are doing the opposite, which is why he adds: “you will become proud, and not more than a poster.” What will they tell us to cry about? – That reproach has been brought upon the entire community of the Church. Why should we cry? - “Let him who has done this deed be removed from among you.” And here he does not call him by name, or better yet, nowhere, just as we usually do regarding subjects that are too shameful. Just as during a contagious illness you need to cry and pray earnestly, so you should have done; You didn’t cry, but he would be worn out; you should pray and take all measures to ensure that he is excommunicated from you, and without me you yourself should have done this because of the importance of the crime” (St. Chrysostom). h6cC bb) Judgment of excommunication against an incestuous person (1 Cor. 5:3–5) 1 Corinthians 5:3–5. For now, even though he is not with you in body, he who is alive in spirit has already judged him who has done this, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, gathered to you and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, deliver him over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that the spirit may be saved on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. An extraordinary court hearing! The Lord presides, the Apostle from Ephesus directs everything, and a decision is made, one part of which was to be immediately fulfilled by invisible power, and the other to be completed on the day of the Lord! Only in the Church of God can such judgment be carried out. Was it not he who later acted in imitation of some saints regarding ordination? This is how Saint Gregory of Neocaesarea was ordained bishop while he was hiding in the desert; So Daniel the Stylite was ordained a priest while he remained locked on a pillar, etc. The Church is a single body under the head - the Lord. For anyone who is a living member of the Church, his absence is unthinkable, no matter where he is. Separation by place does not constitute any obstacle to union in spirit. Theodoret writes: “The Apostle composed the trembling judgment seat. First, he gathered everyone in the name of the Lord, then he introduced himself by the grace of the Spirit and showed that the Lord Himself presides, pronounces the sentence, condemns the doer to execution and determines that only the body should be punished, because in the punishment itself he prepares healing medicine for the soul.” 1 Cor.5:3. You yourself should have removed him from your midst. As you did not do this, I do it, and I write my decision to you for execution. “I’ve already judged.” “Look at his jealousy: he does not allow him to wait for his arrival and, upon receiving him, to punish the incestuous man, but, as if wanting to stop some infection before it penetrates the whole body, he tries to curb him” (St. Chrysostom). “Though you are not alive in body, you are still alive in spirit.” – “Living” – παρων – inherent, being. The Slavic translation gives the idea that this is not only a mental presence, but a living one; “just as Elisha said that he was with Gehazi: “Did not my heart walk with you” (Kings 5:26)? This is the power of spiritual talent! It makes it possible for everyone to be together at the same time, and imparts the ability to know the distant” (St. Chrysostom). The ancient prophets were called seers, because by the Spirit living in them they saw distant things as present. Many of the saints also acquired the gift of clairvoyance, as it appears in their lives. Some, staying in their own place, tangibly appeared in another for some kind of help and intercession. This is more than insight. The one who was caught up in the third heaven, essentially, and not in a dream, and who heard the verbs there, knew, of course, how it was possible to be in Corinth in spirit, while remaining body in Ephesus. Why, when he says: “by the spirit,” although he means his own spirit, it is not that it is his natural power, but that it is “through the Holy Spirit” (Theophylact). “He said this not only to induce them to carry out the sentence, but also to frighten them by the fact that he knows everything that is going to happen and be discussed there” (St. Chrysostom). The apostle writes the decision; but it will come into force when they have church consent to this and the definition. “I have already judged him as if he were there.” - The matter is decided. “He does not allow them to even think about any other solution to the matter; I have already put it in, he says, as if I were with you; do not present me with excuses and delays: there should be nothing else” (St. Chrysostom). “The one who did this.” What disgust he inspires towards this vice when he does not name the culprit! - He does not name the vice itself, but only says: “the one who did this.” He does not want the name of vice to touch Christian ears. The word “sitse” expresses the ugliness of the vice: he, “who has offended the name of Christ, who was faithful and was called by that name, and yet has dared to do such a thing, hand him over to Satan” (St. Chrysostom). 1 Cor.5:4. About the name of our Lord Jesus Christ - or betray to Satan, and in this case these words will mean: “about God, guided by non-human judgment” (St. Chrysostom). Or - “to those who have gathered together about this name” - “that is, the name itself unites you; gather around him” (Saint Chrysostom). Then he makes them participants in the judgment and, joining himself, separates them from the sinner, saying: “to those gathered to you and my spirit.” “Again he presents himself to them, so that when they carry out the trial, they would, as if in his presence, condemn the incestuous man to excommunication, and so that no one would dare to recognize him as worthy of forgiveness, in the thought that Paul would recognize what was happening” (St. Chrysostom). - “With the power of our Lord Jesus Christ.” That is, when you and my spirit gather, this gathering, being in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, will also be with His power, as the Head of the Church; so that He Himself, together with us, will pronounce judgment against the sinner and give him Divine power. Or these words mean that “Christ can grant the court the power to deliver such a person to the devil” (St. Chrysostom). 1 Cor.5:5. Deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh. This is not only in the sense of excommunicating him from the Church, outside of which is Satan’s domain (Acts 26:18), but in order for the evil spirit to take possession of his body and exhaust him. Carnal sin is punished in the flesh. Weary flesh will loosen the bonds of sin and give room for the spirit to repent. This is healing, not execution. “It was similar with blessed Job, although not with the same force: there for the most glorious crowns, and here for absolution from sins, so that Satan would punish him with malignant wounds or some other illness. In another place he says: “If we judge, we are punished by the Lord” (1 Cor. 1:32); and here, wanting to touch the sinner more strongly, he betrays him to Satan, although this also depends on the will of God, so that his flesh is punished. Since lustful desires are born from gluttony and incontinence of the flesh, he punishes it” (St. Chrysostom). “That the spirit may be saved in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.” “That is, so that the soul is saved, not in the sense that it is saved alone, but understanding the undoubted truth that when it is saved, then the body will certainly participate in salvation. The body became mortal because of the sin of the soul; therefore, if the soul becomes righteous, then the body will again receive great glory. Thus, these words mean more care and healing than simple defeat, or vain and futile punishment, for the benefit is greater than the punishment: this is temporary, but that is eternal. And he didn’t just say: “let the spirit be saved,” but: “on” that “day.” He wisely and in good time reminds them of this day, so that they too would begin healing more diligently, and he would sooner accept the healing, seeing that these words did not come from anger, but from the care of a caring father. That is why he said: “for the destruction of the flesh”; here he prescribed laws to the devil and did not allow him to extend beyond the limits, just as God said about Job: “let him only not touch his soul” (Job 1:12, 2:6)” (St. Chrysostom). cc) Why is it necessary to act this way in relation to every sinner and sin (1 Cor. 5:6-8) 1 Cor.5:6. Your praise is not good. Don’t you know how little kvass leaves the whole mixture? Returns to what was said before: but you were proud of it, and what’s more, you cried. “Your praise is not good” - or there is nothing to praise you for, that you allowed such a sin in your society and still have not bothered to cure it; or - you did not do well that you boasted of such a face: this further rooted him in sin and kept him in blindness and unrepentance. With these words the Apostle “shows that they, by boasting about him, were the reason for his unrepentance until now. He further explains that he does this (strikes with such judgment) for the benefit of not only the sinner, but also all of them: “Do you not know,” he continues, “how a little kvass leaves the whole mixture?” - Although sin, he says, belongs to him alone, but, if left unattended, it can infect the entire body of the Church, for if the first sinner is not punished, then others will soon fall into the same sin. With these words the Apostle expresses that those to whom he addresses the word should take care of the whole Church, and not just one member, for this purpose he uses the likeness of leaven. Just as leaven, he says, although small, changes the whole dough, so he, if he remains uncondemned and his sin unpunished, will infect others too” (St. Chrysostom). This provision has full application in relation to every person who commits any sin. A person who sins openly, in proportion to his influence on the environment, always spreads the infection, but not as noticeably and harmfully as any satisfaction of passion does in the soul of everyone. Any such action darkens thoughts, coarsens the heart and suppresses energy for good. Therefore, if things are not immediately corrected, then sinfulness, receiving reinforcement in the defeat of spiritual forces by the corruption of one passion, will raise other passions, one after another: for they are connected like a chain. Satisfying each one gives it power over the soul: satisfy everything even a little, and you will become a slave to everyone. So the man appeared again in the position of a fly entangled in a spider. Therefore, while the kvass is small, it is necessary to clear away the mixture from which our nature is made. 1 Cor.5:7. Cleanse away the old kvass, so that you may be a new mixture, as you are without leaven, for our Passover was quickly devoured for us, Christ. It seems that the Apostle is moving into community here. For although the old kvass, which he orders to be cleaned, in the course of speech, means an incestuous person; but the expressions used here are such that they convey the idea of ​​cleansing society from every sinner, and from here they translate to the idea of ​​cleansing Christian souls from all sinful impurity. So Saint Chrysostom. He says: “cleanse the old kvass,” that is, this sinner; or, better to say, he not only speaks about him, but also hints at others, for not only adultery is an old leaven, but also every vice.” But still the first thought is about an incest. The Apostle demands that society cast him out and no longer tolerate his presence. Why didn’t he say: “cleanse”; but: “clean”—clean thoroughly, so that there is no residue or shadow of it. With this similarity he very strikingly excommunicates the incestuous man from the Church. He not only, he says, does not bring any benefit with his presence, but also causes harm, infecting the entire body. For when putrefaction is hidden inside and it is not visible where the stench comes from, then it is attributed to the whole body. Therefore, the Apostle with special force encourages them to cleanse this leaven. And look at his wisdom: in this first message he does not give the incestuous hope of returning, but commands him to spend his entire life in repentance, so that the promise of forgiveness does not make him more negligent; does not say: hand him over to Satan, so that after repentance he will be accepted into the Church again - but what? - Yes, he will be “saved on” the last “day.” Indicates this time in order to make him thrifty; but he does not reveal what he intended to give him after repentance, imitating his Lord. As God said: “Three more days, and Nineveh will be transformed” (Jon. 3:4), and did not add: if he repents, he will be saved; So he did not say: if he repents properly, then we will love him deeply, but he invites him to do this work himself, so that he can then receive grace. If he had said so at the very beginning, it would have driven away fear from him; therefore, he not only does not say this, but, like leaven, does not even leave him hope of returning, but excommunicates him until the next day. When he repented, he with all readiness brings him again (into communion with the Church)” (St. Chrysostom). “Let you be a new mixture.” Here the meaning moves to the common purity of all, and such that among them there is not a single sinner, and such that there is not a single sin in their souls. “New mix” is freshly kneaded dough for unleavened bread, containing only pure water and unalloyed flour. Such should be the whole Christian society and every Christian soul. A newly converted soul and a newly formed Church are always like that. Such was the Corinthian Church: but then a sinner arose and became old or leavened it. The Apostle says: throw away this old kvass, so that you may become new again - a pure mixture, as you were in the beginning. The words: “as there is unleavened” - since you are unleavened, do not mean their real purity, for they are already obviously leavened, but they express their obligation to be unleavened, that is, clean from all sin and passion. “Saint Chrysostom says: the expression “as you are without leaven” does not mean that they are all pure, but that they should all be like that.” As the basis for why they, and us in general, should be like this, the Apostle puts the fact that “Christ was devoured for us.” Just as in the face of the Passover Lamb the Israelites had nothing leavened in any house, so in the face of our Passover Lamb, Christ the Lord, we should have nothing sinful and passionate. And this is incessant; so sinlessness and dispassion are our normal state. The Israelites lost leaven for only seven days. This is not the case with us; but just as our Lamb is always present, as if slain, we must always be without the leaven of passions. If Israel, let’s say, always had a lamb on the table, then no one would dare to bring anything leavened into the house. In the Church, the house of God, the Lamb of God is always presented to the slain, common to the whole Church, and to every believer; Let no one dare to bring anything sinful into the house of his soul, or, through its discovery in deeds, into the house of the Church of God. – This is the purpose of Christians, this is their urgent obligation. This is what St. Paul expresses in the words: “as you are without leaven.” “Unleavenedness means that the believer must be free from all vice. Just as a Jew perishes if old leaven is found in him, so it will be with us if vice is found in us. For if such punishment befalls those who walk in the shadow of the law, then much more cannot but befall us. If they so thoroughly cleanse their houses of leaven that they even inspect mouse holes, then all the more should we test our souls in order to vomit out every unclean thought” (St. Chrysostom). 1 Cor.5:8. Moreover, let us celebrate not in the kvass of vett, nor in the kvass of malice and wickedness, but in the unleavened purity and truth. The Israelites had a seven-day holiday associated with the Passover lamb. For us, the Paschal Lamb is always present: therefore, our celebration must be continuous. And just as during the entire holiday the Israelis did not eat anything leavened and spent their time brightly, putting on light holiday clothes, so we should, avoiding everything sinful in words, deeds and thoughts, and putting on bright and pure virtues and grace-filled overshadowings and infusions, spend the entire time of our lives from the moment we became Christians, always behave spiritually the way the Israelis behaved in the past. flesh. Exactly how to hold it is explained by the following words: “not in the kvass of vain, nor in the kvass of malice and guile, but in the unleavened purity and truth.” Old kvass is our sinfulness: egoism, or selfishness, with mental and physical passions. This also means the brew of malice and deceit. On the contrary, purity and truth mean the rejection of everything sinful and passionate, and success in everything contrary to that - in all virtue and all pleasing to God. There is no need to define in detail what is malice and deceit, and what is purity and truth. The Apostle wanted to mean by the first everything bad and ungodly, and by the second - everything holy and pleasing to God. – His thought is this: the life of a Christian from beginning to end should be sinless, pure and bright. Saint Chrysostom dwells on another element of the holiday, joy, and says: “The Apostle said: “Let us celebrate,” not because it was Easter or Pentecost, but to show that for Christians every time is a time of celebration due to the abundance of the blessings given to them. For what good is missing? For you, the Son of God became man, freed you from death, and called you into the kingdom. Having received and received such benefits, should you not celebrate throughout your life? So, let no one grieve in poverty, in illness and in troubles; For us, every time is a time of celebration. Therefore, Paul says: “Rejoice in the Lord always, and again, rejoice” (Phil. 4:4). During the holidays, no one dresses in unclean clothes; We will do the same, for a marriage is taking place, a spiritual marriage. “Be like,” says the Lord, “the kingdom of heaven to the man king, who married his son” (Matthew 22:2). And when a king celebrates a marriage, and the marriage of his son, then what could be greater than such a holiday? Therefore, let no one enter dressed in rags; We are not talking about clothes, but about unclean deeds. One, who turned up at the wedding in unclean clothes, was expelled with dishonor: see what care and purity is required of those entering this marriage.” b) Instruction on the cleansing of Christian society from all obvious sinners (1 Cor. 5:9-13) This instruction is expressed by the Apostle with the requirement not to mingle with any Christian sinner, nor to eat with him. This means considering him ostracized from his society. That’s why he concludes: cast out the evil – every such evil – from among yourselves. 1 Corinthians 5:9. I wrote to you in the message, do not mix with the fornicator. In what message? - Nowadays everyone says: in the epistle that the Apostle wrote before, but which was lost. But our interpreters all believe that this is being said about the present message, hinting at the previous words: “let such a one be driven away from you, cleanse the old kvass.” So Theodorit, Ecumenius, Theophylact. Here are the words of St. Chrysostom: “When the Apostle said: “let him be crushed no more than a poster,” and: “cleanse the old leaven,” the Corinthians might have thought that it was necessary to avoid all fornicators; for if the one who has sinned communicates his infection to those who have not sinned, then much more should those who sin be removed from the outside (pagans); if one should not spare one’s own for the harm that comes from him, then even more so – strangers. But if they began to move away from pagan fornicators, this would embarrass them and irritate the pagans. Why does the Apostle make a reservation and say: “The writings of you shall not be mixed with a fornicator, and not with every fornicator of this world.” The word “everything” is used in the sense of a reservation.” We can be satisfied with this explanation. 1 Cor.5:10. And not everyone is a fornicator of this world, or a covetous person, or a predator, or an idolater, for they should naturally come out of this world. Making this reservation: “not everyone is a fornicator,” he also includes other obvious sinners among them, and says that he commands not to mingle with the sinners of this world, that is, among the pagans, for otherwise one would have to look for another universe: “for they must by nature come out of this world.” How is it possible, he says, for a person, having a house and children, performing public duties, being a craftsman or a warrior, with such a multitude of pagans, to always avoid fornicators? “The fornicators of the world” he called the fornicators among the pagans (St. Chrysostom). That thought that it was someone else’s, and not ours, diminished the evil influence of the sinner on the soul of the Christian. Along with the acceptance of faith, division in the soul took place with everything pagan and with the pagans. Christians even believed that a pagan and a sinner were one and the same. Therefore, the sinfulness of the pagans could not tempt them. It seems that the Apostle remembers this in order to further distinguish obvious sinners from Christians. 1 Corinthians 5:11. Now you will not mix with the writings, if a certain brother is called a fornicator, or a covetous person, or an idolater, or a troublemaker, or a drunkard, or a predator; with those below yasti. This, he says, is the sense in which I wrote to you! – Do not mix, do not enter into relations, do not have close communication with someone who, bearing the name of a Christian, indulges in obvious vices. “You can’t live with someone like that” - of course, ordinary hospitality, don’t invite him to your place, don’t go to him and don’t enter into transactions with him. Theodoret notes: “If one should not have fellowship with such people in ordinary food, then much less in mysterious and Divine food.” And in the course of the speech it is clear that if you yourself do not mix with those, then you should not allow them to mix with you; and if this is in the ordinary order of life, then even more so in the church. This means that the Apostle defines: to consider such as alien to Christian society, the same as excommunicated, like that incestuous one - the erupted old kvass. The Apostle gives the reason for this - so as not to become infected from them, not to become sour. Christians should be so holy and so faithful to the commandments that it should not even occur to them that they could sin while remaining a Christian. If obvious sinners remained in society, then this zeal for moral purity would be greatly shaken by the thought that, it is true, Christians can have a name and not actually be what the name requires. To prevent this general relaxation, the Apostle orders us to cut off communication with such persons. Among them, Saint Paul includes the fornicator, the covetous, the idolater, the harasser, the drunkard, and the predator. Their very names give ideas about them. The fornicator is someone who openly commits fornication; a covetous person who, either through unjust trade, or growth, or some cunning, becomes rich and is intractable, stingy, miserly; an idolater must be one who eats something sacrificed to idols without reasoning, as St. Paul will later explain; annoyancer - someone who is abusive, grumpy, over-judgmental; drunkard - someone who drinks excessively and behaves disgracefully; predator - thief in different forms. He put in front only the fornicator, the predator, the covetous, the idolater (1 Cor. 5:10). Here he added - a drunkard, an idolater, although these verses should be in direct correspondence. We can conclude that here, too, not everyone is listed who should be alienated or alienated from the society of Christians. Therefore, it is permissible to generalize the position of the Apostle: every obvious sinner must be excluded from Christian society. Christian society must be pure. As soon as anyone falls into sin, he must be cast out. In the first times, sinners were cast out; and those who, having repented, sought fellowship again, although they were accepted, were subjected to strict tests and had to go through several degrees of repentance in order to be accepted again into full fellowship. This was the apostolic wise discipline. The multiplication of sinners made its fulfillment impossible. Now begin to do this: drive everyone out. And there is no one to do it. 1 Cor.5:12. Why are we and external judges? Are you not judging the inner ones? “He calls pagans external, and Christians internal. I don’t care about outsiders, he says. It’s like this: they are outside my laws. It is inappropriate to impose the laws of Christ on those who are not from the court of Christ. For “as the law speaks, it speaks to those who are in the law” (Rom. 3:19)” (Theophylact). Since he writes the laws of judgment against Christians, then by “judge” one can understand: I should not prescribe laws of judgment for outsiders. But he also determines the practice of the court; why the words: what should I judge? You can add: why should I judge outsiders with you? or: what should we judge? In his person he represents all Christians who judge, or the entire Church, whose power extends only to its children. “Are you not judging the internal ones?” He says: “Are you judging?” He entrusts this power to them. Why, here too, can the speech be translated this way: are we not judging the internal ones? Photius in Ecumenium says: “We correct the brethren when we examine their deeds and pronounce judgment on them, in the form of correction, but we have already separated from those (pagans).” These words indicate the reason why the Apostle ahead gave the rule not to mix with obvious sinners only from Christians, and not from pagans. For he says: these are external, and those are internal; You and I can only judge internal ones, not external ones. But if judgment is spoken of here, then we must assume that even there it was not the mixing of Christians with sinners that should have come into play as a result of church judgment. Through this entire small section runs the idea that Christians themselves must maintain their society in purity and holiness, and if someone appears who does not fit in with others in this regard, expel him from society by judicial order, and, moreover, by his own internal one. 1 Cor.5:13. But God judges those who are outside; and remove the evil from you, samekh. And writing to the Romans, the Apostle says that the outsiders, the pagans, although without the law, will still accept judgment - they will accept it not according to the written law, but according to the law of conscience (Rom. 2:12, etc.). The same thing here says that God judges them, that is, that their judge is God. Every rational creature is convinced that it is answerable before God and will receive judgment from Him according to the laws that He has laid down in their conscience. The pagans were mistaken in the concept of God, but this point about God’s judgment over them was in force. Therefore, the Apostle’s thought is this: we judge our own here ourselves and through this, disposing them to repentance, we deliver them from the judgment of God, but the pagans do not have this intermediary corrective judgment, the judgment of God awaits them directly. Saint Chrysostom says: “Lest anyone draw the conclusion from his words: “Let us judge those who are outside,” that the pagans will remain unpunished, he points to another judgment - the Last Judgment. He says this in order to frighten those outside and at the same time comfort his own, and in order to show that this temporary punishment delivers from the eternal and infinite, as in another place he said: now “we are judged and punished, lest we be condemned with the world” (1 Cor. 1:32).” “And remove the evil from you, Samech.” “Evil” – not just an incestuous person, but every evil person, every obvious sinner. This saying is taken from Deuteronomy (1 Cor. 17:7), and with it the Apostle confirms his order to expel obvious sinners from the society of Christians. Old Israel was the forerunner of the new, and the material laws of that time foreshadowed the spiritual laws of the Church of Christ. There, great sinners were stoned, and the Israelis thus removed the evil from themselves. In the Church of Christ, the evil is removed by excommunication from communion both in the sacraments and in external relations, in the form of not only cleansing oneself from evil, but also correcting oneself. By citing this saying, the Apostle justifies his order that this is exactly how one should act, and at the same time exposes the difference between the new Israel and the old. St. Chrysostom says in this place: “The Apostle borrowed this saying from the Old Testament in order, on the one hand, to inspire that in this case (having removed the evil) they themselves would receive the greatest benefit, freed, as it were, from a dangerous infection, and on the other hand, to show that this is not an innovation, and the ancient legislator was commanded to excommunicate such people. However, it was stricter there, but more lenient here. At the same time, one can rightly ask why the legislator there allowed the execution of sinners and stoning, but here it is not so, but leads him to repentance? Why is it legalized this way there, but differently here? – For two reasons: firstly, because those of the New Testament are called to greater feats, therefore, they need greater indulgence; secondly, and more just because relief in punishment would more likely dispose them to repentance and correction, while for the Old Testament it would have led to greater corruption.” 2. Reproof for litigation before the unbelievers (1 Cor. 6:1–8) Having mentioned the internal judgment in spiritual matters, the Apostle wants a) Christians to sort out everyday matters themselves, without bringing them to pagan judges (1 Cor. 1–6); but it would be better if they b) through mutual compliance and readiness to suffer an insult rather than to offend, did not allow litigation to arise among themselves (1 Cor. 7-8). Saint Chrysostom notes that the reason for this denunciation was the previous speech; it seems to be interpolated, and, having finished it, the Apostle again returns to the previous subject, that is, to the denunciation of prodigal and sensual life in general. a) Litigations between Christians should not be decided by pagan judges (1 Cor. 6, 1-6) 1 Corinthians 6:1. Does anyone dare from you, having a thing for another, to be judged by the unrighteous, and not by the saints? “Does anyone dare?” The apostle begins his speech directly and with movement. The question shows how unpleasant this matter is for him because of the humiliation of the Christian name, whose honor he was always jealous of. “To have a thing for another” is to have a controversial matter with someone, as can be seen from what follows, because of everyday things. He calls pagans “unrighteous” and Christians “saints.” In baptism, Christians make a commitment in conscience to observe all truth and do all good, and for the fear of God not to allow anything contrary to conscience; so that conscientiousness becomes their distinguishing feature. The pagans, on the contrary, have moral strength in decline, and they are supposed to be always ready to bend their souls. The apostle, also knowing from hearing that the Corinthian Christians, perhaps predominantly pagans, go to court in case of disagreements before pagan judges, either out of old memory, or because it is shameful to appear with a legal case in a meeting of Christians, at the mere memory of this he becomes indignant, and says: who dares? How does anyone decide to do this? What does it look like? Saint Chrysostom says: “And in this again the Apostle convicts them, as in a well-known matter; there he said: “I can hear wandering in you”; and here: “Does anyone dare from you?” At the very beginning he expresses anger and shows that this matter is not consistent with anything. Isn’t it strange, he says, to choose an enemy as a mediator to reconcile with a friend? Isn’t it shameful and disgraceful that a pagan sits down to judge a Christian? And look how he expresses himself: “to be judged by the unjust, and not by the saints,” by the very names exposing the foolishness of the matter and deviating from it. He did not say: among the infidels, but: among the “unrighteous”; uses such an expression as was especially necessary for him for his intended purpose, in order to correct and deviate them from such a matter. Speaking about the trial and bearing in mind that those on trial do not want anything more from judges than justice, he thereby admonishes them, as if saying: where are you going and what are you doing, man, acting contrary to your own wishes, seeking truth from unrighteous people? And in order to encourage you to turn to your own, see how he exalts and presents them as worthy of all trust, calling them first saints, and then judges of the whole world. At first he does not completely reject judgment from the faithful; but when he has already strongly denounced them, then he completely forbids them to sue. If, he says, it is absolutely necessary to sue, then you should not go to court with the infidels, and it is better not to sue at all. But he expresses the last thought later (1 Cor. 6:7-8), and now for now he only prohibits suing outsiders. It was hard to hear directly the prohibition to sue; why does he not suddenly command this, but first only changes the judges, turning those on trial from external judges to the Church.” 1 Corinthians 6:2. Do you not know how the saints of the world judge? And even if the world receives judgment from you, you are not worthy of evil judgment? Proves why it is inappropriate for Christians to go to court before the pagans; because, he says, Christian saints will judge the world, the world, that is, the infidels, the pagans as below - the angels, also infidels. If the pagans are judged, then it is obvious that the pagans are lower than them and the pagan judgments are not based on them; It is unworthy of you, he says, to go to these courts. The subject has been proven. The strength of the proof is in the knowledge of the fact that saints, Christians, have the world to judge. When the Apostle asks: “Don’t you know?”, the very question makes it clear that the Christians of that time knew this. Therefore, the Apostle’s goal was achieved without explaining how the saints would judge the world. He doesn't apply it. But for us now this is not entirely clear. The judge of the world is the Lord alone. He Himself, depicting judgment, makes it clear that both the faithful and the unfaithful will be subject to Him, and that having carried out the judgment, He will say to some: “Come with blessings,” and to others: “Come with curses.” How will the saints judge when they themselves will be judged? - To this let us say: the word of the Apostle is not false; the saints will judge the world and the angels, but we don’t know how. Our ignorance does not detract from the faithfulness of the apostolic word. But who will you satisfy with such an answer? Everyone wants to reach a solution, but since there is nothing to base decisions on, it is inevitable to make assumptions. They set up a lot of them. There is no point in listing them. Let’s take the one that all our interpreters unanimously accept. Here are the words of Theodoret: “He said: “They will judge,” instead they will condemn. For this is made clear by the following words: “If by you (εν υμιν) the world will receive judgment.” So “the men of Nineveh... and the queen of the south will condemn this generation” (Matthew 12:41–42); so the twelve Apostles will judge “the ten tribes of Israel” (1 Cor. 19, 28), that is, they will condemn them, they will condemn them, because they themselves came from them and believed in the Lord, and suffered countless types of deaths, and did not renounce their faith in Him. So those who believed among the pagans will condemn those who did not believe in the saving sermon. with the words: “if the world accepts judgment from you.” He did not say: from you, but “by you” (εν υμιν - you, in your holiness), just as the Lord said: “the queen of the south will arise and condemn this generation”; and: “The men of Nineveh will arise and condemn this generation” (Matthew 12:41–42). They see the same sun with us and participate in the same thing, and yet if we turn out to be believers, and they are unbelievers, then it will be impossible for them to plead ignorance; we will judge them by what we have done. And then there will be many similar methods of condemnation.” So are Saint Damascus, and Ecumenius, and Photius at Ecumenius, and Theophylact. The last postscript of St. Chrysostom shows that other ways of condemning the unfaithful by the faithful are also possible. But all are condemnations, not trials. Let's stop at this decision. He gives great weight - εν υμιν - in you, as if in your face, or pointing at you, the judge will pronounce judgment, and will be justified at his trial by you. If so, says Saint Paul further, then “you are not worthy by nature to receive evil judgment”; as it were: “Your behavior brings you shame and unspeakable dishonor. The Corinthians were probably ashamed to go to court before their judges; therefore he says: on the contrary, be ashamed that you are being judged by outsiders; their courts are of little importance, not those” (St. Chrysostom). 1 Corinthians 6:3. Don’t you know that imams judge angels, and not according to the eyes of this world? “The Apostle used the expression: “Imams judge” again instead of: we will condemn; He called demons angels because in ancient times they were angels. The saints will condemn them, because, being covered with flesh, they cared about the Divine service, but in their incorporeal nature they loved wickedness” (Theodoret). Saint Chrysostom refutes the opinion of those who believe that the Apostle here means priests by angels. The Apostle, he says, contrasts the angels with worldly affairs (worldly - βιωτικα - worldly, worldly affairs); and such deeds are not contrary to priests, for they are also worldly people; They are opposite to angels in the sense that by their nature they have no need for worldly things. “No, the Apostle speaks here about evil spirits, about those angels about whom Christ speaks: “go... into the fire... prepared for the devil and his angel” (Matthew 25:41). When these disembodied forces turn out to be worse than us clothed with flesh, they will be subjected to the most severe punishment.” 1 Corinthians 6:4. Worldly judgment, even if you have humiliated in the church, you imprison them. This place is a little dark, due to the uncertainty of who the “humiliated in the church” are. The first words are clear: “everyday judgment even if you are imate,” that is, if you have everyday affairs or conflicts that have to be settled through the courts. The last words are also clear: “you put these,” that is, you put them on the judge’s chair to judge yourself, or you elect them to be judges. But what the words “humiliated in the church” mean is not clear. And this obscures the entire text. “Humiliated in the Church” can be understood in two ways: either these are persons who belong to the Church, believing members of the Church, but those who last occupy places in it are lower than others; or are these persons existing outside the Church, non-believers, who for that very reason are considered worthless in the Church - they mean nothing to the Church and its members, they are “humiliated” in essence. If by these “humiliated” we mean non-church persons, then, putting this place in connection with the previous one, we get: you have to judge angels, how much more so about everyday things? And you, having everyday affairs, place on the judge's chair, or take as your judges, such persons who in the Church have no significance, as infidels, or are nothing before the Church and its members. What incongruity?! - I tell you this to shame. – Nowadays in the Greek text this place is made questionable. This does not change its meaning as proposed, but strengthens it, giving it a shade of reproachful disapproval. If by “humiliated” we ourselves mean persons who belong to the church, but are not visible in the church, then, putting the present place in connection with the previous one: “Do you judge angels, how much more do you judge the things of this life?” - we can further speak like this: as for everyday affairs, then if you have the need to settle them among yourself through third-party proceedings, take the last believers for this and put them in the judge’s chair. The thought will either be this: take the last of the Christians, and they will sort it out; or this: take whatever Christians you come across, even the very last ones, and entrust them with judgment over yourself, just don’t go to pagan judges under any circumstances. At the first thought, one will hear the suggestion that everyday affairs in themselves, and even more so between Christians, should be considered petty, insignificant to the point that the last Christian can sort them out; and at the same time a reproach: and you go to the courts as if it were some important matter and to important persons, while both are insignificant. At the second thought, one will hear the instillation of aversion to judgment before the pagans, as to a matter that for Christians is incongruous with anything. All of our interpreters read not: “you plant,” but: “plant,” and in the interpretation they express the last of the above thoughts. In the interpreted words they see the answer, not the intended question: do not go, you say, to pagan judges; but which of ours should I relate to? There is no one to judge, and you inevitably go to the pagans. – Here are the words of Saint Chrysostom: “Desiring with special force to teach us that we should not, in anything, turn to external judges, and seeing an objection presented, he resolves it in advance. The meaning of his words is as follows: maybe someone will say that among you there is not a single one wise or capable of sorting out the matter, but everyone is not capable of doing so; what? even if, he says, you didn’t have a single wise person, entrust this matter to the very last ones. - Pointing to the humiliated, he is not saying that the most incapable people should be in the place of judges, but he is shaming them. That the court should be left to people who are capable of trying cases, he expressed this below in the words: “So there is not a single one of you who is wise”; and in order to completely stop their mouths, he says that even if there were not a single wise person among them, it would be better to leave matters to the judgment of the unwise than to be judged by outsiders.” 1 Corinthians 6:5. To your shame I say: is there not one wise among you who can judge between his brothers? “I tell you to shame.” I say this to shame you, your foolishness, that you go to strangers when at home you can’t count how many there are who are capable of doing this, or to shame the empty excuse that there is no one to judge. In the Church, of course, there will always be wise people who can sort out any matter and establish peace among the brethren. Saint Chrysostom says: “To shame I speak to you.” He condemns such an objection (that there is no one to judge) as an empty pretext; therefore, he continues: “Is it true that not a single one of you is wise?” Is it really possible, he says, that you are so poor? Are smart people really that rare among you? The subsequent addition amazes them even more; for having said: “Is there not one wise among you,” he adds: “Who can judge between his brethren?” When brother is suing brother, then great wisdom and the art of eloquence are not needed to mediate the litigation, but disposition and kinship (spiritual) can greatly contribute to the resolution of disagreement. 1 Cor.6:6. But brother and brother go to court, and then before the infidels. “Double guilt: the one that is being judged, and the one that is being judged by the infidels” (St. Chrysostom). Or even triple: “first, that the faithful are judged; then, what is sued is with one of the same faith, and what is worse, is sued by an unfaithful judge” (Theodoret). If suing a brother in itself is a sinful act, then does the one suing outsiders deserve any justification? It is very shameful if a priest cannot be a conciliator between brothers, but it turns out that there is a need to resort to outsiders. “And that before the unbelievers,” he says. “Do you see how wisely he first humiliated the judges by calling them unrighteous, and now he shames the Corinthians by calling these judges unfaithful?” (Saint Chrysostom). b) There should be no litigation between Christians at all (1 Cor. 6:7-8) 1 Corinthians 6:7–8. It’s already a shame for you, because you have litigation among yourself. Why don't we offend you more? Why are there nothing worse than deprivation? But you yourself will offend and deprive, and even your brethren. There are two parties between the litigants: one considers himself offended, or actually is; the other is considered to be offensive, or actually is. The apostle does not accuse any of them. He says to the offended: why don’t you agree to remain offended and suffer deprivation? He says to the one who offends: why do you offend, and even your brother? His rule and his desire is that there should be no litigation at all between Christians. “I have not yet examined, he says, who is right and who is not wrong; Just by the very fact that they are being judged, both of them are worthy of condemnation and are in no way better than the other. Do not tell me (offended) that you have been wronged; I condemn you already for suing. (And to you, the one who offends, I will say): if not bearing an insult is a sin, then what kind of insult is worthy of condemnation? There are two crimes here, or better yet, three, or even four. One thing is that they do not bear insults; another, that they themselves offend; third, that they seek judgment from the unrighteous; fourth, that they do this to their brother. For sins are judged unequally when they are committed against someone encountered by chance, or against one’s own member (brother); in the latter case, more shamelessness is revealed: there only nature is insulted, and here the heart itself” (St. Chrysostom). “Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Cor. 6:9)? He concludes the admonition with a threat, making his word stronger through that word” (Theophylact). The requirement that there be no litigation between Christians does not represent anything excessive. Christian society is a society of saints. This is how Saint Paul portrays him everywhere. He ordered all sinners to be cast out, depriving them of their Christian name, if they did not repent. He drove out the fornicators, drove out the covetous and predators, drove out the troublemakers and drunkards. But if there are no such persons in society, then there will be no one to offend. If there are no offenses, there will be no reason for litigation. And if any conflict occurs, then it can always be settled with the help of some mediator, or even without it, when love reigns between everyone and everyone equally strives to preserve common peace. How much church discipline has weakened today! 3) Reproof of sinful and passionate life in general, especially carnal life (1 Cor. 6:9-20) Denunciation of a) sinful and passionate life in general (1 Cor. 6:9-11), and in particular b) carnal life, expressed in aa) gluttony (1 Cor. 6:12-13), and bb) fornication (1 Cor. 6:14-19), with c) a general conclusion about the glorification of God in souls and bodies (1 Cor. 6:20). Having condemned the incestuous man, the Apostle commanded the Church to cleanse itself of every ancient brew, every obvious sinner, and for this purpose he established an internal court. Since he had to denounce the Corinthians for going to pagan courts for everyday matters, he added this denunciation to the word about that internal court. Having finished this denunciation, he again returns to cleansing the Church from sinners, directing the word no longer to the Church, but to the sinners themselves, to sinners of all kinds, especially carnivores. a) Denunciation of sinful and passionate life in general (1 Cor. 6:9-11) 1 Corinthians 6:9–10. Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not flatter yourself: neither harlots, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor defilers, nor harlots, nor sodomites, nor covetous people, nor thieves, nor drunkards, nor molesters, nor predators will inherit the kingdom of God. The words: “or you do not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God” refer to the previous one - to the conviction that those who are ready to offend refrain from offending, and so that, in this way, no reason is given for litigation. Insults, or untruths, in everyday affairs, which give rise to litigation, may not seem so important in appearance; but since they come from disrespect for the truth, or a lack of love for the truth, and thereby expose a crooked conscience and depravity of the heart, then no matter how unimportant their subject may be, they make them unclean and unfit for the kingdom of God; for nothing unclean will enter there. Having finished this, the Apostle turns to denouncing sinful and passionate life in general. “Do not flatter yourself,” - do not be mistaken, do not be deceived, do not flatter yourself with empty hopes, as if sin is nothing. “Here the Apostle means some who said, as many now say: God is philanthropic and good, He does not take revenge for crimes, we have nothing to fear, He will never punish for any sin. That’s why he says: “don’t flatter yourself.” For it is extreme deception and delusion - hoping for something pleasant, receiving the opposite, and thinking about God in a way that they do not think about man. Therefore, the prophet speaks on behalf of God: “Thou shalt repent of iniquity, for I will be like thee: I will reprove thee, and bring thy sins before thee” (Ps. 49:21)” (St. Chrysostom). No matter how absurd such thoughts are, yet all sinners always hold them. The enemy really stuffs it into their heads. Only when, by the grace of God, they begin to repent, they realize that they were deceived, and they clearly see that with God mercy is mercy, and righteousness is righteousness. He is infinitely good; but no less righteous. Therefore let us fear His fear. Having opened the eyes of sinners, closed by flattery, the Apostle now lists them by generation, just as he did above when he expelled them from Christian society (1 Cor. 5:10-11). And he remembers all of them again, and adds new ones, either allowing us to assume that, besides these, the door to the kingdom will be open to other sinners, or making it clear that, like these, all other violators of the commandments will not be allowed to enter there. “Neither fornicators” are wifeless, indulging in lust with husbandless harlots; “nor the idolaters,” who, allowing themselves to eat things sacrificed to idols, fall into other indecentities connected with this; “nor adulterers” who violate the fidelity of the marital bed; “neither defilers” - this word is not in the original: it must be assumed that it was added to the incomprehensible following: malakia, so as to read: “neither defilers - malakia,” by which it seems we must understand those who defile themselves with prodigal sweets, or fornicators; “neither homosexuals”, when a man has a man instead of a woman to satisfy fornication; “nor covetous”, greedy for property in order to have more and more, without considering the means, such as: exorbitant growth, deception in trade, various tricks in transactions; They also include misers who, having a lot, do not use it themselves as they should, nor do they share it with others in need; “ni tatie” - thieves who steal from houses, shops, churches, secretly, mostly hiding behind the darkness of the night; “neither drunkards”, not only those who are always drunk, or drink heavily, but also those who generally love drunken fun, no matter in what form it is composed - condemned as arbitrarily stupefying oneself with heated blood and putting oneself in a state in which one is ready for anything; “neither annoyancers” - scolding and pugnacious, scolders and scoffers, from whom no one lives or passes, this is both in a gross and in a subtle form; “nor predators” who, like wild beasts of prey, prowl along the roads and sit in secret places to attack and rob someone - robbers; This also includes those who empty their pockets and those who forcibly withhold some kind of payment. Two types of sins are listed - carnal lust in its most shameful forms, and covetousness with all its untruths. Of the sins of irritation and anger, there is only one - annoyance, which, however, can also come from a non-angerous desire to annoy others. All such “will not inherit the kingdom of God.” And in a good society such people are intolerant, not only in the bright and pure kingdom of God. The Apostle puts forward this, probably because many of the believing Corinthians belonged to the lower class and were previously entangled in bad habits. The experience of an incestuous man has shown that in others a descent into previous affairs is also possible. That is why he writes to the entire Church: to expel such people from Christian society, and to threaten those who could fall again with hell. For nothing can sober up and turn away from the lures of habitual sin as much as the awareness of the danger of losing the kingdom and the perception of the fear of falling into Gehenna. That the Apostle’s real goal is to prevent is evident from what he says after this: 1 Corinthians 6:11. And by these things you were not born, but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by the Spirit of our God. There were some who were like that, but now it is true that neither they nor the others are like that. For even if they were like that now, the Apostle would not have spared them and would not have covered them up. And Saint Chrysostom says that “The Apostle uttered the above-mentioned threat not because he knew all these sins of the Corinthians, but in order to make everyone vigilant and careful.” To maintain vigilance over himself, he now adds a reminder to the threats about the spiritual benefits they received when they entered the fold of the Church. He seems to be saying to them: “Think about what evils God has delivered you from, what proof of His love for mankind He has shown you; and did not limit His mercy to deliverance from evils alone, but extended His goodness even further: He made you clean. And only that? - No, but he also sanctified it; and that's not all, but he justified it. To be washed from sins is already a great gift, but He has also enriched us with countless blessings. So, beloved, knowing this and imagining the greatness of the blessings given to us, let us live piously, keeping ourselves clean from all counted sins” (St. Chrysostom). And this suggestion of the Apostle is similar to the one he expressed when he commanded to cleanse old kvass. There he said: Passover is on your table; be unleavened, unleavened, not allowing in yourself any admixture of sin and passions. Here he says the same thing: you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified; do not fall again into uncleanness, do not lose justification and sanctification, the same as: be unleavened, unleavened. To say: “you have been washed, sanctified and justified” means to say the same thing: Easter is on the table. For Easter meant the exodus from Egypt, deliverance from slavery and the entry into freedom of an independent people. To be washed, sanctified and justified is to get rid of slavery to sin, come out of the Egypt of passions and the realm of Satan and enter into the spiritual freedom of the sons of the kingdom, walking in the will of the King of righteousness. To remember all this means to remember that we have Easter on the table, for all this is given in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, our Paschal Lamb, by the grace of the Holy Spirit. “Washed away,” that is, original sin and all our arbitrary sins are forgiven: these impurities are washed away in the waters of baptism through the communion of the blood of the Lord, who nailed our sins on the cross. “Be sanctified,” that is, in those who have been forgiven and blameless, the grace of the Holy Spirit is infused, placing in you the germ of a new, holy life and sanctifying you. In your thoughts, desires and feelings, everything has become holy, and in your heart there is one zeal to forever be holy, just as you came out of the font. - “You have been justified,” that is, your said mood constitutes your inner righteousness, integrity before the face of God and the angels and before the judgment of your conscience. In the name of the Lord, all this is given, for it is given by faith in Him and through the communion of His death and life. The power that produces this is the grace of the Holy Spirit. b) Reproof of the carnal life (1 Cor. 6:12–19) Having driven away the fear of deprivation of the kingdom from obvious sins and the memory of the great gifts of grace in Christ, having raised zeal for internal purity, or the suppression of all pleasures of the flesh, Saint Paul now turns to creating purity in their hearts, turning them away from sympathy for such matters in which carnality is most manifested, namely, aa) gluttony, and bb) fornication. aa) About gluttony (1 Cor. 6:12–13) 1 Corinthians 6:12. All things are good, but not all things are good: all things are things, but not all of them will be possessed from what. “The whole point is to fly.” Judging by the fact that in the next verse, which is directly related to the present, it is said about food, the idea is given that in the words: “everything is the essence”, it is said: I can eat all kinds of food. But here we can understand in general the pleasure of all senses - sight, hearing, smell and touch, and the satisfaction of all bodily needs, except food, and sleep, and rest, and coolness and ablutions, in general, all the consolations of the flesh. The Apostle here represents someone’s face, which, having surveyed all these joys, says: “They are all flying.” That is, I can use all this freely. Perhaps this speech was borrowed from the lips of the Apostle himself, who left the law that dictated: “Thou shalt not touch, neither taste, nor touch,” and preached complete freedom in this regard to everyone. But while Saint Paul added to this: “let not your freedom be the guilt of the flesh” (Gal. 5:13), others forgot this limitation and focused more on freedom and freedom and, perhaps, really did not constrain themselves in any way, not only by law, but also by the measure of prudence. As this kind of freedom is very dangerous, because by developing sensual life, it thereby diminishes and completely extinguishes spiritual life, and especially because by preparing lustful excitements, it exposes them to the danger of falling into fornication, which leads to death. Saint Paul hastens to bring them to their senses. He takes the proverb of each of them: “Everything is to fly,” and says, as it were: yes, “Everything is to fly, but not all is for good; everything is to fly, but I will not be possessed from what.” He places two restrictions on the freedom to enjoy everything: the first is benefit, the second is that one should not possess anything. God gave you a body and put into it the needs necessary to support its life, and outside, in nature, he scattered the benefits that satisfy these needs. Use everything. God’s blessing for this is already pronounced by the very fact that all this was created, and created for you. But use it only to the extent it is useful. If we had one bodily life, then we could interpret it this way: within the limits of benefit for the body. But since we are not only a body, but also a soul, we must add: within the limits of benefit for the soul. And the first will already limit a lot, both in relation to the types of pleasures, and in relation to the extent of them and other features. But when we add the second, it will cross out a lot from the list of what seemed to be “flying”. And this is in the natural order of life. If we take into account the order of a life of grace, which begins with self-sacrifice and is carried out entirely in the form of seeking the highest, thinking about things above, and not about earthly things, then by itself only the most essential things will remain, but everything else will be considered not useful and, as a result, attributed to what is not to fly, although at first it might not be such. Thus, it is obvious that the Apostle binds without binding: he does not impose external bonds of the law, but lays down the commandment of strict self-restraint. The second limitation: “I will not be possessed from anything.” In our body there lies some kind of law of habit, according to which the pleasure tasted today will be required by the body again tomorrow at the same hour. If you satisfy it tomorrow, then on the third day the demand will be repeated with greater force. Further and further, a habit is finally formed - the need to satisfy the body in a certain way and to a certain extent, which replaces a simple natural need. Habit is a connection. While natural need only demands and does not bind, habit binds, assigning an object, a time, and a measure. The more habits, the more connections and bonds. You can impose several habits on every simple need and thus be tied hand and foot. This is the same as, dreaming of freedom, being in shameful slavery to your sensuality. This is incomparably worse than slavery to the law. For “do not touch, nor taste, nor touch,” everything had good moral goals. This is what the Apostle warns against: let everything fly to you; but don't tie yourself down with anything. Be like a bird, freely soaring in the spaces of the air. But this also leads to what limitation by use also leads to. In order not to bind yourself to sensual habits, you must deny yourself sensual pleasures, allowing only those that are essential. Theodoret seems to mean in this place the limitation of sensual pleasures in general; and Saint Chrysostom is a restriction regarding certain dishes. Here are his words: “Here the Apostle speaks against gluttons. Intending again to denounce fornication and knowing that this fornication comes from satiety and immoderation, he strongly strikes this passion. You can, he says, eat and drink, but it is not healthy to eat and drink in moderation. He rejects this, firstly, as unhelpful: “not all is for good,” and secondly, as leading to the opposite: “but I will not be possessed from what.” The meaning of his words is as follows: you have power; maintain your power and be careful not to become a slave to this desire. Whoever uses it properly has power over it; and whoever indulges in it immoderately has no power, but becomes a slave to immoderation. If you are not abstinent, then it is not you who has power over the womb, but it has power over you.” 1 Corinthians 6:13. The belly is empty, and the belly is empty; God will abolish both this and that. “If you want to enjoy freedom in this (that is, in food), then use it, because meat was created for the belly. But you should know that this will be the end, for beyond the grave there is no need for food for people, and the future life has nothing of the kind; in it, according to the word of the Lord, they “neither marry nor commit violence” (Matthew 22:30), and neither eat nor drink. The Apostle used the word: “will abolish” prophetically” (Theodoret). Saint Chrysostom has the same idea. Here are the words of Photius in the Ecumenium: “If you simply take the meat in the meaning of food, and the belly in the meaning of the receiver of food, then the following words are better taken as a prophecy about the state in the next century: “God will abolish both this and this,” as it were: but they will both be abolished after the resurrection, as unnecessary; for then God will transform us into incorruption, so that there will be no need for food, nor for the recipient of food - the belly. The meaning of the words: “the belly is dirty and the belly is dirty” will be this: they excite and irritate each other and look for each other. The appetite of the belly seeks food, and food, in turn, excites and irritates the appetite. But God will make them unnecessary after the resurrection. So, one should not worry too much about what is about to be abolished.” Ahead, the Apostle limited the use of carnal pleasures, including food, to their benefits and so as not to allow himself to become slaves to them. Here, putting our current state in front of the future, brings out from here a new impulse for abstinence and moderation. In the next century, he says, there will be neither food nor womb; Therefore, care must be taken to destroy in the soul all gluttony and addiction to food through strict abstinence, otherwise the soul, having passed into another age with these addictions and not finding anything there that satisfies them, will languish and bear hell within itself. If there is no belly or food there at all, then in preparation for that life, in this life it is necessary to bring them to the last degree of smallness. How rationally the great fasters act! What a view of the future life the blessed Theodoret reveals from this word! There will be no food, there will be no belly, therefore there will be no hypogastric impulses, therefore there will be no marriages, therefore there will be no family relationships, therefore there will be nothing of everyday life. The whole way of life there will be different. If the purpose of present life is preparation for the future, then how wisely do those who renounce all the orders of this life in order to move to another without any connections act! In a few words, the Apostle said a lot against sensual pleasures in general, especially against gluttony, in order to prepare the way for the word to denounce fornication, and to pave the way for those who abstain from sensual pleasures and gluttony to victory over the movements of carnal lust. bb) About fornication (1 Cor. 6:14–19) 1 Corinthians 6:13. The body is not fornication, but the Lord, and the Lord is the body. Having taught abstinent life, he now begins to teach chastity. The motives for preserving chastity could also be derived from the natural dignity of man; but the Apostle Paul, bypassing nature, borrows them from the essence of the Christian faith. “The body is not fornication, but the Lord’s, and the Lord is the body.” The Lord is the Head, as God and man, consisting of soul and body; We are mysteriously members of Him, not only in soul, but also in body; therefore, they must belong to and serve Him with both soul and body. As a result of this, our body must belong to the Lord and serve together with our soul. But what about “Lord to the body”? – The Lord became incarnate in order to enter into communication with us, with all our nature received from us. And He deigns to enter into such communication mysteriously, with the soul of the Divinity and His soul, and with the body - the Divinity and His body. In this regard, He also deigns to communicate with our body, or to be a body. This place is a little dark. In order to enlighten it to some extent, we should not separate the body from the soul in our thoughts, but in the Lord we should contemplate all of God-manhood. Saint Chrysostom says: “The body was not created so that you would live intemperately and commit adultery, just as the womb was not created so that you would indulge in gluttony, but so that it would serve Christ as the Head, and He would be “Lord of the body.” Let us be ashamed and afraid that we, having been awarded such an honor, having become members of Him who rules over us, dishonor ourselves with such vices.” Theodoret writes: “The Apostle often calls the Lord our Head. Therefore the body is associated with Him as with the head.” Fornication is understood here not as a function of nature, but as an abuse of nature; therefore, a sober life in marriage does not mean that the body is not the Lord, for it does not act out of His will and submission to Him. 1 Corinthians 6:14. God raised up the Lord and will raise us up by His power. Why is this being said? – This seems to be the answer to the question: what about the Lord’s body and the Lord’s body when our body dies and decays? The Apostle responds to this: “If our body is a member of Christ, and Christ has risen, then the body, without a doubt, will follow its Head” (St. Chrysostom). “He is resurrected; God who raised Him will also resurrect us with the power of the Risen One” (Theodoret). But at the same time, arousing the thought of the lightness of the body of the risen Lord, he makes us imagine in what lightness our body will be resurrected, and in this he prepares the strongest incentive to flee from fornication, darkening the soul and body. The idea of ​​the lordship of the future body served as a strong motivation for all ascetics to refine it as much as possible, and, especially, to avoid lustful excitement. When one of them was granted by the grace of God that lust was extinguished and died away in him, they said about him that before the general resurrection he tasted its power. Some of them, when aroused by grace-filled movements, during prayer, sometimes became increasingly bright; Some had their faces brightened, others had their hands raised to the sky. These are all tactile signs of their tasting the power of the future resurrection. The Apostle said that God will resurrect us “by His power” so that, “since he mentioned a subject incomprehensible and incomprehensible to the considerations of reason, with undoubted power. The author of the resurrection must be blocked from the lips of unbelievers. And that he attributes the resurrection of Christ to the Father, do not be embarrassed by this. Such an expression does not mean that Christ is powerless, for He Himself says: “Destroy this church, and in three days I will raise it up” (John 2:19); and again: “the region the imam will lay down my soul, and the region the imam will again receive” (John 10:18). And Luke in the book of Acts says: “And set yourself before them alive” (1 Cor. 1:3). Why does Paul use this expression? Because what is proper to the Son is ascribed to the Father, and what is proper to the Father is ascribed to the Son; “Whatever He does, the Son also does likewise” (John 5:19)” (St. Chrysostom). 1 Corinthians 6:15. Do you not know that your bodies are the delight of Christ? Shall I take the hooks of Christ and create the hooks of harlots? It won't happen. What he said before: “the body of the Lord,” he now says the same in the words: “your bodies are the delight of Christ.” Here he repeats this with greater certainty in order to show how inappropriate fornication is in a Christian, how senseless and terrible. The very truth that we are the joy of Christ is preached everywhere by the Apostle. In baptism, denying Satan and all his works, we unite ourselves with Christ with our whole face. This combination is mysterious. It is more tangible in the moral, grace-filled structure of the Christian spirit, as a result of which Christians have, let’s call it that, a heartfelt attraction to Christ the Lord and the consciousness that they are His essence. So children always gravitate towards their father and mother. But we must assume that there is also a combination, although not tangible, but real, in which the body also participates. All planets are combined with the sun, and the sun with the planets. This is a dynamic union, but the combining forces are material; something similar exists between the Lord and believers. Perhaps this is accomplished through the all-pervading element of light, with which the glorified body of the Lord and the vital forces of our body, which lighten the soul, are homogeneous. If we accept this, then it will be somewhat clear how our bodies are the delight of Christ, not only for the sake of a moral and grace-filled union with the Lord, but also in another way, although not without dependence on that union. But our explanations add nothing to the certainty of the apostolic position that our bodies are the delight of Christ. We must accept this with childlike faith, without philosophizing and in the sense that the words give. So, take this truth and see from it that there is asceticism. Here's what: you take the hooks of Christ and make them the hooks of a harlot. “Nothing can be more terrible than these words. He didn’t say: I will take the udders of Christ, I will unite them with a harlot (once), but what? - “I will create harlots” (and will remain so). This expression is much more striking” (Saint Chrysostom). “The apostle greatly increased the power of iniquity, calling our members members of Christ. They are no longer yours, he says, but Christ’s; how then do you make them harlots?” (Theodorite). “Who will not be afraid of this—to take away the oud of Christ and make them harlots?” (Theophylact). The conclusion is obvious; It remains to explain how this really happens to a fornicator, which is what the holy Apostle does, saying: 1 Corinthians 6:16. Or do you not know that the filthy woman, who clings to himself, is one body with the harlot? It will be said that both will become one flesh. “By clinging to each other, two can no longer be two, but both become one” (St. Chrysostom). He who should be one with Christ is torn away from Christ and becomes one with the harlot. By what law? - According to the law of the original establishment of marriage. But after all, the marriage is done the same with the wife, why is it not reproached? The nuptials both arrive in the order of the will of God and Christ, both are Christ's. The harlot is not Christ’s, but a servant of Satan. He who is united with her, although in action he is similar to the marital couple, is in power opposite to them, and he tears his body and himself away from Christ and, through combination with a harlot, plunges himself into an area that is contrary to Him, satanic. Blessed Theodoret writes: “It is not without reason that the Apostle applied what was said about marriage to fornication, because both in essence are the same thing, but the difference shows the legality and illegality of the matter. Therefore, he says that he who cleaves his limbs to a harlot makes “the souls of the harlot”; and he who is united with the Lord makes his members “the ouds of Christ.” So, if you have been married to the Lord and again go to the harlot, then the reproach extends to the Master himself, because you give his oud to the harlot and make the Lord’s oud “the oud of the harlot.” The Christian body is pure and holy and akin to the body of Christ, being in a mysterious combination with it. Prodigal passion, even then, as soon as it arises and carries away the soul, it already makes the body gloomy and stinking; when fornication occurs, the darkness becomes impenetrable and the stench unapproachable. But the carnal do not see or feel this; spiritual people and angels see and feel this. There are many legends about this. If we were to remove the coarse shell of the body from the fornicator and leave him as he is in the soul, endowed with the vital force of the body, then an impenetrably gloomy figure of a man would be seen, emitting an unbearable stench. Meanwhile, this same thing, so dark and stinking, was light and fragrant with the lightness and fragrance of the body of Christ, with which it was in living relationship. Being such, it was the Lord’s, He assimilated it to Himself. When they begin to lean toward lust, they begin to become dark and turn away from the Lord. Fornication itself completely separates one from Him, for the gloomy and stinking can no longer be one with the Lord. 1 Corinthians 6:17. Cling to the Lord; there is one spirit with the Lord. They cling to the Lord by faith, sacraments and dedication to Him throughout their lives. Whoever is such naturally becomes one spirit with the Lord. What does it mean: “there is one spirit with the Lord”? - The same as when they say: such and such live in perfect harmony. He who cleaves to the Lord abides in the Lord, and the Lord abides in him. That’s why he only breathes the Lord, and tries in every possible way to enter into the Lord’s intentions, views, plans, so as not to allow anything that is not the Lord’s. Ecumenius writes: “Even though he is surrounded by a body, he is made a spirit through the fact that he does not create anything carnal. Or because he is such that, through the Holy Spirit, united with Christ, he cleaves to Him in spiritual deeds.” He quotes the words of Photius: “He is one in kind, everything becomes spiritual through union with the Lord. He is not carried away by carnal passions, is not divided into duality, working for God and mammon, but is all individual, and all spiritual, elevated to the unity of the spirit.” Why does the Apostle talk about this? - Then, so that the contrast between the two figures is more striking, one of whom remains one spirit with the Lord, and the other unites with the harlot and through her makes friends with Satan. He says, as it were: these are the fruits of this, this is what this one receives! Look, compare, and choose. The fact that there is one body with the “harlot,” and here with “the Lord is one spirit,” should not complicate thoughts. For even there the body is not without a soul, and here the spirit is not without a body. The Apostle exposes only the predominantly active parts of our nature here and here. Its purpose is to point out the consequences in order to distract from wandering and inspire to remain one with the Lord. 1 Corinthians 6:18. Flee fornication. Every sin that a person commits exists besides the body, but a fornicator sins in his own body. “He did not say: abstain from fornication, but: “flee,” that is, carefully try to avoid this vice. What he puts forward here as an incentive to do this is less important than what was said above; but, speaking about fornicators, he exposes their sin from all sides and shows the importance of their guilt, both great and small; the former is said for the more reverent, and the latter for the weaker. Paul’s wisdom is also revealed in the fact that he admonishes by presenting not only the great, but also the small, the shameful, and the obscene” (St. Chrysostom). But what is the thought: “every sin except the body, but the fornicator sins in his own body”? - Some say: although other sins are committed by members of the body as instruments, sin itself is outside the body, while fornication is sin itself in the body. Others say: other sins are committed by one member, which defiles, but fornication defiles the whole body. Others also say: this is why a fornicator sins in his body because he exhausts it, tearing away a part of it and throwing it away senselessly. We make extracts from our interpreters: Saint Chrysostom says: “Tell me, don’t the murderer, the covetous and the robber defile their hands? Everyone knows this (that is, what is being desecrated). But the Apostle wanted to give the idea that there is no one worse than a fornicator, and although he did not want to say this directly, he depicts the importance of this sin differently, explaining that from fornication the whole body becomes unclean; it becomes defiled as if it had fallen into a dirty vessel filled with impurities. That is why we have such a custom that after deeds of greed and revenge no one bothers to wash themselves, but returns straight home, and after fornication they go to wash themselves, as if they had become completely unclean: so the conscience is ashamed especially of this sin! Heaviness - both of these sins - and greed, and fornication - both of them plunge into Gehenna; but, doing everything with forethought, St. Paul shows the importance of adultery in everything he could.” Theodoret writes almost the same thing: “Whoever commits thousands of other sins: breaks oaths, defiles his tongue with blasphemy, appropriates to himself in the least that which does not belong to him, does not feel sin so vividly, but he who has become a slave of lewdness immediately after committing a sin feels evil and abhors the body itself. Therefore, resorting to baths, he washes the body in the thought that through this he will remove some vileness from him.” Ecumenium: “other sins arise from spiritual passion, for example, vanity, greed, envy; but in fornication the source of lust comes from the body itself.” He cites the opinion of Saint Athanasius: “other sins cause harm to one soul, but fornication with the soul corrupts and destroys the body, depleting spiritual and vital strength”; and Photius: “The fornicator inflicts evil on this very body and on himself, which does not happen in any other sin. Other sinners harm others, but the fornicator does harm to himself.” A devotee of this passion soon exhausts the strength of body and soul and goes to the grave. He is much like a drunkard in this respect: what can go to both of them, the Apostle attributed to one fornicator, because he is being discussed. The wanderer thinks that he is pleasing himself, but in reality it turns out that he is preparing a coffin for himself. 1 Corinthians 6:19. Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit living in you, which you have from God, and which you carry as your own? The purchase is of a natural price (1 Cor. 6:20). I said above that the body of the Lord, and that our bodies are the delight of Christ; now he says that the body is the church of the Spirit. We must believe that our bodies are in another way the delight of Christ and in another way the church of the Spirit. For Christ is with body; The spirit is incorporeal. Therefore, although it is incomprehensible to us how, it is possible for our body to have a relationship to the body of the Lord; The body can have a relationship with the Spirit of God not directly, but through the spirit of man. The body is the home of the human spirit. The Spirit of God descends into the spirit of man and dwells in him, and through him in the body. - “It comes from God.” Christians are all spirit bearers. In confirmation they receive the seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit, and from then on they receive anointing from the Holy Spirit. This makes them Christians too; This is the betrothal and inheritance of the kingdom of heaven. So what? Having said: “Your bodies are the joy of Christ,” he said: “If I take the joys of Christ, I will create the pleasures of harlots”? But what does it mean that “our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit”? The Apostle is silent about this, letting those who read and read his message understand it themselves. In other places he said: “do not offend the Holy Spirit, do not quench the Spirit.” The same is true here, of course. The temple of the Holy Spirit is your body: do not defile them with unclean lusts and shameful deeds, or your spirit with unclean thoughts and desires, so as not to drive away the purest Spirit of God. For, like the smoke of bees, so these impurities drive away the Spirit (Theophylact). “And carry yours: you bought them at natural price.” This is also a special incentive to avoid fornication. You are not yours, you were bought. Therefore, you cannot dispose of yourself as you wish. As slaves to masters, so you must be submissive in everything to the Master who bought you and not act out of His will. But He does not want you to commit fornication and push your body around as you please. It is His, just like your soul. Saint Chrysostom says: ““Bring your own.” This not only serves to reprove, but also encourages virtue. How, he says, can you do what you want? You have no power over yourself. By expressing: “Bring your own,” he does not take away freedom, but deviates from vice and shows the Lord’s care for us. He wants to strengthen us so that we do not sin and do not follow the vicious lusts of the soul. We have many vicious desires, but we must refrain, because we are not our own, but “bought with a price.” He reminds us of the greatness of the good deed and the image of our salvation, showing that we were redeemed when we were strangers to Him, and not simply, but “with a price.” “The Sovereign blood has been shed for you; You are under Him and must live according to His laws” (Theodoret). “You have been so dearly redeemed from the realm of Satan; do not throw yourself into her again through fornication” (Ecumenius). c) Glorification of God in souls and bodies (1 Cor. 6:20) 1 Corinthians 6:20. Glorify God in all your bodies and in your souls, which are the essence of God. This directly follows from the fact that they were purchased and became the church of the Spirit. But in content there is a conclusion of everything that has been said against a passionate and carnal life. Do not do anything that is convicted in these points, but do the opposite of it, and you will glorify God both in spirit and in body. He who is sober, chaste, temperate, hardworking and ready for all kinds of deeds performed with his body in fulfillment of the commandments, glorifies God in his body. He who always remembers God and glorifies His great good deed, revealed to us in the redemption of us, who, having become a partaker of the Spirit, lives a spiritual life in fulfilling the commandments of God and in all the deeds of pleasing God, he glorifies God in his spirit. When we are like this, then through us the commandment from the Lord will be fulfilled: “So let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). “Just as the heavens glorify Him, not by making a sound, but by their appearance arousing wonder and disposing to glorify the Creator, so we should glorify Him, or even more. For it is not so much heaven as the holy soul that glorifies God. “Glorify God,” he says, that is, show God both in your body and in your spirit, “which is the essence of God.” He called them God’s not only because God created them, but also because when they became alien to Him, He acquired them a second time at the price of the blood of His Son” (St. Chrysostom). “See how he relates everything to Christ, how he lifts us up to heaven. You, he says, are members of Christ, you are the church of the Spirit; Do not be members of a harlot; You are not dishonoring your own body, for your body is not yours, but Christ’s. These words show the love of Christ, who made our body His own, and together suppresses our vicious power over it. If, he says, your body is not yours, then you have no right to dishonor it, which belongs to another, especially when it belongs to the Lord, or to desecrate the church of the Spirit. For if someone who enters a private person’s house and commits disorder in it will be subjected to great punishment, then think about it. what kind of torment is he subjected to who makes the church of the King a den of robbers? Imagining all this, be ashamed of him who lives in you; this is the Comforter; fear the one who united with you and adopted you for himself; this is Christ. Have you not become a member of Christ? Imagine it and be chaste. Thoughts, whose were and whose your members became. They were formerly members of a harlot, but Christ made them members of his own body. Therefore, you no longer have power over them, but must serve the One who freed them. If you, having a daughter, out of madness sold her to the owner of harlots for fornication, and the king’s son, having happened at the same time, freed her from such slavery and took her as his wife, then you would no longer have the power to give her to a dishonest house after you had once sold her. It's the same with us. We sold our flesh to the devil, this evil tempter; and Christ, seeing this, snatched her away and freed her from his evil power; therefore, she no longer belongs to us, but to Him who liberated her. No one is stopping you from using her as the king’s bride; If you use it for your previous deeds, you will suffer what similar offenders should endure. So, it is necessary to decorate it, and not dishonor it. You do not have power over the flesh to satisfy evil desires, but only to fulfill the commandments of God. Think about what dishonor God delivered her from” (St. Chrysostom). You might be interested in: