SEV Biblia, Chapter 6:1
¶ ¿Osa alguno de vosotros, teniendo pleito con otro, ir a juicio delante de los injustos, y no delante de los santos?
Clarke's Bible Commentary - 1 Corinthians 6:1
Verse 1. Dare any of you, &c.] From the many things that are here reprehended by the apostle, we learn that the Christian Church at Corinth was in a state of great imperfection, notwithstanding there were very many eminent characters among them. Divided as they were among themselves, there was no one person who possessed any public authority to settle differences between man and man; therefore, as one party would not submit to the decisions of another, they were obliged to carry their contentions before heathen magistrates; and probably these very subjects of litigations arose out of their ecclesiastical divisions. The thing, and this issue of it, the apostle strongly reprehends. Before the unjust, and not before the saints?] The heathen judges were termed dikastai from their presumed righteousness in the administration of justice; here the apostle, by a paronomasia, calls them adikoi, unrighteous persons; and it is very likely that at Corinth, where such corruption of manners reigned, there was a great perversion of public justice; and it is not to be supposed that matters relative to the Christians were fairly decided. The Christians the apostle terms agioi saints, which they were all by profession; and doubtless many were so in spirit and in truth.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 1. Dare any of you, having a matter against another , etc.], Any thing in difference, an action, cause, or suit. The apostle having dispatched the affair of the incestuous person, and blamed this church for their conduct therein: and having given them instructions what they should do, proceeds to lay before them another evil among them he had to complain of; which was, when any difference arose among them about their worldly concerns, they would go to law before the unjust , and not before the saints; a method of proceeding condemned by the Jews, who would not suffer any causes of theirs to be tried before Gentiles, only before Israelites; their canon runs thus f68 , he that tries a cause before the judges of the Gentiles, and before their tribunals, although their judgments are as the judgments of the Israelites, lo, this is an ungodly man; and it is as if he blasphemed and reproached, and lift up his hand against the law of Moses our master, as it is said, ( Exodus 21:1) now these are the judgments which thou shalt set before them, ywg ynpl alw , and not before the Gentiles; twjwydh ynpl alw , and not before idiots, private or illiterate men.
They looked upon such an action as bad as profaning the name of God; hence they say f69 , we must not try a cause in the courts of the Gentiles, for they come from the strength of judgment; this is Esau an hairy man, for they have no concord nor mercy and he that comes before thee yh lljm , profanes the name of God, who is gracious and merciful, and honours the name of an idol wherefore he that brings a cause before the Gentiles, is the occasion of spreading the property of judgment in the world therefore let a cause be tried before the Israelites, for they are the secret of mercy, and not before the Gentiles, nor before idiots: they affirm it to be a greater sin than murder, and that not only profanations of the name of God, but rapine and violence are comprehended in it; and that to give evidence in an Heathen court against an Israelite, deserves excommunication; for so it is said, f71 he that bears witness against an Israelite ywg l twakr[b , in the courts of the Gentiles, and by his testimony gets money from him, which is not according to the judgment of the Israelites, they excommunicate him until he repays it.
Again f72 it is forbidden to order causes in the courts of (the rest of the nations) idolaters, for they have no part in the side of our faith.
The apostle here dissuades from this practice, of going to law before Heathen magistrates, not only from its being an imprudent, but an impudent, daring, rash and adventurous action; and seems surprised that any should attempt it, when it must unavoidably expose their weaknesses and faults to their enemies; nor could they expect justice to be done them by men of such a character, as unjust, who neither feared God, nor regarded men; were not only destitute of righteousness, but filled with all unrighteousness, and had not so much as the principles of common justice and equity in them; when on the contrary, from the saints, men who have the principles of grace and holiness wrought in them, and live soberly, righteously, and godly, who have the fear of God before their eyes, and upon their hearts; they might reasonably conclude, were matters brought before them, they would be adjusted according to judgment and truth, without exposing the sin and weakness of any party to the world.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 1-8 - Christians should not contend with one another, for they are brethren This, if duly attended to, would prevent many law-suits, and end man quarrels and disputes. In matters of great damage to ourselves of families, we may use lawful means to right ourselves, but Christian should be of a forgiving temper. Refer the matters in dispute, rathe than go to law about them. They are trifles, and may easily be settled if you first conquer your own spirits. Bear and forbear, and the men of least skill among you may end your quarrels. It is a shame that littl quarrels should grow to such a head among Christians, that they cannot be determined by the brethren. The peace of a man's own mind, and the calm of his neighbourhood, are worth more than victory. Lawsuits coul not take place among brethren, unless there were faults among them.
Greek Textus Receptus
τολμα 5111 5719 V-PAI-3S τις 5100 X-NSM υμων 5216 P-2GP πραγμα 4229 N-ASN εχων 2192 5723 V-PAP-NSM προς 4314 PREP τον 3588 T-ASM ετερον 2087 A-ASM κρινεσθαι 2919 5745 V-PPN επι 1909 PREP των 3588 T-GPM αδικων 94 A-GPM και 2532 CONJ ουχι 3780 PRT-I επι 1909 PREP των 3588 T-GPM αγιων 40 A-GPM
Vincent's NT Word Studies
1. Dare. "The insulted majesty of Christians is denoted by a grand word" (Bengel).
Robertson's NT Word Studies
6:1 {Dare any of you?} (tolmai tis humwn;). Does any one of you dare? Rhetorical question with present indicative of tolmaw, old verb from tolma, daring. Bengel: _grandi verbo notatur laesa majestas Christianorum_. "The word is an argument in itself" (Robertson and Plummer). Apparently Paul has an actual case in mind as in chapter #1Co 5 though no name is called. {Having a matter against his neighbor} (pragma ecwn pros ton heteron). Forensic sense of pragma (from prassw, to do, to exact, to extort as in #Lu 3:13), a case, a suit (Demosthenes 1020, 26), with the other or the neighbor as in #10:24; 14:17; Ga 6:4; Ro 2:1. {Go to law} (krinesqai). Present middle or passive (ch. #Ro 3:4) in the same forensic sense as kriqenai in #Mt 5:40. krites, judge, is from this verb. {Before the unrighteous} (epi twn adikwn). this use of epi with the genitive for "in the presence of" is idiomatic as in #2Co 7:14, epi titou, in the case of Titus. The Jews held that to bring a lawsuit before a court of idolaters was blasphemy against the law. But the Greeks were fond of disputatious lawsuits with each other. Probably the Greek Christians brought cases before pagan judges.
