1 Corinthians 3:17 - Printer Friendly

ESV: If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.

NIV: If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy that person; for God's temple is sacred, and you together are that temple.

NASB: If anyone destroys the temple of God, God will destroy that person; for the temple of God is holy, and that is what you are.

CSB: If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's temple is holy, and that is what you are.

NLT: God will destroy anyone who destroys this temple. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.

KJV: If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

NKJV: If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.

A rhetorical question in the previous verse established that the church in Corinth was God's temple, since the Holy Spirit lived in those believers. The same can be said of all local congregations: "the church" is the people, not a building, and those who are in Christ have God's Holy Spirit in them.

In that way, Paul declares that God is enormously protective of them. More specifically, God is protective of His own holiness. Since they are God's temple, and since God's temple is holy, they together are holy before God. Paul here elevates the value of the local church of believers in Jesus to the highest level. A group of born-again, saved Christians is something far above a simple gathering of like-minded people. That collective body of believers, not the buildings they meet in, is God's holy temple on earth.

Paul's main point, though, is this: If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy that person. He seems to have in mind not just those leaders who would build poorly on the foundation of Jesus, to use the metaphor from previous verse. Instead, Paul speaks of someone who would destroy the church altogether, perhaps with false teaching or by dividing the people instead of uniting them.

God will destroy that person. Does this mean He will end this person's physical life or that this person will be condemned eternally? Paul doesn't specify, but he clearly means to refer to God's harsh and painful judgment. A broader look at the New Testament shows that God might allow persecutors of the church to survive, for now, but all men will face eternal judgment for their conduct towards Christ and His church (Revelation 20:11–15).

First Corinthians 3:16–23 is the third metaphor Paul uses to explain the relationship between works, spiritual growth, and God's judgment of our efforts. An emphasis here is on the superiority of God's wisdom compared to the fallible knowledge of man, echoing statements from chapters 1 and 2. Paul's main point here, again, is that we ought to focus on allegiance to Christ and His will, rather than being divided over loyalty to different human teachers.

Paul cannot call the Corinthian Christians ''spiritual'' people. Though they are in Christ, they continue to live to the flesh. They are spiritual infants, not ready for solid food. Divisions among them prove they are still serving themselves, picking sides in a senseless debate between Christian teachers. Paul insists that both he and Apollos are mere servants of the Lord and co-workers. They are not in competition. Those who lead the Corinthians must build carefully because their work will be tested on the day of the Lord. Christian leaders who build the church will have their work judged by Christ to see if they have built on the foundation of Christ. All human wisdom will be shown to be futile and worthless.

First Corinthians 3 follows Paul's teaching that only spiritual people can understand the wisdom of God. Paul cannot fully call the Corinthian Christians spiritual people, though, because they continue to live of the flesh, as if they were still infants trapped in an immature condition. Evidence includes the divisions among them. Paul insist that he and Apollos are both servants of the same master. The Corinthians should follow God, not them. Those whose work is worthless will suffer loss, but they will be saved. After this, Paul will expound on the idea that believers ought to set Christ as their example, rather than being defined in terms of their earthly leaders.

First Corinthians is one of the more practical books of the New Testament. Paul writes to a church immersed in a city associated with trade, but also with corruption and immorality. These believers are struggling to properly apply spiritual gifts and to resist the ungodly practices of the surrounding culture. Paul's letter gives instructions for real-life concerns such as marriage and spirituality. He also deals with the importance of unity and gives one of the Bible's more well-known descriptions of love in chapter 13.