Commentary on 1 Corinthians
Chapter 6
Legal Discipline
Lecture 1
Judges of grievances
6:1 Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to be judged before the unjust: and not before the saints? [n. 264]
6:2 Know you not that the saints shall judge this world? And if the world shall be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters? [n. 268]
6:3 Know you not that we shall judge angels? How much more things of this world? [n. 271]
6:4 If therefore you have judgments of things pertaining to this world, set them to judge who are the most despised in the Church. [n. 273]
6:5 I speak to your shame. Is it so that there is not among you any one wise man that is able to judge between his brethren? [n. 275]
6:6 But brother goes to law with brother: and that before unbelievers?
264. After rebuking the Corinthians for failing to judge, the Apostle now rebukes them for other failings in matters of judgment.
First, in regard to the judges before whom they present their grievances;
second, in regard to the grievances themselves, at already indeed (1 Cor 6:7).
In regard to the first he does three things.
First, he charges them with unbecoming conduct;
second, he gives the reason for this charge, at know you not that the saints;
third, he applies a remedy, at if therefore you have judgments.
265. First, therefore, he says: you fail to judge yourselves but allow yourselves to be judged by the unrighteous. Hence he says: dare i.e., presume, any of you, having a matter, i.e., secular business, against another, go to be judged before the unjust, i.e., submit to the decision of an unbeliever, and not before the saints, i.e., before believers, who have been sanctified by the sacraments of faith?
266. This is unbecoming in a number of ways. First, because it detracts from the full power of believers; second, it insults the dignity of believers to take their lawsuits to unbelievers; third, it gives unbelieving judges occasion for looking down on believers, whom they see at odds among themselves; fourth, it gives the same judges occasion for calumniating and oppressing believers, whom they hate on account of their faith and rites which differ from their own. Hence it says: I took the heads of your tribes, wise and experienced men, and set them as heads over you. And I charged them: hear the cases between your brethren, and judge righteously (Deut 1:15). Again: you may not put a foreigner over you, who is not your brother (Deut 17:15).
267. But this seems contrary to what is commanded by Peter: be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors sent by him (1 Pet 2:13); for it pertains to the prince’s authority to judge his subjects. Therefore, it is against the divine law to forbid one’s conforming to the decision of a judge, who is an unbeliever.
The answer is that the Apostle is not forbidding believers who are under the jurisdiction of unbelieving princes to accept their judgment, if they are summoned; for this would be contrary to the loyalty owed to princes, but he is forbidding believers voluntarily to prefer being judged by unbelievers.
268. Then when he says, know you not, he gives a reason against this policy, inasmuch as it detracts from the full power of the saints.
First, in regard to the power they have over worldly affairs;
second, in regard to the power they have over other-worldly things, i.e., over angels, at know you not that we shall judge angels.
269. First, therefore, he says: it is unbecoming to take your lawsuits to unbelievers, because believers have authority to judge, know you not that the saints shall judge this world, i.e., the worldly men of this world?
They do this in three ways: first, comparatively, i.e., not only in the sense that good men will judge evil men, and saints the worldly, but also that the good will be judged by the better and the evil by the worse, according to Matthew: the men of Nineveh will arise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it (Matt 12:41).
Second, they will judge by approving the sentence of the judge, i.e., Christ; and this will be reserved to the just: the just man will rejoice when he sees the vengeance (Ps 58:10); the saints shall judge nations (Wis 3:8).
In a third way by passing sentence, and this will be done by the apostles and those like them who held worldly things in contempt and clung only to spiritual things, for as was said above: the spiritual man judges all things (1 Cor 2:15). Hence it is said: you who have followed me will sit on twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel (Matt 19:28), and: two edged swords in their hands to wreak vengeance on the nations (Ps 149:4).
This passing of sentence will not be vocal but spiritual, inasmuch as lesser saints or even sinners will be enlightened with a spiritual light by the higher saints to understand what sort of punishments or rewards are owed to them; just as even now men are enlightened by angels, or even lesser angels by higher ones.
270. Second, from what has been stated he argues to his proposition, saying: and if the world, i.e., worldly men, shall be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters, i.e., worldly business? He who is dishonest in a very little, is dishonest also in much (Luke 16:10).
271. Then when he says, know you not that we shall judge angels, he argues to the same conclusion, from the authority of the saints over angels.
And first he lays down the argument, saying, know you not that we, namely, the faithful of Christ, shall judge angels? This can be understood of bad angels, who will be condemned by the saints, by whose virtue they were overcome. Hence the Lord says: I have given you power to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and all the power of the enemy (Luke 10:19). And in a psalm: the young lion and the serpent you will trample under foot (Ps 91:13).
It can also be understood of good angels, most of whom in some way will be found inferior to Paul and others like him. Hence, it is significant that he does not say you shall judge but we shall judge. Although it might also be said, as a consequence, that if saints will judge good and evil men, there will be a judgment of good angels, whose accidental reward is increased by the reward of saints enlightened by angels and a judgment of evil angels, whose punishment is increased by the punishment of men led astray by them.
272. Second, he argues to the proposition, saying: how much more things of this world, namely, judgments, will we be fit to judge. For one capable of greater things is even more capable of lesser. Hence to the person entrusted with five talents the Lord later entrusted one (Matt 25:28).
273. Then when he says, if therefore you have judgments, he applies the remedy for their fault.
First he mentions the remedy;
second, he explains, at I speak to your shame.
274. First, therefore, he says: therefore, since the saints shall judge this world, if you should have secular trials among you, which, nevertheless you should not have, those most despised in the Church should be appointed to judge, rather than be judged by unbelievers. Let a good man strike or rebuke me in kindness, but let the oil of the wicked never anoint my head (Ps 141:5); and it says: a living dog is better than a dead lion (Eccl 9:4).
275. Then when he says, I speak to your shame, he explains in what sense he meant the foregoing.
For someone could believe that literally the least esteemed were to be chosen judges. But he excludes this, saying, I speak to your shame. As if to say: I did not say this as though it were to be done, but I said it to shame you, namely, with that confusion which brings grace and glory (Sir 4:25): for the most despised in the Church should be chosen for judging, if no wise men were to be found among you, which would be shameful for you. That is why he continues, is it so that there is not among you any one wise man that is able to judge between his brethren? But brother goes to law with brother: and that before unbelievers? Rather than do this, you should appoint the most despised in the Church to judge and to supply for the lack of wisdom, which, of course, is not wanting to you, as I said above: in all things you are made rich in him, in all utterance and in all knowledge (1 Cor 1:5).
276. Or in another way from if therefore you have: for he had said that the saints are worthy to judge worldly matters; consequently, he wants to show by whom worldly judgments should be passed, namely, by the most despised in the Church. By most despised he means those who are wise in worldly matters as opposed to those wise in divine matters and are not occupied with temporal things, in order to devote themselves strictly to spiritual things. And this is what is added to: I speak to your shame. Hence the apostles said: it is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables (Acts 6:2).
After that he returns to what he had censured earlier, namely, that the Corinthians took their lawsuits to unbelieving judges, saying, is it so that there is not among you any one wise man, namely in temporal affairs, which he called contemptible earlier.
Hence the other things are not changed from the first explanation, which seems to be more literal.