Foundation Text
1 Corinthians 5:6-8
Greek Key Terms
- καύχημα (kauchēma) - boasting, ground for boasting
- ζύμη (zymē) - leaven, yeast
- ζυμόω (zymoō) - to leaven, cause to ferment
- φύραμα (phyrama) - lump (of dough)
- ἐκκαθαίρω (ekkathairo) - to cleanse out, purge out
- παλαιός (palaios) - old
- νέος (neos) - new
- ἄζυμος (azymos) - unleavened
- πάσχα (pascha) - Passover (lamb)
- θύω (thyō) - to sacrifice, slaughter
- ἑορτάζω (heortazō) - to celebrate a feast, keep festival
- κακία (kakia) - malice, wickedness
- πονηρία (ponēria) - evil, maliciousness
- εἰλικρίνεια (eilikrineia) - sincerity, purity
- ἀλήθεια (alētheia) - truth
Context: 1 Corinthians 5 addresses a severe case of sexual immorality in the Corinthian church—a man living with his father's wife (likely stepmother). The church has not disciplined him but rather boasts (likely about their "tolerance" or "grace"). Paul commands them to remove the offender and explains the theological rationale using Passover/Unleavened Bread typology.
Connections
- TO:
- Exodus 12:15-20 - command to purge leaven from homes
- Leviticus 23:6-8 - Feast of Unleavened Bread as perpetual statute
- FROM OT:
- Deuteronomy 16:3-4 - unleavened bread with Passover
- Proverbs 6:32-33 - sexual immorality brings reproach
- FROM NT:
- Galatians 5:9 - same proverb: "A little leaven works through the whole batch of dough"
- 2 Corinthians 7:1 - "cleanse ourselves from everything that defiles"
Christological Connection: "Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed" (v. 7). This is the interpretive key. Just as the Passover lamb's blood protected Israel from judgment and their departure from Egypt required purging leaven, so Christ's sacrifice redeems us from sin and requires purging sin from our lives and churches. The escalation: Israel purged leaven one week annually; the church lives in perpetual purity. Paul commands, "Therefore let us keep the feast" (present tense—continuous action). The feast pointed to a lifestyle, not merely a ritual. Christ's sacrifice is once-for-all (Hebrews 10:10), but our sanctification is continuous. We celebrate Passover-Unleavened Bread perpetually by living in purity.
Application: The command "Get rid of the old leaven" applies both individually and corporately. Individually: Are you tolerating sin in your life, thinking it's small or harmless? "A little leaven works through the whole batch of dough." What seems insignificant spreads corruption. Confess and forsake hidden sin. Live as what you are—unleavened in Christ. Corporately: Is your church exercising biblical discipline? Tolerating unrepentant sin in the church corrupts the whole body. Church discipline is not unloving; it's essential for maintaining purity. Love the sinner by calling them to repentance, and love the church by protecting its holiness.
Connection Method(s): Typology (Direct, Backward-Looking), Redemptive-Historical Progression — Paul explicitly applies Passover-Unleavened Bread typology to the church: "Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Therefore let us keep the feast... with the unleavened bread of sincerity and of truth." The memorial feast's own voice looks back at a completed Exodus (Deut 16:3, "so that you may remember"); the type is imposed retrospectively by the apostle, which is the Backward-Looking signature.
Trajectory Table: 165 - Unleavened Bread (Purity and Sincerity)