1 Corinthians 6:20
A focused desk for reading, commentary, cross-references, original language notes, and your own observations.
1 Corinthians 6:20
20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.
Chapter Context
1 Corinthians 6 is a pastoral epistle chapter in the New Testament that explores themes of judgment, redemption, discipleship. Written during Paul's third missionary journey (c. 55 CE), this chapter should be understood within its historical context: The church existed in a prosperous, cosmopolitan, morally permissive Roman colony.
The chapter can be divided into several sections:
- Verses 1-5: Introduction and setting the context
- Verses 6-12: Development of key themes
- Verses 13-20: Central message and teachings
This chapter is significant because it offers practical wisdom for godly living in a fallen world. When studying this passage, it's important to consider both its immediate context within 1 Corinthians and its broader place in the scriptural canon.
Verse Study
1 Corinthians 6:20
20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.
Analysis
For ye are bought with a price (ēgorasthēte gar timēs, ἠγοράσθητε γὰρ τιμῆς)—redemption language. Agorazō (ἀγοράζω, 'purchase, buy') was used for slave markets; timē (τιμή, 'price') is singular and emphatic—the price, Christ's blood (1 Peter 1:18-19). Believers are purchased property, slaves of Christ (7:22-23), a status that paradoxically brings true freedom. Ownership determines use: you're not self-owned but Christ-bought.
Therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's. Doxasate dē ton theon en tō sōmati hymōn (δοξάσατε δὴ τὸν θεὸν ἐν τῷ σώματι ὑμῶν)—aorist imperative, urgent command. Doxazō (δοξάζω, 'glorify') means to honor, magnify, reveal God's worth. The body is instrument of worship. 'And in your spirit, which are God's' is textually disputed (absent in many manuscripts), but the point stands: whole-person worship, body included. Sexual purity, like bodily resurrection (v. 14), declares God's glory. Holiness is doxology.
Historical Context
Slave redemption (ransom from bondage) was common in Roman Corinth. Corinthian Christians, some literally freedmen/slaves, understood: they'd been purchased from sin's slavery into Christ's liberating ownership. The twist: this Master demands holiness, not exploitation. Paul applies economic metaphor to cosmic transaction—Christ's death as purchase price. 'Glorify God in your body' was countercultural: bodies were for pleasure or labor, not worship. Paul insists: bodily actions (eating, sex, work) are liturgical—they either honor or dishonor the Owner.
Reflection
- How does viewing yourself as 'bought with a price' shift your sense of obligation from guilt-based to gratitude-based obedience?
- What specific bodily practices (sexuality, eating, rest, generosity) can you reframe as acts of worship that glorify God?
- How can the church celebrate the body as instrument of divine glory without falling into legalism or body-obsession?
Word Studies
- Spirit: πνεῦμα (Pneuma) G4151 - Spirit, wind, breath
Cross-References
- References God: 1 Corinthians 10:31, Romans 12:1, Revelation 5:9
- Spirit: Acts 20:28
- Parallel theme: 1 Corinthians 7:23, Galatians 3:13, Philippians 1:20, Hebrews 9:12, 1 Peter 1:18, 2:9