Teks -- 1 Corinthians 6:2 (NET)

6:2 Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world is to be judged by you, are you not competent to settle trivial suits?

Tafsiran/Catatan -- Catatan Kata/Frasa (per frasa)

Robertson: 1Co 6:2 - Shall judge the world

Shall judge the world ( ton kosmon krinousin ).

Future active indicative. At the last day with the Lord Jesus (Mat 19:28; Luk 22:30).

Robertson: 1Co 6:2 - Are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?

Are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? ( anaxioi este kritēriōn elachistōṉ ).

Anaxios is an old word (an and axios ), though only here in the N.T. There is dispute as to the meaning of kritēria here and in 1Co 6:4, old word, but nowhere else in N.T. save in Jam 2:6. Naturally, like other words in ̇tērion (akroatērion , auditorium, Act 25:23), this word means the place where judgment is rendered, or court. It is common in the papyri in the sense of tribunal. In the Apost. Const. ii. 45 we have mē erchesthō epi kritērion ethnikon (Let him not come before a heathen tribunal). Hence here it would mean, "Are ye unworthy of the smallest tribunals?"That is, of sitting on the smallest tribunals, of forming courts yourselves to settle such things?

Vincent: 1Co 6:2 - Matters

Matters ( κριτηρίων )

The word means, 1, The instrument or rule of judging ; 2, the tribunal of a judge . It occurs only here, 1Co 6:4, and Jam 2:6, where it means judgment-seats . This latter gives a good sense here without having recourse to the meaning suit or case , which lacks warrant. So Rev., in margin, " are ye unworthy of the smallest tribunals? " That is, are ye unworthy of holding or passing judgment in such inferior courts?

Wesley: 1Co 6:2 - Know ye not

This expression occurs six times in this single chapter, and that with a peculiar force; for the Corinthians knew and gloried in it, but they did not practise.

Wesley: 1Co 6:2 - That the saints

After having been judged themselves.

Wesley: 1Co 6:2 - Shall judge the world

Shall be assessors with Christ in the judgment wherein he shall condemn all the wicked, as well angels as men, Mat 19:28; Rev 20:4.

JFB: 1Co 6:2 - Do ye not know

As a truth universally recognized by Christians. Notwithstanding all your glorying in your "knowledge," ye are acting contrary to it (1Co 1:4-5; 1Co 8:1). The oldest manuscripts have "Or" before "know ye not"; that is, "What! (expressing surprise) know ye not," &c.

JFB: 1Co 6:2 - saints . . . judge

That is, "rule," including judgment: as assessors of Christ. Mat 19:28, "judging," that is, "ruling over." (Compare Psa 49:14; Dan 7:22, Dan 7:27; Rev 2:26; Rev 3:21; Rev 20:4). There is a distinction drawn by able expositors between the saints who judge or rule, and the world which is ruled by them: as there is between the elected (Mat 20:23) twelve apostles who sit on thrones judging, and the twelve tribes of Israel that are judged by them. To reign, and to be saved, are not necessarily synonymous. As Jehovah employed angels to carry the law into effect when He descended on Sinai to establish His throne in Israel, so at His coming the saints shall administer the kingdom for, and under, Him. The nations of the earth, and Israel the foremost, in the flesh, shall, in this view, be the subjects of the rule of the Lord and His saints in glorified bodies. The mistake of the Chiliasts was that they took the merely carnal view, restricting the kingdom to the terrestrial part. This part shall have place with the accession of spiritual and temporal blessings such as Christ's presence must produce. Besides this earthly glory, there shall be the heavenly glory of the saints reigning in transfigured bodies, and holding such blessed intercourse with mortal men, as angels had with men of old, and as Christ, Moses, and Elias, in glory had with Peter, James, and John, in the flesh at the transfiguration (2Ti 2:12; 2Pe 1:16-18). But here the "world" seems to be the unbelieving world that is to be "condemned" (1Co 11:22), rather than the whole world, including the subject nations which are to be brought under Christ's sway; however, it may include both those to be condemned, with the bad angels, and those about to be brought into obedience to the sway of Christ with His saints. Compare Mat 25:32, Mat 25:40, "all nations," "these my brethren" on the thrones with Him. The event will decide the truth of this view.

JFB: 1Co 6:2 - judged by you

Or, before you (compare 1Co 3:22).

JFB: 1Co 6:2 - smallest matters

The weightiest of earthly questions at issue are infinitely small compared with those to be decided on the judgment-day.

Clarke: 1Co 6:2 - The saints shall judge the world?

The saints shall judge the world? - Nothing can be more evident than that the writers of the New Testament often use ὁ κοσμος, the world, to signify the Jewish people; and sometimes the Roman empire, and the Jewish state; and in the former sense it is often used by our Lord. When, says he, the Son of man shall sit on the throne of his glory, then shall ye sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel, Mat 19:28. It is supposed that he refers to the same subject as that mentioned here - the saints judging the world; and that St. Paul has his words in view in what he says here to the Corinthians. By judging the twelve tribes of Israel, some have imagined that having authority in the Church is merely intended; but Dr. Lightfoot contends that the words referred to the coming of our Lord to execute judgment on the Jews, and to destroy their state; and that the doctrine of the apostles, not themselves, was to judge and condemn that most disobedient people. The place before us is generally understood to imply, that the redeemed of the Lord shall be, on the great day, assessors with him in judgment; and shall give their award in the determinations of his justice. On reviewing this subject, I am fully of opinion that this cannot be the meaning of the words, and that no such assessorship as is contended for ever will take place; and that the interpretation is clogged with a multitude of absurdities

1.    The saints themselves are to appear before the judgment seat of Christ, and shall be judged by him, after which they shall reign with him; but it is never said in Scripture that they shall judge with him

2.    It would be absurd to suppose that thrones should be erected for the purpose of saints sitting on them to give their approbation in the condemnation of the wicked; of what use can such an approbation be? is it necessary to the validity of Christ’ s decision? and will not even the damned themselves, without this, acknowledge the justice of their doom? I therefore think with Dr. Lightfoot, that these words of the apostle refer to the prediction of Daniel, Dan 7:18, Dan 7:27, and such like prophecies, where the kingdoms of the earth are promised to the saints of the Most High; that is, that a time shall come when Christianity shall so far prevail that the civil government of the world shall be administered by Christians, which, at that time, was administered by heathens. And this is even now true of all those parts of the earth which may be considered of the greatest political consequence. They profess Christianity, and the kings and other governors are Christians in this general sense of the term.

Calvin: 1Co 6:2 - Know ye not that the saints

2.Know ye not that the saints Here we have an argument from the less to the greater; for Paul, being desirous to show that injury is done to the Church of God when judgments on matters of dispute connected with earthly things are carried before unbelievers, as if there were no one in the society of the godly that was qualified to judge, reasons in this strain: “Since God has reckoned the saints worthy of such honor, as to have appointed them to be judges of the whole world, it is unreasonable that they should be shut out from judging as to small matters, as persons not qualified for it.” Hence it follows, that the Corinthians inflict injury upon themselves, in resigning into the hands of unbelievers the honor ³¹⁸ that has been conferred upon them by God.

What is said here as to judging the world ought to be viewed as referring to that declaration of Christ:

When the Son of Man shall come, ye shall sit, etc.
(Mat 19:28.)

For all power of judgment has been committed to the Son,
(Joh 5:22,)

in such a manner that he will receive his saints into a participation with him in this honor, as assessors. Apart from this, they will judge the world, as indeed they begin already to do, because their piety, faith, fear of the Lord, good conscience, and integrity of life, will make unbelievers altogether inexcusable, as it is said of Noah, that by his faith he condemned all the men of his age. (Heb 11:7.) But the former signification accords better with the Apostle’s design, for unless you take the judging here spoken of in its proper acceptation, the reasoning will not hold.

But even in this sense ³¹⁹ it may seem not to have much weight, for it is as if one should say’ “The saints are endowed with heavenly wisdom, which immeasurably transcends all human doctrines: therefore they can judge better as to the stars than astrologers.” Now this no one will allow, and the ground of objection is obvious — because piety and spiritual doctrine do not confer a knowledge of human arts. My answer here is this, that between expertness in judging and other arts there is this difference, that while the latter are acquired by acuteness of intellect and by study, and are learned from masters, ³²⁰ the former depends rather on equity and conscientiousness.

But ³²¹ “lawyers will judge better and more confidently than an illiterate Christian: otherwise the knowledge of law is of no advantage.” I answer, that their advice is not here excluded, for if the determination of any obscure question is to be sought from a knowledge of the laws, the Apostle does not hinder Christians from applying to lawyers. ³²² What he finds fault with in the Corinthians is simply this, that they carry their disputes before unbelieving judges, as if they had none in the Church that were qualified to pass judgment, and farther, he shows how much superior is the judgment that God has assigned to his believing people.

The words rendered in you mean here, in my opinion, among you. For whenever believers meet in one place, under the auspices of Christ, ³²³ there is already in their assembly a sort of image of the future judgment, which will be perfectly brought to light on the last day. Accordingly Paul says, that the world is judged in the Church, because there Christ’s tribunal is erected, from which he exercises his authority. ³²⁴

Defender: 1Co 6:2 - saints shall judge

The resurrected saints will apparently "judge the world" during the coming millennium when Christ reigns and His people reign with Him (Rev 2:26; Rev 3:21; Rev 20:4)."

TSK: 1Co 6:2 - the saints // the smallest

the saints : Psa 49:14, Psa 149:5-9; Dan 7:18, Dan 7:22; Zec 14:5; Mat 19:28; Luk 22:30; 1Th 3:13; Jud 1:14, Jud 1:15; Rev 2:26, Rev 2:27, Rev 3:21, Rev 20:4

the smallest : 1Co 6:4; 2Co 4:18; 1Jo 2:16, 1Jo 2:17

Tafsiran/Catatan -- Catatan Kata/Frasa (per Ayat)

Poole: 1Co 6:2 - know that the saints shall judge the world

If indeed the Corinthians had had no other competent judges, they might have been excused in making use of infidel judges; but, saith the apostle, you have other persons competent enough, whom you may (by your submission to them) make judges; for you

know that the saints shall judge the world in the same sense (as some think) as Christ saith the Ninevites and the queen of the south should rise up in judgment against the Jews, and condemn them; but certainly there is something more than that in it; when the apostle said, the saints should judge the world, he intended to say something of them which was not common to some heathens with them. Others therefore think, that the saints in the day of judgment shall judge the world, approving the sentence of Christ pronounced against the world, and as being assessors with Christ, which indeed is what Christ said of the apostles, Mat 19:28 Luk 22:39 . Others think, that the phrase only signifieth a great honour and dignity, to which the saints shall be advanced. A late learned and very critical author hath another notion of the saints’ judging the world here spoken of, interpreting it of a time when the secular judgment of the world should be given to the saints, which was prophesied by Daniel, Dan 7:18,27 , and therefore might be known by them. If this be the sense, it is either a prophecy of God’ s giving the government of the world into the hands of Christians, (which fell out after this in Constantine’ s time), or else it signifies such a time towards the end of the world, as those that expect a fifth monarchy speak of, when those that are true saints, in the strictest sense, shall have the government of the world; which seemeth not probable, considering what the Scripture speaks of persecutions, and wars, and disorders, rather increasing than abating towards the end of the world. The apostle therefore here seemeth rather to speak of the saints judging the world in the last day, approving the sentence of Christ the Judge of the quick and the dead; or else to prophesy of that time, when Christianity should so far obtain in the world, that the government either of the whole world, or of a great part of it, should be in the hands of Christians. From whence the apostle strongly concludeth the competency of Christians to arbitrate and determine little matters of difference amongst Christians, in their commerce and civil dealings one with another.

Gill: 1Co 6:2 - Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world // and if the world shall be judged by you // are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters

Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world,.... The apostle appeals to them concerning this matter, as a thing well known unto them, or might easily be known by them; for this was either a traditional notion among the Jews, many of whom were in this church, that good men should judge the world; as is said of the righteous in the apocryphal book:

"They shall judge the nations, and have dominion over the people, and their Lord shall reign for ever.'' (Wisdom 3:8)

and so the Jews say ^a, that

"the first day of the month is the beginning of judgment in the whole world, and Isaac sat on a throne, למידן עלמא, "to judge the world":''

or this might be collected, as Dr. Lightfoot observes, out of Dan 7:18, but the difficulty is, in what sense the apostle means the saints shall judge the world; not merely in a comparative sense, for so even will the Heathens, the men of Nineveh, and the queen of Sheba, judge and condemn the Jews; nor as assessors on the throne with Christ, for though they shall sit on the same throne with him as reigning, yet not as judging with him, all judgment is solely committed to him: nor merely as approving that judiciary sentence, that will be pronounced by him on the world; for even wicked men themselves, and devils, will be obliged to own the justice of it; but his meaning is, that in a little time the saints, Christian men, men under a profession of Christianity at least, should be governors in the world, and bear the office of civil magistracy in it; which came to pass in a few centuries after the writing of this, and has been more or less the case ever since; and will be more so in the latter day, when kings shall be nursing fathers, and queens nursing mothers to the church; and when the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High: upon which the apostle strongly argues,

and if the world shall be judged by you; if such men as you shall bear sway in it, fill up all civil offices in it, even the highest; shall sit upon the benches of judges, and on the thrones of kings, and at last have the government of the whole world; since such honour the saints shall have, and be abundantly capable of it,

are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? is it too high a post, and can you be thought to be unqualified for, and unfit to have such trivial things, of little or no moment and importance, things relating to the common affairs of life, brought before you, and be tried, and judged by you?