1 Corinthians 3:17

1 Corinthians 3:17 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.
• New International Version (NIV)If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person; for God’s temple is sacred, and you together are that temple.
• English Standard Version (ESV)If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple.
• New King James Version (NKJV)If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.

Context of 1 Corinthians 3:17

15But if any person’s work is burned up [by the test], he will suffer the loss [of his reward]; yet he himself will be saved, but only as [one who has barely escaped] through fire. 16Do you not know and understand that you [the church] are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells [permanently] in you [collectively and individually]? If anyone destroys the temple of God [corrupting it with false doctrine], God will destroy the destroyer; for the temple of God is holy (sacred), and that is what you are. 18Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool [discarding his worldly pretensions and acknowledging his lack of wisdom], so that he may become [truly] wise. 19For the wisdom of this world is foolishness (absurdity, stupidity) before God; for it is written [in Scripture], “[He is] The one who catches the wise and clever in their craftiness;”

1 Corinthians 3:17 word by word

εἴ τις τὸν ναὸν τοῦ θεοῦ φθείρει, φθερεῖ τοῦτον ὁ θεός· ὁ γὰρ ναὸς τοῦ θεοῦ ἅγιός ἐστιν, οἵτινές ἐστε ὑμεῖς.¶Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• Ifεἰei · ifG1487
• any manτιςtis · oneG5100
• defileφθείρωphtheirō · to destroyG5351
• the templeναόςnaos · templeG3485
• of Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316
• himοὗτοςhoutos houtoi hautē hautai · this/he/she/itG3778
• forγάρgar · forG1063
• isεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• holyἅγιοςhagios · holyG40
• whichὅστιςhostis hētis ho6ti · who/whichG3748
• yeσύsu · youG4771

Cross-references for 1 Corinthians 3:17

• 1 Corinthians 6:18Run away from sexual immorality [in any form, whether thought or behavior, whether visual or written]. Every other sin that a man commits is outside the body, but the one who is sexually immoral sins against his own body.
• Leviticus 15:31“Thus you shall separate the Israelites from their uncleanness, so that they do not die in their uncleanness by their defiling My tabernacle that is among them.”
• Leviticus 20:3I will also set My face against that man [opposing him, withdrawing My protection from him] and will cut him off from his people [excluding him from the atonement made for them], because he has given some of his children to Molech, so as to defile My sanctuary and profane My holy name.
• Numbers 19:20‘But the man who is unclean and does not purify himself, that person shall be cut off from among the assembly, because he has defiled the sanctuary of the Lord. The water for purification has not been sprinkled on him; he is unclean.
• Psalms 74:3Turn your footsteps [quickly] toward the perpetual ruins; The enemy has damaged everything within the sanctuary.
• Psalms 79:1O God, the nations have invaded [the land of Your people] Your inheritance; They have defiled Your sacred temple; They have laid Jerusalem in ruins.
• Ezekiel 5:11So, as I live,’ says the Lord God, ‘surely, because you have defiled My sanctuary with all your detestable idols and with all your abominations, therefore I will also diminish you and withdraw, and My eye will have no pity and I will not spare [you].
• Ezekiel 7:22I will also turn My face away from them, and they will desecrate My secret treasure (the Jerusalem temple); and robbers will enter [irreverently] into it (the Holy of Holies) and violate it.
• Ezekiel 23:38Moreover, they have done this to Me: they have defiled My sanctuary on the same day [of their idolatries] and have profaned My Sabbaths.
• Zephaniah 3:4Her prophets are reckless and treacherous men; Her priests have profaned the sanctuary; They have done violence to the law [by pretending their word is God’s word].
• Genesis 28:17So he was afraid and said, “How fearful and awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gateway to heaven.”
• Exodus 3:5Then God said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet [out of respect], because the place on which you are standing is holy ground.”
• 1 Chronicles 29:3Moreover, because I delight in the house of my God, the [personal] treasure that I have of gold and silver, I give to the house of my God, in addition to all that I have already provided for the holy house:
• Psalms 93:5Your precepts are fully confirmed and completely reliable; Holiness adorns Your house, O Lord, forever.
• Psalms 99:9Exalt the Lord our God And worship at His holy hill [Zion, the temple mount], For the Lord our God is holy.
• Isaiah 64:11Our holy and beautiful house [the temple built by Solomon], Where our fathers praised You, Has been burned by fire; And all our precious objects are in ruins.

Commentaries on 1 Corinthians 3:17

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17If any man defile the temple - This clause is not consistently translated. , ̔ If any man destroy the temple of God, him will God destroy. The verb is the same in both clauses. If any man injure, corrupt, or destroy the Church of God by false doctrine, God will destroy him - will take away his part out of the book of life. This refers to him who wilfully opposes the truth; the erring, mistaken man shall barely escape; but the obstinate opposer shall be…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 17If any man defile … - Or, “destroy, corrupt” ( ́ phtheirei). The Greek word is the same in both parts of the sentence. “If any man destroy‘ the temple of God, God shall destroy‘ him.” This is presented in the form of an adage or proverb. And the truth here stated is based on the fact that the temple of God was inviolable. That temple was holy; and if any man subsequently destroyed it, it might be presumed that God would destroy him. The figurative sense…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 16-17Verses 16-17 From other parts of the epistle, it appears that the false teachers among the Corinthians taught unholy doctrines. Such teaching tended to corrupt, to pollute, and destroy the building, which should be kept pure and holy for God. Those who spread loose principles, which render the church of God unholy, bring destruction upon themselves. Christ by his Spirit dwells in all true believers. Christians are holy by profession, and should be pure…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16-17Christians should be careful about what they teach and how they interact with each other. The community of believers is God's temple, where God's Spirit lives (see Ephesians 2:21–22). God's temple is holy (see 1 Corinthians 1:2). There are serious consequences for anyone who harms God's temple through jealousy, arguments, or division (see 3:3–4).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1717. If any ... defile ... destroy--rather as the Greek verb is the same in both cases, "destroy ... destroy." God repays in kind by a righteous retaliation. The destroyer shall himself be destroyed. As temporal death was the penalty of marring the material temple (Le 16:2; Da 5:2, 3, 30), so eternal death is the penalty of marring the spiritual temple--the Church. The destroyers here (1Co 3:16, 17), are distinct from the unwise or unskilful builders (1Co…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Corinthians 3:17

• Church
• Holiness
• House of God
• Sacrilege
• Temple
• Wicked (People)

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Corinthians, First Epistle to the
• Foundation
• Plant
• Temple
• Corinthians, First Epistle to the
• Defile; Defilement
• House of God
• Parousia

Commentaries on 1 Corinthians 3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings