1 Corinthians 5 · Verse 8

1 Corinthians 5:8

Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
1 Corinthians 5:8, King James Version

1 Corinthians 5:8 in other translations

BSBTherefore let us keep the feast, not with the old bread, leavened with malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and of truth.
WEBTherefore let’s keep the feast, not with old yeast, neither with the yeast of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
ASVwherefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
YLTso that we may keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of evil and wickedness, but with unleavened food of sincerity and truth.
DARBYso that let us celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with leaven of malice and wickedness, but with unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
BBELet us then keep the feast, not with old leaven, and not with the leaven of evil thoughts and acts, but with the unleavened bread of true thoughts and right feelings.
WebsterTherefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

What does 1 Corinthians 5:8 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
8. not ... old leaven--of our unconverted state as Jews or heathen. malice--the opposite of "sincerity," which allows no leaven of evil to be mixed up with good (Mt 16:6). wickedness--the opposite of "truth," which allows not evil to be mistaken for good. The Greek for "malice" means the evil habit of mind; "wickedness," the outcoming of the same in word and deed. The Greek for "sincerity" expresses literally, a thing which, when examined by the sun's light, is found pure and unadulterated.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Barnes' Notes
Verse 8. Let us keep the feast. Margin, Holy day--εορταζωμεν. This is language drawn from the paschal feast, and is used by Paul frequently to carry out and apply his illustration. It does not mean literally the paschal supper here--for that had ceased to be observed by Christians--nor the Lord's Supper particularly; but the sense is, "As the Jews when they celebrated the paschal supper, on the slaying and sacrifice of the paschal lamb, put away all leaven as emblematic of sin, so let us, in the slaying of our sacrifice, and in all the duties, institutions, and events consequent thereon, put away all wickedness from our hearts as individuals, and from our societies and churches. Let us engage in the service of God by putting away all evil."

Not with old leaven. Not under the influence, or in the indulgence of the feelings of corrupt and unrenewed human nature. The word leaven is very expressive of that former or old condition, and denotes the corrupt and corrupting passions of our nature before it is renewed.

The leaven of malice. Of unkindness and evil--which would diffuse itself, and invade the mass of Christians. The word malice--κακις--denotes evil in general,

And wickedness. Sin; evil. There is a particular reference here to the case of the incestuous person. Paul means that all wickedness should be put away from those who had been saved by the sacrifice of their passover, Christ; and, therefore, this sin in a special manner.

But with the unleavened bread, etc. That is, with sincerity and truth. Let us be sincere, and true, and faithful; as the Jews partook of bread unleavened, which was emblematic of purity, so let us be sincere and true. It is implied here that this could not be done unless they would put away the incestuous person. No Christians can have or give evidence of sincerity, who are not willing to put away all sin.

(1) "feast" "holyday" (a) "feast" Ex 13:6 (b) "leaven of malice" Mt 16:6,12

Albert Barnes, 1834 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 8 Therefore let us keep the feast - It is very likely that the time of the passover was now approaching, when the Church of Christ would be called to extraordinary acts of devotion, in commemorating the passion, death, and resurrection of Christ; and of this circumstance the apostle takes advantage in his exhortation to the Corinthians. See the Introduction, Section 12. Not with old leaven - Under the Christian dispensation we must be saved equally from Judaism, heathenism, and from sin of every kind; malice and wickedness must be destroyed; and sincerity and truth, inward purity and outward holiness, take their place. The apostle refers here not more to wicked principles than to wicked men; let us keep the feast, not with the old leaven - the impure principles which actuated you while in your heathen state; neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness, κακιας και πονηριας, wickedness, radical depravity, producing unrighteousness in the life; nor with the persons who are thus influenced, and thus act; but with the unleavened bread, αλλ' εν αζυμοις, but with upright and godly men, who have sincerity, ειλικρινεια, such purity of affections and conduct, that even the light of God shining upon them discovers no flaw, and truth - who have received the testimony of God, and who are inwardly as well as outwardly what they profess to be. The word πονηριας, which we translate wickedness, is so very like to πορνειας, fornication, that some very ancient MSS. have the latter reading instead of the former; which, indeed, seems most natural in this place; as κακιας, which we translate malice, includes every thing that is implied in πονηριας, wickedness whereas πορνειας, as being the subject in question, see 1Cor 5:1, would come more pointedly in here: Not with wickedness and fornication, or rather, not with wicked men and fornicators: but I do not contend for this reading.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on 1 Corinthians 5:1-8

Chapter Outline The apostle blames the Corinthians for connivance at an incestuous person; (1-8) and directs their behaviour towards those guilty of scandalous crimes. (9-13) Verses 1-8 The apostle notices a flagrant abuse, winked at by the Corinthians. Party spirit, and a false notion of Christian liberty, seem to have saved the offender from censure. Grievous indeed is it that crimes should sometimes be committed…

Read the full comment on 1 Corinthians 5:1-8 →

1 Corinthians 5:8 in the original Greek

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

ὥστεhōsteso thatG5620
ἑορτάζωμενhe'ortazōmenwe may celebrate the feastG1858
μὴmēnotG3361
ἐνenwithG1722
ζύμῃzumēleavenG2219
παλαιᾷpalaiaoldG3820
μηδὲmēdenotG3366
ἐνenwithG1722
ζύμῃzumēleavenG2219
κακίαςkakiasof maliceG2549
καὶkaiandG2532
πονηρίαςponēriaswickednessG4189
ἀλλ᾽all᾽butG235
ἐνenwithG1722
ἀζύμοιςazumoisunleavened [bread]G106
εἰλικρινείαςeilikrineiasof sincerityG1505
καὶkaiandG2532
ἀληθείας.¶alētheiasof truth.G225

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for 1 Corinthians 5:8

  • 1 Peter 2:1-2

    Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:

  • Deuteronomy 16:3

    Thou shalt eat no leavened bread with it; seven days shalt thou eat unleavened bread therewith, even the bread of affliction; for thou camest forth out of the land of Egypt in haste: that thou mayest remember the day when thou camest forth out of the land of Egypt all the days of thy life.

  • Exodus 12:15

    Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses: for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel.

  • Luke 12:1

    In the mean time, when there were gathered together an innumerable multitude of people, insomuch that they trode one upon another, he began to say unto his disciples first of all, Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.

  • Matthew 16:6

    Then Jesus said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.

  • Mark 8:15

    And he charged them, saying, Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod.

  • Ephesians 6:24

    Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen. Written from Rome unto the Ephesians by Tychicus.

  • John 1:47

    Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and saith of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!

  • 1 Corinthians 6:9-11

    Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.

  • 1 Peter 4:2

    That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.

  • Matthew 16:12

    Then understood they how that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.

  • 1 Corinthians 5:6

    Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
let.
Ex 12:15; 13:6; Le 23:6; Nu 28:16,17; De 16:16; Isa 25:6
feast. or, holy day.
Ps 42:4; Isa 30:29
not.
1,6; 6:9-11; De 16:3; 2Co 12:21; Eph 4:17-22; 1Pe 4:2
neither.
3:3; Mt 16:6,12; 26:4,5; Mr 8:15; Lu 12:1; Joh 18:28-30; 2Co 12:20
1Pe 2:1,2
but.
Jos 24:14; Ps 32:2; Joh 1:47; 2Co 1:12; 8:8; Eph 6:24; 1Jo 3:18-21

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • 1 Corinthians 5:7

    Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:

  • 1 Corinthians 5:8

    Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

  • 1 Corinthians 5:9

    I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators:

Read all of 1 Corinthians 5

1 Corinthians 5:8 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Así que hagamos fiesta, no en la vieja levadura, ni en la levadura de malicia y de maldad, sino en ázimos de sinceridad y de verdad.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		c’est pourquoi célébrons la fête, non avec du vieux levain, ni avec un levain de malice et de méchanceté, mais avec des pains sans levain de sincérité et de vérité.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Darum laßt uns Festfeier halten, nicht mit altem Sauerteig, auch nicht mit Sauerteig der Bosheit und Schlechtigkeit, sondern mit Ungesäuertem der Lauterkeit und Wahrheit.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Itaque epulemur: non in fermento veteri, neque in fermento malitiæ et nequitiæ: sed in azymis sinceritatis et veritatis.