The Meaning of 1 Corinthians 6:15 Explained

1 Corinthians 6:15

KJV: Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid.

YLT: Have ye not known that your bodies are members of Christ? having taken, then, the members of the Christ, shall I make them members of an harlot? let it be not!

Darby: Do ye not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then, taking the members of the Christ, make them members of a harlot? Far be the thought.

ASV: Know ye not that your bodies are members of Christ? shall I then take away the members of Christ, and make them members of a harlot? God forbid.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Know ye  not  that  your  bodies  are  the members  of Christ?  shall I  then  take  the members  of Christ,  and make  [them] the members  of an harlot?  God forbid. 

What does 1 Corinthians 6:15 Mean?

Study Notes

shall I
Paul does not invoke the authority of the seventh commandment, but appeals to the believer's sacredness as a member of Christ.

Verse Meaning

Another rhetorical question affirmed the truth. As we are members of Christ"s body, so our bodies are members of Him. This is not just clever wordplay. Our physical bodies are just as much a part of Christ-united with Him in a genuine spiritual union-as we are part of the mystical body of Christ, the church. However, Paul was not speaking here of the believer"s union with Christ by becoming a member of His mystical body, the church ( 1 Corinthians 12:12-26). He was metaphorically speaking of our individual union with Christ"s physical body.
When a Christian has sexual relations with a prostitute, he or she takes what belongs to God and gives it to someone else. This is stealing from God. When a Christian marries, this does not happen because God has ordained and approves of marriage (cf. 1 Corinthians 7:14). He permits us to share our bodies with our lawful mates. Taking a member of Christ and uniting it to a harlot also involves the Lord in that immoral act. Paul"s revulsion at the thought of this comes through graphically in his characteristic me genoito (lit. "May it not happen!").
"Sex outside of marriage is like a man robbing a bank: he gets something, but it is not his and he will one day pay for it. Sex within marriage can be like a person putting money into a bank: there is safety, security, and he will collect dividends. Sex within marriage can build a relationship that brings joys in the future; but sex apart from marriage has a way of weakening future relationships, as every Christian marriage counselor will tell you." [1]

Context Summary

1 Corinthians 6:12-20 - Keeping The Body Holy
It is interesting to compare 1 Corinthians 6:12 with 1 Corinthians 10:23. There are four clauses in each verse, three of which are similar, but the last ones differ. The two laws that should govern our life in doubtful things, are first, the arresting of oneself in the doing of anything which threatens to become our master; and second, the abstaining from anything which threatens to be a stumbling-block in another's Christian life.
It is not enough to watch against temptation; we should be so filled with the Spirit of the risen Savior that the desires of the flesh shall have no fascination. The power that raised the body of Jesus from the grave is surely strong enough to raise our bodies from the bondage of corruption and to translate them to the resurrection plane. Let us keep joined to the Lord by one Spirit, that He may pour His own living energy into our nature. When He redeemed us, He undertook to save us wholly and entirely-spirit, soul, and body, 1 Thessalonians 5:23. Hand the keeping of your body over to Him. Consider that it is the forecourt of a temple, in the inner shrine of which the Holy Spirit lives; and as of old the glory of the Lord filled the whole structure, so trust the Spirit of Holiness to make and keep you whole. [source]

Chapter Summary: 1 Corinthians 6

1  The Corinthians must take their brothers to court;
6  especially under infidels
9  The wicked shall not inherit the kingdom of God
15  Our bodies are the members of Christ, and temples of the Holy Spirit:
19  they must not therefore be defiled

Greek Commentary for 1 Corinthians 6:15

Members of Christ [μελη Χριστου]
Old word for limbs, members. Even the Stoics held the body to be common with the animals (Epictetus, Diss. l. iii. 1) and only the reason like the gods. Without doubt some forms of modern evolution have contributed to the licentious views of animalistic sex indulgence, though the best teachers of biology show that in the higher animals monogamy is the rule. The body is not only adapted for Christ (1 Corinthians 6:13), but it is a part of Christ, in vital union with him. Paul will make much use of this figure further on (12:12-31; Ephesians 4:11-16; Ephesians 5:30). [source]
Shall I then take away? [αρας ουν]
First aorist active participle of αιρω — airō old verb to snatch, carry off like Latin rapio (our rape). Make (ποιησω — poiēsō). Can be either future active indicative or first aorist active subjunctive (deliberative). Either makes good sense. The horror of deliberately taking “members of Christ” and making them “members of a harlot” in an actual union staggers Paul and should stagger us. God forbid Optative second aorist in a negative wish for the future. May it not happen! The word “God” is not here. The idiom is common in Epictetus though rare in the lxx. Paul has it thirteen times and Luke once (Luke 20:16). [source]
Make [ποιησω]
Can be either future active indicative or first aorist active subjunctive (deliberative). Either makes good sense. The horror of deliberately taking “members of Christ” and making them “members of a harlot” in an actual union staggers Paul and should stagger us. [source]
God forbid [μη γενοιτο]
Optative second aorist in a negative wish for the future. May it not happen! The word “God” is not here. The idiom is common in Epictetus though rare in the lxx. Paul has it thirteen times and Luke once (Luke 20:16). [source]
May it not happen! []
The word “God” is not here. The idiom is common in Epictetus though rare in the lxx. Paul has it thirteen times and Luke once (Luke 20:16). [source]
Members of Christ []
The body is not only for the Lord (1 Corinthians 6:13), adapted for Him: it is also united with Him. See Ephesians 4:16. [source]
Members of a harlot []
The union of man and woman, whether lawful or unlawful, confers a double personality. Fornication effects this result in an immoral way. [source]

Reverse Greek Commentary Search for 1 Corinthians 6:15

1 Corinthians 6:9 Fornicators []
The besetting sin of Corinth. Hence the numerous solemn and emphatic allusions to it in this epistle. See 1 Corinthians 5:11; 1 Corinthians 6:15-18; 1 Corinthians 10:8. [source]
Galatians 4:19 Until Christ be formed in you [μέχρις οὗ μορφωθῇ Χριστὸς ἐν ὑμῖν]
The forming of Christ in them, their attainment of the complete inner life of Christians, is the object of the new birth. By their relapse they have retarded this result and renewed Paul's spiritual travail. The verb μορφοῦν N.T.oThe idea under different aspects is common. See Romans 8:9; 1 Corinthians 2:16; 1 Corinthians 6:15; 2 Corinthians 3:18; Galatians 2:20; Ephesians 3:17; Colossians 1:27. [source]

What do the individual words in 1 Corinthians 6:15 mean?

Not know you that the bodies of you members of Christ are Having taken then the members of the Christ shall I make [them] of a prostitute Never may it be
Οὐκ οἴδατε ὅτι τὰ σώματα ὑμῶν μέλη Χριστοῦ ἐστιν ἄρας οὖν τὰ μέλη τοῦ Χριστοῦ ποιήσω πόρνης μὴ γένοιτο

οἴδατε  know  you 
Parse: Verb, Perfect Indicative Active, 2nd Person Plural
Root: οἶδα  
Sense: to see.
ὅτι  that 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: ὅτι  
Sense: that, because, since.
σώματα  bodies 
Parse: Noun, Nominative Neuter Plural
Root: σῶμα  
Sense: the body both of men or animals.
ὑμῶν  of  you 
Parse: Personal / Possessive Pronoun, Genitive 2nd Person Plural
Root: σύ  
Sense: you.
μέλη  members 
Parse: Noun, Nominative Neuter Plural
Root: μέλος  
Sense: a member, limb: a member of the human body.
Χριστοῦ  of  Christ 
Parse: Noun, Genitive Masculine Singular
Root: Χριστός  
Sense: Christ was the Messiah, the Son of God.
ἄρας  Having  taken 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Participle Active, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: αἴρω  
Sense: to raise up, elevate, lift up.
μέλη  members 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Neuter Plural
Root: μέλος  
Sense: a member, limb: a member of the human body.
τοῦ  of  the 
Parse: Article, Genitive Masculine Singular
Root:  
Sense: this, that, these, etc.
Χριστοῦ  Christ 
Parse: Noun, Genitive Masculine Singular
Root: Χριστός  
Sense: Christ was the Messiah, the Son of God.
ποιήσω  shall  I  make 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Subjunctive Active, 1st Person Singular
Root: ποιέω  
Sense: to make.
πόρνης  [them]  of  a  prostitute 
Parse: Noun, Genitive Feminine Singular
Root: πόρνη  
Sense: a woman who sells her body for sexual uses.
μὴ  Never 
Parse: Adverb
Root: μή 
Sense: no, not lest.
γένοιτο  may  it  be 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Optative Middle, 3rd Person Singular
Root: γίνομαι  
Sense: to become, i.