If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

1 CORINTHIANS 3:17KJV
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1 Corinthians 3:17 (KJV)

What does 1 Corinthians 3:17 mean?

1 Corinthians 3:17 warns that anyone who harms or corrupts the temple of God will face destruction from God, because God's temple is holy, and the believers themselves are that temple. The verse stresses the seriousness of treating God's people—His spiritual dwelling place—with respect and care.

Paul is writing to the church in Corinth, addressing divisions and conflicts among believers. He reminds them that together, they form God's temple, not a physical building but a community where God's Spirit lives. The warning is meant to show how seriously God views the unity and purity of His people.

The Greek behind 1 Corinthians 3:17

  • "defile" (φθείρω, phtheirō): This word can mean to corrupt, spoil, or destroy. In this context, it refers to actions that damage the unity or purity of the church community.
  • "temple" (ναός, naos): This word specifically refers to the inner sanctuary, the most sacred part of the temple, emphasizing the holiness and special status of the church as God's dwelling.
  • "holy" (ἅγιος, hagios): This word means set apart or sacred. Paul uses it to underline that the church is not ordinary but belongs to God in a special way.
  • "destroy" (φθείρω, phtheirō): The same word is used for both "defile" and "destroy," showing that the harm one does to God's temple will be returned in kind by God.

Why 1 Corinthians 3:17 matters

  • 1 Corinthians 3:17 clarifies that the "temple" is not a building but the gathered community of believers, shifting the focus from physical structures to spiritual relationships.
  • The verse highlights how seriously God takes the unity and well-being of His people, warning against causing division or harm within the church.
  • By using strong language about destruction, Paul emphasizes that actions against the church community are offenses against God Himself, raising the stakes for how believers treat one another.

Where else these words appear

“defile” Greek G5351 · used in 7 verses

  • 1 Corinthians 15:33 Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners.
  • 2 Corinthians 11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
  • Jude 1:10 But these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves.

“temple” Greek G3485 · used in 40 verses

  • Matthew 23:16 Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor!
  • Luke 1:22 And when he came out, he could not speak unto them: and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple: for he beckoned unto them, and remained speechless.
  • Revelation 3:12 Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.

“him” Greek G5126 · used in 63 verses

  • Matthew 19:11 But he said unto them, All men cannot receive this saying, save they to whom it is given.
  • John 6:34 Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread.
  • Acts 15:38 But Paul thought not good to take him with them, who departed from them from Pamphylia, and went not with them to the work.

“man” Greek G1536 · used in 68 verses

  • Matthew 16:24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
  • 1 Corinthians 7:36 But if any man think that he behaveth himself uncomely toward his virgin, if she pass the flower of her age, and need so require, let him do what he will, he sinneth not: let them marry.
  • 2 Thessalonians 3:10 For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.