6. But brother goeth to law with brother, and that before the unbelievers.
instead of referring the matter to the arbitration of a ju- dicious brother, ye go to law^ and that before unbelievers. There are here two grounds of complamt. First, that they went to law (KptVco-^ai) instead of resorting to arbitration (StaKptmt). Secondly, that they made unbelievers their judg€fs. By unbelievers are to be understood the heathen. In this connection the heathen are designated under one aspect, the unjust; under another, the despised; and under a third, the unbelieving, i. e. not Christians — but, as the implication in this particular case is, pagans. And that {koX tovto)^ a form of expression often used w£en particular stress is to be laid on the circumstance indicated.
7. Now therefore there is utterly a fault among you, because ye go to law one with another. Why do ye not rather take wrong ? Why do ye not rather (suffer yourselves to) be defrauded ?
JSToio therefore {^Br} fxev ovv), already indeed therefore. That is, these lawsuits are already, or in themselves (oA,ajs), an evil irrespective of their being conducted before heathen judges. The word y]TTr]ixa does not so properly mean fault as loss or evil. It is a loss or evil to you to have these Htiga- tions. See Rom. 11, 12, where the rejection of the Jews is called their (rjTT-q^a) loss. Why do you not^ &c. That is, why, instead of going to law with your brethren, do you not rather submit to injustice and robbery ? This is a clear inti- mation that, under the circumstances in which the Corinthians were placed, it was wrong to go to law, even to protect them- selves from injury. That this is not to be regarded as a gen- eral rule of Christian conduct is plain, because, under the old dispensation, God appointed judges for the administration of justice ; and because Paul himself did not hesitate to appeal to Cesar to protect himself from the injustice of his country- men.
8. Nay, ye do wrong, and defraud, and that (your) brethren.
Instead of having reached that state of perfection in which 5