In the King James Version, “Be not deceived” in 1 Corinthians 6:9 is Paul’s warning that the Corinthians must not confuse their new identity in Christ with a life characterized by unrighteousness. The surrounding passage addresses believers who were taking disputes before secular courts, but Paul connects that behavior with a broader inconsistency between Christian identity and conduct.
The verse does not mean that anyone who has ever committed one of the listed sins is automatically excluded from God’s kingdom. First Corinthians 6:11 immediately explains that some Corinthian believers had formerly lived in these ways, but had been “washed,” “sanctified,” and “justified” in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of God. The warning concerns an ongoing, unrepentant pattern of unrighteousness rather than a past sin brought to Christ for forgiveness.
The KJV wording of 1 Corinthians 6:9-11
The King James Version reads:
“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.”
What does “Be not deceived” mean?
“Be not deceived” means “do not allow yourselves to be misled” or “do not fool yourselves.” Paul is warning the Corinthians against accepting a false conclusion about sin, Christian identity, and participation in God’s kingdom. They could not claim to belong to Christ while treating unrighteousness as compatible with their new life without repentance or transformation.
The command is especially significant because the Corinthian church had serious problems despite being addressed as a Christian congregation. The believers had received the gospel, yet they still had to learn how their conduct should correspond to their identity in Christ.
Paul’s warning does not teach salvation by flawless behavior. Christians are saved by grace through faith, not by their ability to avoid certain sins. The warning does teach that a settled, active, and unrepentant life of unrighteousness is incompatible with inheriting the kingdom of God.
The immediate context: lawsuits among believers
Before listing the unrighteous, Paul addresses believers who were taking their disputes to secular courts instead of resolving them within the church community. Paul was concerned that Christians were asking for judgments from unbelievers “whose way of life is scorned in the church.”
He questioned why they would seek resolution from those who did not understand their new way of life in Christ. His suggestion was rather to “be wronged” or “be cheated” than to take these matters before unbelievers.
The context shows that Paul’s primary concern was not simply creating a definitive list of sins that exclude people from heaven. He was addressing the disconnect between the Corinthians’ new identity in Christ and their behavior in seeking judgment from those who did not share their faith.
Paul asks whether the Corinthians do not know that “the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God.” This question assumes that their behavior matters. Their disputes, selfishness, and willingness to wrong one another were not minor issues detached from their faith; they contradicted the character expected of people who belonged to Christ.
What does it mean to “inherit the kingdom of God”?
By saying that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God, Paul is stating that the wicked are not children of God; they have no inheritance in heaven. They are not heirs of eternal life.
The expression refers to participation in God’s future kingdom and the blessings of eternal life. Paul is not merely warning about earthly consequences or church reputation. He is describing the incompatibility between persistent unrighteousness and the kingdom that belongs to God.
The list of sins is not comprehensive, but it covers a lot of ground: fornication, idolatry, adultery, homosexuality, theft, greed, drunkenness, slander, and cheating are indicative of a person who is excluded from the kingdom of God.
Paul does not present the list as a complete catalogue of every possible sin. It is a representative list of behaviors that reveal a life ordered around unrighteousness rather than submission to God.
The sins listed in the KJV
| KJV expression | Meaning or category represented |
|---|---|
| Fornicators | Sexual immorality |
| Idolaters | Worship of idols |
| Adulterers | Violation of marriage faithfulness |
| Effeminate | A translation of the Greek word malakos, whose meaning is debated |
| Abusers of themselves with mankind | A translation of the Greek word arsenokoites, whose precise meaning is debated |
| Thieves | Those who steal |
| Covetous | Those characterized by greed |
| Drunkards | Those characterized by drunkenness |
| Revilers | Those who abuse or slander others |
| Extortioners | Those who cheat, exploit, or obtain gain through oppression |
The list includes sexual sins, idolatry, exploitation, greed, substance abuse, verbal abuse, and financial wrongdoing. Its range shows that Paul is not singling out one particular category of sin. He is confronting a comprehensive pattern of conduct that contradicts the righteousness associated with life in Christ.
Why verse 11 is essential to the meaning
The meaning of verses 9-10 cannot be separated from verse 11: “And such were some of you.” Paul explicitly acknowledges that some of the Corinthian believers had previously engaged in these behaviors but were now forgiven, made holy, and declared righteous through faith in Jesus Christ.
This demonstrates that past sins, no matter how serious, can be forgiven through faith in Christ. The Corinthians had not earned acceptance by correcting themselves first. They had been “washed,” “sanctified,” and “justified” in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of God.
The Corinthians used to engage in such sins, but now they knew Christ. By grace, they were forgiven, washed in the blood of the Lamb, and declared righteous before God.
Paul’s point in this passage is the need to put away the old nature and live according to the new nature, received in Christ. The sins he lists are part of the old life, not the new.
Past sin is not the same as an unrepentant way of life
Some interpret these verses to mean that anyone who has ever committed any of these sins is automatically condemned and cannot enter heaven. However, this interpretation falls apart when we read the very next verse: “And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”
Paul distinguishes between what the Corinthians once were and what they had become in Christ. Their past behavior did not remain the final definition of their identity. God’s forgiveness was available to them because they had turned to Christ in faith.
Does this mean that anyone who has ever committed one of these sins will be denied entrance to heaven? Praise the Lord, no. God’s forgiveness is available to anyone and everyone who repents and turns to Christ in faith.
The good news is that the grace of God can give us new hope for the future: “Some of you were once like that. But you were cleansed; you were made holy; you were made right with God by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”
Does continuing to struggle with sin prove that someone is not saved?
Another common interpretation suggests that while past sins can be forgiven, continuing to struggle with these sins proves someone was never truly saved. This view suggests that “real” Christians do not persistently struggle with such behaviors.
However, this interpretation does not align with the reality Paul describes in the same letter. In chapter 11, he addresses church members who were getting drunk during the Lord’s Supper-yet he still refers to them as “saints” and members of “the church of God.” Their behavior was inappropriate and needed correction, but it did not negate their salvation.
Consider how Paul addresses the Corinthian church in his opening lines: “To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, saints by calling.” He does not qualify this by excluding those struggling with sin-they are all saints by virtue of their faith in Christ, not their behavior.
Christians struggle against sin but have the God-given ability to overcome it. Even if a Christian falls and lapses into sin, he will always eventually return to the Lord, and the struggle against sin will continue.
The Christian’s response to sin is to hate it, repent of it, and forsake it. We still struggle with sin, but by the power of the Holy Spirit who lives in us, we are able to resist and overcome sin.
Persistent and unrepentant sin
The Bible does not support the idea that a person who perpetually and unrepentantly engages in sin can indeed be a Christian. First Corinthians 6 lists sins that are the hallmark of those who will not inherit the kingdom of God.
A person who indulges in these lifestyle sins gives evidence of not being redeemed by Christ. The bottom line is that, if a person actively, perpetually, and unrepentantly lives a homosexual lifestyle, the lifestyle of a thief, a greedy lifestyle, a drunken lifestyle, etc., that person is showing himself to be unsaved, and such a person will not inherit the kingdom of God.
The distinction is between a believer who falls into sin and turns again to the Lord, and a person who embraces unrighteousness as a settled way of life while refusing repentance. Paul’s warning is directed at the latter condition.
The mark of a true Christian is the decreasing presence of sin in his or her life. As Christians grow and mature in the faith, sin has less and less of a hold on them. Our abhorrence of sin becomes greater as we mature.
Like Paul, we are distressed that sin still exists in our flesh, causing us at times to do what we do not want to do and looking to Christ for relief from this “body of death.”
The Greek words behind “effeminate” and “abusers of themselves with mankind”
When it comes to homosexuality and the Bible, the two key words in this passage are the Greek words malakos and arsenokoites.
Malakos literally means “soft.” The KJV translates it as “effeminate.” This word was widely used in the ancient world and has a broad range of meanings, including “effeminate.” It appears several other times in the New Testament where it is usually translated as “soft.”
But, given that this is just a list without any further context, no one knows for sure exactly what Paul had in mind when he included it in his list of immoral behaviors. It might be referring to weakness of character, or cowardice, or some other moral, but not necessarily sexual, shortcoming.
Arsenokoites, translated in the KJV as “abusers of themselves with mankind,” is a compound word made out of the words “male” and “bed.” But, just like English compound words, the parts do not always equal the whole: arsenokoites does not actually mean “male bed.”
Paul seems to have made up the word arsenokoites. We do not have any examples of it being used prior to Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, and most of the subsequent usage is merely repeating a similar list of sinful behaviors.
Because of the uniqueness of this word, even the best translations have to guess what Paul meant. One conjecture is that Paul is referencing the Greek text of Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13, where the words for “male” and “bed” appear in close proximity to each other.
But, though that might be a clue about the word’s etymology, it still does not tell us for sure what Paul meant when he used it. The only thing we can be fairly certain of is that arsenokoites is referring to some sort of immoral male sexual behavior.
Scholars continue to debate the precise meanings of these words in these verses and, especially in the case of arsenokoites, it seems that we will never know for sure exactly what Paul meant. Theories abound, but certainty eludes us.
Why English translations differ
The KJV translates the two terms separately as “effeminate” and “abusers of themselves with mankind.” Other translations use different expressions:
| Translation | Rendering in 1 Corinthians 6:9 |
|---|---|
| ESV | “men who practice homosexuality” |
| NIV | “men who have sex with men” |
| NASB | “homosexuals” |
| CSB | “males who have sex with males” |
| NLT | “male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality” |
| KJV | “effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind” |
| NKJV | “homosexuals, nor sodomites” |
The NIV translators chose to merge malakos and arsenokoites together and translate them as “men who have sex with men.” They include a revealing footnote which says, “The words men who have sex with men translate two Greek words that refer to the passive and active participants in homosexual acts.”
The KJV wording reflects the difficulty of translating these terms by preserving two separate expressions. The word “effeminate” does not automatically provide a precise modern definition, and “abusers of themselves with mankind” is an archaic phrase whose meaning must be understood within the larger passage.
Regardless of what any given translation says, a dictionary or concordance cannot by itself settle every question about an obscure Greek term. The debate about 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 is confusing, and there is not one decisive answer that resolves all the difficulties in this passage.
Most modern English translations give the appearance of absolute certainty when it comes to translating malakos and arsenokoites, making it seem as if it is a foregone conclusion that Paul is explicitly condemning homosexuality. But scholars continue to debate the precise meanings of these words in these verses.
How the passage applies to Christian identity
The real message of these verses is about identity and transformation in Christ, not behavior-based salvation. Salvation comes through faith, not behavior. Paul’s emphasis is not on perfect behavior but on the transformative power of Christ.
When someone becomes a Christian, they receive a new identity. They are “washed, sanctified, and justified.” This new identity is not earned through behavior but is received as a gift through faith in Christ.
This transformation is complete and permanent, even though our behavior may still be catching up to our new identity. While salvation is immediate, being conformed to the image of Christ on the outside is not.
The Corinthian church demonstrates this reality. They were genuinely saved but still learning to live out their new identity in Christ. This process involves both God’s work in us and our cooperation with His Spirit as we grow in grace.
These verses actually offer hope by showing that no sin defines a believer’s identity. Paul’s point is not to condemn but to remind believers that they are no longer bound by or defined by their past or present struggles.
Application for those seeking Christ
These verses highlight our need for transformation that only Christ can provide. No amount of self-improvement can make us righteous before God.
Jesus offers forgiveness and a new identity as a free gift, received through faith. The path to salvation is not through behavioral modification but through accepting Christ’s finished work on the cross.
When we place our faith in Him, we receive complete forgiveness and a new identity, regardless of our past.
Application for believers who struggle with sin
- Remember that your identity is in Christ, not in your behavior.
- Know that stumbling does not negate your salvation.
- Focus on who you are in Christ rather than trying to prove your salvation through perfect behavior.
- When you fail, do not redefine yourself by that failure.
- Keep your eyes on Jesus and continue walking with Him as His beloved child.
- Do not fall into the trap of trying to overcome sin struggles to prove your Christianity.
Instead, rest in your identity in Christ and let His work in you produce the fruit of changed behavior. Remember that you are completely forgiven, made holy, and declared righteous, even as you continue to grow in your faith.
Paul’s warning, “Be not deceived,” therefore calls believers to take sin seriously without treating past failure as stronger than Christ’s forgiveness. The passage holds together both truths: those who persist in unrepentant unrighteousness will not inherit the kingdom of God, while sinners who turn to Christ are washed, sanctified, and justified by the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of God.
