1 Corinthians 6:10
Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
Study Note
Study Note
The catalog of those who 'shall not inherit the kingdom of God' — thieves, covetous, drunkards, revilers, extortioners — belongs to a vice list that Paul deploys in Galatians 5:21 and Ephesians 5:5 as well, suggesting a standard early Christian ethical instruction. The inclusion of the covetous (pleonektai) alongside more obviously disruptive behaviors emphasizes that internal disposition is as kingdom-excluding as external action — a consistency with Jesus' teaching about the heart (Matthew 15:19). The following verse (6:11: 'such were some of you; but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified') immediately transforms the catalog from condemnation into testimony: the community's prior condition is contrasted with their present status in Christ. The tripartite 'washed, sanctified, justified' constitutes a baptismal-christological formula important for liturgical theology.
Other Translations
nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, the reign of God shall inherit.
Or is a thief, or the worse for drink, or makes use of strong language, or takes by force what is not his, will have any part in the kingdom of God.
Cross References
Seeing thou hatest instruction, and castest my words behind thee.
When thou sawest a thief, then thou consentedst with him, and hast been partaker with adulterers.
Thy princes are rebellious, and companions of thieves: every one loveth gifts, and followeth after rewards: they judge not the …
Is this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, even I …
Behold, therefore I have smitten mine hand at thy dishonest gain which thou hast made, and at thy blood which …
Her princes in the midst thereof are like wolves ravening the prey, to shed blood, and to destroy souls, to …
The people of the land have used oppression, and exercised robbery, and have vexed the poor and needy: yea, they …
And when he saw a fig tree in the way, he came to it, and found nothing thereon, but leaves …
But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye …
Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?