Know ye not?

I recently began reading 1 Corinthians. I confess, I will read a couple of days, then forget a couple of days, then read again. So, while at the rate of one chapter a day I should be finished, I read chapter 6 yesterday. It must have been a while since I last read 1 Corinthians because it seems so fresh. And when I read chapter 6 I began to notice something that I think I may have overlooked before. There is a phrase that occurs several times in this one chapter, know ye not that. I also noticed a very similar expression in v 2, do ye not know that.

I was intrigued. First, I opened my Greek New Testament. Bingo! The recurring phrase is ουκ οιδατε οτι and it occurs 6 times in this one chapter! Even in verse 2, where we have Do ye not know that, it is exactly the same as the other five know ye not that. Second, I looked up the word οιδατε (know) and discovered that this phrase only occurs 12 times in the New Testament - 6 times in this chapter; 4 other times in this letter (3:16, 5:6, 9:13, 9:24); then only twice elsewhere (Romans 6:16 & James 4:4). So, almost exclusively in Paul and in this letter to the Corinthians. Interesting.

He seems to use it as a reminder of what they are supposed to know, and maybe a gentle rebuke. 

It’s neat to look at what Paul assumed they knew (shows the depth of his teaching). Here are the verses with only the know ye not that part:

6:2 Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world?

6:3 Know ye not that we shall judge angels?

6:9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? 

6:15 Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ?

6:16 What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body?

6:19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost?


Everything inside me wants to go through these verses and bring out the meaning of each statement, but I think for now it’s enough for me to ask myself:

● Do I know these things?

● Do I understand their implications for and applications to my life?


Now I will grow very bold and ask you:

● Do you know these things?

● Do you understand their implications for and applications to your life?


It would appear that we ought to.

know ye not?