Verse 1
Again Paul used a rhetorical question to make a point (cf. 1 Corinthians 3:16; 1 Corinthians 4:21). The answer was self-evident to him.
In view of the context the "neighbor" (NASB) must be a fellow Christian. The "unrighteous" or "ungodly" (NIV) contrasts with the "saints" and refers to an unbeliever (1 Corinthians 6:6). When people had disputes with each other in Corinth and wanted official arbitration, they went to the bema (judgment seat) in the center of town.
"The phrase translated ’has a dispute’ is a technical term for a lawsuit, or legal action; and the verb krino (’judge’) in the middle voice can carry the sense of ’going to law,’ or ’bringing something for judgment,’ as it does here." [Note: Fee, The First . . ., p. 231.]
"He does not mean that Christian courts ought to be instituted, but that Christian disputants should submit to Christian arbitration." [Note: Robertson and Plummer, p. 111.]
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