1 Corinthians 7

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1 Corinthians 7 is Paul's answer to the Corinthians' questions about marriage, sex, and singleness. Husbands and wives owe each other their bodies and should not withhold them except briefly for prayer. The unmarried do well to stay as he is, but it is better to marry than to burn. The married must not divorce; a believer married to an unbeliever should stay if the unbeliever is willing, but is not bound if the unbeliever leaves. The principle beneath it all is to remain as you were when God called you, circumcised or not, slave or free. Because the time is short, Paul prefers singleness for its undivided devotion, but insists that marrying is no sin and that each has a gift from God.

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1 Corinthians 7 is Paul answering letters, and you can hear the questions behind the answers. Some in Corinth had decided that the truly spiritual thing was to give up sex altogether, even inside marriage. Paul says no: husband and wife belong to each other, body and all, and neither may withhold except by agreement, briefly, for prayer. He would be glad if everyone could live single as he does, but that is a gift, and for those who do not have it, marriage is better than burning. Then the harder cases. Married believers must not divorce; that comes from the Lord. Believers married to unbelievers, a new problem, should stay if the other is willing, because the unbelieving partner is made holy by the marriage and the children are holy; if the unbeliever leaves, the believer is free, for God has called us to peace. Underneath all of it Paul lays one rule: stay in the situation you were in when God called you. Circumcised or not, it is nothing. Slave or free, you are the Lord's freedman or Christ's slave, so do not become anyone's slave, and take your freedom if it comes. The last part of the chapter is Paul's own judgment, offered as such, that in a world that is passing away, with the time short, the unmarried are free to give the Lord undivided attention while the married are rightly divided. He does not make it a law. Marry and you do well, he says; stay single and you do even better; and each of you has your own gift from God.

Passagens-chave

1 Corinthians 7:1-7 1 Corinthians 7:10-16 1 Corinthians 7:17-24 1 Corinthians 7:25-35 Matthew 19:3-12 Ephesians 5:22-33

Historical and literary context

Paul wrote from Ephesus around AD 54 or 55, answering a letter from Corinth; "It is good to abstain from sexual relations" in verse 1 is probably a slogan of Corinthian ascetics, whom Paul corrects while sharing their preference for singleness. Roman law allowed either spouse to divorce easily, and mixed marriages arose when one partner converted. The "present crisis" of verse 26 may be a local famine or the general pressure of the last days. Slaves made up a large part of the church, and manumission was common enough that Paul can advise taking the chance. "Virgins" in verses 25 to 38 are most likely betrothed couples deciding whether to complete their marriages. Verse 10 is one of the few places Paul cites a command of Jesus directly.

How the chapter unfolds

Verses 1 to 7 address marital relations and mutual obligation. Verses 8 and 9 address the unmarried and widows. Verses 10 and 11 give the Lord's command against divorce. Verses 12 to 16 treat mixed marriages. Verses 17 to 24 state the rule of remaining in one's calling, with circumcision and slavery as examples. Verses 25 to 35 give Paul's judgment on the betrothed, the shortness of the time, and the divided concerns of the married. Verses 36 to 38 apply it to a man and his betrothed. Verses 39 and 40 close with widows, free to remarry in the Lord but happier, in Paul's view, single.

Why this chapter matters

The chapter is the New Testament's fullest teaching on marriage and singleness and has shaped Christian practice on all of it: the mutual conjugal rights of verses 3 to 5, unusual in the ancient world for making the wife's claim equal; the prohibition of divorce and the "Pauline privilege" for deserted believers; the sanctity of children in mixed marriages; and the honoring of celibacy as a gift, which underlies monasticism and clerical celibacy. "It is better to marry than to burn" and "the time is short" have entered common speech. Verse 22, the slave as the Lord's freedman and the free man as Christ's slave, relativized social status in a way that would eventually undermine slavery.

Interpretive tension to watch

Paul distinguishes the Lord's command from his own judgment more openly here than anywhere else, which raises the question of the authority of his opinions on singleness. His preference for the unmarried life, and his "as if they had none" in verse 29, have been read as devaluing marriage, though he calls marriage a gift and no sin. Whether "remain as you were" and "do not let it concern you" counsel slaves to stay slaves or to seize freedom depends on how verse 21 is translated, and the two readings have had very different histories. The identity of the "virgins" and the meaning of the "present crisis" remain unsettled.

Perguntas para este capítulo

Paul says the wife has authority over her husband's body as much as he over hers. What did that mutuality mean in his world, and what does it mean now?
He calls both marriage and singleness gifts. How would a church look if it honored both equally?
"The time is short; the world in its present form is passing away." How does that change the weight you give to marrying, buying, grieving, and rejoicing?

Study with context

Use this as a chapter guide, then press deeper into the text itself. The goal is to slow down observation, notice structure, and ask better questions before jumping to conclusions.

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1 论到你们信上所提的事，[我说]男不近女倒好。 2 但要免淫乱的事，男子当各有自己的妻子；女子也当各有自己的丈夫。 3 丈夫当用合宜之分待妻子；妻子待丈夫也要如此。 4 妻子没有权柄主张自己的身子，乃在丈夫；丈夫也没有权柄主张自己的身子，乃在妻子。 5 夫妻不可彼此亏负，除非两相情愿，暂时分房，为要专心祷告方可；以后仍要同房，免得撒但趁着你们情不自禁，引诱你们。 6 我说这话，原是准[你们]的，不是命[你们]的。 7 我愿意众人像我一样；只是各人领受　神的恩赐，一个是这样，一个是那样。 8 我对着没有嫁娶的和寡妇说，若他们常像我就好。 9 倘若自己禁止不住，就可以嫁娶。与其欲火攻心，倒不如嫁娶为妙。 10 至于那已经嫁娶的，我吩咐他们；其实不是我吩咐，乃是主吩咐说：妻子不可离开丈夫， 11 若是离开了，不可再嫁，或是仍同丈夫和好。丈夫也不可离弃妻子。 12 我对其余的人说（不是主说）：倘若某弟兄有不信的妻子，妻子也情愿和他同住，他就不要离弃妻子。 13 妻子有不信的丈夫，丈夫也情愿和她同住，她就不要离弃丈夫。 14 因为不信的丈夫就因着妻子成了圣洁，并且不信的妻子就因着丈夫成了圣洁。不然，你们的儿女就不洁净，但如今他们是圣洁的了。 15 倘若那不信的人要离去，就由他离去吧！无论是弟兄，是姊妹，遇着这样的事都不必拘束。　神召我们原是要我们和睦。 16 你这作妻子的，怎么知道不能救你的丈夫呢？你这作丈夫的，怎么知道不能救你的妻子呢？ 17 只要照主所分给各人的，和　神所召各人的而行。我吩咐各教会都是这样。 18 有人已受割礼蒙召呢，就不要废割礼；有人未受割礼蒙召呢，就不要受割礼。 19 受割礼算不得什么，不受割礼也算不得什么，只要守　神的诫命就是了。 20 各人蒙召的时候是什么身分，仍要守住这身分。 21 你是作奴隶蒙召的吗？不要因此忧虑；若能以自由，就求自由更好。 22 因为作奴仆蒙召于主的，就是主所释放的人；作自由之人蒙召的，就是基督的奴仆。 23 你们是重价买来的，不要作人的奴仆。 24 弟兄们，你们各人蒙召的时候是什么身分，仍要在　神面前守住这身分。 25 论到童身的人，我没有主的命令，但我既蒙主怜恤能作忠心的人，就把自己的意见告诉[你们]。 26 因现今的艰难，据我看来，人不如守素安常才好。 27 你有妻子缠着呢，就不要求脱离；你没有妻子缠着呢，就不要求妻子。 28 你若娶妻，并不是犯罪；处女若出嫁，也不是犯罪。然而这等人肉身必受苦难，我却愿意你们免这苦难。 29 弟兄们，我对你们说：时候减少了。从此以后，那有妻子的，要像没有妻子； 30 哀哭的，要像不哀哭；快乐的，要像不快乐；置买的，要像无有所得； 31 用世物的，要像不用世物，因为这世界的样子将要过去了。 32 我愿你们无所挂虑。没有娶妻的，是为主的事挂虑，想怎样叫主喜悦。 33 娶了妻的，是为世上的事挂虑，想怎样叫妻子喜悦。 34 妇人和处女也有分别。没有出嫁的，是为主的事挂虑，要身体、灵魂都圣洁；已经出嫁的，是为世上的事挂虑，想怎样叫丈夫喜悦。 35 我说这话是为你们的益处，不是要牢笼你们，乃是要叫你们行合宜的事，得以殷勤服事主，没有分心的事。 36 若有人以为自己待他的女儿不合宜，女儿也过了年岁，事又当行，他就可随意办理，不算有罪，叫二人成亲就是了。 37 倘若人心里坚定，没有不得已的事，并且由得自己作主，心里又决定了留下女儿[不出嫁]，如此行也好。 38 这样看来，叫自己的女儿出嫁是好，不叫她出嫁更是好。 39 丈夫活着的时候，妻子是被约束的；丈夫若死了，妻子就可以自由，随意再嫁，只是要嫁这在主里面的人。 40 然而按我的意见，若常守节更有福气。我也想自己是被　神的灵感动了。

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