“1 Corinthians 7”

Tuesday, March 07, 2017

Chapter Seven begins a series of chapters in which Paul answers some questions that the church in Corinth had sent to him. The first issue he deals with is marriage.

Everything in the chapter must be considered in the context of what Paul refers to as “the present distress” (verse 26).  While there are no clues in the chapter about what that was, most Bible students believe it was most likely a reference to persecution of Christians.

There are two overriding principles taught in this chapter.

First, if you are not married, Paul recommends that you not get married under the current circumstances. He is not saying it is wrong (verses 9, 28), simply unwise. An unmarried person can focus on serving God without distraction. If they were undergoing severe persecution, it would be even more challenging to remain faithful for one who is married. A married person might want to compromise truth if his/her spouse was in danger.

Second, those who are married should be the best spouse they can be, even if (maybe especially if) they are married to a non-Christian. He does not tell a Christian to divorce a non-Christian mate, rather he says exactly the opposite. It was important for the disciples to realize that nothing Paul taught should be understood to weaken the marriage bond, but rather to strengthen it.

Verse 15 has often been misused as a scriptural reason for divorce, that is, the desertion of a spouse. When Paul says that one who is abandoned is “not under bondage,” he is not granting permission to choose a new spouse, he is telling them that they are no longer required to fulfill marital duties for the deserter.

And he also tells them that a widow (in principle, a widower as well) has the right to remarry, “only in the Lord,” that is, in keeping with everything else the Bible teaches about marriage.

--Roger Hillis

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