1 Corinthians 7

The chapter follows a structured pattern of answering specific inquiries ('Now concerning...'), alternating between theological principles and practical application. Paul shifts from the general principles of marriage to the specific circumstances of the unmarried and those in varied social callings, all unified by the eschatological perspective that the 'fashion of this world passeth away.'

• God calls us to peace (v. 15).
• The unbelieving spouse is sanctified through the believing spouse (v. 14).

• Let every man have his own wife, and every woman her own husband (v. 2).
• Defraud ye not one the other (v. 5).
• Let not the wife depart from her husband (v. 10).
• Let not the husband put away his wife (v. 11).
• Let every man abide in the same calling wherein he was called (v. 20).
• Marry only in the Lord (v. 39).

• Do not deprive one another of sexual intimacy, lest Satan tempt you through lack of self-restraint (v. 5).
• Do not become the servants of men, as you have been bought with a price (v. 23).
• Marriage brings trouble in the flesh (v. 28).

• Corinth was a cosmopolitan city known for its sexual immorality, which likely influenced the community's questions.
• The 'present distress' (v. 26) likely refers to a specific time of famine, persecution, or social upheaval occurring in the early church, making the responsibilities of marriage particularly burdensome at that time.

• Divorce was relatively easy and common in both Jewish and Greco-Roman law of the period.
• The social stratification of the Roman Empire (slavery and citizen status) is the background for Paul's counsel in verses 17-24.

• This chapter is one of several responses to questions the Corinthians had previously submitted to Paul (1 Cor 7:1).
• It serves as a counter-balance to the asceticism that may have been developing in the church, as well as a check on the libertinism found in chapter 6.

• Paul's instruction on divorce in verses 10-11 directly aligns with the teachings of Jesus in the Gospels (cf. Mark 10:11-12; Matthew 5:32).
• The concept of 'sanctified' children (v. 14) relates to the covenantal continuity seen in the Old Testament, where the seed of the believer is set apart to the Lord.

• Reference to Genesis 2:24 (the 'one flesh' union) is implied in the concept of power over the body (v. 4).
• The phrase 'bought with a price' (v. 23) echoes 1 Corinthians 6:20, reinforcing that the believer's primary owner is Christ.

• ἅπτομαι (háptomai) [G680]: literally 'to touch' or 'attach oneself to'. Paul uses this euphemistically for sexual relations.
• πορνεία (porneía) [G4202]: refers to any form of sexual immorality outside the covenant of marriage.
• σχολάζω (scholázō) [G4980]: to be at leisure for, or to devote oneself wholly to a specific task (here, prayer).
• ἀκρασία (akrasía) [G192]: lack of self-restraint or incontinence; the opposite of biblical temperance.

• Matthew Henry observes that marriage is a divine institution, an engagement for life, and that divorce, common in that day on slight pretexts, is strictly limited by Christ's teaching.
• Paul's distinction between his own judgment (v. 25) and a command of the Lord (v. 10) indicates that he is operating with apostolic authority under the inspiration of the Spirit (v. 40), not merely offering private opinion.

• The identity of the 'virgin' in verses 36-38 is debated: some see it as a father deciding for his daughter, others as a man deciding regarding his own betrothed, and others as a man living in a 'spiritual marriage' (syneisaktism). The text allows for the father/daughter interpretation as the most straightforward reading of the head-of-household role in antiquity.
• The 'present distress' is debated: while it is historically rooted in the context of the first century, it has been variously linked to impending famines (Acts 11:28), localized persecution, or general eschatological pressures.