1 Corinthians 7:10-16
The first nine verses of Chapter 7 are focused on marriage versus singleness, with the conclusion that both states are, in their own way, good, and either are preferable to the only other alternative which is living (or attempting to live) in fornication. The passage ended with Paul advising single people not to rush into marriage if they were doing all right single. From that, Paul turns to deal with issues that arose from the married state—he deals with special cases and circumstances and how Christians ought to behave in them. (These may be issues that the Corinthians had specifically asked about or Paul have realized that these were problems that would naturally arise, especially in a new church.) In verses 10-11, Paul speaks to those who are married. As we talked about in our last lesson, there are some things Paul says that, taken on their own, implies that he looked down on marriage. But it is clear, taking his words as a whole, that he held it as sacred. He might have felt that
