1 Corinthians 7:25-40

 

Verses 17-24 are a detour or parenthesis. With verse 25, Paul returns to his main idea. In the beginning of chapter 7, Paul discussed marriage and singleness; here he returns to these ideas again.

First, we need to note verse 25: “Now concerning virgins.” Here Paul introduces a new (though interrelated) subject. Most commentators think that this was another subject that the Corinthians had asked Paul about. But what exactly is the subject?

The word 'virgin' in Greek (as in English) means someone who has not had sexual relations; it can mean either a man or woman but most often means a woman. In verses 36-38, Paul speaks of how a man should behave towards “his virgin.” There are two main ideas about what this means. In Paul's day, a father had significant authority in arranging his daughter's marriage, so some think Paul is addressing a man deciding whether or not to give his virgin daughter in marriage. Others think it refers to a man who was engaged to a woman and trying to decide whether or not to follow through and complete the marriage. The problem is the language in these verses doesn't really fit either of those situations, at least not perfectly.

We can say that the general subject of the passage is whether it is better to marry or stay single, even if we aren't sure of the particular situations Paul is addressing. In that way, this parallels the opening verses of chapter 7, though Paul goes into more detail here. 

So we need to briefly review the opening section of chapter 7. There Paul discussed the three possible states in which a man can be: singleness, marriage, and fornication. Fornication is clearly wrong and must be rejected by the Christian—but as for marriage and singleness, both are permissible. Paul was single and saw value in such a life, but he also recognized that marriage haa value and was God's plan for many people.

And while this passage seems to have a generally more pessimistic view of marriage, Paul sticks to what he said before. Verse 28a: “But and if thou marry, thou hast no sinned; and if a virgin marry, she hath not sinned.” Verse 36b: “Let him do what he will, he sinneth not: let them marry.” Verse 39b: “If her husband be dead, she is at liberty to be married to whom she will; only in the Lord.”

Whatever Paul is saying here, he is not contradicting his earlier statements (or the rest of the Biblical teaching on marriage.) In verse 38, Paul says: “He that giveth her in marriage doeth well; but he that giveth her not in marriage doeth better.” We will come back to what that means later, but for the moment, what I want to point out is that this is a debate between good and better, not between good and evil.

In verse 25, when introducing the subject, Paul says that he has no commandment of the Lord—there was no direct statement from Jesus on this subject. So Paul—as someone who had a duty to be faithful because of the mercy he had given—was giving his judgment. On this verse, Robertson comments: “[Paul] gives no "command," but only "a judgment," a deliberately formed decision from knowledge, not a mere passing fancy... This language, so far from being a disclaimer of inspiration, is an express claim to help from the Lord in the forming of this duly considered judgment, which is in no sense a command, but an inspired opinion.... Paul... calls it his opinion, not because he is uncertain, but simply because it is not a command, but advice.” (Robertson's Word Pictures, 1 Corinthians 7:25, 26) We are not dealing with issues of law or the breaking of the law, but of what is wisest or best in a particular situation. This repeats a point Paul made in chapter 6--just because something is lawful doesn't necessarily mean it's a good idea.

This is something of a parenthesis, but while we are talking about Paul's view of marriage, we should note that here, as before, he recognizes the sanctity of marriage. Whether or not a virgin (or widow) should enter into marriage is an open question where neither option is, in and of itself, wrong. But for those who are already married: 27a: “Art thou bound unto a wife? seek not to be loosed.” 39a: “The wife is bound by the law as long as her husband liveth.” The marriage bond is still seen as indissoluble.

So, to return to the main point--this passage seeks to answer the question: is it better to marry or remain single? Granted that both states are morally right, which one is better, which one is wiser?

And Paul's answer is that it is better to be single. In verse 26b, Paul says: “it is good for a man so to be.” Some take that to mean that it is better for a man to be single; others take it in a more general sense, that it is better for a man to remain in whatever state he is in rather than seeking to change it, which comes out to the same thing. In verse 38, he says that a man that “giveth her not in marriage doeth better.” Verse 40 says that the widow who does not remarry “is happier if she so abide.”

Why does Paul give this advice? The answer is in the first half of verse 26: “This is good for the present distress.” The NET Bible translates that: “The impending crisis.” There was going to be a time of great trouble coming on the church at Corinth. Most commentators think this refers to the persecution of Christianity under Nero. In such times, when Christians are in continual danger and under constant pressure, marriage does bring an added danger and burden. Even though marriage is not a sin, under such circumstances, it will bring “trouble in the flesh.” Jamieson-Fossitt-Brown references the prophecy of Christ regarding the tribulation surrounding the destruction of Jerusalem: “Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing their babies in those days!” (Matthew 24:19, NET Bible)

Solomon wrote these famous words regarding marriage: “Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favour of the LORD.” (Proverbs 18:22) Marriage is a good thing. And yet even good things, under certain situations, may be bad things. The blessing of marriage and family may sometimes be a curse.

We have to be clear about what Paul is saying. Paul himself was unmarried, but it wasn't because he had anything against marriage; it wasn't because he was too busy building his empire of crypto-currency. It was because he put his commitment to serving God first and, in his case, that prevented him from marrying. Look at what he says in verse 35: “And this I speak for your own profit; not that I may cast a snare upon you, but for that which is comely, and that ye may attend upon the Lord without distraction.” The NET Bible translates that: “I am saying this for your benefit, not to place a limitation on you, but so that without distraction you may give notable and constant service to the Lord.”

In Verses 32-34, Paul lays out the danger of marriage for the Christian. Even though he is still writing under the general context of the present distress, there is a sense in which this is always true. The simple reality is that marriage introduces concerns that a single person does not have. Paul says in verse 32 that he wanted them to be without carefulness—in modern English, we would say, without worry, without concerns. A husband or wife cannot be completely without concerns—they cannot, in one sense, give themselves completely to God. I say “in a sense” because, obviously, in some sense, for a Christian man or woman, serving their husband/wife is a means of serving God, yet it does add a certain complication to that relationship. 

Paul says in verse 33 that the married man is concerned with “the things that are of the world.” Reading Adam Clarke's comment on this verse was very interesting. Clarke seemed concerned lest anyone take Paul's words to be a criticism of the married state and so goes on a tangent showing why the married man is superior to the single man, part of which reads as follows: “The single man is an atom in society; the married man is a small community in himself.  The former is the centre of his own existence, and lives for himself alone; the latter is diffused abroad, makes a much more important part of the body social, and provides both for its support and continuance.  The single man lives for and does good to himself only; the married man lives both for himself and the public.”

And I think that highlights Paul's point. Yes, the married man is part of something larger than himself. As Clarke says later in the quote, he can do more good than the single man can. But by the same token, he has larger burdens and responsibilities, which can be a disadvantage to the Christian—and especially in times of trouble and persecution.

How could Paul give such advice? If marriage is such a blessing, how could Paul advise anyone abstain from it?  Verse 29: “The time is short.” This may refer to the present distress--it may mean that they have only a short time before their world will be shaken. But it may have a more general moral. Albert Barnes writes: “The idea of the apostle here is, that the plans of life should all be formed in view of this truth, THAT TIME IS SHORT. No plan should be adopted which does not contemplate this; no engagement of life made when it will not be appropriate to think of it; no connexion entered into when the thought, 'time is short,' would be an unwelcome intruder.”

He goes onto say that “those who have wives should be as those who have none, those with tears like those not weeping, those who rejoice like those not rejoicing, those who buy like those without possessions, those who use the world as though they were not using it to the full. For the present shape of this world is passing away.” (1 Corinthians 7:29-31, NET Bible) There are many differences between man and man in life. Some people experience blessings or banes that others do not. But as real as these things are, they are not the final reality. There is some sense in which these things do not ultimately matter. For the Christian, our loyalty to Christ and desire to serve him is more important than any merely human advantage or disadvantage. Marriage, singleness, wealth, poverty, even happiness, and sadness are not the end, nor are they ends. They are ways through which we pass on pilgrimage.