1CO 7
7
On Christian Marriage
1 Now addressing the matters you wrote about: "Avoiding sexual contact with a woman benefits a man."
2 However, because sexual immorality occurs so frequently, each man should maintain his own wife, and each woman should maintain her own husband.
3 The husband should fulfil his marital obligations towards his wife, and likewise the wife should fulfil hers towards her husband.
4 The wife does not possess independent authority over her own body; rather, her husband does. Likewise, the husband does not possess independent authority over his own body; rather, his wife does.
5 Do not withhold yourselves from one another, except perhaps by mutual agreement for a limited period, enabling you to dedicate yourselves to prayer. Then resume normal relations, preventing Satan from exploiting your lack of self-restraint to tempt you.
6 I offer this as a permitted concession, not as a binding directive.
7 I wish all men were even as I am. However, each man has his own gift from God, one in this manner, another in that manner.
8 To those who are unmarried and to widows I say: Remaining as I am would benefit them.
9 However, if they cannot maintain self-control, they should marry. Marriage is preferable to burning with unfulfilled desire.
10 To those who are married I give this directive (originating not from me but from the Lord): A wife must not separate from her husband.
11 But if she does separate, she must either remain unmarried or be reconciled to her husband. Similarly, a husband must not divorce his wife.
12 To the rest I say (speaking from my own authority, not the Lord's direct command): If any brother has an unbelieving wife who consents to live with him, he must not divorce her.
13 If any woman has an unbelieving husband who consents to live with her, she must not divorce him.
14 The unbelieving husband is set apart through his believing wife, and the unbelieving wife is set apart through her believing husband; otherwise your children would be unclean, but now they are regarded as holy because of the believer’s faith.
15 However, if the unbelieving partner chooses to depart, allow the separation. The brother or the sister is not bound to the marriage in such circumstances, for God has called us to peaceful living.
16 How can you know, wife, whether you will bring salvation to your husband? How can you know, husband, whether you will save your wife?
17 Nevertheless, as the Lord has assigned to each man, as God has called each man, so let him conduct his life. This is how I establish practice in all the churches.
18 Was anyone already circumcised when called? He should not attempt to reverse the circumcision. Was anyone uncircumcised when called? He should not undergo circumcision.
19 Circumcision means nothing and uncircumcision means nothing; what matters is obeying God's commandments.
20 Each man should remain in the condition in which he was called.
21 Were you a slave when called? Do not let it trouble you. But if you can obtain freedom, seize the opportunity.
22 The man who was called in the Lord while a slave is the Lord's freedman. Likewise, the man who was called while free is Christ's slave.
23 You were purchased at a price; do not become slaves of men.
24 Each man should remain with God in the condition in which he was called, brothers.
25 Now concerning virgins: I have no commandment from the Lord, but I offer my judgment as one who has received mercy from the Lord to be trustworthy.
26 Therefore, I consider this to be beneficial because of the present distress or crisis: It is good for a man to remain in his current condition.
27 Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek release. Are you unattached to a woman? Do not seek a wife.
28 But even if you do marry, you have not sinned; and if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. Nevertheless, such people will experience trouble in this earthly life, and I want to spare you that.
29 But this I say, brothers: The time has been shortened, so that from now on even those who have wives should live as though they had none;
30 and those who mourn, as though they were not mourning; and those who rejoice, as though they were not rejoicing; and those who make purchases, as though they did not possess anything;
31 and those who utilise the world, as though not making full use of it. For the present form of this world is passing away.
32 I want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is concerned about the Lord's affairs, how he may please the Lord.
33 But the married man is concerned about worldly affairs, how he may please his wife,
34 and his interests are divided. The unmarried woman or the virgin is concerned about the Lord's affairs, so that she may be holy in both body and spirit. But the married woman is concerned about worldly affairs, how she may please her husband.
35 I say this for your own benefit, not to place restrictions on you, but to promote what is appropriate and to secure undistracted devotion to the Lord.
36 But if anyone believes he is treating his betrothed improperly, if she is past the bloom of youth and it seems necessary, let him do what he wishes. He commits no sin; let them marry.
37 But the man who stands firm in his heart, being under no compulsion and exercising control over his own will, and has decided not to marry his betrothed, will do well.
38 Therefore, the man who marries his betrothed does well, and the man who does not marry her will do even better.
39 A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to marry whomever she wishes, only in the Lord.
40 Yet she is more blessed if she remains as she is, in my judgment—and I believe I also have the Spirit of God.
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1CO 7: AFINT
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Copyright © 2026 Michael Adeyemi Adegbola. This Scripture text is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0).
