Outline
IV.
Instruction on
Marriage (ch. 7)
VII.
Instruction on the
Resurrection (ch. 15)
1 Corinthians 7 NLT
1 Now regarding the questions you asked in
your letter. Yes, it is good to abstain from sexual relations.
2 But because there is so much sexual
immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman should have her
own husband.
3 The husband should fulfill his wife’s
sexual needs, and the wife should fulfill her husband’s needs.
4 The wife gives authority over her body
to her husband, and the husband gives authority over his body to his
wife.
5 Do not deprive each other of sexual
relations, unless you both agree to refrain from sexual intimacy for a limited
time so you can give yourselves more completely to prayer. Afterward, you
should come together again so that Satan won’t be able to tempt you because of
your lack of self-control.
6 I say this as a concession, not as a
command.
7 But I wish everyone were single, just as
I am. Yet each person has a special gift from God, of one kind or
another.
8 So I say to those who aren’t married and
to widows—it’s better to stay unmarried, just as I am.
9 But if they can’t control themselves,
they should go ahead and marry. It’s better to marry than to burn with
lust.
10 But for those who are married, I have a
command that comes not from me, but from the Lord. A wife must not leave her
husband.
11 But if she does leave him, let her
remain single or else be reconciled to him. And the husband must not leave his
wife.
12 Now, I will speak to the rest of you,
though I do not have a direct command from the Lord. If a fellow believer has a
wife who is not a believer and she is willing to continue living with him, he
must not leave her.
13 And if a believing woman has a husband
who is not a believer and he is willing to continue living with her, she must
not leave him.
14 For the believing wife brings holiness
to her marriage, and the believing husband brings holiness to his marriage.
Otherwise, your children would not be holy, but now they are holy.
15 (But if the husband or wife who isn’t a
believer insists on leaving, let them go. In such cases the believing husband
or wife is no longer bound to the other, for God has called you to live in
peace.)
16 Don’t you wives realize that your
husbands might be saved because of you? And don’t you husbands realize that your
wives might be saved because of you?
17 Each of you should continue to live in
whatever situation the Lord has placed you, and remain as you were when God
first called you. This is my rule for all the churches.
18 For instance, a man who was circumcised
before he became a believer should not try to reverse it. And the man who was
uncircumcised when he became a believer should not be circumcised now.
19 For it makes no difference whether or
not a man has been circumcised. The important thing is to keep God’s
commandments.
20Yes, each of you should remain as you were
when God called you.
21 Are you a slave? Don’t let that worry
you—but if you get a chance to be free, take it.
22 And remember, if you were a slave when
the Lord called you, you are now free in the Lord. And if you were free when
the Lord called you, you are now a slave of Christ.
23 God paid a high price for you, so don’t
be enslaved by the world.
24 Each of you, dear brothers and sisters,
should remain as you were when God first called you.
25 Now regarding your question about the
young women who are not yet married. I do not have a command from the Lord for
them. But the Lord in his mercy has given me wisdom that can be trusted, and I
will share it with you.
26 Because of the present crisis, I think
it is best to remain as you are.
27 If you have a wife, do not seek to end
the marriage. If you do not have a wife, do not seek to get married.
28 But if you do get married, it is not a
sin. And if a young woman gets married, it is not a sin. However, those who get
married at this time will have troubles, and I am trying to spare you those
problems.
29 But let me say this, dear brothers and
sisters: The time that remains is very short. So from now on, those with wives
should not focus only on their marriage.
30 Those who weep or who rejoice or who buy
things should not be absorbed by their weeping or their joy or their
possessions.
31 Those who use the things of the world
should not become attached to them. For this world as we know it will soon pass
away.
32 I want you to be free from the concerns
of this life. An unmarried man can spend his time doing the Lord’s work and
thinking how to please him.
33 But a married man has to think about his
earthly responsibilities and how to please his wife.
34 His interests are divided. In the same
way, a woman who is no longer married or has never been married can be devoted
to the Lord and holy in body and in spirit. But a married woman has to think
about her earthly responsibilities and how to please her husband.
35 I am saying this for your benefit, not
to place restrictions on you. I want you to do whatever will help you serve the
Lord best, with as few distractions as possible.
36 But if a man thinks that he’s treating
his fiancée improperly and will inevitably give in to his passion, let him
marry her as he wishes. It is not a sin.
37 But if he has decided firmly not to
marry and there is no urgency and he can control his passion, he does well not
to marry.
38 So the person who marries his fiancée
does well, and the person who doesn’t marry does even better.
39 A wife is bound to her husband as long
as he lives. If her husband dies, she is free to marry anyone she wishes, but
only if he loves the Lord.
40 But in my opinion it would be better for
her to stay single, and I think I am giving you counsel from God’s Spirit when
I say this.
