1 Corinthians 7:1-9. Advice concerning Marriage and Celibacy 1. _Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me_ The newly converted Corinthians had evidently found themselves in a difficulty concerning marriage. The Jews in general, whatever ascetics like the Essenes and Therapeutæ among them m... [ Continue Reading ]
_Nevertheless, to avoid fornication_ Literally, ON ACCOUNT OF THE FORNICATIONS, i.e. the habitual practice of this vice in the Church of Corinth. See note on ch. 1 Corinthians 6:13. We are not to suppose (see Meyer) that we have the whole of the Apostle's view of marriage, but simply that which conn... [ Continue Reading ]
_due benevolence_ The better supported reading is WHAT IS DUE, the DEBT.... [ Continue Reading ]
_The wife hath not power of her own body, but the husband: and likewise also the husband hath not power of his own body, but the wife_ We here are reminded of the valuable principle that in everything connected with the duties of married life each should consult the comfort, well-being, and happines... [ Continue Reading ]
_that ye may give yourselves to fasting and prayer_ The best MSS., most of the Fathers, and many of the best versions, including the Vulgate, omit the word -fasting." _Satan_ Cf. 1 Peter 5:8.... [ Continue Reading ]
_by permission_ i.e. _by way of permission_on the Apostle's part to the Corinthian Church, not of God to him, as it is sometimes misunderstood. The original signification of the word thus rendered is _agreement_. Thence it comes to mean _permission, indulgence, concession_. Vulgate, _indulgentia_; C... [ Continue Reading ]
_every man hath his proper gift of God_ Cf. St Matthew 19:11.... [ Continue Reading ]
Mutual obligations of Married Persons 10. _yet not I, but the Lord_ The Apostle is quoting our Lord's words in St Mark 10:11-12. No distinction is intended between what he, as a private individual enjoined, and what God commanded. "He never wrote of himself, being a vessel of the Holy Ghost, Who ev... [ Continue Reading ]
_but and if she depart_ Literally, BE SEPARATED, as above. There were great facilities for divorce, both under the law of Greece and Rome, in St Paul's day, but the facilities were greater for the husband than for the wife. At Athens the husband could dismiss his wife at will. At Sparta failure of i... [ Continue Reading ]
_But to the rest speak I, not the Lord_ That is, there has been no precept given by Christ Himself in the particular case now referred to, therefore St Paul falls back on the general inspiration given by Christ to His Apostles. Compare 1 Corinthians 7:40 (where see note), and St John 16:13. "Christ... [ Continue Reading ]
_let her not leave him_ The word here is the same which in the last verse is translated - _put away_.... [ Continue Reading ]
_is sanctified_ In both members of the sentence the original has _hath been sanctified_, i.e. by the conversion of the believer to Christianity. The sacred character imparted by Christianity has, since it imparts union with Christ the Lord of all, a power to overbear the impurity of the non-Christia... [ Continue Reading ]
_A brother or a sister is not under bondage_(literally, ENSLAVED) _in such cases_ The Roman Catholic divines, e.g. à Lapide and Ambrosiaster, as well as the Canon law, held that in the case of the heathen partner refusing to live with the other when he or she embraced Christianity, the Christian was... [ Continue Reading ]
_For what knowest thou, O wife, whether thou shalt save thy husband?_ Until the 14th century the meaning of this passage was supposed to be that the believing partner was not to leave the unbeliever, in hope of bringing about his conversion. See 1 Peter 3:1. But Lyra then pointed out that the opposi... [ Continue Reading ]
Christianity not intended to revolutionize the relations between the believer and society 17. _But as God hath distributed_ The permission to live apart from a heathen husband or wife is given only to meet a special case, that in which the unbelieving partner demands the separation. The general rule... [ Continue Reading ]
_Is any man called being circumcised? let him not become uncircumcised_ Many Jews, we are assured, were ashamed of their Judaism, and were desirous to obliterate all the outward signs of it. (1Ma 1:15.) This feeling would receive an additional impulse from conversion to Christianity. But St Paul bel... [ Continue Reading ]
_Circumcision is nothing_ It was not circumcision in itself that had any value, but the obedience to a divine command.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Let every man abide in the same calling wherein he was called_ See note on ch. 1 Corinthians 1:20. It is not what we call man's "vocation," but God's act of calling that is spoken of.... [ Continue Reading ]
_use it rather_ This may either be interpreted (1) "use _freedom_," or (2) "use _slavery_." Dean Stanley remarks of this passage that its interpretation "is one of the most evenly balanced questions in the New Testament." But the context, the position of the word καὶ in the former part of the senten... [ Continue Reading ]
_the Lord's freeman_ Rather, FREEDMAN, the Latin _libertus_. So Beza, Calvin and the Vulgate, and the margin of our version. The English translators generally seem to have missed this point. _Christ's servant_ For this expression, cf. Ephesians 6:6; Jas 1:1; 2 Peter 1:1; Judges 1.... [ Continue Reading ]
_be not ye the servants of men_ Literally, SLAVES OF MEN. Let your minds and spirits be free, whatever may be your outward condition, i.e. be indifferent to mere external relations altogether, for though man may enslave the body he cannot enslave the soul.... [ Continue Reading ]
_with God_ Literally, BEFORE GOD. A repetition of the precept of 1 Corinthians 7:20, under a more solemn sanction. The believer is reminded Who it is that hath ordained his condition, as a _sufficient reason that he should be contented with it_.... [ Continue Reading ]
General Instructions Concerning the Marriage of Virgins 25. _virgins_ i.e. unmarried women. St Paul now returns to the question of marriage. But before he enters upon the question of the marriage of virgins, he treats, according to his usual rule, of the general principle of which theirs is a parti... [ Continue Reading ]
_the present distress_ The literal rendering of the word here translated _distress_is _necessity_, and it is so translated in 1 Corinthians 7:37. But it frequently in the New Testament, as in the Septuagint, has the sense of distress, as in St Luke 21:23; 2 Corinthians 6:4; 2Co 12:10; 1 Thessalonian... [ Continue Reading ]
_trouble in the flesh_ Tribulation, either as Monica, when she saw her son Augustine falling into sin and infidelity, or as many other Christian parents whose souls the -sword" of the executioner was destined to -pierce through," as they beheld the martyrdom of their children. _but I spare you_ Eit... [ Continue Reading ]
_But this I say, brethren_ The conclusion of the whole matter. The time is short, the world is passing away. In whatever condition a man is, let him live in a constant state of readiness to abandon it at the bidding of God. Let him keep his soul unfettered by the ties, the enjoyments, and above all,... [ Continue Reading ]
_they that rejoice, as though they rejoiced not_ "Look round this beautiful world of God's: ocean dimpled into myriad smiles; the sky a trembling, quivering mass of blue, thrilling hearts with ecstasy; every tint, every form, replete with beauty. God says, -be glad." Do not force young, happy hearts... [ Continue Reading ]
_as not abusing it_ Perhaps better, AS NOT USING IT TO EXCESS. So in ch. 1 Corinthians 9:18. _for the fashion of this world passeth away_ Rather, IS PASSING AWAY, as a scene in a theatre (see Stanley and Alford's notes). This translation brings out more clearly the belief of the early Church in the... [ Continue Reading ]
_He that is unmarried careth for the things that belong to the Lord_ One great reason why the Apostle recommends celibacy is the freedom that it gives from anxiety about worldly matters, the opportunity it offers of "attending upon the Lord without distraction." But the Apostle does not desire his a... [ Continue Reading ]
_There is difference also_ The text is here in great confusion, and there is great variety of punctuation among the editors. The Vulgate and Calvin, who are followed by many modern editors, translate thus: _He that is married careth for the things of this life, how he may please his wife, and is dis... [ Continue Reading ]
_attend upon the Lord_ Literally, SIT CONVENIENTLY BEFORE ( OR BESIDE) HIM. Dean Stanley refers to Martha and Mary in St Luke 10:39-41, as an exact illustration of this expression. Martha is -cumbered with much serving," Mary sits at Jesus" feet.... [ Continue Reading ]
_his virgin_ i.e. _his daughter_. The advice here given is to _parents_. In St Paul's time, and in most continental countries now, it is the parents who decide on the marriage of their children. In France, and in some other foreign countries, the young people very often do not even see one another b... [ Continue Reading ]
_having no necessity_ This might be the case either (1) if the maiden be not specially desirous for the married life, or (2) if her hand be not sought in marriage, or (3) if, when sought, she be unwilling to accept the proposal. The language of the Apostle embraces all three suppositions. _but hath... [ Continue Reading ]
The Second Marriage of Women 39. _The wife is bound by the law as long as her husband liveth_ Cf. Romans 7:2. _if her husband be dead_ Literally, IF HER HUSBAND SLEEP, or rather, perhaps, BE LAID TO SLEEP, the word generally used of the death of Christians, and even of the saints of the old covenan... [ Continue Reading ]
_and I think also that I have the Spirit of God_ Not that there was any doubt in the Apostle's mind on this point. The word used implies full persuasion that in the advice he had given he was speaking under the direction of the Holy Spirit.... [ Continue Reading ]