The second occurrence of the phrase peri de("now concerning") occurs in verse 25 and indicates another subject about which the Corinthians had written Paul (cf. v. 1). This was the subject of single women. This section belongs with the rest of chapter 7 because this subject relates closely to what immediately precedes. Paul continued to deal with questions about marriage that the Corinthians' asceticism raised.
In view of the verses in this section it seems that the question the Corinthians had asked Paul was whether an engaged girl should get married or remain single. One might understand verses 17-24 as saying no unmarried person should change her situation and get married (cf. v. 8), but this was not what Paul advocated necessarily.
7:25 The "virgins"(Gr. parthenoi) were a group within the "unmarried"(agamoi) of verse 8. Paul used the feminine gender in five out of the six uses of this noun in verses 25-38. Consequently it seems clear that he was speaking of female virgins in particular.
There are three major views about the identity of these virgins. One view is that they were the virgin daughters of men in the Corinthian church and that these fathers had questions about giving their daughters in marriage. A second view is that the virgins were both men and women who were living together in a "spiritual marriage"(i.e., without sexual relations). A third view is that the virgins were females who were engaged, or thinking of becoming engaged, but were experiencing pressure from the "spiritual"in the church to forgo marriage. I believe the text supports the third view best.
The Lord Jesus had not addressed this problem during His earthly ministry as far as Paul knew (cf. v. 12). Paul gave his inspired opinion as a trustworthy (wise) steward of the Lord who had received mercy to be such (4:2). Note that Paul appealed to the Lord's mercy, not His command. As in the first part of this chapter, Paul was offering good advice, but he was not commanding that everyone do the same thing. Thus to choose not to follow Paul's advice did not amount to sinning.
7:26 What is the present distress or crisis (Gr. anagke) to which the apostle referred? It may have been a crisis in the Corinthian church or in Corinth about which we have no more specific information. However in view of Paul's description of this distress (vv. 29-31) it seems as though he was speaking of the fact that we live in the last days.188They are last days because the Lord's return for us could end them at any time.
If this is correct, we live in the same present distress as the Corinthian believers did. It is a time of distress because of the hostility of unbelievers and increasing apostasy (cf. 1 Tim. 4; 2 Tim. 3). The Apostle Paul consistently viewed the inter-advent age as a time of crisis and distress.
The last part of the verse restates Paul's basic principle of abiding in one's calling (vv. 17, 20, 24). "Man"(NASB) or "you"(NIV) is anthropos, meaning "person."
7:27 Paul thought it prudent to stay married rather than seeking a life of singleness with a view to serving the Lord more effectively. Obviously it would be wrong to split up a marriage for this purpose. If an unbelieving spouse had abandoned the Christian, or if he or she had lost his or her spouse to death, a single life would provide greater opportunity for Christian ministry.
7:28 Nevertheless marrying in such a case is not sinful. Furthermore if a young woman decides to marry rather than staying single, she has not sinned. However the decision to marry may complicate her service of the Lord.
For example, suppose a single woman gets into a position where an adversary may torture her for her faith. She could face that possibility more easily than a married woman who has children for whom she has responsibility could. It is that kind of "trouble"that Paul evidently had in mind.
"One of the unfortunate things that has happened to this text in the church is that the very pastoral concern of Paul that caused him to express himself in this way has been a source of anxiety rather than comfort. Part of the reason for this is that in Western cultures we do not generally live in a time of present distress.' Thus we fail to sense the kind of care that this text represents. Beyond that, what is often heard is that Paul prefers singleness to marriage, which he does. But quite in contrast to Paul's own position over against the Corinthians, we often read into that preference that singleness is somehow a superior status. That causes some who do not wish to remain single to become anxious about God's will in their lives. Such people need to hear it again: Marriage or singleness per se lies totally outside the category of commandments' to be obeyed or sin' if one indulges; and Paul's preference here is not predicated on spiritual' grounds but on pastoral concern. It is perfectly all right to marry."189
Paul next called his readers to take a different view of their relationship to the world since they lived in distressing times and the form of the world was passing away. We, too, need this view of the world since we also live in distressing times and the form of the world is still passing away.
7:29a While it is true that the time a person has to serve Christ grows shorter with every day he or she lives, Paul probably meant that the Lord's return is closer every day. However it is not the amount of time that we have left that concerned Paul but the fact that we know our time is limited. Christians should live with a certain perspective on the future and, therefore, we should live with eternity's values consciously in view. We should be ready to make sacrifices now in view of the possibility of greater reward later (3:14).
7:29b-31a Married men should live as soldiers of the Cross willing to forgo some of the comforts and pleasures of family life, but not its responsibilities, since we are in a spiritual battle. Those who weep should remember that present sorrow will be comparatively short (cf. Luke 6:21). Likewise those who rejoice should bear in mind that we have a serious purpose to fulfill in life (Luke 6:25). When we make purchases, we need to consider that we are only stewards of God and that everything really belongs to Him. The Christian should use the world and everything in it to serve the Lord, but we must not get completely wrapped up in the things of this world. Therefore, whether a person is single or married he or she should live with an attitude of detachment from the world. We should not let it engross or absorb us.
7:31b The reason for viewing life this way is that earthly life as we know it is only temporary and is passing away.
7:32a Paul wanted his readers to be free from concerns about this present life so devotion to the Lord would be consistent (v. 35; cf. Matt. 6:25-34; Phil. 4:11; 1 Pet. 5:7). He wanted us to live as eschatological people. Our new existence in Christ should determine our lives, not the world in its present form. Buying and marrying should not determine our existence. A clear view of the future should do that.
7:32b-34 Comparing two equally committed Christians, an unmarried man can give more concentrated attention to the things of the Lord. A married man also needs to think about his family responsibilities. This is true of women, and particularly virgins, as well as men.190Some interpreters put more emphasis on the negative anxiety feeling while others stress the positive legitimate care that each person needs to show. Both aspects of concern are probably in view. Even though the unmarried state is desirable, it is not intrinsically better.191
7:35 Paul did not want his readers to regard his preceding comments as an attempt to build too strong a case for celibacy, as ascetics do. He wanted to help his readers appreciate the realities of the single and married states so they could express unhindered devotion to the Lord. Christians have genuine freedom under the Lord to choose to be single or married. However, we need to view life in view of the "present distress"and the "shortened times"as we consider our options.
Single women have freedom to choose whether they want to get married as do single men. Nevertheless the realities of life in Christ that Paul outlined in this pericope need to inform that decision.
This section concludes Paul's entire teaching on marriage in this chapter. However it contains problems related to the meaning of "virgin"as is clear from the three different interpretations in the NASB, the NIV, and the NEB. I tend to think that these verses do not introduce a special case (advice to fathers of virgins192) but connect with verse 35. Probably the man in view is the fiancé of the virgin who is considering the possibility of marriage with her.193The pericope then summarizes what Paul has already taught.
7:36 Paul urged any man not to feel that he must remain single or that he and his virgin girlfriend must forgo sexual fulfillment after marriage (vv. 1-7). He might have been reluctant to marry because of what Paul had written about the single state being preferable (vv. 8, 28-34). He might also have hesitated because of ascetic influences in the church that were due to a false sense of "spirituality"and possibly an overreaction to the fornication in Corinth.
7:37 Likewise the man who preferred to take Paul's advice to remain single should feel at peace about his decision. External pressure from the ascetic Corinthians or from what Paul himself had just written need not constrain him. He should follow his own convictions about marrying or not marrying.
7:38 The decision in view is one involving the good and the better rather than the right and the wrong or not sinning and sinning. This is a good example of an amoral situation. Paul addressed other amoral situations later in this epistle (cf. 8:1-11:1).
"So at the end Paul has agreed, and disagreed, with the Corinthians in their letter. They prefer celibacy for spiritual' reasons; he prefers it for pastoral and eschatological ones. But quite in contrast to them, he also affirms marriage; indeed, he does so strongly: Such a man does well.' But there is one final word. These verses are addressed to the man; but in keeping with his response throughout, there is a final word for married women as well."194
7:39 The remaining two verses conclude both major sections of the discussion by repeating that women should not separate from their husbands (cf. vv. 1-24). This concluding reminder is especially important for virgins considering the possibility of marrying. Again Paul referred to marriage as a binding relationship (cf. vv. 15, 27). The wife is bound (Gr. deo) to her husband as long as he lives. Does this mean that even if he leaves her the marriage tie is unbroken? That is what many interpreters have concluded. If that is the case, remarriage after a divorce or separation would constitute adultery (cf. Matt. 19:9; Mark 10:11-12). In that case, one should avoid remarriage before the death of the spouse.
Another possibility is that Paul conceded, but did not restate, the fact that desertion by an unbelieving spouse freed the Christian and he or she was no longer under bondage to the mate (v. 15). This applied only to mixed marriages, however.
Paul regarded death as the only thing that always breaks the marriage bond. This may imply that present marital relationships will not continue in heaven just as they are now (cf. Luke 20:34-36). Jesus taught that fornication may break the marriage bond if the marriage partners do not reunite (Matt. 19:9). God may permit separation or divorce in certain circumstances (cf. Matt. 19:9; 1 Cor. 7:15), but remarriage usually results in adultery.
When a Christian woman's husband dies, she is at liberty to marry whomever she chooses provided he is a believer (cf. 2 Cor. 6:14). The same rule would apply to a Christian man whose wife dies.
"Long, long ago Plutarch, the wise old Greek, laid it down, that marriage cannot be happy unless husband and wife are of the same religion.'"195
7:40 Paul expressed his opinion, that a widow would probably be better off to remain unmarried, with a very light touch, one that he used throughout this chapter. This decision, as well as all decisions about whether to marry or not, pivots on a delicate balance. I suspect that Paul would have acknowledged that given certain conditions a widow might be better off to marry.
For example, faced with the prospect of choosing between a fine Christian husband and a life of destitute poverty it would probably be better for her to remarry. However if all other things are equal, the single state seemed preferable to the apostle. Notice that the issue is the widow's happiness, not her obedience.
Paul undoubtedly knew he represented the mind of the Spirit in what he said. He simply expressed himself as he did to avoid laying too much weight on his preference.
This chapter is one of the central passages on the subject of marriage (cf. Deut. 24; Matt. 5; 19; Mark 10).196It reveals that Paul was not a hard-nosed bigot and advocate of celibacy, as some have accused him of being. He was extremely careful to distinguish his personal preferences in amoral aspects of this subject from the Lord's will. Even when the will of God was unequivocal (e.g., v. 39) he did not "pound the pulpit"but simply explained God's will in irenic fashion. May all of us who preach and teach on this sensitive subject follow his example.
