HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 1404
1 C O RIN T H I A N S 7
prostitute? Never! 16 And don’t you realize that if
a man joins himself to a prostitute, he becomes
one body with her? For the Scriptures say, “The
two are united into one.”* 17 But the person who
is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him.
18 Run from sexual sin! No other sin so clearly
affects the body as this one does. For sexual immorality is a sin against your own body. 19 Don’t
you realize that your body is the temple of the
Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to
you by God? You do not belong to yourself, 20 for
God bought you with a high price. So you must
honor God with your body.
Instruction on Marriage
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.
7
• Marriage
1 CO R INT H IA NS 7 :3 -5
Part of the marriage relationship is the
mutual claim husbands and wives have to
each other’s bodies. Neither husband nor
wife should make a practice of denying
the other sexual intimacy. Deep, abiding
love makes us willing to relinquish personal rights and preferences for the sake
of the other person. However, remember
also that your claim to your spouse’s
body must be kept within the boundaries
of a loving concern for him or her; sexual
demands or activities should never violate that loving concern.
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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.
20 Yes, 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
6:16 Gen 2:24. 7:1 Or to live a celibate life; Greek reads It is
good for a man not to touch a woman. 7:10 See Matt 5:32;
19:9; Mark 10:11-12; Luke 16:18. 7:12 Greek a brother.
7:14 Greek the brother. 7:15a Greek the brother or sister.
7:15b Some manuscripts read us. 7:23 Greek don’t become
slaves of people. 7:24 Greek brothers; also in 7:29. 7:26 Or
the pressures of life.