Marriage

1 Corinthians 7

            In a world in which Christians have been vocal proponents of family values, life-long monogamy, and traditional marriages, 1 Corinthians 7:1 might come as a bit of a shock. What does Paul mean that it’s good for a man not to marry?

            A couple of notes are in order. First, we note that Paul is addressing a question that the Corinthians asked him, and we don’t know what that question was. The English Standard Version seems to think that Paul is responding to a statement by the Corinthians to the effect, “It’s good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman,” in which case Paul is preventing them from going too far. “No sexual immorality, sure; but marriage is fine.” All of this means that a little care is necessary before we assume we know everything that Paul is talking about.

            Second, in other places, notably Ephesians 5, he strongly affirms marriage. And the tone of the 1 Corinthians 7 demonstrates that Paul knows the value of marriage. So, he notes that marriage serves a prophylactic function, that is, it offers a God-pleasing place for sexual expression and thereby guards against sexual immorality. As a matter of fact, we should be a little careful with our translation of 7:1 in the first place.  A little more literally it says, “It is good for a man not to take hold of a woman.” Interestingly, the verb that is rightly translated ‘take hold of/touch’ here can in other forms mean ‘to be set fire.’ It seems to me that we might translate Paul’s line here, “It is good for a man not to be set afire by a woman.” (There are reasons that mine is a weak translation, too.) The point is that we ought not take this as Paul condemning marriage.

            Third, many scholars believe that Paul’s directions here are not meant as universal prohibitions, but prohibitions in view of a crisis that is currently engulfing Corinth, most probably a famine. This comes more clearly to the surface in verse 26.

            Without getting into the nitty-gritty of the whole chapter, I summarize Paul’s position on marriage this way. On the one hand, it’s good because God instituted it, because it protects one against sexual sin, and because it is an excellent arena in which to learn truly Christ-like love. (Those three elements are from 1 Corinthians and Ephesians.) On the other hand, marriage as an institution is bound to this creation and will cease in the new creation. (He has Jesus on his side on that one.) And Paul worries that it can bind us too much to the concerns of this present fallen world (vv. 29-31). As he writes to the Corinthians he thinks that at that moment it’s better if they remain as they (the middle of a crisis is a terrible time for major life decisions!) and in general he wishes everyone had the gift he has (apparently the gift of celibacy)—but he knows not everyone does.

            Much more could be said, but let this stand as summary: Paul values marriage, but he adds some nuances that are good for us to think about a little bit, too.