1 Corinthians 7:25-28

Scripture: 1 Cor. 7:25 Now concerning the betrothed, I have no command from the Lord, but I give my judgment as one who by the Lord's mercy is trustworthy.

1 Cor. 7:26  I think that in view of the present distress it is good for a person to remain as he is.

1 Cor. 7:27 Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be free. Are you free from a wife? Do not seek a wife.

1 Cor. 7:28 But if you do marry, you have not sinned, and if a betrothed woman marries, she has not sinned. Yet those who marry will have worldly troubles, and I would spare you that.

Teaching: Paul continues his instruction on marriage in these verses, giving practical advice to both men and women who are at that present moment betrothed, or as we would say today, engaged. Paul qualifies his advice as not directly that of Christ, and it is somewhat squishy, not a hard and fast rule but more like guidelines for wise living. But because it is part of Scripture, we should heed it as wise and true counsel; remember, this letter to the Corinthians is very pastoral in nature.

Verse 26 is peculiar because Paul is referencing something going on in his day, i.e. “in view of the present distress.” This likely is referring to the growing persecution of Christians, as attitudes were changing amongst Jews and the pagan Roman leadership towards Christians. No longer were they seen as a new offshoot of Judaism, but instead, Christianity was its own distinct religion. Couple that with the fact that Christians refused to bow down to other pagan gods, and vocally called all other gods merely demons, it is easy to see conflict and persecution were the natural result.

While not all Christians faced such persecution as the apostles, many experienced some level of hardship or at least lived under the reality that hardship could come at any moment. Thus, Paul’s advice to the engaged continues his thought from verse 24 – that one should not extricate themselves from marriage because of Christian beliefs – but also counsels that if one is single, or a betrothment is broken, one should not automatically seek another wife or husband. As he says in verse 28, “those who marry will have worldly troubles,” meaning that hardship and persecution will be even more stressful, heartbreaking, and agonizing when one must worry about the safety and security of their loved ones. Paul’s sober mindset was that it was a grace from God to face such persecution without the agony of seeing one’s wife/husband and children do the same.

Takeaway: It is interesting that Paul phrased these verses as he did, seemingly not knowing in that moment that persecution would be a near constant state of being for Christians. As we’ll see in the next verses, Paul firmly believed that the time was short and Christians should commit to spreading the Gospel, living for Christ, and seeing life in eternity with Christ as their gain, rather than seeking worldly things. What Paul may or may not have known is how applicable these words would be even today. There is real persecution of Christians in Asia, Africa, and elsewhere today, where one’s ability to work, support a family, even one’s very life, is in jeopardy because of one’s belief in Christ as Lord and Savior. As Westerners, we may look at these verses, and the verses after, and see something outdated or inapplicable to us. But in that, give thanks for the grace and freedom granted to us in this time. There are no guarantees by worldly powers to allow Christians to live and believe as they do with impunity. Our only guarantees, the ones Paul, those facing persecution today, and we should trust in are those from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.