Celibacy is good, not because sex is defiling, but instead, because it In his answer, Paul seeks toĬhange their reasons for celibacy. Somehow defiling, particularly if a believer was married to an unbeliever. Some were calling for celibacy because theīody was inferior to the spirit, and something as physical as sex was therefore seen as unclean and Some in the church reacted against the prevailing immorality in Corinth by teaching asceticism. Chapters five and six addressed the problems of license, particularly hedonism, now we go to the opposite extreme. Addressing each of the different situations in relationships, his refrain is, “remain as you are”, and do not seek to change.īefore looking at Paul’s answers, it is helpful to consider the viewpoint of the Corinthians, particularly their dualistic world-view. He uses two unrelated examples of circumcision and slavery, calling people to remain in the condition in which you were called (7:20, 24). Because the two questions cover a broadly similar area of life, chapter seven is often considered as a single unit.īetween his answers to the two questions he sets down his basic principles (7:17-24), summarising his message through the whole chapter, “Let each of you lead the life that the Lord has assigned, to which God has called you” (7:17). Both of these are introduced with the phrase “now concerning”. The second concerns single people (virgins), and whether it is right for them to get married in the current stressful situation (7:25-40). The first is concerning marriage, including sexual relations within marriage, as well as questions about divorce and remarriage (7:1-24). 9:3).Ĭhapter seven contains Paul’s answers to two separate questions. This can be seen in the strongly combative responses that he gives at some points, especially in chapters eight to ten, where he defends his ministry as an apostle against their accusations (eg. These questions were not mere inquiries, but were probably coming with an attitude of them wanting to justify their behaviour before Paul, and argue against the points he made in his previous letter (5:9), challenging his authority. Other questions are answered in turn, each being introduced with the phrase, “now concerning”. The change is marked with the phrase, “Now concerning the matters about which you wrote” (7:1). This letter had probably been carried to Paul by Stephanus, Fortunatus and Achaicus (16:17). V: Headcoverings and Lord's Supper (11:2-34)įrom this point in the book, Paul begins to answer questions that were raised in the letter the Corinthians had written to Paul.
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