ב BETH

Principles of Marriage

7 Now concerning the things of which you wrote to me:

^(A)It is good for a man not to touch a woman. ² Nevertheless, because of sexual immorality, let each man have his own wife, and let each woman have her own husband. ^3 (B)Let the husband render to his wife the affection due her, and likewise also the wife to her husband. ⁴ The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. And likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. ^5 (C)Do not deprive one another except with consent for a time, that you may give yourselves to fasting and prayer; and come together again so that ^(D)Satan does not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. ⁶ But I say this as a concession, ^(E)not as a commandment. ⁷ For ^(F)I wish that all men were even as I myself. But each one has his own gift from God, one in this manner and another in that.

⁸ But I say to the unmarried and to the widows: ^(G)It is good for them if they remain even as I am; ⁹ but ^(H)if they cannot exercise self-control, let them marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion.

Keep Your Marriage Vows

¹⁰ Now to the married I command, yet not I but the ^(I)Lord: ^(J)A wife is not to depart from her husband. ¹¹ But even if she does depart, let her remain unmarried or be reconciled to her husband. And a husband is not to divorce his wife.

¹² But to the rest I, not the Lord, say: If any brother has a wife who does not believe, and she is willing to live with him, let him not divorce her. ¹³ And a woman who has a husband who does not believe, if he is willing to live with her, let her not divorce him. ¹⁴ For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband; otherwise ^(K)your children would be unclean, but now they are holy. ¹⁵ But if the unbeliever departs, let him depart; a brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases. But God has called us ^(L)to peace. ¹⁶ For how do you know, O wife, whether you will ^(M)save your husband? Or how do you know, O husband, whether you will save your wife?

Live as You Are Called

¹⁷ But as God has distributed to each one, as the Lord has called each one, so let him walk. And ^(N)so I ^[a]ordain in all the churches. ¹⁸ Was anyone called while circumcised? Let him not become uncircumcised. Was anyone called while uncircumcised? ^(O)Let him not be circumcised. ^19 (P)Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing, but ^(Q)keeping the commandments of God is what matters. ²⁰ Let each one remain in the same calling in which he was called. ²¹ Were you called while a slave? Do not be concerned about it; but if you can be made free, rather use it. ²² For he who is called in the Lord while a slave is ^(R)the Lord’s freedman. Likewise he who is called while free is ^(S)Christ’s slave. ^23 (T)You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men. ²⁴ Brethren, let each one remain with ^(U)God in that state in which he was called.

To the Unmarried and Widows

²⁵ Now concerning virgins: ^(V)I have no commandment from the Lord; yet I give judgment as one ^(W)whom the Lord in His mercy has made ^(X)trustworthy. ²⁶ I suppose therefore that this is good because of the present distress—^(Y)that it is good for a man to remain as he is: ²⁷ Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be loosed. Are you loosed from a wife? Do not seek a wife. ²⁸ But even if you do marry, you have not sinned; and if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. Nevertheless such will have trouble in the flesh, but I would spare you.

²⁹ But ^(Z)this I say, brethren, the time is short, so that from now on even those who have wives should be as though they had none, ³⁰ those who weep as though they did not weep, those who rejoice as though they did not rejoice, those who buy as though they did not possess, ³¹ and those who use this world as not ^(AA)misusing it. For ^(AB)the form of this world is passing away.

³² But I want you to be without ^[b]care. ^(AC)He who is unmarried ^[c]cares for the things of the Lord—how he may please the Lord. ³³ But he who is married cares about the things of the world—how he may please his wife. ³⁴ There is a difference between a wife and a virgin. The unmarried woman ^(AD)cares about the things of the Lord, that she may be holy both in body and in spirit. But she who is married cares about the things of the world—how she may please her husband. ³⁵ And this I say for your own profit, not that I may put a leash on you, but for what is proper, and that you may serve the Lord without distraction.

³⁶ But if any man thinks he is behaving improperly toward his ^[d]virgin, if she is past the flower of youth, and thus it must be, let him do what he wishes. He does not sin; let them marry. ³⁷ Nevertheless he who stands steadfast in his heart, having no necessity, but has power over his own will, and has so determined in his heart that he will keep his ^[e]virgin, does well. ^38 (AE)So then he who gives ^[f]her in marriage does well, but he who does not give her in marriage does better.

^39 (AF)A wife is bound by law as long as her husband lives; but if her husband dies, she is at liberty to be married to whom she wishes, ^(AG)only in the Lord. ⁴⁰ But she is happier if she remains as she is, ^(AH)according to my judgment—and ^(AI)I think I also have the Spirit of God.

Be Sensitive to Conscience

8 Now ^(AJ)concerning things offered to idols: We know that we all have ^(AK)knowledge. ^(AL)Knowledge ^[g]puffs up, but love ^[h]edifies. ² And ^(AM)if anyone thinks that he knows anything, he knows nothing yet as he ought to know. ³ But if anyone loves God, this one is known by Him.

⁴ Therefore concerning the eating of things offered to idols, we know that ^(AN)an idol is nothing in the world, ^(AO)and that there is no other God but one. ⁵ For even if there are ^(AP)so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as there are many gods and many lords), ⁶ yet ^(AQ)for us there is one God, the Father, ^(AR)of whom are all things, and we for Him; and ^(AS)one Lord Jesus Christ, ^(AT)through whom are all things, and ^(AU)through whom we live.

⁷ However, there is not in everyone that knowledge; for some, ^(AV)with consciousness of the idol, until now eat it as a thing offered to an idol; and their conscience, being weak, is ^(AW)defiled. ⁸ But ^(AX)food does not commend us to God; for neither if we eat are we the better, nor if we do not eat are we the worse.

⁹ But ^(AY)beware lest somehow this liberty of yours become ^(AZ)a ^[i]stumbling block to those who are weak. ¹⁰ For if anyone sees you who have knowledge eating in an idol’s temple, will not ^(BA)the conscience of him who is weak be emboldened to eat those things offered to idols? ¹¹ And ^(BB)because of your knowledge shall the weak brother perish, for whom Christ died? ¹² But ^(BC)when you thus sin against the brethren, and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ. ¹³ Therefore, ^(BD)if food makes my brother stumble, I will never again eat meat, lest I make my brother stumble.

A Pattern of Self-Denial

9 Am ^(BE)I not an apostle? Am I not free? ^(BF)Have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? ^(BG)Are you not my work in the Lord? ² If I am not an apostle to others, yet doubtless I am to you. For you are ^(BH)the ^[j]seal of my apostleship in the Lord.

³ My defense to those who examine me is this: ^4 (BI)Do we have no ^[k]right to eat and drink? ⁵ Do we have no right to take along ^[l]a believing wife, as do also the other apostles, ^(BJ)the brothers of the Lord, and ^(BK)Cephas? ⁶ Or is it only Barnabas and I ^(BL)who have no right to refrain from working? ⁷ Who ever ^(BM)goes to war at his own expense? Who ^(BN)plants a vineyard and does not eat of its fruit? Or who ^(BO)tends a flock and does not drink of the milk of the flock?

⁸ Do I say these things as a mere man? Or does not the law say the same also? ⁹ For it is written in the law of Moses, ^(BP)“You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain.” Is it oxen God is concerned about? ¹⁰ Or does He say it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written, that ^(BQ)he who plows should plow in hope, and he who threshes in hope should be partaker of his hope. ^11 (BR)If we have sown spiritual things for you, is it a great thing if we reap your material things? ¹² If others are partakers of this right over you, are we not even more?

^(BS)Nevertheless we have not used this right, but endure all things ^(BT)lest we hinder the gospel of Christ. ^13 (BU)Do you not know that those who minister the holy things eat of the things of the ^(BV)temple, and those who serve at the altar partake of the offerings of the altar? ¹⁴ Even so ^(BW)the Lord has commanded ^(BX)that those who preach the gospel should live from the gospel.

¹⁵ But ^(BY)I have used none of these things, nor have I written these things that it should be done so to me; for ^(BZ)it would be better for me to die than that anyone should make my boasting void. ¹⁶ For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for ^(CA)necessity is laid upon me; yes, woe is me if I do not preach the gospel! ¹⁷ For if I do this willingly, ^(CB)I have a reward; but if against my will, ^(CC)I have been entrusted with a stewardship. ¹⁸ What is my reward then? That ^(CD)when I preach the gospel, I may present the gospel ^[m]of Christ without charge, that I ^(CE)may not abuse my authority in the gospel.

Serving All Men

¹⁹ For though I am ^(CF)free from all men, ^(CG)I have made myself a servant to all, ^(CH)that I might win the more; ²⁰ and ^(CI)to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might win Jews; to those who are under the law, as under the ^[n]law, that I might win those who are under the law; ^21 (CJ)to ^(CK)those who are without law, as without law ^(CL)(not being without ^[o]law toward God, but under ^[p]law toward Christ), that I might win those who are without law; ^22 (CM)to the weak I became ^[q]as weak, that I might win the weak. ^(CN)I have become all things to all men, ^(CO)that I might by all means save some. ²³ Now this I do for the gospel’s sake, that I may be partaker of it with you.

Striving for a Crown

²⁴ Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? ^(CP)Run in such a way that you may ^[r]obtain it. ²⁵ And everyone who competes for the prize ^[s]is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for ^(CQ)an imperishable crown. ²⁶ Therefore I run thus: ^(CR)not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. ^27 (CS)But I discipline my body and ^(CT)bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become ^(CU)disqualified.