1 Corinthians 7:1-10

Principles for Marriage

1 Now concerning the matters about which you wrote: 1"It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman."
2 But because of the temptation to sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband.
3 2The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband.
4 For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does.
5 3Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, 4so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.
6 Now as a concession, 5not a command, I say this.[a]
7 6I wish that all were 7as I myself am. But 8each has his own gift from God, 9one of one kind and one of another.
8 To the unmarried and the widows I say that 10it is good for them to remain single 11as I am.
9 But if they cannot exercise self-control, 12they should marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion.
10 To the married 13I give this charge (not I, but the Lord): 14the wife should not separate from her husband

Cross References 14

  • 1. ver. 8, 26
  • 2. Exodus 21:10
  • 3. [Exodus 19:15; 1 Samuel 21:4; Ecclesiastes 3:5; Zechariah 12:12-14]
  • 4. 1 Thessalonians 3:5
  • 5. ver. 12, 25; 2 Corinthians 8:8; [ver. 10, 40]
  • 6. [Acts 26:29]
  • 7. ver. 8; [1 Corinthians 9:5]
  • 8. 1 Corinthians 12:4, 11; 1 Peter 4:10; [Romans 12:6]
  • 9. Matthew 19:11, 12
  • 10. ver. 1, 26
  • 11. ver. 7
  • 12. [1 Timothy 5:14]
  • 13. See ver. 6
  • 14. Malachi 2:16; See Matthew 5:32

Footnotes 1

The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.