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The Blue Letter Bible

1 Corinthians 7 :: New Living Translation (NLT)

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Instruction on Marriage

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:1

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:1 - Now regarding the questions you asked in your letter. Yes, it is good to abstain from sexual relations.[fn]

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:2

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:2 - But because there is so much sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman should have her own husband.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:3

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:3 - The husband should fulfill his wife’s sexual needs, and the wife should fulfill her husband’s needs.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:4

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:4 - The wife gives authority over her body to her husband, and the husband gives authority over his body to his wife.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:5

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:5 - Do not deprive each other of sexual relations, unless you both agree to refrain from sexual intimacy for a limited time so you can give yourselves more completely to prayer. Afterward, you should come together again so that Satan won’t be able to tempt you because of your lack of self-control.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:6

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:6 - I say this as a concession, not as a command.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:7

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:7 - But I wish everyone were single, just as I am. Yet each person has a special gift from God, of one kind or another.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:8

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:8 - So I say to those who aren’t married and to widows—it’s better to stay unmarried, just as I am.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:9

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:9 - But if they can’t control themselves, they should go ahead and marry. It’s better to marry than to burn with lust.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:10

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:10 - But for those who are married, I have a command that comes not from me, but from the Lord.[fn] A wife must not leave her husband.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:11

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:11 - But if she does leave him, let her remain single or else be reconciled to him. And the husband must not leave his wife.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:12

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:12 - Now, I will speak to the rest of you, though I do not have a direct command from the Lord. If a Christian man[fn] has a wife who is not a believer and she is willing to continue living with him, he must not leave her.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:13

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:13 - And if a Christian woman has a husband who is not a believer and he is willing to continue living with her, she must not leave him.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:14

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:14 - For the Christian wife brings holiness to her marriage, and the Christian husband[fn] brings holiness to his marriage. Otherwise, your children would not be holy, but now they are holy.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:15

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:15 - (But if the husband or wife who isn’t a believer insists on leaving, let them go. In such cases the Christian husband or wife[fn] is no longer bound to the other, for God has called you[fn] to live in peace.)

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:16

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:16 - Don’t you wives realize that your husbands might be saved because of you? And don’t you husbands realize that your wives might be saved because of you?

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:17

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:17 - Each of you should continue to live in whatever situation the Lord has placed you, and remain as you were when God first called you. This is my rule for all the churches.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:18

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:18 - For instance, a man who was circumcised before he became a believer should not try to reverse it. And the man who was uncircumcised when he became a believer should not be circumcised now.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:19

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:19 - For it makes no difference whether or not a man has been circumcised. The important thing is to keep God’s commandments.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:20

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:20 - Yes, each of you should remain as you were when God called you.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:21

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:21 - Are you a slave? Don’t let that worry you—but if you get a chance to be free, take it.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:22

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:22 - And remember, if you were a slave when the Lord called you, you are now free in the Lord. And if you were free when the Lord called you, you are now a slave of Christ.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:23

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:23 - God paid a high price for you, so don’t be enslaved by the world.[fn]

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:24

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:24 - Each of you, dear brothers and sisters,[fn] should remain as you were when God first called you.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:25

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:25 - Now regarding your question about the young women who are not yet married. I do not have a command from the Lord for them. But the Lord in his mercy has given me wisdom that can be trusted, and I will share it with you.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:26

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:26 - Because of the present crisis,[fn] I think it is best to remain as you are.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:27

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:27 - If you have a wife, do not seek to end the marriage. If you do not have a wife, do not seek to get married.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:28

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:28 - But if you do get married, it is not a sin. And if a young woman gets married, it is not a sin. However, those who get married at this time will have troubles, and I am trying to spare you those problems.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:29

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:29 - But let me say this, dear brothers and sisters: The time that remains is very short. So from now on, those with wives should not focus only on their marriage.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:30

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:30 - Those who weep or who rejoice or who buy things should not be absorbed by their weeping or their joy or their possessions.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:31

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:31 - Those who use the things of the world should not become attached to them. For this world as we know it will soon pass away.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:32

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:32 - I want you to be free from the concerns of this life. An unmarried man can spend his time doing the Lord’s work and thinking how to please him.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:33

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:33 - But a married man has to think about his earthly responsibilities and how to please his wife.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:34

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:34 - His interests are divided. In the same way, a woman who is no longer married or has never been married can be devoted to the Lord and holy in body and in spirit. But a married woman has to think about her earthly responsibilities and how to please her husband.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:35

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:35 - I am saying this for your benefit, not to place restrictions on you. I want you to do whatever will help you serve the Lord best, with as few distractions as possible.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:36

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:36 - But if a man thinks that he’s treating his fiancée improperly and will inevitably give in to his passion, let him marry her as he wishes. It is not a sin.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:37

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:37 - But if he has decided firmly not to marry and there is no urgency and he can control his passion, he does well not to marry.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:38

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:38 - So the person who marries his fiancée does well, and the person who doesn’t marry does even better.

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:39

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:39 - A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. If her husband dies, she is free to marry anyone she wishes, but only if he loves the Lord.[fn]

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Unchecked Copy Box 1Co 7:40

Unchecked Copy Box1Co 7:40 - But in my opinion it would be better for her to stay single, and I think I am giving you counsel from God’s Spirit when I say this.
See the NLT Preface (Especially for Parenthesis, Brackets, & Asterisks).
NLT Footnotes
Or to live a celibate life; Greek reads It is good for a man not to touch a woman.
See Matt 5:32; 19:9; Mark 10:11-12; Luke 16:18.
Greek a brother.
Greek the brother.
Greek the brother or sister.
Some manuscripts read us.
Greek don’t become slaves of people.
Greek brothers; also in 7:29.
Or the pressures of life.
Greek but only in the Lord.
NLT

Holy Bible, New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Full copyright information is provided here. Visit the New Living Translation website.

For more information on this translation, see the NLT Preface.

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1 Corinthians Chapter 7 — Additional Translations:

King James Version New King James Version New International Version English Standard Version Christian Standard Bible New American Standard Bible 2020 New American Standard Bible 1995 Legacy Standard Bible Amplified Bible New English Translation Revised Standard Version American Standard Version Young's Literal Translation Darby Translation Webster's Bible Hebrew Names Version Latin Vulgate Morphological Greek New Testament Textus Receptus Smith Van Dyck Arabic Bible Open New Arabic Version Reina Valera 1909 Reina-Valera 1960 Bible in Basic English Chinese Traditional Union Espanol Moderno Korean Holy Bible Louis Segond German Luther Russian Synodal Translation Sagradas Escrituras