Albert Barnes Commentary 1 Corinthians 7:40

"But she is happier if she abide as she is, after my judgment: and I think that I also have the Spirit of God." — 1 Corinthians 7:40 (ASV)

If she so abide. If she remains a widow, even if she could be married to a Christian.

After my judgment. In my opinion (1 Corinthians 7:25).

And I think also that I have the Spirit of God. Macknight and others suppose that this phrase implies complete certainty, and that Paul means to affirm that in this he was clear he was under the influence of inspiration. He appeals for the use of the term (dokw) to Mark 10:42; Luke 8:18; 1 Corinthians 4:9; 8:2; 11:16; Hebrews 4:1, and other passages. However, the word does not usually express absolute certainty. It implies a doubt, even though there may be a strong persuasion or conviction, or the best judgment the mind can form in the case. See Matthew 6:7; 26:53; Mark 6:49; Luke 8:18; 10:36; 12:51; 13:2, 4; 22:24; Acts 17:18; 25:27; 1 Corinthians 12:22, and other passages. It implies here a belief that Paul was under the influence of the infallible Spirit, and that his advice was such as accorded with the will of God. Perhaps he alludes to the fact that the teachers at Corinth considered themselves to be under the influence of inspiration, and Paul said that he also judged himself to be divinely guided and directed in what he said. —Calvin.

And as Paul in this could not be mistaken—since his impression that he was under the influence of that Spirit was, in fact, a claim to Divine inspiration—so this advice should be regarded as of Divine authority and as binding on all. This interpretation is further demanded by the circumstances of the case. It was necessary that he should assert Divine authority to counteract the teaching of the false instructors in Corinth, and that he should interpose that authority in prescribing rules for the government of the church there, in view of the peculiar temptations to which they were exposed.

REMARKS On 1 Corinthians CHAPTER 7

We learn from this chapter:

1. The sacredness of the marriage union, and the nature of the feelings with which it should be entered (1 Corinthians 7:1–13). On a most delicate subject, Paul has shown a seriousness and delicacy of expression that can be found in no other writings, and which demonstrate how pure his own mind was and how much it was filled with the fear of God. In all things, his aim is to promote purity and to keep from the Christian church the innumerable evils that everywhere abounded in the pagan world. The marriage connection should be formed in the fear of God. In all that union, the parties should seek the salvation of the soul, and so live as not to dishonor the religion they profess.

2. The duty of laboring earnestly for the conversion of the party in the marriage connection who may be a stranger to piety (1 Corinthians 7:16). This object should lie very near the heart, and it should be sought by all possible means. By a pure and holy life, by exemplifying the nature of the gospel, by tenderness of conversation and of entreaty, and by fidelity in all the duties of life, we should seek the conversion and salvation of our partners in the marriage connection. Even if both are Christians, this great object should be one of constant solicitude—to advance the piety and promote the usefulness of the partner in life.

3. The duty of contentment in the sphere of life in which we are placed (1 Corinthians 7:18 and following). It is no disgrace to be poor, for Jesus chose to be poor. It is no disgrace, though it is a calamity, to be a slave. It is no disgrace to be in a humble rank of life. It is disgraceful only to be a sinner and to murmur and complain at our allotment. God orders the circumstances of our life, and they are well-ordered when under the direction of His hand. The great object should be to do right in the relation we sustain in life. If poor, to be industrious, submissive, resigned, virtuous; if rich, to be grateful, benevolent, kind. If a slave or a servant, to be faithful, kind, and obedient; using liberty if it can be lawfully obtained; resigned, calm, and gentle if by the providence of God such must continue to be the lot in life.

4. The duty of preserving the order and regularity of society (1 Corinthians 7:20–23). The design of the gospel is not to produce insubordination or irregularity. It would not break up society; it does not dissolve the bonds of social life, but it cements and sanctifies the ties that connect us with those around us. It is designed to promote human happiness, and that is promoted not by resolving society into its original elements, not by severing the marriage tie (as atheists would do), not by teaching children to disregard and despise their parents or the common courtesies of life, but by teaching them to maintain all these relations inviolate. Religion promotes the interests of society; it does not, like infidelity, dissolve them. It advances the cause of social virtue; it does not, like atheism, retard and annihilate it. Every Christian becomes a better parent, a more affectionate child, a kinder friend, a more tender husband or wife, and a better member of the community.

5. Change in a man's calling should not be made from a slight cause. A Christian should not make it unless his former calling was wrong, or unless he can by it extend his own usefulness. But when that can be done, he should do it, and do it without delay.

   If the course is wrong, it should be immediately abandoned. No consideration can make it right to continue it for a day or an hour; no matter what the sacrifice of property may be, it should be done. If a man is engaged in the slave trade, or in smuggling goods, or in piracy, or in highway robbery, or in the manufacture and sale of poison, it should be at once and forever abandoned.

   And in like manner, if a young man who is converted can increase his usefulness by changing his plan of life, it should be done as soon as practicable. If by becoming a minister of the gospel he can be a more useful man, every consideration demands that he should leave any other profession, however lucrative or pleasant, and submit to the self-denials, the cares, the trials, and the toils that attend a life devoted to Christ in the ministry, in Christian or pagan lands. Though it should be attended with poverty, want, tears, toil, or shame, yet the single question is, "Can I be more useful to my Master there than in my present vocation?" If he can be, that is an indication of the will of God which he cannot disregard with impunity.

6. We should live above this world (1 Corinthians 7:29–30). We should partake of all our pleasures and endure all our sufferings with the deep feeling that we have here no continuing city and no abiding place. Soon all our earthly pleasures will fade away; soon all our earthly sorrows will be ended. A conviction of the shortness of life will tend greatly to regulate our desires for earthly comforts, will keep us from being improperly attached to them, and will diminish our sorrows by the prospect that they will soon end.

7. We should not be immoderately affected with grief (1 Corinthians 7:30). It will all soon end, in regard to Christians. Whether our tears arise from the consciousness of our sins or the sins of others; whether from persecution or contempt of the world; or whether from the loss of health, property, or friends, we should bear it all patiently, for it will soon end. A few days, and all will be over, and the last tear shall fall on our cheeks, and the last sigh be heaved from our bosom.

8. We should not be immoderate in our joy (1 Corinthians 7:30). Our highest earthly joys will soon cease. Mirth, and the sound of the harp and the viol, the loud laugh and the song, will soon end. What a change this thought should make in a world of gaiety, mirth, and song! It should not make people gloomy and morose, but it should make them serious, calm, and thoughtful. Oh, if all felt that death was near, that the solemn realities of eternity were approaching, what a change it would make in a gay and thoughtless world! How would it close the theater and the ballroom, how would it silence the jest, the jeer, and the loud laugh, and how would it diffuse seriousness and calmness over a now gay and thoughtless world! Laughter is mad, says Solomon; and in a world of sin, sorrow, and death, assuredly seriousness and calm contemplation are demanded by every consideration.

9. What an effect the thought that time is short, and that the fashion of this world passes away, would have on the lovers of wealth! It would:

   1. Teach them that property is of little value.

   2. Teach them that the possession of it can constitute no distinction beyond the grave; the rich man is just as soon reduced to dust and is just as offensive in his splendid mausoleum as the poor beggar.

   3. Lead a man feeling this (or who should feel this) to make a good use of his property on earth. (See Barnes on Luke 16:1 and Luke 16:2-9).

   4. Lead him to seek a better inheritance—an interest in the treasures that no moth corrupts and that never fade away. (See Barnes on Matthew 6:20).

   This single thought—that the fashion of this world is soon to pass away, an idea that no man can doubt or deny if allowed to take firm hold of the mind—would change the entire aspect of the world.

10. We should endeavor so to live in all things that our minds should not be oppressed with undue anxiety and care (1 Corinthians 7:32). In all our arrangements and plans, and in all the relations of life, our grand object should be to have the mind free for the duties and privileges of religion. We should seek not to be encumbered with care, not to be borne down with anxiety, and not to be unduly attached to the things of this life.

11. We should enter into the relations of life so as not to interfere with our personal piety or usefulness, but so as to promote both (1 Corinthians 7:32–35). All our arrangements should be so formed that we may discharge our religious duties and promote our usefulness to our fellow human beings.

    But alas! How many enter into the marriage relation with unchristian companions, whose active zeal is forever quenched by such a connection! How many form commercial connections or partnerships in business with those who are not Christians, where the result is to diminish their zeal for God and to render their whole lives useless to the church!

    And how much do the cares of life, in all its relations, interfere with simple-hearted piety and with the faithful discharge of the duties we owe to God and to a dying world! May God of His mercy enable us so to live in all the relations of life that our usefulness shall not be retarded but augmented, and so to live that we can see, without one sigh of regret, the fashion of this world pass away; our property or our friends removed; or even the magnificence of the entire world, with all its palaces, temples, and cloud-capped towers, passing away amidst the fires that shall attend the consummation of all things!