4 - The Context of 1 Corinthians 7

Summary

Having considered vital aspects of the shape of secular singleness in the Roman world, we turn attention now to examine Paul’s interaction in 1 Corinthians 7 on topics related to marriage and singleness. As we have observed, a major challenge of the chapter is evident in the opening clause: Περὶ δὲ ὧν ἐγράψατε (‘Now concerning the matters about which you wrote’), which indicates that what follows is Paul’s response to a question raised by his addressees. Any interpretation of the chapter requires some reconstruction of what the Corinthians had asked or written and the motivations they had for doing so. The resulting interpretation must also cohere with both the literary context of the remaining Corinthian correspondence and the historical-cultural context of the first-century Corinthian world.