Inspired or Not? What Does Paul Mean by What He Says in 1 Corinthians 7:6, 7:12, and 7:25?

Now as a concession, not a command, I say this. (1 Corinthians 7:6)

To the rest I say (I, not the Lord) that if any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he should not divorce her. (1 Corinthians 7:12)

Now concerning the betrothed, I have no command from the Lord, but I give my judgment as one who by the Lord’s mercy is trustworthy. (1 Corinthians 7:25)

Is Paul admitting here in 1 Corinthians that he sometimes inserted his personal opinion on matters into his letters? Or somehow that God had nothing to say on these subjects regarding marital situations? And how does this inspire confidence (pun intended) on the subject of divine inspiration? Some critics have alleged here that Paul is admitting that there are “non-inspired” sections of Scripture.

Paul’s Concessions

In these three passages, Paul is admitting that he had not received a specific command from the Lord, either directly or in dreams or visions on the then-current matters which were occurring in the Corinthian church. Yet he does offer his own apostolic thoughts on the matter. First Corinthians was probably written about AD 53–54 at Ephesus and deals with problems that arose in the early years after Paul’s initial missionary visit (c. AD 50–51) to Corinth and his establishment there of a church. We need to keep in mind that all of Scripture was not yet written (of the NT, only a few books had been written by this time, and it’s unclear how far they had circulated).

Paul was addressing three questions (among many others) that had very little biblical precedent, namely, how to deal with spouses who were denying each other conjugal rights and how a new convert to Christ was to deal with their unbelieving spouse in the marriage relationship. Both cases involved dynamics that would not have been common in Israel, so there was no applicable OT teaching that Paul could cite. The third question he addressed was what a potential husband should do regarding his betrothed—should he marry or not? Remember that most marriages at the time were arranged by family and that the potential groom did not know much, if anything, about his fiancée before betrothal. If the man decided he wanted to remain single and serve the Lord, could he cancel the betrothal? Paul then offers his carefully considered thoughts on these matters.

His advice then was that husbands and wives were not to deprive each other of marital rights over a long period, as this could lead to temptation (and infidelity). The believing spouse was not to leave (divorce) the unbelieving one, but if the unbeliever left, then the believer was not bound or under bondage (and would be free to remarry if they wished, cf. verse 39).1 And a man could choose not to marry or he could marry his betrothed (if a believer), and both positions were acceptable.

Are These Three Specific Cases Just the Opinions of One Man?

But we now have the complete canon of Scripture, its formation overseen and guided by the Holy Spirit. And if Paul’s thoughts on these subjects were not supposed to be included in Scripture, they never would have been. Paul did not just arbitrarily make these statements; he mentions in several verses that “God has called you to peace” (1 Corinthians 7:15); “but I give my judgment as one who by the Lord’s mercy is trustworthy” (1 Corinthians 7:25); “[a]nd I think that I too have the Spirit of God” (1 Corinthians 7:40). In other words, Paul is being supernaturally guided by the Holy Spirit as he is writing a letter that would be recognized as Scripture.

Paul is not just giving off-the-cuff responses with no thoughts, godly principles, meditations, or prayers on these things.

Paul is not just giving off-the-cuff responses with no thoughts, godly principles, meditations, or prayers on these things. In fact, Paul starts off his first epistle to Corinth by stating that he thanks God for them always (1 Corinthians 1:4), that he imparts wisdom from God to them (2:6–7), that it was the Holy Spirit who gave this wisdom to them (2:12–13), that he only thinks of their benefit (7:35), and that they were beloved by Paul (15:58, 16:24). Paul had the entire OT at his disposal and was quite learned in it. He would naturally have thought back to the creation account in Genesis 2 of Adam and Eve and God’s institution of marriage, and recalled that even the last book of the OT also had some things to say about marriage and divorce (Malachi 2:14–16).

The Apostles Were Given Unique Abilities for an Unparalleled Time of Transition

Prior to the entire canon of Scripture being completed, the Apostles and NT prophets had a ministry which was unique for their time. They received direct revelation from the Holy Spirit, and in Paul’s case, even direct revelation from Christ (Galatians 1:11–12). The gospel now went forth to both Jew and Gentile, which was something that had not been disclosed before (Ephesians 3:3–9). And it was Christ who had appointed certain men to be apostles, prophets, and evangelists and to use their gifts for the purpose of edifying the body of Christ (Ephesians 2:20, 4:11–12). Peter wrote that the apostles’ words were on par with the OT prophets (2 Peter 3:2), and Jude told his readers to remember the prophetic words of the apostles (Jude 1:17).

It is clear from these passages that the apostles had a unique ministry and role in the formation of the church, as the foundation of that part of the body of Christ.

It is clear from these passages that the apostles had a unique ministry and role in the formation of the church, as the foundation of that part of the body of Christ. Jesus himself had told his disciples that they would do greater works than even he did because of the power of his resurrection and of the Holy Spirit (John 14:12). And just as Jude reminded his readers to consider the prophetic words of the apostles, Peter likewise reminded his readers that this true prophecy did not come about through human initiative, but was given and guided by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:20–21). Paul’s counsel to the church in Corinth (in 1 Corinthians 7) was not mere opinion but carefully weighed and considered advice guided by the Holy Spirit. The Spirit validated this advice by ensuring it was kept as inspired Scripture once the canon was complete. And lastly, what does Peter later say about Paul’s epistles (including 1 Corinthians)? He says Paul’s epistles are God-inspired Scripture (2 Peter 3:15–16). That should remove all doubt as to whether Paul’s counsel given in 1 Corinthians 7 was merely his own opinion.