This paper is a synopsis of the author’s recently released monograph, Paul and Secular Singleness in 1 Corinthians 7 (Cambridge University Press, SNTS 184, April 2024).
The present paper examines the social context that Paul was addressing in Corinth on the question of marriage and singleness in 1 Corinthians 7 and argues that contrary to the prevailing assumption of most commentators, Paul was not engaging an ascetically motivated form of singleness in Corinth, but a singleness motivated by conventional social and societal factors. The paper argues that the chapter’s opening statement in 1 Corinthians 7:1b, ‘It is good for a man not to touch a woman,’ reflects the perspective of Paul rather than the Corinthians, and explains the logic behind why Paul would use the surprising phrasing within the larger context of 1 Corinthians.
To frame the investigation of what motivated the Corinthian’s question on marriage, we employ a cross-cultural demographic study that seeks to explain why individuals choose to marry or refrain from marriage. The study examines populations based on three primary variables corresponding to the availability of mates, the desirability of marriage, and the feasibility of marriage. All of these were arguably valid factors in the situation Paul addresses in Corinth. Evidence from material sources such as the Egyptian census returns suggests that men likely would have out-numbered women in cities like Corinth resulting in a relative shortage of available female marriage partners. The desirability for marriage was shaped largely by the prevailing viewpoints of the various philosophical schools with the Epicurean perspective standing most notably in opposition to marriage. If the Corinthians were influenced by Epicurean perspectives, for which there is some textual evidence, they would have likely been predisposed against marriage. Feasibility would have been largely governed by the cost of available food sources. If the ἐνεστῶσαν ἀνάγκην of 1 Cor 7:26 refers to a food shortage, the Corinthians would have had economic reasons to refrain from marriage.
After building the case for what motivated singleness amongst the Corinthians, we proceed to explain the logic of Paul’s statement in 1 Corinthians 7:1b. Here we examine the pattern and disposition of Paul’s use of Corinthian slogans in the letter and through a close examination of the quotations in 1 Corinthians 7, we argue that Paul is adapting language of the Corinthians to bridge the classical Greco-Roman marriage question with his own concern for sexual propriety within marriage. The paper concludes by observing that the Corinthian culture of non-marriage amidst a hyper-sexualized culture has marked parallels with today’s modern culture that provides greater appreciation for Paul’s response and gives us fresh insight into its corresponding application for our modern world.