A Reading of 1 Corinthians 7: 1-16: Implications for the Unmarried and Married in Ghana

Abstract

This paper studies Paul’s view on marriage as the way forward for dealing with sexual immorality in 1 Corinthians 7:1-16. In Ghana, it is generally observed that sexual immorality at times leads to separation in marriage or divorce. Some schools of thought posit that any polygynous man who converts to the Christian faith, should maintain his first wife and separate or divorce the other wives as keeping them would constitute sexual immorality. The paper employed a literary reading of the text and it proposed that marriage is not an order from God to curb sexual immorality rather Paul proposed it to the Corinthians who could not avoid sexual immorality. Again, the text shows sexual intercourse as a specific marital role for each spouse without an excuse. Implications are drawn from the reading for Ghanaians. The paper concludes that marriage is not a panacea for sexual immorality.

Keywords

• sexual immorality
• marriage
• separation and divorce