1 Corinthians 7:12
New International Version
To the rest I say this (I, not the Lord): If any brother has a wife who is not a believer and she is willing to live with him, he must not divorce her.

New Living Translation
Now, I will speak to the rest of you, though I do not have a direct command from the Lord. If a fellow believer has a wife who is not a believer and she is willing to continue living with him, he must not leave her.

English Standard Version
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.

Berean Standard Bible
To the rest I say this (I, not the Lord): If a brother has an unbelieving wife and she is willing to live with him, he must not divorce her.

Berean Literal Bible
Now to the rest I say (I, not the Lord): If any brother has an unbelieving wife and she consents to dwell with him, let him not divorce her.

King James Bible
But to the rest speak I, not the Lord: If any brother hath a wife that believeth not, and she be pleased to dwell with him, let him not put her away.

New King James Version
But to the rest I, not the Lord, say: If any brother has a wife who does not believe, and she is willing to live with him, let him not divorce her.

New American Standard Bible
But to the rest I say, not the Lord, that if any brother has an unbelieving wife, and she consents to live with him, he must not divorce her.

NASB 1995
But to the rest I say, not the Lord, that if any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he must not divorce her.

NASB 1977
But to the rest I say, not the Lord, that if any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, let him not send her away.

Legacy Standard Bible
But to the rest I say, not the Lord, that if any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he must not divorce her.

Amplified Bible
To the rest I declare—I, not the Lord [since Jesus did not discuss this]—that if any [believing] brother has a wife who does not believe [in Christ], and she consents to live with him, he must not leave her.

Christian Standard Bible
But I (not the Lord) say to the rest: If any brother has an unbelieving wife and she is willing to live with him, he must not divorce her.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
But I (not the Lord) say to the rest: If any brother has an unbelieving wife and she is willing to live with him, he must not leave her.

American Standard Version
But to the rest say I, not the Lord: If any brother hath an unbelieving wife, and she is content to dwell with him, let him not leave her.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
But to others I am saying, not my Lord, if there is a brother who has a wife who is an unbeliever and she is willing to stay with him, let him not leave her.

Contemporary English Version
I don't know of anything else the Lord said about marriage. All I can do is to give you my own advice. If your wife isn't a follower of the Lord, but is willing to stay with you, don't divorce her.

Douay-Rheims Bible
For to the rest I speak, not the Lord. If any brother hath a wife that believeth not, and she consent to dwell with him, let him not put her away.

English Revised Version
But to the rest say I, not the Lord: If any brother hath an unbelieving wife, and she is content to dwell with him, let him not leave her.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
I (not the Lord) say to the rest of you: If any Christian man is married to a woman who is an unbeliever, and she is willing to live with him, he should not divorce her.

Good News Translation
To the others I say (I, myself, not the Lord): if a Christian man has a wife who is an unbeliever and she agrees to go on living with him, he must not divorce her.

International Standard Version
I (not the Lord) say to the rest of you: If a brother has a wife who is an unbeliever and she is willing to live with him, he must not abandon her.

Literal Standard Version
And to the rest I speak—not the LORD—if any brother has an unbelieving wife, and she is pleased to dwell with him, do not let him send her away;

Majority Standard Bible
To the rest I say this (I, not the Lord): If a brother has an unbelieving wife and she is willing to live with him, he must not divorce her.

New American Bible
To the rest I say (not the Lord): if any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she is willing to go on living with him, he should not divorce her;

NET Bible
To the rest I say--I, not the Lord--if a brother has a wife who is not a believer and she is happy to live with him, he should not divorce her.

New Revised Standard Version
To the rest I say—I and not the Lord—that if any believer has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he should not divorce her.

New Heart English Bible
But to the rest I--not the Lord--say, if any brother has an unbelieving wife, and she is content to live with him, let him not leave her.

Webster's Bible Translation
But to the rest I speak, not the Lord, if any brother hath a wife that believeth not, and she is pleased to dwell with him, let him not put her away.

Weymouth New Testament
To the rest it is I who speak--not the Lord. If a brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, let him not send her away.

World English Bible
But to the rest I—not the Lord—say, if any brother has an unbelieving wife, and she is content to live with him, let him not leave her.

Young's Literal Translation
And to the rest I speak -- not the Lord -- if any brother hath a wife unbelieving, and she is pleased to dwell with him, let him not send her away;

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Principles of Marriage
11But if she does, she must remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband. And a husband must not divorce his wife. 12 To the rest I say this (I, not the Lord): If a brother has an unbelieving wife and she is willing to live with him, he must not divorce her. 13And if a woman has an unbelieving husband and he is willing to live with her, she must not divorce him.…

Cross References
1 Corinthians 7:6
I say this as a concession, not as a command.

1 Corinthians 7:11
But if she does, she must remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband. And a husband must not divorce his wife.

1 Corinthians 7:13
And if a woman has an unbelieving husband and he is willing to live with her, she must not divorce him.

2 Corinthians 11:17
In this confident boasting of mine, I am not speaking as the Lord would, but as a fool.


Treasury of Scripture

But to the rest speak I, not the Lord: If any brother has a wife that believes not, and she be pleased to dwell with him, let him not put her away.

speak.

1 Corinthians 7:6,25
But I speak this by permission, and not of commandment…

2 Corinthians 11:17
That which I speak, I speak it not after the Lord, but as it were foolishly, in this confidence of boasting.

If.

Ezra 10:2,3,11-19
And Shechaniah the son of Jehiel, one of the sons of Elam, answered and said unto Ezra, We have trespassed against our God, and have taken strange wives of the people of the land: yet now there is hope in Israel concerning this thing…

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Believer Believeth Christian Consents Content Desire Divorce Dwell Live Pleased Rest Speak Unbeliever Unbelieving Wife Willing
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Believer Believeth Christian Consents Content Desire Divorce Dwell Live Pleased Rest Speak Unbeliever Unbelieving Wife Willing
1 Corinthians 7
1. He discusses marriage;
4. showing it to be a remedy against sinful desires,
10. and that the bond thereof ought not lightly to be dissolved.
20. Every man must be content with his vocation.
25. Virginity wherefore to be embraced;
35. and for what respects we may either marry, or abstain from marrying.














(12) But to the rest.--Up to this point the writer has alluded only to Christians; he has spoken of the duties of unmarried persons, of widows, and of those already married. There still remains one class of marriages concerning which differences of opinion existed--viz., mixed marriages. In a church like Corinth there would have been, no doubt, many cases where one of the partners was a heathen and the other a Christian, arising from the subsequent conversion of only one of the married couple. This subject is treated of in 1Corinthians 7:12-16. The words are emphatically, "If any man have already a wife," &c. The case of a Christian marrying a heathen is not alluded to. In 2Corinthians 6:14, the marriage of a Christian to a heathen is forbidden.

Speak I, not the Lord.--The Apostle has no word of Christ's to quote on this point, it being one which did not arise during our Lord's life. (See Note on 1Corinthians 7:10.)

It is to be noticed that the Apostle, in giving his own apostolic instruction on this point, does not use the word "command," which he applied to our Lord's teaching, but the less authoritative "speak."

A wife that believeth not.--That is, a heathen. In some modern religious circles this whole passage has been used (as also 2Corinthians 6:14) as if by "unbeliever" St. Paul meant a careless Christian, or one who, in modern phraseology, was not "converted." The Apostle is referring under this designation to heathens, and the only case to which his teaching could now or ever apply would be when two heathens had been married, and subsequently only one had embraced the Christian faith. It is to be noticed that both here and in 1Corinthians 7:13 the being "pleased to dwell" is put only in reference to the partner who is a heathen, for the Apostle takes for granted that after the instructions he here gives to the Christian partner, no such desire for separation will arise on the part of a Christian. . . .

Verses 12-16. - Directions about mixed marriages. Verse 12. - To the rest. That is, to those who are married, but are heathen. They were the remaining class about whose duties the Corinthians had made inquiry. Not the Lord. The Lord had made no express reference to such cases, since it had been no part of his mission to lay down minute details which would be duly settled from age to age by the wisdom taught by the Holy Ghost. She be pleased to dwell with him. It is assumed that, if she did not please, the poor Christian convert would have no protection of his fights; pagan courts would regard conversion as a sufficient reason for breaking off marriages.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Greek
To the
Τοῖς (Tois)
Article - Dative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

rest
λοιποῖς (loipois)
Adjective - Dative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3062: Left, left behind, the remainder, the rest, the others. Masculine plural of a derivative of leipo; remaining ones.

I
ἐγώ (egō)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Nominative 1st Person Singular
Strong's 1473: I, the first-person pronoun. A primary pronoun of the first person I.

say this
λέγω (legō)
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 1st Person Singular
Strong's 3004: (a) I say, speak; I mean, mention, tell, (b) I call, name, especially in the pass., (c) I tell, command.

([I,] not
οὐχ (ouch)
Adverb
Strong's 3756: No, not. Also ouk, and ouch a primary word; the absolute negative adverb; no or not.

the
(ho)
Article - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

Lord):
Κύριος (Kyrios)
Noun - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2962: Lord, master, sir; the Lord. From kuros; supreme in authority, i.e. controller; by implication, Master.

If
εἴ (ei)
Conjunction
Strong's 1487: If. A primary particle of conditionality; if, whether, that, etc.

a
τις (tis)
Interrogative / Indefinite Pronoun - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 5100: Any one, some one, a certain one or thing. An enclitic indefinite pronoun; some or any person or object.

brother
ἀδελφὸς (adelphos)
Noun - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 80: A brother, member of the same religious community, especially a fellow-Christian. A brother near or remote.

has
ἔχει (echei)
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 2192: To have, hold, possess. Including an alternate form scheo skheh'-o; a primary verb; to hold.

an unbelieving
ἄπιστον (apiston)
Adjective - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 571: (passively) untrustworthy (person), or incredible (thing).

wife
γυναῖκα (gynaika)
Noun - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 1135: A woman, wife, my lady. Probably from the base of ginomai; a woman; specially, a wife.

and
καὶ (kai)
Conjunction
Strong's 2532: And, even, also, namely.

she
αὕτη (hautē)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Nominative Feminine Singular
Strong's 3778: This; he, she, it.

is willing
συνευδοκεῖ (syneudokei)
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 4909: From sun and eudokeo; to think well of in common, i.e. Assent to, feel gratified with.

to live
οἰκεῖν (oikein)
Verb - Present Infinitive Active
Strong's 3611: To inhabit, dwell, indwell. From oikos; to occupy a house, i.e. Reside; by implication, to cohabit.

with
μετ’ (met’)
Preposition
Strong's 3326: (a) gen: with, in company with, (b) acc: (1) behind, beyond, after, of place, (2) after, of time, with nouns, neut. of adjectives.

him,
αὐτοῦ (autou)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Genitive Masculine 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 846: He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.

he must not divorce
ἀφιέτω (aphietō)
Verb - Present Imperative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 863: From apo and hiemi; to send forth, in various applications.

her.
αὐτήν (autēn)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Accusative Feminine 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 846: He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.


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NT Letters: 1 Corinthians 7:12 But to the rest I--not the Lord--say (1 Cor. 1C iC 1Cor i cor icor)
1 Corinthians 7:11
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