Is It Better to Remain Single? | Danielle Treweek on 1 Corinthians 7

Does Paul prefer Christians remain single, despite the rest of the Bible’s positive portrayal of marriage? In this episode of What in the Word?, Kirk E. Miller sits down with Dr. Danielle Treweek to walk through numerous difficulties in 1 Corinthians 7. For instance, does Paul teach that some receive a special Spirit-empowerment to remain single? What is the “present distress”? And what does it mean for married couples to live as though they are not? Treweek seeks to identify our common assumptions about the text to uncover Paul’s vision for whole-hearted, Christian devotion, whether single or married.

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Episode guest: Danielle Treweek

After graduating from Moore Theological College and serving in women’s ministry at a church in Sydney, Danielle Treweek completed a PhD focusing on a theology of singleness. Dani is the founding director of Cross Related, works part-time as the Sydney Anglican Diocesan Research Officer, and spends the rest of her time writing, reading, speaking, and training on singleness, sexuality, church community, and more. Her book, The Meaning of Singleness (InterVarsity Academic, 2023) was the 2024 Australian Christian Book of the Year and her new book, Single Ever After (Good Book, 2025) was released in September 2025. She loves the musical Les Misérables, a good cup of chai, and making her nephew and niece laugh.

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Episode synopsis

The context of 1 Corinthians 7

First Corinthians 7 is part of Paul’s extended discussion about how the gospel reshapes embodied relationships, especially sexual ethics (see 1 Cor 5–6, just prior). So Paul concludes chapter 6, “You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body” (1 Cor 6:19–20).

Although we often think of 1 Corinthians 7 as “the singleness passage,” Dr. Danielle (Dani) Treweek points out that this passage has as much to do with marriage. In fact, the word “single” doesn’t actually exist in the passage in the original Greek. Modern translations, like the ESV (see also NRSVue, NIV, NLT, etc.), add the word “single” in 1 Corinthians 7:8 following the Greek verb for “remain.” The categories Paul operates with here are simply either married and unmarried (including its further subcategories like betrothed and widows). This matters because Paul is not introducing “singleness” as a lifestyle but simply as a present marital state (i.e., unmarried). In fact, our word “singleness” is only about five hundred years old.

The difficulties of 1 Corinthians 7

This passage contains numerous complexities.

First, the passage contains a litany of exegetical difficulties. Not only must we consider how Paul gives his instructions (e.g., “as a concession, not a command” [1 Cor 7:6]; “I, not the Lord” [1 Cor 7:12; cf. 7:10]; “I have no command from the Lord, but I give my judgment” [1 Cor 7:25; see also 7:40]) but also what he instructs, which is often quite debated and difficult to discern here.

Second, we face difficulties bridging the gap between our contexts and first-century Corinth’s. Ancient Corinth operated under rather different assumptions about marriage, sexuality, and household structure than we do today. For example, in the twenty-first century West, marriages are based on personal agency and desire. In ancient Corinth, marriages were primarily determined based on the interests of the household.

Third, Dani suggests that our theological baggage often greatly affects how we read this passage. Much of our confusion comes not from the text itself, but from theological assumptions we bring to it. Our pre-existing theology of marriage tends to determine at the outset what we believe the passage can and cannot be saying, making it difficult for us to hear the text on its own terms.

Does Paul prefer singleness (1 Cor 7:6–7)?

In 1 Corinthians 7:6–7, Paul says—not as a command but as a concession—that he wished all were like himself, i.e., single/unmarried. Paul gives his judgment that widows will be “happier” if they stay unmarried (1 Cor 7:40). So does Paul prefer singleness over marriage?

Dani clarifies: Paul is not ranking singleness as morally superior to marriage. Paul holds both states as genuinely good. Yet he recognizes something uniquely fitting about singleness for the specific moment we occupy in redemptive history, between Christ’s first and second comings. Paul’s preference is not because singleness is holier but because it is especially suited for the “already/not yet” in which we live.

Is there a gift of singleness (1 Cor 7:6–7)?

As Paul goes on to explain, “But each has his own gift from God, one of one kind and one of another” (1 Cor 7:7).

Some take Paul to refer here to a spiritual gift of singleness: a special, supernatural empowerment given to select Christians which enables them to exercise the necessary self-control (see 1 Cor 7:9) and so remain celibate. The word for “gift” (χάρισμα) here is one Paul later uses to refer to spiritual gifts in 1 Corinthians 12.

However, as Dani points out, nowhere does such a “gift of singleness” appear in Scripture. Rather, she maintains that the gift in view is simply one’s situation, either currently being married or presently finding oneself unmarried. Both states, in their own way, are gifts from God. The “gift” that is singleness, then, is not an irrevocable, forever-assignment to remain such, but a present condition that may change.

The practical stakes here are notable. If singleness requires a special supernatural empowerment, then unmarried Christians who haven’t received that gift—but who also haven’t found a marriage partner—are left, as Dani puts it, in “no man’s land.” They’re told they shouldn’t be single without the gift, yet God hasn’t supplied it, raising troubling questions about whether God is withholding from them what they need to live faithfully. To the contrary, the indwelling Holy Spirit who is at work transforming all believers into Christ’s likeness is sufficient for living faithfully, whether married or single. There’s no need for some additional booster shot reserved for the spiritually elite.

Burning and a lack of self-control (1 Cor 7:8–9)

Most modern versions translate πυρόω in 1 Corinthians 7:9 as “burn with passion.” πυρόω can mean to “burn with sexual desire”¹ However, it often simply means “to burn,” that is, “to cause to be on fire.”² If 1 Corinthians 7:9 carries the latter meaning, Paul is presumably warning about the fires of eschatological judgment. However, in either interpretation, the outcome is the same, since the burning of lust leads to the burning of judgment.

Of more consequence, though, is how one interprets Paul’s remark, “If they cannot exercise self-control, they should marry” (1 Cor 7:9). Some take this to refer to a forward-looking self-assessment: If you anticipate you won’t be able to exercise the self-control to remain abstinent, get married instead.

However, the Greek participle for “exercise self-control” is present. Thus, according to Dani, this phrase should be translated, “If they are not [presently] exercising self-control.” On this reading, Paul is not asking the unmarried Corinthians to forecast their future willpower. Rather, he’s addressing people who are currently engaged in sexual immorality. (Consider the Corinthian context where freeborn men would typically have sex with prostitutes and household slaves.) Paul’s point is not, Discern whether you’re cut out for lifelong singleness, but, Stop pretending sexual immorality is compatible with godly singleness. If you can’t control yourself, marriage is better than burning.

What is the “present distress” (1 Cor 7:26)?

In 1 Corinthians 7:26, Paul clarifies that his counsel is owing to the “present distress.” If Paul is referring to some specific crisis in first-century Corinth, might his instructions regarding singleness be limited to those specific set of circumstances? For instance, some modern scholars have alleged a famine in the region or an illness connected to misuse of the Lord’s Supper (1 Cor 11:30). However, such interpretations are quite novel. Early Christian writers and the Reformers read this “distress” as referring to the end-time tribulations of this age.

Yet regardless of the identity of this “distress,” Paul explains his meaning in 1 Corinthians 7:29: “This is what I mean …” Whatever the local circumstances, Paul frames the distress eschatologically, as characteristic of this age between Christ’s resurrection and return: “The appointed time has grown very short.”

This eschatological framework serves as the interpretive key for Paul’s puzzling instructions that follow (1 Cor 7:29–35).

How are the married to live as if unmarried (1 Cor 7:29–31)?

Paul’s exhortation that those with wives should “live as though they had none” could seem contradictory. Yet Paul can’t be telling married people to pretend they’re unmarried or to abandon their spouses, since he’s already forbidden that earlier (1 Cor 7:12–13). But what, then, does it mean to live as if unmarried?

Dani highlights Paul’s parallel examples: mourn as though not mourning, rejoice as though not rejoicing, buy as though possessing nothing. None of these means ceasing the activity altogether. Rather, they mean, Engage these things in a way suitable to our eschatological moment. “The appointed time has grown very short” (1 Cor 7:29); “the present form of this world is passing away” (1 Cor 7:31).

Paul goes on to explain what this looks like in 1 Corinthians 7:32–35.

Are the married to be less devoted (1 Cor 7:32–35)?

In 1 Corinthians 7:32–35, Paul contrasts the “undivided” devotion of the unmarried with the divided attention of the married, who are said to be anxious about “how to please” their spouse.

A common reading treats this as Paul granting married people a kind of exemption: They simply can’t be as devoted to the Lord because marriage legitimately divides their attention. Dani critiques this interpretation, noting that it contradicts the rest of the New Testament which teaches that Christians—married or not—are to be wholly devoted to Christ. Besides, is not fulfilling one’s marital responsibilities part of obedience (devotion) to Christ for those who are married?

Instead, Dani argues, Paul calls married believers to live out their marriages the way unmarried believers live: undivided in devotion to the Lord, not consumed by worldly concern. So when Paul speaks of “pleasing” one’s spouse, he does not mean something positive, like loving or serving them. Rather, it is contrasted with living to “please the Lord” (e.g., Paul likewise contrasts pleasing the Lord and pleasing others in 1 Thess 2:4; 4:1).

Practical and pastoral implications

Dani counsels preachers and teachers to exercise self-awareness, humbly considering their biases and blindspots, as they prepare to teach on singleness and 1 Corinthians 7. She recommends talking with mature, trusted single and married Christians to learn what questions they have about the text and how certain applications might land on them to help inform one’s perspective and approach to teaching. First Corinthians 7 poses not just exegetical and theological concerns, but deeply pastoral ones as well.

Marriage and singleness function like a pair of portraits, each highlighting the beauty and dignity of the other. For instance, to understand the meaning of marriage, we have to understand something of the meaning of not being married. Thus, to diminish one doesn’t protect the other; to elevate one over the other in reality devalues both.

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Logos values thoughtful and engaging discussions on important biblical topics. However, the views and interpretations presented in this episode are those of the individuals speaking and do not necessarily reflect the official position of Logos. We recognize that Christians may hold different perspectives on this passage, and we welcome diverse engagement and respectful dialogue.

Let us know what you think

Does Paul prefer Christians remain single, despite the rest of the Bible’s positive portrayal of marriage? Join us in the Word by Word group to share your thoughts.

Books by Danielle Treweek

• Treweek, Danielle. Single Ever After: A Biblical Vision for the Significance of Singleness. Good Book Company 2025.

Additional resources on 1 Corinthians 7 and singleness

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1. William Arndt et al., A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (Chicago, 2000), 899.
2. Arndt et al., Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament, 899.