1 Corinthians 7
1 But of thilke thingis that ye han write to me, it is good to a man to touche not a womman.
I now deal with the subjects mentioned in your letter. It is well for a man to abstain altogether from marriage.
2 But for fornycacioun eche man haue his owne wijf, and ech womman haue hir owne hosebonde.
But because there is so much fornication every man should have a wife of his own, and every woman should have a husband.
3 The hosebonde yelde dette to the wijf, and also the wijf to the hosebonde.
Let a man pay his wife her due, and let a woman also pay her husband his.
4 The womman hath not power of hir bodi, but the hosebonde; and the hosebonde hath not power of his bodi, but the womman.
A married woman is not mistress of her own person: her husband has certain rights. In the same way a married man is not master of his own person: his wife has certain rights.
5 Nyle ye defraude eche to othere, but perauenture of consent to a tyme, that ye yyue tent to preier; and eft turne ye ayen to the same thing, lest Sathanas tempte you for youre vncontynence.
Do not refuse one another, unless perhaps it is just for a time and by mutual consent, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer and may then associate again; lest the Adversary begin to tempt you because of your deficiency in self-control.
6 But Y seie this thing as yyuyng leeue, not bi comaundement.
Thus much in the way of concession, not of command.
7 For Y wole, that alle men be as my silf. But eche man hath his propre yifte of God; oon thus, and another thus.
Yet I would that everybody lived as I do; but each of us has his own special gift from God--one in one direction and one in another.
8 But Y seie to hem, that ben not weddid, and to widewis, it is good to hem, if thei dwellen so as Y.
But I tell the unmarried, and women who are widows, that it is well for them to remain as I am.
9 That if thei conteynen not hem silf, be thei weddid; for it is betere to be weddid, than to be brent.
If, however, they cannot maintain self-control, by all means let them marry; for marriage is better than the fever of passion.
10 But to hem that ben ioyned in matrymonye, Y comaunde, not Y, but the Lord, that the wijf departe not fro the hosebonde;
But to those already married my instructions are--yet not mine, but the Lord's--that a wife is not to leave her husband;
11 and that if sche departith, that sche dwelle vnweddid, or be recounselid to hir hosebonde; and the hosebonde forsake not the wijf.
or if she has already left him, let her either remain as she is or be reconciled to him; and that a husband is not to send away his wife.
12 But to othere Y seie, not the Lord. If ony brother hath an vnfeithful wijf, and sche consenteth to dwelle with hym, leeue he hir not.
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.
13 And if ony womman hath an vnfeithful hosebonde, and this consentith to dwelle with hir, leeue sche not the hosebonde.
And a woman who has an unbelieving husband--if he consents to live with her, let her not separate from him.
14 For the vnfeithful hosebonde is halewid bi the feithful womman, and the vnfeithful womman is halewid bi the feithful hosebonde. Ellis youre children weren vncleene, but now thei ben hooli.
For, in such cases, the unbelieving husband has become--and is--holy through union with a Christian woman, and the unbelieving wife is holy through union with a Christian brother. Otherwise your children would be unholy, but in reality they have a place among God's people.
15 That if the vnfeithful departith, departe he. For whi the brother or sistir is not suget to seruage in siche; for God hath clepid vs in pees.
If, however, the unbeliever is determined to leave, let him or her do so. Under such circumstances the Christian man or woman is no slave; God has called us to live lives of peace.
16 And wherof wost thou, womman, if thou schalt make the man saaf; or wherof wost thou, man, if thou schalt make the womman saaf?
For what assurance have you, O woman, as to whether you will save your husband? Or what assurance have you, O man, as to whether you will save your wife?
17 But as the Lord hath departid to ech, and as God hath clepid ech man, so go he, as Y teche in alle chirchis.
Only, whatever be the condition in life which the Lord has assigned to each individual--and whatever the condition in which he was living when God called him--in that let him continue.
18 A man circumcidid is clepid, brynge he not to the prepucie. A man is clepid in prepucie, be he not circumcidid.
This is what I command in all the Churches. Was any one already circumcised when called? Let him not have recourse to the surgeons. Was any one uncircumcised when called? Let him remain uncircumcised.
19 Circumcisioun is nouyt, and prepucie is nouyt, but the kepyng of the maundementis of God.
Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing: obedience to God's commandments is everything.
20 Ech man in what clepyng he is clepid, in that dwelle he.
Whatever be the condition in life in which a man was, when he was called, in that let him continue.
21 Thou seruaunt art clepid, be it no charge to thee; but if thou maist be fre, `the rather vse thou.
Were you a slave when God called you? Let not that weigh on your mind. And yet if you can get your freedom, take advantage of the opportunity.
22 He that is a seruaunt, and is clepid in the Lord, is a freman of the Lord. Also he that is a freman, and is clepid, is the seruaunt of Crist.
For a Christian, if he was a slave when called, is the Lord's freed man, and in the same way a free man, if called, becomes the slave of Christ.
23 With prijs ye ben bouyt; nyle ye be maad seruauntis of men.
You have all been redeemed at infinite cost: do not become slaves to men.
24 Therfor ech man in what thing he is clepid a brothir, dwelle he in this anentis God.
Where each one stood when he was called, there, brethren, let him still stand--close to God.
25 But of virgyns Y haue no comaundement of God; but Y yyue counseil, as he that hath mercy of the Lord, that Y be trewe.
Concerning unmarried women I have no command to give you from the Lord; but I offer you my opinion, which is that of a man who, through the Lord's mercy, is deserving of your confidence.
26 Therfor Y gesse, that this thing is good for the present nede; for it is good to a man to be so.
I think then that, taking into consideration the distress which is now upon us, it is well for a man to remain as he is.
27 Thou art boundun to a wijf, nyle thou seke vnbyndyng; thou art vnboundun fro a wijf, nyle thou seke a wijf.
Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to get free. Are you free from the marriage bond? Do not seek for a wife.
28 But if thou hast takun a wijf, thou hast not synned; and if a maidun is weddid, sche synnede not; nethelesse siche schulen haue tribulacioun of fleisch.
Yet if you marry, you have not sinned; and if a maiden marries, she has not sinned. Such people, however, will have outward trouble. But I am for sparing you.
29 But Y spare you. Therfor, britheren, Y seie this thing, The tyme is schort. Another is this, that thei that han wyues, be as thouy thei hadden noon;
Yet of this I warn you, brethren: the time has been shortened--so that henceforth those who have wives should be as though they had none,
30 and thei that wepen, as thei wepten not; and thei that ioien, as thei ioieden not; and thei that bien, as thei hadden not;
those who weep as though they did not weep, those who rejoice as though they did not rejoice, those who buy as though they did not possess,
31 and thei that vsen this world, as thei that vsen not. For whi the figure of this world passith.
and those who use the world as not using it to the full. For the world as it now exists is passing away.
32 But Y wole, that ye be without bisynesse, for he that is without wijf, is bisi what thingis ben of the Lord, hou he schal plese God.
And I would have you free from worldly anxiety. An unmarried man concerns himself with the Lord's business--how he shall please the Lord;
33 But he that is with a wijf, is bysy what thingis ben of the world, hou he schal plese the wijf, and he is departid.
but a married man concerns himself with the business of the world--how he shall please his wife.
34 And a womman vnweddid and maidun thenkith what thingis ben of the Lord, that sche be hooli in bodi and spirit. But sche that is weddid, thenkith what thingis ben of the world, hou sche schal plese the hosebonde.
There is a difference too between a married and an unmarried woman. She who is unmarried concerns herself with the Lord's business--that she may be holy both in body and spirit; but the married woman concerns herself with the business of the world--how she shall please her husband.
35 And Y seie these thingis to youre profit, not that Y caste to you a snare, but to that that is onest, and that yyueth esynesse, with outen lettyng to make preieris to the Lord.
Thus much I say in your own interest; not to lay a trap for you, but to help towards what is becoming, and enable you to wait on the Lord without distraction.
36 And if ony man gessith hym silf to be seyn foule on his virgyn, that sche is ful woxun, and so it bihoueth to be doon, do sche that that sche wole; sche synneth not, if sche be weddid.
If, however, a father thinks he is acting unbecomingly towards his still unmarried daughter if she be past the bloom of her youth, and so the matter is urgent, let him do what she desires; he commits no sin; she and her suitor should be allowed to marry.
37 For he that ordeynede stabli in his herte, not hauynge nede, but hauynge power of his wille, and hath demed in his herte this thing, to kepe his virgyn, doith wel.
But if a father stands firm in his resolve, being free from all external constraint and having a legal right to act as he pleases, and in his own mind has come to the decision to keep his daughter unmarried, he will do well.
38 Therfore he that ioyneth his virgyn in matrymonye, doith wel; and he that ioyneth not, doith betere.
So that he who gives his daughter in marriage does well, and yet he who does not give her in marriage will do better.
39 The womman is boundun to the lawe, as longe tyme as hir hosebonde lyueth; and if hir hosebonde is deed, sche is delyuered fro the lawe of the hosebonde, be sche weddid to whom sche wole, oneli in the Lord.
A woman is bound to her husband during the whole period that he lives; but if her husband dies, she is at liberty to marry whom she will, provided that he is a Christian.
40 But sche schal be more blessid, if sche dwellith thus, aftir my counsel; and Y wene, that Y haue the Spirit of God.
But in my judgement, her state is a more enviable one if she remains as she is; and I also think that I have the Spirit of God.
