1 Corinthians 7:14
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.
13 And if a woman has an unbelieving husband and he is willing to live with her, she must not divorce him.
For the unbelieving husband is sanctified through his believing wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified through her believing husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but now they are holy.
15 But if the unbeliever leaves, let him go. The believing brother or sister is not bound in such cases. God has called you to live in peace.
16 How do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband? Or how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife?
Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.
Compare
- BSB
- For the unbelieving husband is sanctified through his believing wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified through her believing husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but now they are holy.
- KJV
- For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband: else were your children unclean; but now are they holy.
- WEB
- For the unbelieving husband is sanctified in the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified in the husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but now they are holy.
- ASV
- For the unbelieving husband is sanctified in the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified in the brother: else were your children unclean; but now are they holy.
- DARBY
- For the unbelieving husband is sanctified in the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified in the brother; since [otherwise] indeed your children are unclean, but now they are holy.
- BLB
- For the unbelieving husband is sanctified in the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified in the brother. Otherwise, then your⁺ children are unclean; but now they are holy.
- ÅB
- For den vantro mann er helliget ved sin hustru, og den vantro hustru er helliget ved broren; ellers var jo deres barn urene, men nå er de hellige.
- OTB
- For den ikke-troende mannen er helliget gjennom sin kone, og den ikke-troende kvinnen er helliget gjennom den troende mannen; ellers ville deres barn være urene, men nå er de hellige.
- B1930
- For den vantro mann er helliget ved sin hustru, og den vantro hustru er helliget ved broren; ellers var jo eders barn urene, men nu er de hellige.
Study notes (Tyndale)
Original text and word study
Cross references
Malachi 2:15–16
Has not the LORD made them one, having a portion of the Spirit? And why one? Because He seeks godly offspring. So guard yourselves in your spirit and do not break faith with the wife of your youth.
Read in context1 Timothy 4:5
because it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.
Read in contextIsaiah 52:1
Awake, awake, clothe yourself with strength, O Zion! Put on your garments of splendor, O Jerusalem, holy city! For the uncircumcised and unclean will no longer enter you.
Read in contextTitus 1:15
To the pure, all things are pure; but to the defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure. Indeed, both their minds and their consciences are defiled.
Read in contextRomans 11:16
If the first part of the dough is holy, so is the whole batch; if the root is holy, so are the branches.
Read in context1 Corinthians 6:15–17
Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never!
Read in contextEzra 9:1–2
After these things had been accomplished, the leaders approached me and said, “The people of Israel, including the priests and Levites, have not kept themselves separate from the surrounding peoples whose abominations are like those of the Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Jebusites, Ammonites, Moabites, Egyptians, and Amorites.
Read in context