1 Corinthians 7:10
“But to the married I command—not I, but the Lord—that the wife not leave her husband”
What does 1 Corinthians 7:10 mean?
Paul addresses married couples here with something he considers a direct command from Jesus himself, not just his own opinion. He's telling wives not to abandon their marriages, which was countercultural in a culture where men held most of the power to initiate divorce. The phrase "not I, but the Lord" shows Paul is grounding this in Jesus's teachings about the permanence of marriage, which he knew about from the early church's memory of what Jesus said. What matters to hold onto is the principle underneath: marriage is meant to be a binding, intentional commitment, not something to walk away from lightly. If you're reading this while struggling in a marriage, know that Paul continues in this same passage to address situations of abandonment and abuse, showing that Jesus's vision for marriage includes protection and dignity for those being harmed.