Quote:
Originally Posted by zeek
Take another look at 1st Corinthians 7:1 in its context. The sentence you quoted was not Paul's advice.
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It's not clear. Paul was responding to something written in a letter that the Corinthians sent to him. We have no record of that letter. Is Paul quoting that letter? What means not to touch a woman? Some translations translate it as, "It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman," with quote marks.
But without the letter sent to Paul we can't know for certain what was meant.
The NET Bible footnotes it :
1tn Grk It is good for a man not to touch a woman, a euphemism for sexual relations. This idiom occurs ten times in Greek literature, and all of the references except one appear to refer to sexual relations (cf., e.g., Josephus, Ant. 1.8.1 [1.163]; Gen 20:6 [LXX]; Prov 6:29 [LXX]). For discussion see G. D. Fee, First Corinthians (NICNT), 275. Many recent interpreters believe that here again (as in 6:12-13) Paul cites a slogan the Corinthians apparently used to justify their actions. If this is so, Paul agrees with the slogan in part, but corrects it in the following verses to show how the Corinthians misused the idea to justify abstinence within marriage (cf. 8:1, 4; 10:23). See also G. D. Fee, 1 Corinthians 7:1 in the NIV, JETS 23 (1980): 307-14.
But they don't have the letter either. So how much weight should we give the translators? All we've got is maybe educated opinions?