1 Corinthians 7:1–9

¹Now for the matters you wrote about: It is good to abstain from sexual relations.^{a 2}But because there is so much sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman her own husband.

³The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. ⁴The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife.

⁵Do not deprive each other, except by mutual consent and for a time, so you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again, so that Satan will not tempt you through your lack of self-control. ⁶I say this as a concession, not as a command. ⁷I wish that all men were as I am. But each man has his own gift from God; one has this gift, another has that.

⁸Now to the unmarried and widows I say this: It is good for them to remain unmarried, as I am. ⁹But if they cannot control themselves, let them marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion.