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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.comVincent Word Studies - 1 Corinthians 7:21 - 7:21
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Use it rather
Whether the apostle means, use the bondage or use the freedom - whether, take advantage of the offer of freedom, or, remain in slavery - is, as Dean Stanley remarks, one of the most evenly balanced questions in the interpretation of the New Testament. The force of καὶ even, and the positive injunction of the apostle in 1Co 7:20 and 1Co 7:24, seem to favor the meaning, remain in slavery. The injunction is to be read in the light of 1Co 7:22, and of Gal 3:28; Col 3:11; 1Co 12:13, that freeman and slave are one in Christ; and also of the feeling pervading the Church of the speedy termination of the present economy by the second coming of the Lord. See 1Co 7:26, 1Co 7:29. We must be careful to avoid basing our conclusion on the modern sentiment respecting freedom and slavery.