The function of this verse is to state more concisely and more generally the principle that Paul expressed in verse 17. In that verse Paul’s thought was only beginning to move away from the question of marriage and divorce.

In Greek the text of this verse is literally “each in the calling (in) which he was called, in this let him remain.” This kind of style is too heavy to translate word for word in most languages, so Revised Standard Version and Good News Bible restructure the verse. The Greek for “in the calling” here means, not the event in which God called the believer, but the condition or state in which the believer was living at the time when he or she was called. Verses 19 and 21 illustrate what is meant by the word state.

He was called: see the comment on verse 18 of this chapter.

Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians, 2nd edition. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1985/1994. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .