The word concerning may be rendered in many languages as “to answer the question about” or “I want to answer the question about.”

Here and in 8.1, the words “what you wrote” (Good News Bible) are implied in the Greek text. We can justify this addition by the clause “the matters that you wrote about” that appears in 7.1.

The word for unmarried in the Greek often refers to a “virgin.” However, here it may possibly mean a woman who has never been married. But it may also refer to women who have been but are no longer married—that is, widows or divorced women. If either of these explanations is correct, “unmarried people” (Good News Bible) is probably too general a translation in this verse. Verses 36-38, where Paul finally reaches the theme that he announces here, tend to confirm this conclusion.

Another aspect of the question is whether unmarried refers to just women, as is usually the case, to men as in Rev 14.4, or to both men and women. In most places the use of feminine grammatical forms decides the question. For example, in verses 28, 34, and 36-38, Paul is certainly speaking of women only. In verse 25 the grammar is not clear, so some scholars have thought that men only are referred to. But the context makes this interpretation unlikely. If verses 26-35 are understood as an aside, as we have suggested in the introduction to this section and in Table 2|fig:Table_1CO7-25.jpg, then the unmarried in verse 25 probably refers to women only. New International Version, New American Bible, New Revised Standard Version, Bible de Jérusalem, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible retain the ambiguous word “virgins,” New Jerusalem Bible has “people remaining virgin,” An American Translation thinks the reference is to “unmarried women,” Phillips has the more specific “young unmarried women,” and Revised English Bible the more general “the unmarried.” For example, references to “girls” in verses 28 and 34 suggests very strongly that this is the case. However, since verses 27, 28, and 32-34 refer, in Paul’s usual balanced way, to both men and women, he may be referring to both in verse 25 also. Other common language translations and Translator’s New Testament agree with Good News Bible and Revised English Bible that the rendering should be “unmarried people.”

To sum up, it seems that the most likely meanings here are “people who have not had sexual experience” or “people who have not been married.”

The word that is translated command is usually found in the New Testament in a set phrase meaning “by order.” This command can be either from Christ, or sometimes it is from God; see 7.6; 2 Cor 8.8. There is nothing in the text itself that tells us whether such a command is thought of as coming from the teaching of Jesus while he was on earth, or by a revelation from the risen Christ. The clause I have no command of the Lord can be put in the active voice in many languages; for example, “The Lord did not give me any command” or “The Lord did not tell me what to do.”

Trustworthy is literally “faithful.” The Greek word does not mean simply “a believer,” as it does in 2 Cor 6.15, but refers to someone who has been appointed to a responsible position, a trustworthy person.

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 .