1 Corinthians 7:20

Let every man abide in the same calling wherein he was called.

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Word by word — the Greek

Word	Greek	Strong’s	Meaning
man	ἕκαστος hekastos	G1538	each or every · adjective — nominative singular masculine
abide	μενέτω. menetō	G3306	to stay (in a given place · verb — present active imperative, 3rd person singular
in	ἐν en	G1722	"in · preposition
same	ταύτῃ tautē	G3778	the he (she or it) · demonstrative pronoun — dative singular feminine
calling	κλήσει klēsei	G2821	an invitation (figuratively) · noun — dative singular feminine
wherein	ἐν en	G1722	"in · preposition
called	ἐκλήθη, eklēthē	G2564	to "call" (properly · verb — aorist passive indicative, 3rd person singular

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

1 Corinthians 7:17 But as God hath distributed to every man, as the Lord hath called every one, so let him walk. And so ordain I in all churches.
1 Thessalonians 4:11 And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you;
Proverbs 27:8 As a bird that wandereth from her nest, so is a man that wandereth from his place.
1 Corinthians 7:21-24 Art thou called being a servant? care not for it: but if thou mayest be made free, use it rather.
2 Thessalonians 3:12 Now them that are such we command and exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work, and eat their own bread.
Luke 3:10-14 And the people asked him, saying, What shall we do then?

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 Corinthians 7:17-24

Here the apostle takes occasion to advise them to continue in the state and condition in which Christianity found them, and in which they became converts to it. And here, I. He lays down this rule in general - as God hath distributed to every one. Note, Our states and circumstances in this world are distributions of divine Providence. This fixes the bounds of men's habitations, and orders their steps. God setteth up and pulleth down. And again, As the Lord hath called every one, so let him walk. Whatever his circumstances or condition was when he was converted to Christianity, let him abide therein, and suit his conversation to it. The rules of Christianity reach every condition. And in ever…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Corinthians 7:20

the same calling--that is, the condition from which he is called a Jew, a Greek, a slave, or a freeman.

Adam Clarke on 1 Corinthians 7:20

Let every man abide in the same calling - As both the circumcised and uncircumcised, in Christ, have the same advantages, and to their believing the same facilities; so any situation of life is equally friendly to the salvation of the soul, if a man be faithful to the grace he has received. Therefore, in all situations a Christian should be content, for all things work together for good to him who loves God.

John Gill on 1 Corinthians 7:20

Let every man abide in the same calling,.... Civil calling, station, and business of life, wherein he was called; that is, in which he was when he was called by the grace of God; and is to be understood of such a calling, station, and business of life, as is lawful, honest, and of good report; otherwise he ought not to abide in it, but betake himself to another, as Matthew and Zacchaeus, when called by grace, left the scandalous employment of a publican: nor is it the apostle's sense, that a man that is in an honest way of living, may not change that for another that is equally so, as if a man was bound down to that sort of business he is in when first called; for no doubt it may be lawful,…

The Church Fathers

Paul says this because it makes no difference to God either way.
— Severian of Gabala, Pauline Commentary from the Greek Church

God does not care about our social status but about our will and mind.
— Pelagius, COMMENTARY ON THE FIRST EPISTLE TO THE CORINTHIANS 7

Somebody asked Antony, 'What shall I do in order to please God?' He replied, 'Do what I tell you, which is this: wherever you go, keep God in mind; whatever you do, follow the example of holy Scripture; wherever you are, stay there and do not move away in a hurry. If you keep to these guide-lines, you will be saved.'
— Desert Fathers, The Desert Fathers, Sayings of the Early Christian Monks

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

Calling — A profession, or as we usually say, a vocation (1 Cor. 7:20). The “hope of your calling” in Eph. 4:4 is the hope resulting from your being called into the kingdom of God.
Revelation of Christ — The second advent of Christ. Three different Greek words are used by the apostles to express this, (1) apokalupsis (1 Cor. 1;7; 2 Thess. 1:7; 1 Pet. 1:7, 13); (2) parousia (Matt. 24:3, 27; 1 Thess.…
Contentment · 14:10,14;15:13,15,30;16:8;17:1,22;30:8; — 14:10,14;15:13,15,30;16:8;17:1,22;30:8;
Servants · Should be contented in their situation — Should be contented in their situation
Stability · OF CHARACTER — OF CHARACTER

Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).

1 Corinthians 7:20

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 Corinthians 7:17-24

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Corinthians 7:20

Adam Clarke on 1 Corinthians 7:20

John Gill on 1 Corinthians 7:20

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

1 Corinthians 7:20

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 Corinthians 7:17-24

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Corinthians 7:20

Adam Clarke on 1 Corinthians 7:20

John Gill on 1 Corinthians 7:20

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

John Calvin on 1 Corinthians 7:18-24

Tyndale Open Study Notes on 1 Corinthians 7:18-19