It seems that Paul had been asked, "When only one person in a marriage believes in Jesus, should they divorce the other?" The apostle answered, "No!" If the unbelieving spouse is willing to stay, there is no way that the gospel or the church should force them apart. Indeed there is something very special to God about a family when even one person belongs to Christ, because He longs to share His grace with the entire household (Acts 2:39).
 

There were many slaves in Corinth; in fact, more slaves than free people. Could they become Christians too? If they did, how could they relate in the same church as their masters? These were serious practical problems about which the church leaders had asked for Paul's advice. His answer was straightforward: if slaves became believers, they were still slaves but that did not make them any less a child of God or freely welcomed into the church.
 

The city of Corinth was obsessed with its own importance through successful business, new ideologies, morally corrupt religion and sport (Corinth was host to the Isthmian Games, held the year before and after the Olympic games). The massive population of slaves (some of whom hauled ships overland between the Saronic Gulf and the Gulf of Corinth – saving 185 sea miles of potentially dangerous navigation) ensured a cheap source of labour. It was hardly surprising that they were proud to be Corinthians (1 Corinthians 5:2).
 

When situations are uncertain it is usually best not to make lifetime decisions. That was Paul's advice to young men facing the possibility of significant persecution. It would be a difficult time to marry when the believers might have to relocate at short notice. However the Apostle realised that some betrothed couples were deeply in love and wanted to marry, even if it meant facing persecution together, whatever that might mean for their extended families. For those people, they should marry rather than find that they are unable to control their passions, leading to immorality.