Have we not power to lead about a sister, a wife, as well as other apostles, and as the brethren of the Lord, and Cephas?
Lead about a sister, a wife - `a sister as a wife;' "a sister" by faith, which makes all believers brethren and sisters in God: "a wife" by marriage. Paul implies he did not exercise his right to marry and "lead about" a believer, for Christian expediency, as well to save the Church the cost of maintaining her in his wide circuits, as also to give himself more undistractedly to building up the Church of Christ (1 Corinthians 7:26; 1 Corinthians 7:32; 1 Corinthians 7:35). Contrast the Corinthians' self-pleasing in the exercise of their "liberty" at the cost of destroying, instead of edifying, the Church (1 Corinthians 8:9-10, margin, 1 Corinthians 8:11-13).
As other (Greek, 'the other') apostles - implying that some had used the power which they all had of marrying. We know from Matthew 8:14 that Cephas or Peter was married. A confutation of Peter's self-called followers, who exclude the clergy from marriage. Clemens Alexandrinus, 'Stromata,' 7: 63, reports that he encouraged his wife, when being led to death, by saying, 'Remember, my dear one, the Lord' (cf. Eusebius, 'E. H.' 3:30).
Brethren of the Lord - held in especial esteem on account of their relationship to Jesus (Matthew 13:55; John 7:5; Acts 1:14; Galatians 1:19) - James, Joses, Simon, and Judas. Probably (according to the Jewish meaning of "brethren") cousins of Jesus, sons of Cleopas and Maria, Mary's sister.
Cephas - singled out as a name carrying weight with one partisan section at Corinth. 'If your favourite leader does so, surely so may I' (1 Corinthians 1:12; 1 Corinthians 3:22).