Ezra, Day 5
Yoked With Unbelievers?
Ezra 9:1 – 4, 10:1 – 4
There are some things in life you don’t mess with. You don’t mess with a mother bear and her cubs; not a good outcome if you do. You don’t mess with ice on the road when you are driving; not a good outcome if you do. You don’t mess with gasoline around a fire; not a good outcome if you do. Could you do one of these things and not get hurt? Sure, it is possible. But the odds definitely do not favor you.
Now, look at the Scripture reading for today and you might see a connection between messing with danger and our topic for today. As Paul tells us in I Corinthians 6:24, “Do not become yoked with unbelievers.” In Ezra, it is talking about intermarriage between the Israelites and folks from the surrounding nations. You might be thinking, “What is the big deal?” It is not about interracial marriage. God is very clear here. It is because they (the foreign spouse) will turn the heart of their spouse away from God and do detestable things. It is as simple as that.
If you enter into marriage with someone who is not a believer, you are messing with trouble. The odds are not in your favor. I would even take it a step farther — If you enter into any type of contractual agreement with someone who is not a believer (unequally yoked), you are asking for trouble. I saw this at work in my own family with my siblings. My sister married an unbeliever. My dad sat them down before they got married and explained to them that this could cause friction in their marriage someday. And it did — big time. It is not a matter of love. It is a matter of doing what is best in your relationship with God.
So, to answer the question that is the title for this devotional — “Should you be yoked with unbelievers?” — the answer is a NO. And let’s follow this principle with the passion that Ezra did, which was weeping, mourning, and going to God in prayer.
Dave Kellerman