The Unequal Yoke

Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said, “I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you, and I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.” (2 Corinthians 6:14-18 ESV). The next prayer on my list is a little more complicated than it appears at first read. However, it is essential. I pray that they will not be unequally yoked in intimate relationships, especially marriage. While this request is most applicable in marriage, it also applies to other partnerships as well. It is true in commercial, religious, and philanthropic ventures as well as marriage.

The principle is easily illustrated as is shown with the oxen and the donkey. As you can see here, the donkey and the bull that are plowing together look very uncomfortable. The yoke linking them together, intended for two animals of similar size and strength makes both beasts suffer. Normally, a farmer would not impose such a hardship on his animals. But if he did not have two bulls, he might yoke together two animals he had available. Apparently, this is what the farmer in the above donkey and ox picture decided to do. Because of the difference in their weight and strength, the weaker animal would have to struggle to keep up the pace, and the stronger would have a greater burden. The great complication in this prayer comes at the point of our emotions. Often the heart is involved long before the mind. In teaching this principle to our children we must set an example of a clear balance of being “in the world, but not of the world” (cf. John 17:6 ESV). Clear boundaries should be developed and taught with a goal of finding God’s partnerships wherever we may involve ourselves. I have often wondered in the midst of marriage and family counseling how much of a difference it would be if both parties would find a way to be equally yoked, especially in the case where one is a believer and the other isn’t. When this is the case I have seen disaster strike inevitably and conclusively. Those relationships simply don’t work well. I have also seen the blessing of God when an equal yoke is entered into. Pray for that in the lives of your children and grandchildren.