Thanks for taking the time to reply Marilyn...talk to you soon! : )
Marry Only "In the Lord"
by JBean 14 Replies latest jw friends
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anewperson
MARRIAGE IN THE LORD - WHAT IT REALLY MEANS: Paul said we are free to marry anyone "only in the Lord" (1 Cor 7:39) which some take to mean an absolute order that we MUST not marry a person of another faith outside Christianity or even not marry a person who is in another branch of the Christian faith, while others take it to mean that in general we SHOULD not marry such a person although there may sometimes be exceptions. The very earliest apostles disciples were actually both Jews and Christians, Christianity later extending to those who were pagans who became Jews then Christians, or went directly from paganism to being Christian.
When we go back to the Old Testament we find that God did not oppose Joseph to marrying Asenath (Be 41:45), daughter of Potphera the priest of On in Egypt. On was a city also known as Beth Shemesh in Hebrew which mean House (of the) Sun (Jer 43:13) and later in Greek as Helipolis, meaning Sun City, because the sun god was worshipped there. Asenath gave birth to Mannaseh and Ephraim (Ge 41:50-52, 46:20) from whom came two of Israel's 12 tribes. Moses married Zipporah, and their sons were Gershom and Eliezer (Ex 2:16-12, 18:2-4). Her father was an Arabic chief named Jethro who is also called Reul, a priest in the wasteland of Midian. Jehtro was not originally a worshipper of the true God because after Moses returned over the Red Sea only then did Jethro say that Moses' God was greater than all other gods. (Ex 18:10) Esther married King Ahasuerus, likely Xerxes I of Persia, son of Darius the Great. Her marriage to the king was definitely approved by God because it resulted in His guiding her to save the Jews from genocide, as remembered in the Festival Purim that is still observed. While some may say that the wives of Moses and Joseph likely converted to being worshippers of their husbands' God, this cannot be argued in the case of Esther.
In ancient Israel God said to not marry members of certain idol-worshipping nations, but of course those nations no longer exist. Paul pointed out that followers of Christ, whether previously Jewish or pagan, have only "one faith," and at the time he wrote that he did meant the general Christian faith, not some branch of it such as at Jerusalem, Corinth, Antioch, etc. That is the reality of how the one faith is today also. There are branches of it but together they all still form but one faith. In fact at 1 Timothy 4:1-5 Paul says it is against God to tell persons they MUST not be marrying, and this would certainly apply all the more in dealing with marriages within the faith today also.
Further, to go by the Old Testament examples, although it is normally best for a Christian to marry only another Christian, just as Solomon once indicated there is a time and a place for everything, or in other words the Bible does allow for exceptional cases. Christians considering marriage will naturally want to carefully consider many factors about potential marriage mates. In the end, though, the choice is his or her own to make without another imperfect human standing between themselves and God.
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JBean
Wow...thanks, Anewperson. A lot to think about!
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logical
Paul had opinions like everyone does, and this was one of them.
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sableindian
Cool, it's good Jacob had choices. But what about his son Joseph who married an Egyptian and all the other Egyptians that were married while they were in Egypt? And Ruth and Timothy's father? I could go on and on and the idea of a Jew marrying their, 'kind' is an individual matter. Each one married who ever they wanted. But, I DO notice that the Bible speaks that Jacob LOVED Rachel, which had a lot to do with things. And having the modern Jewish woman write her beliefs, (I've never seen a good goy) didn't help a bit. Jews mingled and intermarried whomever they wished. Through out the ages. No matter what Tevye said. The DNA is running rampant as a hine in heat.
But as I said in another post. I gotta read that book! Sounds good.I read a book a while back about Esarhaddon and another Assyrian King...awesome. I love historical fiction.