Stand Strong in the Word
Stand Strong in the Word is a weekly bible study that teaches through the Bible verse by verse in chronological order. For more information, visit www.standstrongministries.org.
Stand Strong in the Word
#281 "What Does it Mean to Be “Unequally Yoked?" (2 Corinthians 6:14-18
Are you ready to uncover how the profound wisdom of the Bible shapes modern relationships and partnerships? Join Jason Jimenez on Stand Strong in the Word to explore the often-misunderstood concept of being "unequally yoked" from 2 Corinthians, chapter 6. Together, we'll unpack the Apostle Paul's teachings and navigate the challenges of upholding spiritual integrity amidst today’s struggles with idolatry and false teachings. Discover how righteousness can stand resolutely against lawlessness and understand why aligning with genuine Christian values is vital for both personal and professional relationships.
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I'm sure you've heard the phrase unequally yoked, but what does it exactly mean? In 2 Corinthians, chapter 6, how was Paul applying this principle? To what extent Was it only applicable to religions that were contrary to Christianity, or are we to apply this to our relationships and business partners? Well, let's find out by turning to 2 Corinthians, chapter 6. Let's get into it. Well, hey there, my friends, welcome to Stand Strong in the Word podcast, jason Jimenez, with you, as always. Blessed to be with you, guys.
Speaker 1:Now, as we turn to this particular passage, the title is what Does it Mean to Be Unequally Yoked? Now, as many of you already know, this is a very controversial passage. A lot of people go to extremes by using this, where it becomes this isolation that we're not to be in the world in any way, shape or form other than obviously living and breathing in the world, but we're not to associate with anybody who does not believe what we believe. And this has caused a lot of contention within the church. But it also has caused Christians not to be a witness, because when they take this out of context, they're saying well, the Bible says not to be unequally yoked, and so I can't even talk to these people. Now the other side of it is that people are saying, well, I'm not being unequally yoked by associating with these type of people and we need to be a witness, but to what extent Like is this to be applicable to me doing business with somebody who's not a Christian? Is this applicable to a Christian in a relationship, an intimate relationship with someone? Now we have to understand, as we're going to go through this, that we're going to be pulling from 1 Corinthians 1, because a lot of the arguments that Paul had been laying out is in that first letter. And remember, 2 Corinthians is reinforcing a lot of what he had said in the first letter. So we will touch on that in a minute.
Speaker 1:So let's just dive right in. And what I want to do is I want to jump back to verse 13, because this is very important to understand where Paul was leaving things off when it comes to the Corinthians. So it says here in verse actually, let's jump to verse 11. It says we have spoken freely to you, corinthians. Our heart is wide open. You are not restricted by us, but you are restricted in your own affections. In return I speak as to children widen your hearts also.
Speaker 1:Now a couple of things where we left off in our last podcast. Remember he's saying to them don't stray. He is opening his heart, he is coming with a level of sincerity and reciprocity. There's fondness that Paul has remember for the Corinthians, as he did with all the churches that he ministered to. In fact, two other churches where he mentions them by name is Galatians 3.1 and Philippians 4, and also here in verse 11, calling them personally you, corinthians, our heart is wide open, and so he's concerned.
Speaker 1:Remember that they are going astray into false teaching because of these false apostles that were emerging, taking elements of paganism into forms of Christianity. Now, if you want to dive into more of those particular false teachings, you can get my book Hijacking Jesus, where I lay out a lot of things like Gnosticism, marcinism, ebionitism, where they're taking elements of Christianity but distorting it, whether it's bringing in Gnostic claims, whether it's bringing in Greek mythology, and so these are some of the issues that Paul was dealing with, these Corinthians, and so when he says you are not restricted by us, you know, and he says your own affections have been restricted, what he's saying is you guys have pulled away and you're contemplating whether to pursue a relationship with me as the true apostle that God has sent in your life. But yet you guys are struggling because you're wanting to maintain this association with pagans, not just in paganism maybe obviously some of them were but to pagans in general. And so when he says our heart is wide, he's showing them sympathy, he's trying to convey to them, as he did in first corinthians, chapter 4, where you have many instructors, you have many guides, but you don't have many fathers. And so this is important because now, when we pick up verse 14, in the context, paul is talking to the corinthians not to stray, not to pull away from him and pursue relationships with people of the world, and that's primarily centered on idolatry, which is why we're going to see in a minute where he's talking about the temple of the Holy Spirit and he's going to be using phraseology, if you will doctrine, that we see that's in the covenant of the Old Testament. So let's see now in verse 14, where it says do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. So remember, in return he said in verse 13, I speak as to children widen your hearts also, do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. So that's connected. So he's speaking to them as children. So there's a lack of maturity that they have here. And he's saying to widen your hearts, meaning you need to trust me rather than this paganistic system of idolatry that you have come out of, meaning you're kind of going back to it. And so, partly, when you widen your heart is not to feed into unbelievers. We'll touch on that in a minute, these phrases.
Speaker 1:But notice he also says for what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? So that's the first contrast in the first question he asks. But then he asks another question or what fellowship has light with darkness? So notice, righteousness, lawlessness, light with darkness. And then he says what accord has Christ with Belal? So that's a third. And then, or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols? So notice, he goes from righteousness contrasting with lawlessness, light contrasting it with darkness, christ, light contrasting it with darkness, christ contrasting with belal, believer contrasting with unbeliever, temple contrasting it with idols. So let's just stop there and then we'll progress into, uh, this, this old testament phrase that paul uses.
Speaker 1:So, right off the bat it may seem that Paul here in verses 14 through 18, has like abruptly changed the subject, but as I was connecting in verses 11 through 13, so you can see, that's not the case. He's actually elaborating on previous warnings, and this is something that we have to understand. In fact, when we go to the first letter, and that is actually in 1 Corinthians, chapter 10, where Paul was warning against idolatry, remember, he said in verse 1 of chapter 10 of 1 Corinthians, he says, for I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud and all passed through the sea and all were baptized into Moses, into the cloud, into the sea, and all ate the same spiritual food. So he's taught, he's talking about Christ being the rock, that's a representative. And they were in the wilderness and they were following the Lord. But they are also rebellious. And he says in verse 6 now, these things took place as examples for us that we might not desire evil as they did. So notice like the Corinthians are contemplating turning back to bondage, and that's what Paul was. He's using the Egyptians as an example.
Speaker 1:Going back to the first letter. So now in the second letter, he's still addressing this and he says in verse seven do not be idolaters as some of them were. As it is written, the people sat down to eat, drink and rose up to play. We must not indulge in sexual morality, as some of them were. As it is written, the people sat down to eat, drink and rose up to play. We must not indulge in sexual morality, as some of them did. We must not put Christ to the test, as some of them did. So notice, he's showing them the examples of people who were living under the guidance of God. Remember that theocracy, and yet they still turned away. So Paul is building on this from his previous letter.
Speaker 1:So in verses 14 through 16, what paul's going to do is he's going to introduce a general principle. Now this is important because the principle here is to is not to be unequally. It's a command and he demonstrates this and how it's to be applied. But notice, as we go further, he does not identify or specifically address certain kinds of partnerships. In fact he already did that in first Corinthians. So that's what we're going to be pulling from.
Speaker 1:So when we do look at the context and understanding the condition of the heart of the Corinthians, they were turning from Paul's teaching right and they were mingling with false teachers. Because in the next few chapters later, in second Corinthians, in chapter 11, verse four specifically, he says for if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough. So, again, paul is specifically addressing the false teaching. Okay, so not specifically, where we're going to see in a minute again, as I'm going to unpack this further is not dealing with. Like, a lot of times people say, oh, we're not to mission date, you know missionary dating type thing, or we're not to associate or partner with somebody in business who's not a believer, and so people can really stretch that. Now, remember, we want to apply the principle that Paul uses here, but that's a case-by-case basis. But there are specifics that we immediately know, based on the context of Scripture, that Paul is referring to when he says not to be unequally yoked, and we'll get to that. But I want to unpack this phrase unequally yoked because that's the question before us is what does it actually mean? So this phrase unequally yoked can be understood as, quote forming partnerships.
Speaker 1:So in Paul's discussion against partnering with sin, what does he do? He actually references imagery that's found in Leviticus, chapter 19, verse 19, which states you shall not let your cattle breed with another kind. You can also see this in Deuteronomy 22, verse 10. Now, this law advises against pairing an ox, which was a clean animal, with a donkey, which was an unclean animal, for plowing purposes. Now, obviously too, if you think about it, they're not of equal value and of equal weight and size. And so to do plowing, you need to have two ox that were clean animals to be able to put forth a line that's digging and cultivating the ground to plant. Okay, so to pair them up, you're going to have inconsistency. So the concept of being yoked emphasizes avoiding crossbreeding, and so it is unlikely that Paul was referring to just marriage. In fact, if you go back to the first letter in chapter 7, he actually does mention that if you're married and you're not, you know of the same belief, like a Christian with a non-believer is to stay married and obviously prayerful that that spouse of yours would come to Christ. This is also something that we see that Peter addresses in 1 Peter, chapter 3, and so, peter, you know.
Speaker 1:The main thing I think that we have to understand here is that Paul's charging the Corinthians not to participate in idol practices or false worship that's associated with paganism, remember we have to understand what they came out of. So if you go back to 1 Corinthians 6, verse 16, remember Paul forbade he forbid the Corinthians to join in sexually with temple prostitution. That was a custom. Part of their worship in paganism was to have sex with prostitutes that were there that were designated for that very thing. I like what the Quest Study Bible says. It says, quote Paul was not saying that Christians must avoid unbelievers.
Speaker 1:He was saying that Christians should avoid the kinds of associations that will cause us to adopt their values and patterns of behavior. Romans 12, verse 2. Us to adopt their values and patterns of behavior. Romans, chapter 12, verse 2. Jesus associated with sinners in order to show God's love to them, but he influenced them rather than adopting their values. As Jesus's followers, we are to be salt and light in our world. Matthew 5, 13 through 16,.
Speaker 1:Revealing God's goodness and truth so unequally yoked literally means forming partnerships. So let's just apply this real quickly. In an intimate relationship, let's say someone is a Christian and they start dating somebody who's a non-believer that right there you could quickly start forming a partnership, meaning you start becoming loyal to an individual, you become fond of them, and it's not that that relationship automatically becomes idolatry, because Paul's specifically dealing with demonic, you know, ritualism, okay, not just talking about money becoming an idol or relationship becoming an idol or materialism becoming an idol. He's dealing specifically with idols, okay, things that are crafted, you know, to formulate an imagery of a deity that somebody bows and worships. That's what he's talking about specifically, okay, so let's keep that in context. So, when you go back to relationship, if this person is forming this partnership, this is becoming loyal to this individual that could be crossbreeding setting aside premarital sex, obviously that is a sin and becoming one with the harlot. We see that again in 1 Corinthians, chapter six. So that right there could be applied in principle to what Paul's talking about in not being unequally yoked.
Speaker 1:Now notice, though he says do not be unequally yoked, and he applies this with unbelievers. So he's specifically mentioning this term, and so we have to understand what does this term mean? So then we know how to apply it in our daily lives. So the Greek word here for unbelievers is epistos, and catch this it's actually used 14 times in the first letter and it's only used twice in the second letter.
Speaker 1:In fact, the other reference that Paul uses in scripture in this second letter is in 2 Corinthians 4, verse 4, where it says in their case, the God of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel, the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, for we proclaim, for what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ is Lord with ourselves as your servants. And it says for God, who said let light shine out of darkness, has shown in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. So notice the previous, just two chapters ago. He mentions these unbelievers who are blinded. Okay, and Satan, the God of this world, is preventing them from seeing the light of the gospel. But notice in verse six that we are to reveal that truth because, as Christ has let the light shine in us and we're no longer dead in our trespasses and sins but we've been made alive in Christ the whole message of Ephesians we are to give the light of the knowledge of glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. So clearly, we are to witness and minister to unbelievers.
Speaker 1:So this actually could apply to you doing business with a non-believer and being a witness being above reproach. You're not quote forming a partnership where you're becoming loyal to those particular values that that non-believer has. That's what Paul's talking about specifically. It's not just saying, nope, christians cannot partner with non-believers in business Paul's talking about specifically. It's not just saying nope, christians cannot partner with non-believers in business. It's talking about values. It's talking about becoming consumed by these people and becoming like them.
Speaker 1:So Paul's meaning in the text is not to unite your interests with incompatibility. That is so important for us not to miss Paul's meaning in the text, as he's using the word here unequally with unbelievers, and unbelievers is literally people who are not obviously Christian. So his meaning in the text is not to unite your interests with incompatibility. So these unbelievers are people who are not compatible with what you believe. So they are living a life that is not only contrary, but they are adamantly opposed to what you believe. There are a lot of non-believers, my friends, as you know. There are a lot of other people that are Mormons or Jehovah's Witness or Muslim, whatever the case may be, hindu. That are people who are kind, who are not trying to proselytize. They're not trying to get you to conform or to convert to their particular religion, and so you can see a particular example, though, of the sort of unbelievers that we are not to associate with, and this is what we can now apply into the text here in 2 Corinthians 6.
Speaker 1:That comes from 1 Corinthians 5, 9-11, where Paul says I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people. So now we have a few things going on here. One is the Corinthians are kind of wayward. They're contemplating should we go back to these pagan influences, these false teachers? Paul's saying no, don't be unequally yoked with those type of unbelievers who are committing idolatry.
Speaker 1:In 1 Corinthians he specifically talks about the case where we're not to associate notice he keeps using that word, and I'll unpack that in a minute with sexual immoral people, and he goes on from there to say not at all, meaning the sexually immoral of this world or the greedy and swindlers or idolaters. Since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I'm writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual morality or greed or is an idolater, rival, drunkard or swindler. Not even to eat with such a one. So notice he's saying not that you're completely to remove yourself from the world. That would be ridiculous, because we just saw in 2 Corinthians 6, and, of course, jesus saying we're the light of the world, the salt and light of the world. We are to be a witness, the light of the world, the salt and light of the world. We are to be a witness, we are to go make disciples of all nations. That's the great commandment, the great commission.
Speaker 1:But what he's saying is not to associate. That word associate in the Greek is in the present tense and it means to be closely aligned or mainly in a close and habitual intimacy. So now we understand the particulars of an unbeliever as well as understanding what it means. When he says do not be unequally. Yoked is basically forming partnerships of loyalty, becoming compatible with someone that you are not compatible with, sharing not just the same interests but values. So you're basically becoming tainted, you're becoming part of the world. That's what he's saying. So if you, if you are being above reproach and you're being a witness and you are in partnership, like in terms of business, or you have friends who are non-believers but they're not, you're not associating with them, that you're not a closely aligning or mingling with them in habitual intimacy, whether it be sexually or drugs or partying, that's fine. So, notice, because your faith is stronger than their influence.
Speaker 1:Now I do want to unpack something, and this comes from the IVP New Testament commentary. It says this there are five synonyms that are employed to describe the kinds of associations that are forbidden. So again, remember, this is in the present tense, so we're not to continue to be closely aligned. So sometimes we have to evaluate and say, okay, when I did jump into this friendship or when I did jump in this business partnership, over time have I become more aligned with how this person thinks and lives in a bad way. Okay, remember, we're thinking, we're processing this as a Christian. Am I having you know? Are there not just temptations? But have I compromised? And so you have to be able to look at these type of associations. Now here's what Paul says, that these are the type of associations that are forbidden.
Speaker 1:The first synonym is metoke. It means to have in common. It's found nowhere else in the Greek Bible except here. So metoke, notice it's not just like having commonality, like you have things in common. That's not what he's talking about when someone says, oh, sex with somebody outside of marriage is fine, and you're like, oh, I share that same commonality, like, I totally agree with you. That's what he's talking about.
Speaker 1:Then the second synonym is koinonia, fellowship meaning to partner or to share. So, again, when you're closely aligning or you find comfort in familiarity with people who are non-believers. In fact, I was just talking to a friend who is going through a really tough time and a friend of his has also gone through something similar a loss of a loved one but he's not a believer. So he understands that the type of fellowship that he's going to have with his believer is going to be limited. Right, that the type of fellowship that he's going to have with his believer is going to be limited, right. They can share their pains with each other. But my friend is ultimately turning to the Lord, right? Not turning to this friend who's giving advice, and not everything that he's advising him is wrong. Matter of fact, some of the things he told me that his friend had shared with him I said right on, that's actually very helpful advice, but at the end of the day, he doesn't have this eternal comfort the non-believer so the fellowship is going to be limited.
Speaker 1:Number three, the third synonym, is symphonious. That means harmony. It signifies to be in agreement with or of one accord, so that like-mindedness we are to be like-minded with believers. So that like-mindedness, we are to be like-minded with believers, not with non-believers. The fourth one is meris, which is this in common it denotes a shared lot or portion. And then the last one is synkatakathias means agreement, and it's commonly used of a decision arrived by a group.
Speaker 1:So when you take these synonyms and you apply it in your life, for example number one if you're hanging out with non-believers, we as a Christian are not to associate with them to a level where we share commonality in beliefs, like there's teachings that we believe, that we are to follow and there's people in the world that says again, like you know, having sex, you know you got to figure out who you want to marry and if this partnership is going to work out. So you got to live together before you get married, you got to have sex together before you get married. We would say, no, we don't have that in common. Two when it comes to fellowship, koinonia we have intimacy partnership. We, we have intimacy partnership. We share one another's burdens in community as believers, not in the world. Harmony is we're not one accord with the world, we're not in agreement with them.
Speaker 1:So again, you can have these disagreements, you can align on principles in business that you want to be able to provide this type of service. Let's say you're working with a Mormon or a Muslim and you guys are in agreement of how you're going to conduct your business practices to this client. That's not what he's talking about here. And then this other agreement, this decision arrived by a group, is is again we turn to idols for comfort. This is good for us to do and clearly Paul's saying you don't associate. That's forbidden. You don't have those type of quote agreements with people that teach things that run contrary to scripture. So Paul's clearly thinking of associations that involve a partnership rather than a casual or occasional working relationship. So hopefully that helps you guys understand what Paul's really saying here.
Speaker 1:And it's also important that we have to keep this in mind. As I said earlier, that Paul's command do not be unequally yoked is not an act of isolation but consecration from the world. In fact, when you do see a prayer that Paul gave the Philippians in Philippians, chapter one, verses nine through 11, it says and it is my prayer that your gave the Philippians. In Philippians, chapter 1, verses 9 through 11, it says, and it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God. So now we understand what it means to be unequally yoked and what Paul's saying here in context, and we looked in the previous letter in 1 Corinthians some examples of people who are unbelievers that we're not to associate with.
Speaker 1:We saw this in 1 Corinthians 10 with idolatry. We see this in 1 Corinthians 6 with sexual, immoral people, and also in 1 Corinthians 5. Then notice in verse 15, he says what accord is Christ with Belal? First Corinthians chapter five. Then notice in verse 15, he says what accord is Christ with Bilal? Now, this term Bilal is in Hebrew, means no worth or corruptness or wickedness, and it's applied to adulterous people. So again we can see actually a level of specificity in the context of idolatry, because from that point on he says what agreement has the temple God with idols? So again, notice this phraseology that Paul continues to use this term.
Speaker 1:Eventually Bilal was applied to Satan and you can see this action in first John, chapter two, verse 14. We see it here in this verse, in verse 15. We also see it later in second Thessalonians, chapter two, verse three, where it says you have overcome the wicked one. That is in the Greek is hoi poneros, you have been, you know, you've overcome the wicked one, or belal, that's applied to Satan. Okay, so notice the extreme here that Paul's using.
Speaker 1:So again, this claim where you cannot be partners in business with a non-believer if you're a Christian is not the context of what Paul is actually saying. Now we want to be careful. You want to be able to apply this principle how it's applicable to you, based on your sanctification and the people that you are hanging out with, whether it's a friend who's a non-believer or a business partner. So that will vary depending on the Christian. So we got to keep that in mind.
Speaker 1:So notice what he does in verse 16. What agreement has the temple of God with idols? See that right there, takes all those other synonyms and boils it down to Christian worship, jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, and to idol worship. And then he says for we are the temple of living God, so we are to be consecrated, we are to be the light bearers of Christ to the world. And 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. What Paul does here in this phrase is he puts six Old Testament quotations. So he's taking portions of scripture and he's putting it right here to make the claim right. That's so important that we are the temple of God, so we have to conduct ourselves in a manner that is worthy of the gospel.
Speaker 1:Now, in context, remember, in Paul's era, temples were everywhere and they housed all kinds of deities. So this imagery once again, as he used imagery with agriculture and with animals, he's illustrating that Christian is akin to a temple, that we are the dwelling place for the Holy Spirit. So everything we do needs to be aligned with that, needs to be submissive to that. So when it comes to your relationship with your spouse, with your children, with business, whatever it is, you are the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. Okay, we are the temple of the Holy Spirit and collectively, the church is the temple of God. So this is in Exodus 29, verse 45, where he says I will dwell among the people and be their God. So when God dwells among us, we are not to be in sin.
Speaker 1:If you go back to 1 Corinthians 3, verse 16 and 17, remember it says do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, god will destroy him, for God's temple is holy and you are that temple. So this is language that Paul had been using already in the first letter that we are the temple of God. So if you, as a temple of God, are being not just influenced but aligning yourself where you're compromising and you're tainting yourself and you're not being set apart for God's work, then you need to get out of that partnership, that relationship, whatever it is, because we are not to be in agreement with idols. Now this phrase there are many references in the Bible that we have of people who worship idols. In fact, if you go to Revelation 2, verse 14, he says you have some there who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel so that they might eat food sacrificed to idols and practice sexual immorality. Remember I said a minute ago, the practices of the Corinthians, before they got saved, was there in temple worship and part of it was having sex with prostitutes. We see this clearly in Revelation 2, verse 14. So this is why the agreement is not between the temple of God, who we are, who we are, the representatives of that in this world that God dwells within us as we're living in the world. We're not to then associate with idols. So the idea of that universalism or all religions are true is false.
Speaker 1:Listen to what the Believer Study Bible says, quote righteousness and lawlessness describe the whole sphere of moral behavior. Light and darkness have to do with intelligence. As to the things of God, christ and Belal have to do with the realm of authority, in other words the person or thing whom one acknowledges as master in his life. Believer and unbeliever have to do with the realm of faith and the temple of God and idols take in the whole subject of a person's worship. End quote. So that is what Paul is stating here that your righteousness is not to mix with somebody who's lawless, meaning your moral behavior is being compromised or your light as a witness is being darkened, so your intelligence of the things of God becomes less, rather than what the Bible says, that we are to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ, or that you are submitting to the authority of Satan in this world, or you're acknowledging him as your master rather than Christ, that there's no association whatsoever that Christians are have with that, that we are the temple of God. We're not to have idols in our life, we're not to subject ourselves to anything other than Jesus Christ, and that's why he says now in verse 17, therefore, go out from their midst.
Speaker 1:Says now in verse 17, therefore go out from their midst. So notice if, in fact, you are associating everything that we talked about with all those synonyms. And there's lawlessness in your life, there's darkness in your life, there's the authority of Satan that you've given ground, you've given opportunity to him. You have not resisted the devil, you weren't drawn near to God, and so Satan has taken advantage of you falling into temptation. You've been ent to him. You have not resisted the devil, you weren't drawn near to God, and so Satan has taken advantage of you falling into temptation. You've been enticed by your own desires.
Speaker 1:As James says in chapter one, you, according to scripture right here, you are to go out from their midst. You're to be separate from them. That's what the Lord says, and touch no unclean thing. Then I will welcome you, and verse 18 says and I will be a father to you and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty. So, after Paul describes what it means not to be unequally yoked, he then talks about the temple and then this command that comes from the Lord himself. This isn't Paul's advice. Paul describes this covenant that we have with God and he does so with three commands that come from Isaiah, 52, verse 11, and three promises that are found in Ezekiel, 20, verse 34, and 2 Samuel, chapter seven, verse 14, and Isaiah, chapter 43, verse six.
Speaker 1:And again, the last thing that paul does, as he did back in first corinthians, chapter 10. But he goes beyond that, 700 years ago, when the israelites okay, in isaiah's time were living in babylonian, and he's reminding the Corinthians now, just like I told you about the Hebrews in the wilderness, he's now telling them here, like the Israelites in captivity, they were to remain separate from pagan idolatry. That is the context. So I hope, my friends, that this has been enriching for you. That is also. You know, when we look at scripture, you see the power of God's word. And, yes, when you take this general principle, we have to be cautious, as the temple of the Holy Spirit, that we are not submitting ourselves to things that run contrary to the word of God, that's not tainting our worship, that's not compromising our position in Christ. That's the key to what Paul's saying here. So thank you, guys, for listening. Until next time, keep standing strong in the word of God.