God had warned his people not to marry foreigners (Deuteronomy 7:1–6). The problem was not marrying someone from another country or race. The issue was marrying people who followed other gods. Moses himself married a Cushite woman (Numbers 12:1). Other foreigners joined Israel through marriage, like Rahab the Canaanite and Ruth the Moabite (see Matthew 1:5; Ruth 4:1–22). These women trusted in God, and God blessed them. However, King Solomon married many foreign wives. Their devotion to other gods influenced him to worship idols, just as God had previously warned his people would happen (1 Kings 11:1–5).
In the Bible, marriage is viewed as a binding promise (or covenant) made before God. This covenant includes commitments to faithfulness, love, and loyalty between the married couple. But it was even more important for Israel to remain faithful to the Lord's covenant with them as a people. Mixed marriages could produce children not fully committed to Israel's faith. They would become influenced by the idolatry of their foreign parent. This compromise would cause Israel to become totally unfaithful to God and embrace false religions, as they did before the exile to Babylon (see Judges 3:3–7; 14:1–9; 1 Kings 11:1–8; 2 Kings 17:7–17).
In Ezra 9 and 10, the Jews who returned from exile married people who worshipped other gods. Ezra's solution was divorce, but this is not a rule for Christians today. In the new covenant under Christ, the faith of a Christian makes his or her marriage and children acceptable before God. Because of this, marriage to an unbeliever does not threaten the identity or purity of God’s people (1 Corinthians 7:14–16). Paul recognized that marriage between believers and unbelievers could be difficult and might end in separation. However, he told Christians not to seek divorce if the unbelieving spouse was willing to remain married (1 Corinthians 7:10–13).
To avoid these issues, it is wise to follow Paul's advice for believers not to marry unbelievers. God's people should stay separate from what is unholy: “For what partnership can righteousness have with wickedness? Or what fellowship does light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever?” (2 Corinthians 6:14–15). Yet, those married to an unbeliever today have God's assurance that God can use that difficult situation for his glory (see also 1 Peter 3:1–2).
Passages for Further Study
Deuteronomy 7:1–6; Joshua 2:1–14; 6:23–25; Judges 3:3–7; 14:1–9; Ruth 4:1–22; 1 Kings 11:1–8; 2 Kings 17:7–17; Ezra 9:1–10:44; 1 Corinthians 7:10–16; 2 Corinthians 6:14–15; Hebrews 11:31