Marrying Unbelievers (Genesis 6)

Marrying Unbelievers

Marriage is a blessing from God. It is a holy union of a man and a woman where they become ‘one flesh’. It is a great cure against loneliness if both properly conduct themselves. According to Jesus angels do not marry. This blessing is peculiar to humanity.

But marriage can also become a terrible curse.

In Genesis 6 the first part of the flood account is written down. But before God sees all the wickedness on the earth a development is recorded. The way it is placed and written down suggests that this was a development towards this general wickedness on earth.

We have to remember that rebellious Cain had moved away from the land of God and settled his rebellion there. From his line Lamech came.


[Gen 4:14, 16 NKJV] 14 "Surely You have driven me out this day from the face of the ground; I shall be hidden from Your face; I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond on the earth, and it will happen [that] anyone who finds me will kill me." ... 16 Then Cain went out from the presence of the LORD and dwelt in the land of Nod on the east of Eden.


But the line of Seth still was in the former land, including Enoch. There was a separation here. 

The casting out of Cain from the land that was in the presence of the LORD could’ve helped prevent him and his sons that could well inherit his way of thinking influencing those who were still faithful.
Genesis 6 focuses on the legal standing before God of two groups of humanity that goes beyond mere genealogy and that goes to spiritual things.


[Gen 6:1-2 NKJV] 1 Now it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, 2 that the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they [were] beautiful; and they took wives for themselves of all whom they chose.


We have here two groups of people.

One is called the sons of God. Think of Paul using this language for believers:


[Gal 3:26 NKJV] 26 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.


But the other group is called the daughters of men. Or, we could also just use the name ‘Adam’. These were from Adam and inherited death from Adam as Romans 5 tells us.

Flesh and blood does not inherit the kingdom of God. Therefore we have to be born again as sons of God.

[Jhn 3:5-6 NKJV] 5 Jesus answered, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.


Thus two spiritual groups are represented here. At first the casting out of Cain from the land that was before the Lord may have helped to restrain evil. 

But wickedness became general after these two groups started mixing together in marriage. That which cannot be unified now became unified in marriage by the sons of God marrying the sons of men. Those who were born again married those of the flesh and clear lines of distinction were being broken.

But the immediate verses after tell us of a general wickedness so bad that God decided to flood the world.

This tells us something about humanity in regards to marriage. Marriage is a holy union that definitely influences both parties in their behavior and way of thinking.
But unfortunately we are more prone to evil than to good. In Genesis 6 a whole world became corrupt through doing exactly this.

Marriage with clear unbelievers is dangerous. If we care much about God at all and if it is a core part of our identity, we should at least take care about this.
How can light and darkness become ‘one flesh’?

Now Paul advised that those who come to the faith who were already in marriage with an unbeliever should not separate for this reason.

But actually taking them in marriage is a dangerous decision.
It is interesting that Genesis 6 mainly talks about the sons (male) taking females. Men especially should watch out for marriage with unbelieving women.
It goes the other way too, but it seems like Scripture presents men as a special target through this tool. Adam was encouraged to eat the fruit by Eve.

Now we see a whole world fall into wickedness after believers marry unbelievers.

We should keep ourselves from the arrogant thought that we of all people would be the exception of this principle. Surely I will not be influenced in such a negative way?

Let them ask themselves if they dare to trust themselves like this and whether it is worth it to put ourselves in that danger.
The principle is that marriage has a lot of influence in how and what we think and do.

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