Two are better than one

Ecclesiastes 4:9 (NIV)

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work

J. I. Packer once said, “Ecclesiastes is the one book of the Bible that is expressly designed to turn us into realists.”  This verse is a good example.  Can anyone deny the reality that two working together get more done and profit more than just one working by himself? 

If you read verses 9 through 12 of Ecclesiastes 4, you will learn that there are four examples of the truth that “two are better than one”

1.   working together (v 9)

2.   walking (physically present) together (v 10)

3.   warmth together (v 11)

4.   watching over one another (v 12).

In marriage, these truths are essentially “self-evident”.  A husband and wife working and walking together will make the other even better.  Don’t you agree with the truth of verse 10 that one either of you falls, the other will lift up his/her companion.  Isn’t it true that when one spouse is down, discouraged, or depressed, the other spouse is not?  If you are married, in a successful marriage, haven’t you witnessed this kind of dynamic? 

A husband and wife certainly provide warmth when they lie together, no question about that.  And, when verse 12 talks about how one who is alone being overpowered, could this be referring to your #1 enemy (Satan…..did you know that the word Satan means “adversary”?).  In a strong marriage relationship, it is much more difficult for Satan to overpower both husband and wife than it is if either of them is alone.   After all, what did God say after creating Adam?  “It is not good for man to be alone”.

When Ecclesiastes 4:12 concludes with the statement; “A cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart”, who do you think are the three strands?  The husband, the wife, and the Lord in the center.  If you are married, is Jesus Christ at the center of your relationship with one another?  If you are not married, will Jesus be at the center whenever you enter such a relationship?  The choice of your future spouse should depend on his or her willingness to allow Jesus to be Lord of your marriage.