Paul's statement, "Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers" (2 Cor. 6:14), has been a point of discussion over the years. In this article, we will consider one common misapplication of this phrase, and then consider the true applications of it.

Not Referring To The Marriage Bond
A common misunderstanding of "Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers" is that it applies to marriage. However, three verses later we are told to "come out from among them, and be ye separate" (2 Cor. 6:17a). If we try to apply being "unequally yoked together" to marriage, that would be saying that we should be separated from an unbelieving spouse, but in Paul's first letter to the Corinthians he tells the husband of an unbelieving wife: "let him not put her away" (1 Cor. 7:12), and to the wife of an unbelieving husband he wrote: "let her not leave him" (1 Cor. 7:12). In both cases it was the unbelieving spouse that chose to remain or go, not the Christian. Being "yoked together" here does not refer to the marriage bond.

Between A Believer And An Unbeliever
Adam Clarke thought that "unequally yoked" was a military term, telling us not to leave the Christian ranks,1 but most other commentators would disagree with this interpretation, choosing the more natural and commonly accepted interpretation of the yoking of animals. The most common type of yoke that would have been used in Palestine in those days was one "that rested on the neck (Ge 27:40, etc.). It was provided with straight 'bars' (Le 26:13; Eze 34:27) projecting downward, against which the shoulders of the oxen pressed, and it was held in position by thongs or 'bonds' (Jer 2:20; 5:5; 27:2; 30:8; Isa 58:6, 'bands'), fastened under the animals' throats."2 Using "yoke" in a figurative way was done in the Old Testament, in passages such as Jeremiah 5:5; 27; 28 and Lamentations 3:27. In the New Testament, Jesus said: "my yoke is easy, and my burden is light" (Mt. 11:30). He was not talking about a literal yoke, or using a "military term," He was talking about the yoke of godly service. In Second Corinthians 6:14, Paul is telling the Corinthians not to be "unequally yoked together with unbelievers" because a Christian does not bear the same yoke as an unbeliever!

A Christian Does Not Bear The Same Yoke As Others
The load that a Christian carries is one that works for righteousness. The work of an unbeliever produces unrighteousness. How could such be "yoked together"? They would be working in opposition to one another. Either both of them will get nowhere, or one will have to give into the other, and unfortunately, it is usually the Christian that gives into the path of least resistance and follows after the unbeliever. What fellowship can such have with one another, and "what communion hath light with darkness?" (2 Cor. 6:14). "Can two walk together, except they be agreed?" (Am. 3:3). It is like putting a lamb in a pen with a hungry wolf; they just do not belong together.

"Be Ye Separate, Saith The Lord"
It is not the case that we are to have no interaction with people of the world at all. How could we convert anybody if we were not supposed to have anything to do with a person who is not a Christian? Did not Jesus eat with "publicans and sinners" (Mt. 9:10)? He was not, however, in fellowship with such. It would be hard to even imagine such a thing, but He still loves, and died for us all. In defining "fellowship," the Dictionary of Theology says, "Fellowship implies sharing common interests, desires, and motivations. Fellowship requires that time be spent with another communicating, caring, etc. It carries with it a hint of intimacy."3 When we spiritually separate ourselves from people of the world, it is not a physical separation. Paul said: "I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators: Yet not altogether with the fornicators of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters; for then must ye needs go out of the world" (1 Cor. 5:9-10). The interests of a person of the world and those of a Christian should not be in common, neither desires, nor motivations. There are business dealings in the world that a faithful Christian cannot participate in, not to mention certain recreational past-times. This is not a choice we make, but rather, a command that is to be obeyed: "Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty" (2 Cor. 6:17-18).

End Notes

1 Adam Clarke's Commentary. Ed. Gary Gallant. Online Bible CD. Version 2.00.02. Winterbourne, Ontario: Larry Pierce, 2005.

2 Burton S. Easton. "Yoke." International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Online Bible CD. Version 2.00.02. Winterbourne, Ontario: Larry Pierce, 2005.

3 Dictionary of Theology. Online Bible CD. Version 2.00.02. Winterbourne, Ontario: Larry Pierce, 2005.