PERILOUS COMPROMISE

Now Solomon brought the daughter of Pharaoh up from the City of David to the house he had built for her, for he said, “My wife shall not dwell in the house of David king of Israel, because the places to which the ark of the Lord has come are holy.”

(2 Chronicles 8:11, NKJV)

King Solomon married the daughter of Pharaoh to make a political alliance with Pharaoh, as was the practice in the ancient world. (1 Kings 3:1) The problem was: 1) God had commanded the Israelites NOT to intermarry with their pagan neighbors; and 2) Solomon's foreign wives led him into pagan religious practices. (Deuteronomy 7:1-5; 1 Kings 11:1-11) The prohibition against intermarriage was not for racial reasons; it was for religious reasons, so that the Israelites would not follow the pagan religious practices of their neighbors. Solomon tried to worship the Lord AND the pagan gods of his wives. It resulted in the split of his kingdom after his death. His compromise was his undoing.

As New Testament Christians, we have a very similar principle - do not be "unequally yoked" with unbelievers. (2 Corinthians 6:14-18) We cannot maintain close relationships with unbelievers and a close relationship with God at the same time. Our relationships with unbelievers will cause us to stray from God, just as Solomon did.

Instead of compromising with ungodliness, we should combat it.

We are in a spiritual warfare, in which we are to destroy any thought or practice that is contrary to God's Word. (2 Corinthians 10:3-6) We simply cannot do this if we are attached to those who are committed to those thoughts and practices. Again, the emphasis is not racial; it is religious.

You can't hold hands with the devil and walk with the Lord.

When you are considering forming relationships or partnerships of any kind, make sure they are with fellow believers who share your beliefs and values.