Malachi: Before the SilenceSample

Mocking Marriage

Malachi's prophecy has much to say about the sanctity of marriage and its mistreatment at the hands of God's people. His rebuke is born not merely of God's personal detest for divorce but also of the havoc unfaithful spouses wreak on their own families.

Didn’t the Lord make you one with your wife? In body and spirit you are his. And what does he want? Godly children from your union. So guard your heart; remain loyal to the wife of your youth. (Malachi 2:15)

Malachi's words, though written some four centuries before the birth of Christ, bear weight today. A 2014 study of U.S. marriage statistics found that one of every three Christian marriages ends in divorce. This same study revealed the divorce rate among nominal Christians (those who self-identify as "Christian" but do not actively practice their faith or regularly attend church with their families) to be as much as 20% higher than the national average!

The Apostle Paul, in his letter to the church at Ephesus, expounds upon Malachi's message on marriage. He offers, at length, the formula for healthy, loving, Christ-affirming matrimony among men and women (Ephesians 5:21-33). The author of Hebrews further echoes Paul's sentiments as he exhorts, "Give honor to marriage and remain faithful to one another in marriage" (Hebrews 13:4a).

The Gospel of Matthew clarifies Jesus' position on marriage and fidelity. Let His be the final Word on the matter:

Since they are no longer two but one, let no one split apart what God has joined together.” … Moses permitted divorce only as a concession to your hard hearts, but it was not what God had originally intended. (Matthew 19:6, 8)