Two Are Better Than One
Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their labor. For if they fall, one will lift up his companion. Ecclesiastes 4:9-10a (NKJV)
When it comes to our marriages, many times it may feel like you wouldn’t have these problems if you were single, but often we forget to acknowledge the benefits of a marriage done right. In this passage in Ecclesiastes, it is talking about the value of a good friend. Your spouse should be your best friend, so there is no reason why this should not also relate to our marriages. In these verses it gives two reasons why two are better than one.
The first reason: Two people have a good reward for their labor. When two people are on the job, the outcome is much more fruitful than one. It is often done more efficiently since two brains come together to think of how to do it the most efficient. It is often done more quickly because there are four hands rather than two. You may be thinking this does not apply to your marriage because you do not work with your spouse. Well, we beg to differ; you do work with your spouse. You are the managers of your home! With two on the job you are able to tend to different areas of your life at the same time. One may be off at work, while the other puts the baby down for a nap. One may be at the bank, while the other is at the grocery store. One may be picking up the kids from school, while the other is working on the taxes. You get the picture. Having a spouse makes the labor easier and more efficient. This is why it is so hard for single parents to raise their children, work, tend to the finances, run all the errands, etc. We are not saying that it is the single parent’s fault for not staying married (they may have been abandoned or something), but we are saying that it is God’s design that once married you are to stay married. The Lord wants you to have a partner/ companion to help you accomplish taking care of the children along with providing for the family. Two are better than one.
The second reason: Two people can help the other one up when he/she falls. We are human; we err. It is bound to happen that at some point we fail or falter. God has designed us to need friendship (this may come in the form of your spouse) to ride the rollercoaster of life together. A good friend loves at all times. That means they are to love at the low points and help you when you made a mistake. How blessed is the institution of marriage that is called to love, to cover and to minister to one another in the most intimate way. God calls those in a marriage to an even higher level of friendship. The hardest hurts and the most difficult times to forgive are almost always in the marital relationship. The positive side is this is where God’s grace and mercy can be shown to the greatest degree! Two are better than one because if one is practicing grace, love, mercy and forgiveness, the other can feel the full effects of God’s love through them and experience the goodness of God on a new level!
Remember “ two are better than one” is a Biblical principle designed to help you take your friendship (or your best friendship in your spouse) to the designed purpose that God created, and that is to help each other.