The latest edition of In Hope arrived in my inbox earlier this week, and I just now got the chance to read it. Dr. Timms, the author, discusses the Scripture from Genesis 2 where it is written, "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh."

He writes how unnatural this is for me, as "The Hebrew word (dabaq) is used elsewhere in the Old Testament when Ruth clung to her mother-in-law amidst their mutual grief (Ruth 1:14). It also appears in multiple texts that exhort Israel to "cling to the Lord your God" (for example, Deut 10:20; 11:22; and Josh 22:5)."

He continues, "This is the stuff of infatuation and devotion -- rarified air for many males once a marriage sets in. We cleave to our jobs, our sports, our toys, or our TVs. We cleave to power, fame, and success. But cleave to our wives?"

Then he delivers the knock-out blow to me and my fellow men: "Perhaps this highlights one of the reasons why many marriages fail completely or fail to produce the kind of intimacy that pre-marital counselors glow about. We don't cleave. We can't cleave. We fear it and resist it because, at best, it suggests weakness on our part. But the apostle Paul packs the toughest punch.He called it a mystery (Ephesians 5:31-32). And then connects this 'marriage text' to Jesus and the Church. Those who do not cleave to their wives quite probably do not cleave to Christ, either."

Take a moment and read the entire text, linked above, it'll be worth every second.