"Two are better than one...."

[PinkPearl]

9 Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their labor:
10 If either of them falls down,
one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
and has no one to help them up.
11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?
12 Though one may be overpowered,
two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.




Does anyone know what the above bible verse mean?
Does the above refer to marriage, or does it refer to friendship?
And what does "falling down" mean exactly? Does "falling down" refers to falling in faith or what does it refer to?

 

[Received]

I don't think it refers to either marriage or friendship specifically. It just means that when two people are supporting each other (which can mean marriage or friendship), they're both better off than if they were individually doing stuff on their own.

"Falling down" means what it says: falling down, but not necessarily breaking one's hip. It's meant as a metaphor.

 

[Mark51]

For us to be happy, we need to feel that we are appreciated and wanted-yes, loved. And to be loved, we ourselves need to be loving. We should be willing to include others in our activities.

Thus our working together with a good companion brings rewards in the form of assistance, encouragement and protection. Furthermore, have you not found that doing a job with a friend makes it easier, and that the time just seems to fly? Even in the case of an unpleasant task, the sense of drudgery fades into the background.

However, this account in Ecclesiastes 4:9-12-I believe-is counsel more so for married people.

Marriage is more than just the union of two persons of the opposite sex. It consists of many important facets. There are emotional and religious factors, as well as social, recreational, intellectual and financial aspects that must be considered.

In the beginning Jehovah God said: “It is not good for the man to continue by himself. I am going to make a helper for him, as a complement of him.” And so God created Eve and brought her to Adam. From then on, the rule applied: “A man will leave his father and his mother and he must stick to his wife and they must become one flesh.” The words of wise King Solomon, “two are better than one,” can well be applied to marriage.-Genesis 2:18, 24; Ecclesiastes 4:9.

Two are indeed better than one, but for these two to remain strongly and happily united in wedlock, outside help is apparently needed.

Important to the success of marriage is the desire to please each other, but that is not enough. Something else is needed. It is as we read: “A threefold cord cannot quickly be torn in two.” (Ecclesiastes 4:12) Marriage becomes a threefold cord by bringing God into it. This is done by making the marriage vows in the presence of God and recognizing one’s obligation at all times to be pleasing Him, the originator of marriage.