In my previous article, I concluded our look at the substantive Old Testament texts dealing with divorce. We have previously discussed Deuteronomy 24, and understanding that text is important for interpreting Jesus’ words on divorce, especially when it comes to Matthew 19. If you have not read the article on Deuteronomy 24, please do so before continuing with this post.
When we read the words of Jesus concerning divorce in Matthew 19 with an Old Testament eye, we find Jesus is not laying down new rules for marriage and divorce. Instead, he is settling the age-old argument of “any matter” and “indecency” (seriously, go read about Deuteronomy 24). Let’s begin by reading Matthew’s retelling of the story.
Matthew 19
3 Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?”
Mt 19:3–6, The New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2011).
4 “Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ v 5 and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? 6 So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”
They Asked Jesus The Wrong Question
When Jesus responds to these Pharisees, he completely sidesteps their question, and instead shows them the problem behind their desire to ask these questions. You see, the Pharisees want to know what God views as acceptable divorce, to determine when they were allowed to divorce. Instead, Jesus wants them to recognize that God’s ideal is not divorce (even though God himself experienced divorce). Instead, God calls all people to honor all their covenants (Mal 2:10, 16). Jesus wants these Pharisees to realize that marriage should never be entered into lightly, as we are making a commitment to another person for better or worse. Mining the Scriptures looking for loopholes to end a marriage because a woman burned your toast, or because you found someone more attractive, is never what God intended. And yes, Jewish rabbis of the day actually made these theological arguments from Deuteronomy 24. Just consider this quote as recorded in the Mishna, Gittin 9:10.
9:10 A The House of Shammai say, “A man should divorce his wife only because he has found grounds for it in unchastity,
Jacob Neusner, The Mishnah : A New Translation (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1988), 487.
B “since it is said, Because he has found in her indecency in anything (Dt. 24:).”
C And the House of Hillel say, “Even if she spoiled his dish,
D “since it is said, Because he has found in her indecency in anything.
E R. Aqiba says, “Even if he found someone else prettier than she,
F “since it is said, And it shall be if she find no favor in his eyes (Dt. 24:1).”
To Jesus, the intent of man and woman being made for one another, designed by God to overcome the shortcomings of the other, working together to fulfill God’s design for humanity…that’s what marriage should be. Hillel, Aqiba, and the Pharisees show they have forgotten why marriage even exists, and spend their time looking for the first instance when a marriage can be ended to pursue others.
Is Jesus Ignoring Scripture?
After realizing that Jesus has destroyed their motivation for asking about divorce, the Pharisees are clearly confused. Is Jesus setting aside the Scriptures? The very word of God came through Moses after all (Exod 7:1-7), and Moses clearly indicated that divorce was legal, even requiring a certificate of divorce. So, they question Jesus again.
7 “Why then,” they asked, “did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?”
Mt 19:7–9, The New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2011).
8 Jesus replied, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning. 9 I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery.”
Jesus once again points out that God’s original intent was not for humans to divorce. They were to be together forever in unity with each other and with him. But that’s not what happened. Sin entered the garden, and damaged the relationship between husband and wife, breaking down every human relationship from what God intended. As Derek Kidner so aptly summed it up in his commentary on Genesis, “‘To love and to cherish’ becomes ‘to desire and to dominate.'”
One of the effects of sin was the hardening of our hearts toward one another. This is the root cause of all our struggles in this world. And when our hearts are hard, we act in unkind and unloving ways toward one another. And sadly, this sometimes damages marriages beyond repair. This is why Moses gave the certificate of divorce. Moses was not operating outside the will of God by doing this, but rather God led Moses to navigate the best of a bad situation. But just because God, Moses, and Jesus all realize that bad situations exist, we shouldn’t set bad situations as the bar. We shouldn’t set broken marriages as the ideal.
The Pharisees see the divorce as the standard, and Jesus sets pure hearts and loving, committed marriages as the ideal, just as it was in the beginning before sin ever entered the picture. Sin is a universal problem. Divorce is painful. Jesus calls us to God’s ideal, rather than accepting brokenness as a way of life. Blessed are those who mourn. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. Blessed are the merciful. Blessed are the peacemakers. This is the way of Jesus. And the way of Jesus doesn’t view marriage as just another relationship bound for the trash heap.
Coming Next in Part 2
When I finished writing about Jesus and divorce earlier today, I was sitting at over 3,000 words and wondering if I needed to add more (indeed I do). I know that stopping at this point in Matthew 19 causes many to suggest I’m sidestepping what Jesus says next, or I’m diluting his message. I want to reassure you that I am not stopping here. Jesus, the Pharisees, and the disciples tell us much more in Matthew 19.
We will look at what Jesus has to say about the consequences of an illegitimate divorce, what the shocked reactions of the disciples tell us about their understanding of marriage, and what Jesus has to say about living a single and celibate life.
Additionally we’ll dig into Mark 10, Luke 16, and a real life example of how the misapplication of Jesus’ words caused a well known pastor and his megachurch in the United States to disfellowship a physically and sexually abused woman and children for leaving her husband’s/father’s abuse. They did this because, in their understanding, Jesus would only allow someone to leave this situation if the family had proof this man had committed sexual immorality outside their marriage. The man is now in prison for his crimes against them.
For now, let’s take a break and look at what we have learned so far.
Summary of Biblical Divorce thus far in Matthew 19
- Jesus responds to a question from the Pharisees, which directly quotes the common interpretation of Deuteronomy 24. Jesus’ response is then an interpretation of Deuteronomy 24.
- By responding to one text of the Bible, Jesus did not abolish other texts of the Bible on the same subject. Therefore, Exodus 21 is still a valid teaching about divorce for today (as we’ll see when Paul deals with divorce in 1 Corinthians 7).
- Jesus taught that the one who ends a marriage without valid grounds (the man in the case of Matthew 19, and either party in the case of Mark 10) to marry another is guilty of adultery.
- Notice that Jesus never condemns the victim in these divorces. If one party wrongly divorces the victim, the victim has done no wrong. In this case, one party has sinned and one party is innocent. It is the one who abuses their spouse through an illegitimate ending of the marriage that is guilty.
- I reiterate my original point in this series of posts that being divorced does not make one guilty of sin. Divorce is often caused by sin, but divorce itself is not a sin. In the examples Jesus gives, the wronged party has done no wrong, and should feel no shame for their divorced status. The hard heart of the former spouse is the reason God gave a certificate of divorce, which frees them to marry again.
- Paul’s teachings on divorce draw upon Deuteronomy 24 and Exodus 21, and will further enlighten how to interpret Jesus’ words here.
Living in the Word 
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