Have you ever wondered; What does the bible say on divorce? I’ve always wondered why one of the first things God was concerned about after creating us was that we weren’t alone in life. “It is not good for the man to be alone,” God remarked in Genesis 2:18. So I’ll make him a suitable assistant.
Are you aware that the United States has the world’s third-highest divorce rate?
Unfortunately, 43 percent of first marriages in the United States end in divorce. It gets worse for divorced couples who marry again: 60% of second marriages and 73% of third marriages fail.
As bad as those figures are, the good news is that the divorce rate is gradually declining. One prominent explanation is that couples wait until they are more mature (the late twenties) and have dated for two to five years before marrying.
In these article , we Bible verses, we will tell you a biblical perspective about divorce.
What does the Bible say on divorce?
Matthew 5:31-32
It hath been said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement:
~ Matthew 5:31-32
Divorce was frowned upon in the ancient world by our Lord Jesus Christ. However, in practice, a husband can divorce his wife for nearly any cause and at any moment, which isn’t good.
Women were often regarded as less valuable. Unleased women found it incredibly difficult to do business or possess property.
Divorce meant losing everything, especially for the women in the olden days. That is why our Lord Jesus kicked against it.
Romans 7:2
For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband.
~ Romans 7:2
This Bible portion delves into the link between the law and human sinfulness and divorce.
Paul explains his statement from verse 1 in this and the following verses. He wrote there that the law of Moses regarding divorce only applies to the living.
Similarly, the law of marriage binds two live people together. Paul makes us understand that the legal commitment to that relationship ends when a woman’s spouse dies.
Death is the condition that renders that law null and void concerning the wife’s commitment to her husband.
Malachi 2:16
For the LORD, the God of Israel, saith that he hateth putting away: for one covereth violence with his garment, saith the LORD of hosts: therefore take heed to your spirit, that ye deal not treacherously.
~ Malachi 2:16
“Covering someone with your cloth,” as seen in this verse, is a metaphor for protection in the Old Testament. Ezekiel 16:8 is a typical example in which God depicts His love for Israel through the symbol of man and wife.
Men are expected to “cover” their women as the protector and providers. This is not happening, according to Malachi’s criticism in this verse.
Israeli men are marrying heathen women and divorcing their Jewish wives to do so (Malachi 2:11). (Malachi 2:14). This is the polar opposite of “protection.” It is, in truth, an act of spiritual assault.
This verse’s connotation is clear: God disapproves of divorce. This is either highlighted by a double declaration from God or by equating divorce with a “hate” mindset.
Divorce laws in the Old Testament were never intended to suggest God’s approval. This is strengthened further by the association of “faithlessness” and spiritual harm with divorce in this verse.
What does the Bible say about divorce and remarriage
Genesis 2:24
Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.
~ Genesis 2:24
The account of Adam and Eve union in the garden of Eden makes a point to everyone reading it: we should follow the pattern of marriage as revealed in the rest of God’s Word.
Men must abandon (or “forsake”) both of their parents while remaining faithful to their spouses. They must merge into one flesh.
Because of how God structured marriage, this is undeniably clear that God didn’t welcome divorce and remarrying unless in death of one spouse. Because we know marriage is a gift from God.
Because being alone is insufficient for humanity. Because God perceived a need and supplied Adam with a helper, companion, and wife, because she was extracted from man and constructed from his rib, couples must learn to unite and fight against separation.
Matthew 19:5
And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh?
~ Matthew 19:5
Jesus is responding to a query from several Pharisees trying to trip Him up. They want Him to say something controversial regarding the contentious topic of divorce.
In the previous passage, Jesus recounted Genesis 1:27, which states that God created both male and female humans.
Now Jesus quotes Genesis 2:24, which talks about a man and a woman becoming united in marriage. Of course, Jesus is aware that the Pharisees have read these passages.
His message is that individuals who dismiss divorce and remarry do not cherish what God has revealed to them. Therefore, couples should try their best to stay together and not divorce unless it involves adultery.
Jeremiah 3:1
They say, If a man put away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man’s, shall he return unto her again? shall not that land be greatly polluted? but thou hast played the harlot with many lovers; yet return again to me, saith the LORD.
~ Jeremiah 3:1
Jeremiah concludes his first message by exposing Judah’s spiritual harlotry.
His theme is introduced in the opening verse: God’s commandment (Deut. 24:1-4) prohibited a wife divorced from her first husband and wedded to another from returning to her former love.
Judah, who had separated from her husband and had lived as a prostitute with numerous lovers, was given one last chance to return to him.
God’s grace shines brighter than God’s law. The people had abandoned God and gone whoring away from Him. They’d “played the harlot with numerous lovers.” They had defiled not only themselves but also “their land, with their whoredoms and immorality,” but God is calling them to himself.
What does the Bible say about marriage and divorce
Luke 16:18
Whosoever putteth away his wife, and marrieth another, committeth adultery: and whosoever marrieth her that is put away from her husband committeth adultery.
~ Luke 16:18
Jesus says that Whosoever divorceth his wife, For any other reason than adultery, as the Jews used to do upon every trifling occasion, and for every slight disgust: by which our Lord shows, sins.
The Jews abused and deprived the law as much as it was in their favor.
As married couples, our marriages must be free from adultery and sin, and we must live in love and not seek divorce.
Ephesians 5:33
Nevertheless let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and the wife see that she reverence her husband.
~ Ephesians 5:33
In this passage, Paul passes his remarks on marriage and divorce. First, he reiterates the advice that husbands should love their women as much as they would themselves, in deed and feeling.
Husbands must exhibit the same regard for their spouses for their interests. When husbands love their spouses as they love themselves, they fulfill the Great Commandment also.
Paul then also instructs wives to be diligent in offering their husbands respect. Again, this goes against many cultural norms.
Modern society appears to delight in the concept of wives who are condescending, disrespectful, or unreasonable to their spouses. The Bible considers what some call “empowerment” to be poison. A God-honoring marriage is built on mutual love, respect, unity, and submission.
1 Peter 3:1
Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives;
~ 1 Peter 3:1
Peter mentions personal leadership in this verse, stating that Christian wives should be submissive to their husbands because, with submission at home, there will be peace and no need for divorce.
This does not include guys in general or other women’s husbands. This holds even if the husbands are not believers or do not “follow the word.”
According to Peter, a wife’s “respectful and pure behavior” leads to a peaceful home and has the potential to lead a husband to trust in Christ.
As a result, the husband may start to believe that Christ is to blame for the transformation.
What does the Bible say about moving on after divorce
Hebrews 13:4
Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge.
~ Hebrews 13:4
This Bible portion in Hebrews 13:4 contains numerous ethical guidelines for Christians.
This short, direct commandment on sexual purity in marriage makes no equivocations or equivocations.
This text is very straightforward in its advice on biblical Christian marriage and contains strong warnings against fornication and adultery.
Many individuals nowadays ridicule, disrespect, debase, or disregard the sacred institution of marriage, with an anti-God agenda that permeates the halls of power and strives to dominate our lives today, rather than appreciate the beauty and sacredness of the marriage bed and honoring one’s vows.
Romans 7:3
So then if, while her husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband be dead, she is free from that law; so that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man.
~ Romans 7:3
The book of Romans said that salvation in Christ entails a spiritual death from sin and adultery.
Here, Paul explains how the same concept can signify independence from legal duties. This stanza completes the idea introduced in the previous verse.
It illustrates Paul’s idea that a person who has died is no longer obligated to fulfill Moses’ rule.
He demonstrates this by referring to the “law of marriage,” which binds two individuals together. According to Paul, a married woman is exempt from this prohibition if her husband dies.
Matthew 19:6
Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.
~ Matthew 19:6
Jesus emphasizes His point on marriage and divorce in this bible verse. Marriage is not something that humans have created for themselves via custom and tradition.
Marriage is God’s doing. In this way, he brings a man and a woman together. And no mortal human should seek to divide or separate what God has joined.
Jesus also reveals a crucial exception to this, adultery, but He begins with God’s heart’s most profound and accurate intent. Divorce is not designed to divide those God joins in marriage.
What does the Bible say about divorce?
Mark 10:12
And if a woman shall put away her husband, and be married to another, she committeth adultery.
~ Mark 10:12
The Pharisees asked Jesus a question to catch Him off guard.
He is criticizing males who send their spouses away for little reason. However, he is not speaking to someone who is contemplating divorce, is trapped in an abusive marriage, or is considering remarriage after a divorce.
Getting married after being divorced for unbiblical reasons is adultery, but God will sanctify the new marriage just like any other.
Remarrying is not a sinful state. And anyone who looks at someone who is not their spouse has committed adultery, according to Jesus.
Matthew 19:3
The Pharisees also came unto him, tempting him, and saying unto him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause?
~ Matthew 19:3
The Pharisees influenced popular opinion on when and whether divorce was legal.
Both the leaders and the people held opposing viewpoints. For example, both groups agreed it was legal for a man to divorce his wife, but they differed on why.
One group felt that the wife had committed severe immorality. The other group just said that if a husband was unhappy with his wife for whatever reason, he might divorce her. That is the reason they came to ask Jesus his opinion.
Under normal circumstances, Jewish wives would not have been allowed to initiate divorce at this age. However, the Pharisees wanted Jesus to pick a side in this theological and social conflict. So Jesus told them that couples should try their best to stay together and not divorce unless it involves adultery.
Genesis 2:24
Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.
~ Genesis 2:24
God himself ordered marriage and its many blessings in the beginning, not man.
Since this beautiful union between a man and his wife was formed from the heart of our loving God, who bestowed marriage as a sacred ordinance upon the creation He made, He gave us instructions on how to make it work.
Today, God’s sacred commandment has been breached by the senseless laws of wicked men, who, like the snake in the Garden of Eden, have once again asked, “Has God said…?”
But God will not be mocked since, in His wisdom, God not only issued His laws and decrees to the man at the beginning regarding marriage, but He also promised to help us sustain a good marriage devoid of problems.
What does the Bible say about divorce?
Matthew 19:8
He saith unto them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so.
~ Matthew 19:8
When the Pharisees questioned Jesus about what He had to say about divorce, he revealed the heart of God to them. God’s plan is for marriage to last forever. It’s how He intended the universe to function.
He created people as male and female to unite them in marriage. Jesus has demonstrated that God intends that what He has combined remain joined.
