Is Divorce Permissable?
September 27, 2020
Commentary
The religious leaders had tried on several occasions to trick Jesus with questions and had failed. Now we find them trying again with a very controversial issue. Is it ever right for a man to divorce his wife (vv. 1-3)? It is interesting how Jesus answers by saying, “Have you read the Bible?” (v. 4).
The Jewish nation was divided over this issue. Followers of Hillel felt a man could divorce his wife for almost any reason. The followers of Shammai took a stricter view which said that no man could divorce his wife unless she was guilty of sexual sin. Jesus didn’t speak to this issue but reminded these religious leaders of God’s original purpose of marriage (Gen. 1:27). That being that God joins a man and woman together in an inseparable bond which is even a higher calling than the parent child relationship (vv. 5-6). For a man is to leave his father and mother and be joined in a one-flesh relationship (Gen. 2:24). The issue is not what saith Hillel or Shammai but “What saith the Lord?” Marriage is not merely a social ceremony as many declare today. It is far more than a piece of paper. God joins a man and a woman into a single family unit.
The Pharisee then asked why Moses commanded divorce for the people of his time (v. 7). They were interpreting Moses’ law as though it were a commandment. The Lord’s answer was that Moses gave this permission “because of the hardness of your hearts” (v. 8). He actually corrected the Pharisees by saying that Moses did not command but permitted divorce because of their sinful hearts. Those who heard His words then reasoned that if there were no grounds for divorce one would be better off never to marry (vv. 9-12).
Application
For the most part our society is very soft on divorce and this is even becoming true in many churches. I must teach families how God hates divorce and that divorce should never be considered as an option. Marriage is for a lifetime.
Matthew 19:1– 8 (NET)
1 Now when Jesus finished these sayings, he left Galilee and went to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan River. 2 Large crowds followed him, and he healed them there.
3 Then some Pharisees came to him in order to test him. They asked, “Is it lawful to divorce a wife for any cause?” 4 He answered, “Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator made them male and female, 5 and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and will be united with 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.” 7 They said to him, “Why then did Moses command us to give a certificate of dismissal and to divorce her?” 8 Jesus said to them, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because of your hard hearts, but from the beginning it was not this way.
Illustration: Divorce Rate Rising
The United States Census Bureau reports that in 1920 there was one divorce for every seven marriages, in 1940 one divorce for every six marriages, in 1960 one divorce for every four marriages, in 1972 one divorce for every three marriages, and in 1977 one divorce for every two marriages. The divorce rate in the United States has continued to climb and it appears that there will soon, if not already, one divorce for every marriage. (The Divorce Myth by J. Carl Laney page 12).