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The Biblical Teaching on Divorce.

It may come as a surprise to some people but the fact is that the Bible does not give clear teaching on divorce as an act, simply because it is recognised from the beginning that it is a breakdown in God’s purposes. God’s purpose was that two people come together as one, and made one by an act of commitment, followed by sexual union, should continue as one until separated by death. As Genesis 2.24 puts it, ‘therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother and shall cleave to his wife, and they shall be made one flesh’.

The act of sexual union is considered to be important. It is by that act that they are made one, joined together in the act by God, and of it Jesus says, ‘what God has joined together, let not man put asunder’ (Mark 10.9).

This fact of union by the sexual act is stressed in 1 Corinthians 6.15-16 where Paul points out that to have sexual union with a prostitute is to be ‘made one’ with her, and he refers to Genesis 2.24 in this context.

Thus where a wife has a sexual union with other than her husband, she commits adultery, and if the man then ‘puts her away’ i.e. divorces her, he is not causing her to commit adultery as she has already done so, whereas if he puts her away for any other reason, he is causing her to commit adultery (Matthew 5.32).

So adultery is seen as a sexual act with a third party, whereby the sexual union of marriage is broken. This is why in Deuteronomy 24.1 a man who finds a ‘matter of nakedness’ in his wife , which suggests impropriety with another man (although there were a whole range of Rabbinic disputes about this), can write her a bill of divorcement. She is then permitted to marry again (because in those days a woman had no other means of survival), and it is now stipulated that once having put her away, the first husband may never take her again once she has remarried.

But this being allowed to remarry does not alter the fact that she has committed adultery, and any man who marries her is also seen as committing adultery (Luke 16.18).

If a man had intercourse with a married woman other than this both parties were to be put to death (Leviticus 20.10), although there were extra-Biblical arrangements whereby compensation was accepted instead. (Presumably the difference between Deuteronomy 24.1 and here is that they have been caught in the act, whereas in the other case in Deuteronomy the husband has found out about it and is acting on that information).

So Luke 16.18 tells us that once a woman has committed adultery, any relations she has are adulterous, because they accentuate the breaking of God’s bonding.

It should be noted that this teaching on divorce in Deuteronomy is not a positive teaching on divorce, giving permission for such an act, but a rather sad admission that God’s purpose in marriage can fail because of human weakness, resulting in the fact that in that case, where there has been sexual impropriety by the wife, a way out is provided.

Thus Jesus said of this ‘for the hardness of your heart He gave you this precept’ (Mark 10.5), and immediately went on to stress that marriage was binding for life as a result of sexual union. Jesus adds the fact that for a man to divorce his wife and marry another is also to commit adultery (Luke 16.18).

What then can we conclude from these preparatory remarks?

1. The first union of a man with a woman by commitment and sexual union is binding for life, having made the couple one before God.

2. Any other act of sexual union by a previously ‘united’ person is thereby branded ‘adultery’, a breaking of this bond made by God. This equally applies to a man who has put away his wife and married another. How this applies to a man who takes a second wife along with his first we are not told.

3. This adultery is seen as a serious matter which brings judgment from God.

But this analysis leaves a huge number of unanswered questions. For example, given the above, what is the position of a man or woman whose partner has committed adultery? Once a marriage has broken down for these reasons are any further acts of sexual union termed adulterous? And what does this involve for men or women who remarry because they have divorced an unfaithful partner? How seriously are we to view adultery? What of a battered wife or husband, whose marriage situation is untenable? What about a marriage that has irretrievably broken down?

Let us first stress that Jesus makes very clear that His basic teaching is that no man or woman may divorce their partner (and this includes separating from an ‘official partner’ - not necessarily legally married - made official by an act of commitment and sexual union) except as a result of an adulterous act.

Indeed in Mark 10.2-12 He appears to go further, for here He speaks to those who are seeking approval for divorce and points out that marriage and its equivalent is permanent before God and cannot be broken. Here any sexual union that breaks it is adulterous. This is the general truth. In Matthew 19. 3-9, however, Jesus appears to ameliorate this position for He adds the proviso, ‘except it be for fornication’ (unlawful sexual union by the wife in this instance), which would appear to suggest that once the other party has committed such an act the ‘innocent’ party is free to marry again without the union being adulterous. This is in contrast to a person who marries a ‘guilty’ party, and thereby themselves become adulterous (Luke 16.18).

It would appear that the difference is that in the one case the unlawful sexual union of the other party has somehow broken the original union, thereby freeing the ‘innocent’ party from being guilty of adultery when he/she remarries (the bond thus having already been broken), whereas to marry the one who has engaged in unlawful sexual union is to perpetuate the sin, because it is to benefit from and perpetuate the sinful act. This brings out how serious the unlawful sexual union is seen to be. It has broken down what God has joined.

The Bible is everywhere quite clear about God’s attitude to adultery. It is a heinous thing. It is forbidden (Exodus 20.14), deserves the penalty of death (Leviticus 20.10), excludes from participation in the reign of God (1 Corinthians 6. 9-10; Galatians 5.19-21) and will be judged by God (Hebrews 13.4).

Thus it would appear that divorce is permitted to the ‘innocent’ party where the other party has committed adultery, whereas the ‘guilty’ party is ‘forever guilty’. However, and it must be stressed that this does not take one bit away from the seriousness of the sin of adultery and unlawful sexual union, it should be noted that its stain can be removed by genuine repentance and submission to the mercy of God. Indeed 1 Corinthians 6.11 makes this clear. ‘You were fornicators and adulterers’, says Paul, speaking to Christians about their past before they became Christians, but ‘you are washed, you are sanctified, you are justified in the Name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God’. Thus the stain of adultery has been removed, and the person is clean before God.

Furthermore, Jesus was willing to offer forgiveness to a woman taken in adultery, conditional on ceasing to commit adultery (John 8. 3 - 11).

This does not give a blank cheque (check) to people to get divorced and then somehow (whatever their religious viewpoint) obtain ‘forgiveness’. Paul and Jesus are not referring to easy-going Christianity, but to a deep repentance and commitment which changes a persons whole attitude and life. To commit adultery (or engage in casual sex which is equally heinous) is a deep sin which no committed Christian would engage in, and is one to be truly repented of, not as a convenience but as a life commitment. It can be forgiven, but only after a change of heart and mind, and by coming to God through Christ for cleansing and forgiveness. Then, and only then, a ‘guilty’ previously divorced person can remarry without stain because the stain has been removed (but not get divorced, this would be to recommit adultery).

However, there are certain situations where it would seem that God allows a certain amount of concession, admittedly ‘for the hardness of men’s hearts’. Unfortunately the world is not full of people who live in complete obedience to God and His purposes. Thus certain concessions are made.

In Ezra 10 the people of God have married ‘strange wives’ i.e. those who are not in submission to the God of Israel. Here it would appear that it was not only permitted, but required, that divorce should take place (presumably where they proved unwilling to ‘convert’). To be married to one who might take one away from true faith and obedience to God was seen as something to be abhorred, and therefore resulted in a new concession in respect of divorce. They could be ‘put away’. It must, however, be recognised that this was an unusual situation where the very existence of the people of God was in danger.

It should be noted that where Paul is advising celibacy for the cause of Christ (1 Corinthians 7) he allows separation from the spouse (presumably for spiritual purposes) but not divorce and remarriage (vv 10-11).

He also stresses that there is no requirement to separate from unbelieving husbands and wives. The idea would seem to be indeed that it is right for them to continue together. But if the unbeliever departs, it is acceptable, and the Christian is ‘not under bondage in this case’. They have been deserted, as it were, ‘for Christ’s sake’.

Some see this as permission to divorce and remarry, and that may well be the assumption, but it may simply mean that the Christian is not under stress to seek to bring them back. However in the context, where he has been arguing it is better to marry than to burn with desire, permission to divorce and remarry would seem probable. Technically the acts are still ‘adultery’, but in these cases presumably permissible adultery because achieving a greater good.

But what about a case where a man is ill-treating his wife, or the wife her husband? This is nowhere dealt with, presumably because in those days a woman was so dependent on male support she had nowhere to go except her own home, where she would remain ‘single’. However someone who believes that violence to a spouse is not wrong is as much a heretic as someone who believes in idolatry. Both misrepresent God.

Technically it would seem that to divorce in this case is to make a remarriage adulterous. But it must be considered that that while this is so, it does not necessarily rule such a situation out. Jesus is dealing with God’s ideal, something which is demanded of those who would follow Him, but we have already seen that there are circumstances where that can be over-ruled, not overruling the fact that the acts are adulterous, but allowing them for a greater good.

It is quite clear from all this that any suggestion that two Christians can divorce while they are both genuinely living a Christian life is completely ruled out. The Bible knows nothing of ‘irretrievable breakdown’. But clearly a consistent wife or husband beater is not living a genuine Christian life and this may be seen as altering the circumstances.

Summary.

It would appear that the Biblical teaching on divorce and adultery can be summarised as follows:

1) An act of commitment by a man and woman, combined with the act of sexual union, is seen as final and irreversible. The couple are thereby joined together by God and made one until death. To break this union is to go against God.

2) Certainly in the case of the man Jesus taught that the wife’s adultery somehow cancelled this bond so that the man could marry again without being seen by God as adulterous. This can therefore also presumably be applied to the woman.

3) Any outside act of sexual union by a married, or divorced, woman is adulterous and also causes the one with whom she ‘unites’ to commit adultery. But 2 above may be the exception. The same applies to an adulterous man.

4) There are rare occasions were divorce is recommended or permitted where the preservation of faith is at stake, presumably because that is the greater good. (Thus the ultimatum - ‘ you either give up Christianity or I leave you’ would seem to be reasonable grounds for divorce before God).

5) Adultery can be forgiven on being followed by true repentance, spiritual cleansing, and commitment not to sin so again. Where this repentance, cleansing and recommitment follows a divorce it may be seen as allowing remarriage..

6) It is possible that continued violence of a spouse might be seen as good cause for divorce on the grounds that it is equivalent to being married to an unbeliever. To believe that you can do violence to a loved one can be considered to be as heretical as believing that Jesus is a demi-god and no one can be expected to continue to live with someone who regularly treats them violently.

7) Irretrievable breakdown is not a Christian grounds for divorce. It is questionable whether indeed this is possible with Christians, as in following the teaching of Christ they should be able to achieve the love and forbearance that removes the breakdown. This is the invention of a world that considers temporary happiness as more important than obedience to God.

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