Matthew 5:32
But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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Jesus highlights that when a husband divorces his wife for reasons other than her unfaithfulness, he makes her an adulteress by enabling her to remarry. He's not just addressing the act of divorce itself, but the profound ripple effect it has, making the man accountable for the spiritual adultery of the woman he cast off.
Jesus is elevating the Mosaic Law, exposing the flawed interpretations of the religious leaders that allowed for casual divorce. He contrasts their lax standards with God's intended permanence of marriage, emphasizing that even under the old covenant, divorce was tightly regulated, not a matter of personal preference. This teaching directly challenges the common practice of the time and sets a much higher bar for marital fidelity and commitment.
The Old Testament allowed divorce, but Jesus elevates the standard. What does this mean for us today?
Jesus is speaking to a culture where divorce was becoming increasingly casual. The Mosaic Law, found in Deuteronomy, provided a 'certificate of divorce' which, while regulating the process, still permitted divorce for various reasons. Many Jews at the time interpreted this as a full endorsement, believing that as long as they followed the procedure, they were in the clear.
Jesus cuts through this legalistic loophole. He doesn't say the Mosaic Law was wrong, but that it was given in a specific context, accommodating human 'hardness of heart.' Jesus, however, brings us back to the original, intended design of marriage – a sacred, God-ordained union. He calls for a higher standard, one rooted in faithfulness and the original sanctity of marriage, not just the letter of the law.
Jesus provides an exception for divorce, but what does it truly signify within the context of marriage's sacred bond?
The phrase 'except on the ground of sexual immorality' (or 'fornication' in some translations) is crucial. It's not a casual loophole, but points to a fundamental violation of the marriage covenant.
Think of marriage as a sacred vow, a deep, binding commitment before God. Sexual immorality breaks that core commitment. Jesus isn't endorsing easy divorce; He's acknowledging that when one partner fundamentally violates the marriage vow through sexual unfaithfulness, the bond is so severely damaged that it creates a situation where divorce becomes a tragic, but sometimes necessary, consequence.
Crucially, Jesus then addresses the consequences of divorce and remarriage: 'makes her commit adultery.' By unjustly divorcing a wife, a man essentially casts her out into a position where any subsequent marriage she enters becomes adultery in God's eyes. Similarly, marrying a divorced woman (under unjust circumstances) also constitutes adultery. This highlights the gravity and permanence Jesus attaches to marriage.
Understand the original words
porneia · Greek Noun
A broad term for sexual sin and unchastity, encompassing any sexual activity outside the biblical marriage covenant between a man and a woman.
moicheuō · Greek Verb
The violation of the marriage covenant through sexual relations with someone other than one's spouse, breaking the 'one flesh' union.
Jesus’ teaching on divorce in Matthew 5:32 directly challenged the prevailing lax interpretations of the Mosaic Law, particularly the lenient views held by the school of Hillel, and called His followers back to a higher, God-ordained standard for marriage.
c. 1400 BC
Mosaic Law Promulgated
The Law given through Moses, including Deuteronomy 24:1-4 concerning divorce, is established. This law permitted a husband to divorce his wife by giving her a certificate of divorce under certain conditions, though its interpretation and application would later become a point of contention.
c. 1st Century BC - 1st Century AD
Rabbinic Debates on Divorce
During the Second Temple period, Jewish rabbis engaged in significant debate over the interpretation of the divorce laws. The more lenient school of Hillel allowed divorce for a wide range of reasons, including a wife displeasing her husband, while the stricter school of Shammai limited permissible grounds to sexual immorality.
c. AD 27-30— this verse
Jesus Teaches the Sermon on the Mount
Jesus delivers the Sermon on the Mount, addressing various aspects of the Law, including marriage and divorce. In Matthew 5:32, He directly confronts the popular interpretations of His time, reasserting a stricter standard for marriage and divorce than that commonly practiced.
c. AD 50-52
This Old Testament passage outlines the 'bill of divorcement' that Jesus references, showing the legal allowance for divorce that He is now correcting and elevating the standard for.
Jeremiah 3:1This prophetic passage uses the imagery of a woman divorcing her husband and then remarrying another to illustrate Israel's spiritual unfaithfulness to God, highlighting the severe consequences of breaking covenant bonds.
1 Corinthians 7:10-11The Apostle Paul directly echoes Jesus' teaching here, commanding that a divorced woman should not remarry, further emphasizing the permanence of the marriage bond in the Christian community.
Romans 7:2-3This passage uses the analogy of a wife being bound to her husband by law, but released if her husband dies or if she is freed by divorce, to explain spiritual union and release, directly paralleling the concept of marriage dissolution.
calvinMatthew 5:31-32: "It hath been said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement:"
Again, it hath been said, Whoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement. [408] 32. But I say to you, That whosoever shall put away his wife, except on account of unchastity, causeth her to commit adultery: and whosoever shall marry a woman that is put away committeth adultery.
Whosoever putteth away his wife, and marrieth another, committeth a…
henryMatthew 5:27-32: "Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:"
5:27-32 Victory over the desires of the heart, must be attended with painful exertions. But it must be done. Every thing is bestowed to save us from our sins, not in them. All our senses and powers must be kept from those things which lead to transgression. Those who lead others into temptation to sin, by dress or in other ways, or leave them in it, or expose them to it, make themselves guilty…
Jesus highlights that when a husband divorces his wife for reasons other than her unfaithfulness, he makes her an adulteress by enabling her to remarry. He's not just addressing the act of divorce itself, but the profound ripple effect it has, making the man accountable for the spiritual adultery of the woman he cast off.
Jesus is elevating the Mosaic Law, exposing the flawed interpretations of the religious leaders that allowed for casual divorce. He contrasts their lax standards with God's intended permanence of marriage, emphasizing that even under the old covenant, divorce was tightly regulated, not a matter of personal preference. This teaching directly challenges the common practice of the time and sets a much higher bar for marital fidelity and commitment.
Jesus is elevating the Mosaic Law, exposing the flawed interpretations of the religious leaders that allowed for casual divorce. He contrasts their lax standards with God's intended permanence of marriage, emphasizing that even under the old covenant, divorce was tightly regulated, not a matter of personal preference. This teaching directly challenges the common practice of the time and sets a much higher bar for marital fidelity and commitment.
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Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians
The Apostle Paul, in his letter to the Corinthian church, also addresses marriage and divorce, referencing Jesus' teaching (1 Corinthians 7:10-11). He upholds the principle that a wife should not separate from her husband, unless divorced for sexual immorality.
"But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery." — Jesus highlights that when a husband divorces his wife for reasons other than her unfaithfulness, he makes her an adulteress by enabling her to remarry. He's not just addressing the act of divorce it…
