New Video: Addressing Divorce and Remarriage Issues from a Whole Bible Perspective
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Tag Archives: Divorce
Divorce and Remarriage: A Messy Business — My Thoughts
I got this email question today from one of this blog’s readers about divorce and remarriage:
Natan, what about the provision in Torah for a woman to marry another man if she is divorced? I get confused when Yeshus said that if a man divorced his wife that he causes her to commit adultery. This has been a hot button issue for my wife and I for years. Insights?
Here is my answer:
Most churches allow for divorce, but some do not permit remarriage under any circumstances. This is an extreme position, although those who teach this can make a strong case that this is what the Bible teaches.
Some churches teach that divorce and remarriage is acceptable in some instances, but not in other. This is where it gets sticky and depends on the interpretations of many clear as well as some difficult to understand biblical passages. Each marriage and divorce case is unique. Each situation needs to be evaluated case by case based on biblical guidelines. My thoughts below on divorce and remarriage are only general in nature, and are based on my best understanding of scriptural principles.
Some churches take the approach that all sins can be forgiven except the sin of divorce and remarriage (D and R). This would mean that D and R is the unpardonable sin for which the blood of Yeshua is ineffective. I do not hold to this position.
Scripture says that YHVH hates divorce. Why? Because he had to divorce his own (spiritual) wife, Israel, because of her adultery. But he’s going to remarry her, but this time redeemed Israel, which is a new, spiritually regenerated bride. Furthermore, Yeshua died to pay the price for her capital sin of adultery. On our website (www.hoshanarabbah.org), I have a teaching about the prophetic implications of divorce where I discuss this issue.
The Torah allows for divorce and remarriage following certain protocols. Yeshua Continue reading
Yeshua’s Thoughts on Divorce
Mark 10:2–10, (cp. Matt 5:31–32 and 19) Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife? Yeshua confirms the fact that divorce wasn’t part of YHVH’s original marriage plan, but that Moses allowed divorce only for a specific reason.
In the Torah, divorce was permitted for lack of virginity at the time of marriage, and for specific sexual sins committed that violated the marriage covenant (note Deut 22:13–14 cp. Deut 24:1–4), yet eventually (by the time of Yeshua), among some of the Jews, the divorce laws had become so relaxed that a man could put his wife away for any reason (Matt 19:3). To those Jews who had such a liberal interpretation of the Torah’s divorce laws, Yeshua was addressing not what the Torah specifically said, but what the religious-legal interpretations had become of those laws.
To bring the concept of marriage and divorce back to the Creator’s original design, Yeshua upheld that, according to the Torah—YHVH’s master plan, marriage between a man and a woman was inviolable and that divorce was permissible only for certain gross sexual sins and for (irreconcilable) hardness of heart (see more at Matt 19:8–9).
The bottom line of what Yeshua is saying is this: YHVH’s highest ideal is for a man and woman to marry and become one, as YHVH Elohim (the Godhead — the Father, the Holy Spirit/Mother, and the Son) is one, of which the marriage is to be a reflection. Sadly, because of the hardness of the sinful human heart, divorce happens, which Moses permitted under certain circumstances, but not for just any reason. Divorce, though permissible, is YHVH’s lowest ideal for the family, since it leaves in its wake so much ruination.
Mark 10:10–13, Divorces…little children. The proximity to Yeshua’s teaching on divorce with his blessing the little children presents us with an interesting juxtaposition of ideas. It’s as if the Gospel writer is obliquely conveying to us the fact that divorce is detrimental to families — especially to children.
Mark 10:11, Divorces his wife and marries another. Tertullian (A.D. 160–220), the early church father, understands this to mean that he who divorces his wife in order to marry another does so unlawfully and is thus an adulterer. He concedes that Moses allowed for divorce and that Yeshua accepts this provision in the Torah, but not if it’s done for the wrong reasons and, therefore, unlawfully (Ante-Nicene Church Father, vol 3; “Tertullian Against Marcion”; Book 4, chap 34; pp. 404–405; Hendrickson, 1995).
New Video: Abraham on Dealing With Struggles in Marriage & Ministries
The Bible is a book of life about real people with real struggles in the marriages, ministries, families, friends and associates. We can gain strength, comfort and wisdom from people like Abraham as this video explains.
Yeshua Teaches About Divorce
A commentary on Deuteronomy 24:1–4
While on this earth, Yeshua taught on many subjects pertaining to all areas of human existence—136 in all. He taught on everything from angels to worship, from money to taxes, sexuality to celibacy, fasting to food, joy to sorrow and yes, on the subject of divorce, as well (see Matt 19:1–12).
Malachi says that YHVH hates putting away, a Hebraism for divorce (2:16). Yet Yeshua says in Matthew 19 that in the Torah divorce was permitted if one of the parties had a hardened heart resulting in irreconcilable differences. Adultery was cause for divorce if the offending party refused to repent.
YHVH married the whole House of Israel (i.e., all twelve tribes) at Mount Sinai and the Torah was the marriage agreement (See The Bible: The Good News – The Story of Two Lovers & YHVH’s Set-Apart Feast Days Are the Outline of that Love Story: A Plan of Redemption where the Jewish wedding is outlined historically and prophetically in a biblical context, available at http://www.hoshanarabbah.org/pdfs/love_story.pdf). Ezekiel describes the marriage between YHVH and Israel succinctly and allegorically in Ezekiel 16:6–8.
Yet because both the Houses of Judah and Israel committed spiritual adultery by whoring after foreign gods and lovers and failed to live up to their marital agreements they had made with YHVH at Mount Sinai when they said “I do” three times (Exod 19:8; 25:3, 7). YHVH sent prophet after prophet as recorded in the pages of the Tanakh (Hebrew Scriptures) in attempts to turn the heart of Israel back to him, yet her heart was hardened toward him and she refused to repent of her adulteries; therefore, YHVH was forced to do that which he hates and dissolve the marriage and divorce Israel.
In light of these issues, what are the prophetic implications of the divorce of YHVH from the nation of Israel and his future remarriage to the same nation? To understand this issue and to gain a deeper understanding of YHVH’s wonderful plan of salvation for his people, read “The Prophetic Implications of Divorce in Light of the Two Houses of Israel,” which is available at http://www.hoshanarabbah.org/pdfs/divorce.pdf.
New Video: Yeshua Teaches on Divorce and Children
In this video, Natan discusses how Yeshua teaches that divorce isn’t YHVH intended ideal marital situation, but that due to the hardness of the human heart, Moses (obviously, with Elohim’s permission) allowed for it (under certain stringent conditions, as the Torah spells out).
Lest anyone get the idea that the Bible permits divorce for any reason (as the Pharisaical school of Hillel taught), Yeshua asserts that divorce and remarriage (often) results in an adulterous situation.
Then the Gospel writer seeming switches gears and records Yeshua’s blessing the children and encouraging this disciples to become like little children in order to enter the kingdom of Elohim.
Is Yeshua’s discussion about divorce and his blessing of the children just random and unrelated events in the Gospel narrative, or are these events strangely related employing a typically Hebraic teaching style to teach an important lesson? What this video to find out.
Divorce Is a Sad Fact of Life — A Biblical View Point
Matthew 19:8, Put away your wives. Most churches allow for divorce, but some do not permit remarriage under any circumstances. This is may seem like an extreme position, those who teach this can make a strong case that this is the Bible’s position.
Some churches teach that divorce and remarriage is acceptable in some instances, but not in others. This is where it gets sticky and depends on the interpretations of many clear as well as some unclear biblical passages. The truth is that each marriage and divorce case is unique. Each situation needs to be evaluated case by case based on biblical guidelines. My thoughts (below) on the subject of divorce and remarriage are only general in nature.
Some churches take the approach that all sins can be forgiven except the sin of divorce and remarriage. This would mean that divorce and remarriage is the unpardonable sin for which the blood of Yeshua is ineffective. This is a biblically untenable position.
The Scriptures say that YHVH hates divorce (Mal 2:16). Why? Continue reading