Overview
"For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh." — Genesis 2:24 BSB
Marriage is God's design for human relationship, established in creation and affirmed throughout Scripture as a covenant of profound significance. The biblical teaching on marriage, divorce, and remarriage has shaped Christian understanding of commitment, fidelity, and the nature of covenant bonds for millennia. This doctrine addresses one of life's most consequential decisions and invites believers to understand God's heart regarding permanent unions, the gravity of marital dissolution, and the circumstances under which Scripture addresses remarriage after divorce.
The biblical perspective on these matters requires careful examination of Old Testament law, New Testament teaching, and the example of Christ Himself. Rather than presenting a series of arbitrary rules, Scripture reveals principles rooted in God's character and His desire for human flourishing within the covenant bond of marriage.
Biblical Account
God established marriage at creation as a lifelong union. "So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man's ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said, 'This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called woman, for she was taken out of man.' For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh." — Genesis 2:21-24 BSB
This original design emphasizes the permanence and exclusivity of the marital bond. The concept of "one flesh" indicates a comprehensive union—spiritual, emotional, and physical—that reflects God's intention for marriage to be indissoluble.
The Old Testament permitted divorce under specific circumstances. Moses allowed a man to divorce his wife if he found something displeasing in her, provided he gave her a written certificate of divorce (Deuteronomy 24:1). However, Jesus indicated that this permission represented a concession to human hardness of heart rather than God's original design. "Jesus replied, 'Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because of the hardness of your hearts. But from the beginning it was not this way.'" — Matthew 19:8 BSB
Jesus taught the indissolubility of marriage with remarkable clarity. "I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery." — Matthew 19:9 BSB This statement establishes the core principle: divorce severs what God has joined together, and remarriage after divorce constitutes adultery except in the case of sexual immorality (porneia in Greek, referring to sexual unfaithfulness).
The apostle Paul addressed marriage and divorce in his epistles. "To the married I give this command—not I, but the Lord—a wife must not separate from her husband. But if she does, she must remain unmarried or be reconciled to her husband. And a husband must not divorce his wife." — 1 Corinthians 7:10-11 BSB Paul reinforced Jesus's teaching while acknowledging the reality of separation. His instruction emphasized reconciliation as the goal.
Paul also introduced an additional exception regarding unbelieving spouses. "But if the unbelieving partner departs, let him depart. The brother or sister is not bound in such cases, for God has called us to live in peace." — 1 Corinthians 7:15 BSB This passage, often called the "Pauline privilege," addresses situations where an unbeliever abandons a believing spouse, providing guidance for believers in mixed-faith marriages.
The grounds for divorce presented in Scripture are limited. Jesus identified sexual immorality as the exception to the prohibition on divorce (Matthew 19:9). Some scholars debate whether other grounds such as abuse or abandonment constitute biblical grounds for divorce, but Scripture most explicitly addresses sexual unfaithfulness as the specified exception.
Regarding remarriage, the biblical position is that a person divorced for any reason other than the spouse's sexual immorality and remarries commits adultery. However, Scripture also teaches the grace and forgiveness available through Christ. "Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor slanderers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." — 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 BSB
Theological Significance
Marriage reveals fundamental truths about God's character and His purposes. The permanence God designed for marriage reflects His own faithfulness and covenant-keeping nature. God presents Himself as the faithful husband of His people: "For your Maker is your husband, the LORD Almighty is his name; the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer, called the God of all the earth." — Isaiah 54:5 BSB This metaphor indicates that marriage, as God designed it, mirrors divine faithfulness and commitment.
The New Testament explicitly connects marriage to Christ's relationship with the Church. "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself." — Ephesians 5:25-28 BSB This passage reveals that Christ's sacrificial, covenantal love provides the model for marital love, and that marriage itself serves as a living testimony to the Gospel.
The teaching on divorce and remarriage also underscores the seriousness of covenant-making before God. When a man and woman marry, they make vows before God and witnesses that bind them together. Breaking that covenant through divorce represents a violation of a sacred promise. Yet Scripture also proclaims that God's grace extends even to those who have experienced divorce, offering forgiveness and restoration through Christ's redemptive work.