Concerning Divorce

19 (A)When Jesus had finished these words, He left Galilee and (B)came into the region of Judea beyond the Jordan; and [a]large crowds followed Him, and (C)He healed them there.

Some Pharisees came to [b]Jesus, testing Him and [c]asking, “(D)Is it lawful for a man to [d]divorce his wife for any reason at all?” And He answered and said, “Have you not read (E)that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘(F)For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother and be joined to his wife, and (G)the two shall become one flesh’? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, no person is to separate.” They *said to Him, “(H)Why, then, did Moses command to give her a certificate of divorce and send her away?” He *said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart Moses permitted you to [e]divorce your wives; but from the beginning it has not been this way. And I say to you, (I)whoever [f]divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman [g]commits adultery[h].”

10 The disciples *said to Him, “If the relationship of the man with his wife is like this, it is better not to marry.”

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 19:2 Or many
  2. Matthew 19:3 Lit Him
  3. Matthew 19:3 Lit saying
  4. Matthew 19:3 Lit send away
  5. Matthew 19:8 Lit send away
  6. Matthew 19:9 Lit sends away
  7. Matthew 19:9 One early ms makes her commit adultery
  8. Matthew 19:9 One early ms adds and he who marries a divorced woman commits adultery

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