Prior Book | Prior Chapter | Prior Verse | Next Verse | Next Chapter | Next Book | Viewing NASB and Amplified 2015 | |
NASB | Ephesians 5:22 ¶ Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Ephesians 5:22 ¶ Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as [a service] to the Lord. |
Subject: Can you divorce a non-christian spouse? |
Bible Note: What the Bible Says About Divorce "It hath been said, whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement": (Matthew 5:31 KJV) Divorce is as hurtful and destructive today as in Jesus' day. God intends marriage to be a lifetime commitment, (Genesis 2:24 KJV says:), Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. When entering into marriage, people should never consider divorce an option for solving problems or a way out of a relationship that seems dead. In these verses, Jesus is also attacking those who purposefully abuse the marriage contract, using divorce to satisfy their lustful desire to marry someone else. Are your actions today helping your marriage grow stronger, or are you tearing it apart? (Matthew 19:6-9 KJV), 6-Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. 7-They say unto him, why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement, and to put her away? 8-He saith unto them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so. 9-And I say unto you, Whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery: and whoso marrieth her which is put away doth commit adultery. In Moses' day, as well as in Jesus' day, the practice of marriage fell far short of God's intention. The same is true today. Jesus said that Moses gave this law only because of the people's hard hearts-permanent marriage was God's intention. But because sinful human nature made divorce inevitable, Moses instituted some laws to help its victims. These were civil laws designed especially to protect the women who, in that culture, were quite vulnerable when living alone. Because of Moses' law, a man could no longer just throw his wife out-he had to write a formal letter of dismissal. This was a radical step toward civil rights, for it made men think twice about divorce. God designed marriage to be indissoluble. Instead of looking for reasons to leave each other, husbands and wives should concentrate on how to stay together. Jesus said that divorce is not permissible except for unfaithfulness. This does not mean that divorce should automatically occur when a spouse commits adultery. The word translated "unfaithful" implies a sexually immoral life-style, not a confessed and repented act of adultery. Those who discover that their partner has been unfaithful should first make every effort to forgive, reconcile, and restore their relationship. We are always to look for reasons to restore the marriage relationship rather than for excuses to leave it. Think about it. |