Biblical Reasons To Divorce For Adultery
Several passages in God's Holy Word cite biblical reasons to divorce for adultery. An Old Testament passage offers a rebuke for those who deal treacherously or commit adultery. "Yet ye say, Wherefore? Because the LORD hath been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth, against whom thou hast dealt treacherously: yet is she thy companion, and the wife of thy covenant. And did not he make one? Yet had he the residue of the spirit. And wherefore one? That he might seek a godly seed. Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth. For the LORD, the God of Israel, saith that he hateth putting away: for one covereth violence with his garment, saith the LORD of hosts: therefore take heed to your spirit, that ye deal not treacherously" ((Malachi 2:14-15).
In the New Testament, biblical reasons to divorce for adultery are cited in I Corinthians 6:15-18. This passage berates adulterers for being "joined to a harlot" in the act of fornication: "Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid. What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh. But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit. Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body" (I Corinthians 6:13-18). Clearly, both scriptures imply that an adulterer violates the marriage vow by "joining themselves to a harlot;" tearing asunder, or apart, what God has joined together; by dealing treacherously with the wife (or husband); and by putting the divorced wife in a position to commit adultery. Hence, several biblical reasons to divorce for adultery are apparent.
Because we live in a society where divorce and remarriage are rampant, many fail to realize the severity of breaking the marriage covenant. Holy matrimony was ordained by God to enable males and females to form a lifelong intimate bond in which to reproduce offspring. The one-flesh union of two individuals consummated by sexual intercourse and sealed with a verbal vow makes a marriage. In the eyes of God, when the wedding is consummated, couples are no longer two but a single entity. But when a spouse decides to join themselves with someone outside of the bonds of holy matrimony, one of the primary biblical reasons to divorce for adultery has been committed: tearing asunder the flesh union ordained by God to become sexually united with an illicit lover.
Where is meant by tearing? Imagine a husband and wife who have been married for several years. They not only share the same body fluids and an intermingling of DNA, but also share an interchange of cells to form an entirely new human being--a child. Even in childless couples, the union of biological material through sexual intercourse joins them! The "tearing" is not a physical severance of tissue, muscle and sinew; but a spiritual violation of a sacred union sanctioned by God at the altar, consummated in the marriage bed, and perpetuated throughout a lifetime. Over the years, matrimony not only melds the flesh, but it "marries" two distinctly different minds, hearts and souls. That holy union which blends two bodies, hearts, minds and souls creates a formidable force in the earth; and typifies the bond that Jesus Christ has with the Church at large. Obviously, biblical reasons to divorce for adultery not only include the treacherous tearing of flesh joined by a holy covenant, supposedly until death, but also the violation of spiritual laws enacted by God.
I Corinthians 6:13-18 also cites biblical reasons to divorce for adultery in that the physical body of the believer belongs to God, first and secondly to the husband or wife. When an individual becomes a born-again Christian by renouncing or turning away from sin, receiving by faith the privilege to become a son of God through the shed blood of Jesus at Calvary, they become a new creature. II Corinthians 5:17-18 declare that "old things are passed away, behold all things are become new and all things are of God." Therefore, that new creation in Christ Jesus belongs totally to God: body, soul and spirit. An unmarried Christian should not become defiled with harlots, nor should the married believer become defiled by committing adultery. Regardless of what society says, extramarital and premarital affairs are against the principles of God.
In the Old Testament, wives had very few human rights and little self-determination. If the husband put away his wife and became married to another woman, the former wife would have to take another husband while the first was alive. But upon remarrying she would be labeled an outcast and an adulteress. Here again, the first marriage created a one-flesh union that was broken by the first husband's decision to divorce and leave the former wife without a spiritual covering. In today's free-wheeling society, second marriages do not qualify as biblical reasons to divorce for adultery; but repeatedly marrying, divorcing, and remarrying, especially by Bible-believing Christians, should be avoided.
While biblical reasons to divorce for adultery may be scripturally and morally justified, Christian couples must determine if the marriage is worth saving. Many believers are in second and third marriage--some as a result of unsaved spouses, others as a result of personal transgressions. But if Christians are to believe and practice biblical truths, there must be a refusal to adopt the world's ways of dealing with marital relationships and a return to the first principles of God's holy Word. Forgiveness is the first line of defense against divorce and every option should be exercised before couples decide to dissolve the marriage.
In the New Testament, biblical reasons to divorce for adultery are cited in I Corinthians 6:15-18. This passage berates adulterers for being "joined to a harlot" in the act of fornication: "Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid. What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh. But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit. Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body" (I Corinthians 6:13-18). Clearly, both scriptures imply that an adulterer violates the marriage vow by "joining themselves to a harlot;" tearing asunder, or apart, what God has joined together; by dealing treacherously with the wife (or husband); and by putting the divorced wife in a position to commit adultery. Hence, several biblical reasons to divorce for adultery are apparent.
Because we live in a society where divorce and remarriage are rampant, many fail to realize the severity of breaking the marriage covenant. Holy matrimony was ordained by God to enable males and females to form a lifelong intimate bond in which to reproduce offspring. The one-flesh union of two individuals consummated by sexual intercourse and sealed with a verbal vow makes a marriage. In the eyes of God, when the wedding is consummated, couples are no longer two but a single entity. But when a spouse decides to join themselves with someone outside of the bonds of holy matrimony, one of the primary biblical reasons to divorce for adultery has been committed: tearing asunder the flesh union ordained by God to become sexually united with an illicit lover.
Where is meant by tearing? Imagine a husband and wife who have been married for several years. They not only share the same body fluids and an intermingling of DNA, but also share an interchange of cells to form an entirely new human being--a child. Even in childless couples, the union of biological material through sexual intercourse joins them! The "tearing" is not a physical severance of tissue, muscle and sinew; but a spiritual violation of a sacred union sanctioned by God at the altar, consummated in the marriage bed, and perpetuated throughout a lifetime. Over the years, matrimony not only melds the flesh, but it "marries" two distinctly different minds, hearts and souls. That holy union which blends two bodies, hearts, minds and souls creates a formidable force in the earth; and typifies the bond that Jesus Christ has with the Church at large. Obviously, biblical reasons to divorce for adultery not only include the treacherous tearing of flesh joined by a holy covenant, supposedly until death, but also the violation of spiritual laws enacted by God.
I Corinthians 6:13-18 also cites biblical reasons to divorce for adultery in that the physical body of the believer belongs to God, first and secondly to the husband or wife. When an individual becomes a born-again Christian by renouncing or turning away from sin, receiving by faith the privilege to become a son of God through the shed blood of Jesus at Calvary, they become a new creature. II Corinthians 5:17-18 declare that "old things are passed away, behold all things are become new and all things are of God." Therefore, that new creation in Christ Jesus belongs totally to God: body, soul and spirit. An unmarried Christian should not become defiled with harlots, nor should the married believer become defiled by committing adultery. Regardless of what society says, extramarital and premarital affairs are against the principles of God.
In the Old Testament, wives had very few human rights and little self-determination. If the husband put away his wife and became married to another woman, the former wife would have to take another husband while the first was alive. But upon remarrying she would be labeled an outcast and an adulteress. Here again, the first marriage created a one-flesh union that was broken by the first husband's decision to divorce and leave the former wife without a spiritual covering. In today's free-wheeling society, second marriages do not qualify as biblical reasons to divorce for adultery; but repeatedly marrying, divorcing, and remarrying, especially by Bible-believing Christians, should be avoided.
While biblical reasons to divorce for adultery may be scripturally and morally justified, Christian couples must determine if the marriage is worth saving. Many believers are in second and third marriage--some as a result of unsaved spouses, others as a result of personal transgressions. But if Christians are to believe and practice biblical truths, there must be a refusal to adopt the world's ways of dealing with marital relationships and a return to the first principles of God's holy Word. Forgiveness is the first line of defense against divorce and every option should be exercised before couples decide to dissolve the marriage.
Biblical Reasons To Divorce For Adultery
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