Biblical Divorce & Remarrriage

ishnah - a holy book to the Jews. They believe its rules are necessary to make one holy. The book is divided into six parts containing the teaching of notable rabbis. The Mishnah provides rules about many things including women, marriage and divorce. Rules about divorce are found in the third part of the Mishnah. Here is an example, “He who puts his wife away because she has a bad name should not take her back.” (4:7 GITTIN). And again, the House of Hillel says a man can divorce his wife, “Even if she spoiled his dish . . .” And Rabbi Aquiba said, “Even if he found someone else prettier than she . . .” (9.10, QUIDDUSHIN). There are rules about the Bill of Divorce, co-wives and the deaf. There are hundreds of rules - rules not found in the Bible. Jesus’ next statement cuts deep,

And it was said, “WHOEVER SENDS HIS WIFE AWAY, LET HIM GIVE HER A CERTIFICATE OF DIVORCE”; but I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except for the cause of unchastity, makes her commit adultery; and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery. (NASB) Matthew 5:31-32

When a man takes a wife and marries her, and it happens that she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some indecency in her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out from his house . . . (NASB) Deut. 24:1

The rabbis said this passage showed that Moses approved of divorce if some “indecency” was found in one’s wife. The Hebrew word GERVAH, “indecency,” has the idea of nakedness and shameful exposure. But as the years passed, the rabbis taught that a man could divorce his wife if she humiliated him, denied physical relations, wasted their money, embezzled their property, was gone from the home for long periods of time, or was just obnoxious. The rabbis were not in agreement on the rules for divorce, but it appears that in Jesus’ day the teaching of Hillel had the approval of the people. The rabbi Hillel allowed divorce for any reason.

It is amazing that divorce was okay for any reason, but the rules for the Bill of Divorce were exact and demanding. The form of the Bill of Divorce was like any legal document, but it could not be delivered by “deaf-mute, an idiot, or a minor” (2:5, GITTIN). The husband could deny his divorced wife the ability to remarry. The Mishnah has rules even about delivering a Bill of Divorce from overseas, at night and during the day. The list is long. They had violated God’s seventh commandment, “You shall not commit adultery,” for personal pleasure and because their hearts were hard.