Matthew 19:3-12
Disciples’ Literal New Testament
The Pharisees Test Jesus With a Question About Divorce. Divorce Is Not God’s Will
3 And Pharisees came to Him— testing Him, and saying, “Is it lawful for a man[a] to send-away[b] his wife for any reason[c]?” 4 And the One, having responded, said, “Did you not read [in Gen 1:27] that the One having created from the beginning[d] ‘made them male and female’? 5 And He said [in Gen 2:24], ‘For this reason[e] a man will leave-behind his father and his mother and will be joined[f] to his wife. And the two will be one flesh’. 6 So then, they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God paired-together[g], let a person[h] not separate”. 7 They say to Him, “Why then did Moses command us to give a certificate[i] of divorce and send her away?” 8 He says to them that “Moses permitted[j] you to send-away your wives because of your hardness-of-heart. But from the beginning it has not been so[k]. 9 And I say to you that whoever sends-away his wife not based on sexual-immorality, and marries another, is committing-adultery”.
The Disciples Conclude It Is Better Not To Marry. Jesus Says This Is Right For Some
10 His disciples say to Him, “If the case of the man with the wife is like this, it is not expedient[l] to marry!” 11 But the One said to them, “Not all give-way-to[m] this statement, but [only] ones to whom it has been given. 12 For there are eunuchs[n] who were born thus from a mother’s womb. And there are eunuchs who were made-eunuchs by people. And there are eunuchs who made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of the heavens. Let the one being able to give way, give way”.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Matthew 19:3 This question is asked from the Jewish husband’s perspective. Jesus refutes the Jewish man’s commonly held view of divorce.
- Matthew 19:3 That is, divorce.
- Matthew 19:3 Or, for all grounds, for every cause. That is, for any fault the husband might find with her.
- Matthew 19:4 That is, created, made them from the beginning. Or, created them at the beginning, made them.
- Matthew 19:5 That is, because God made them to be a complementary pair. This is God’s intent.
- Matthew 19:5 Or, join-himself.
- Matthew 19:6 Or, yoked together, joined as a pair.
- Matthew 19:6 Or, man (generically speaking), a human. The broader sense is clear in Mk 10:9-12. Do not divorce your wives.
- Matthew 19:7 This document was to protect the wife and make it possible for her to remarry.
- Matthew 19:8 Jesus corrects the Pharisees. Deut 24:1 does not command divorce.
- Matthew 19:8 That is, it has not been God’s plan and intent that you divorce your wives.
- Matthew 19:10 Or, advantageous, profitable. This direct attack of Jesus upon male authority is shocking even to the disciples.
- Matthew 19:11 Or, make room for, accept. Not all have the ability to live in an unmarried state. This is an understatement, since God made them to be a pair, v 4-5. But Jesus validates singleness as also a gift from God, in contradiction to the views of that day.
- Matthew 19:12 That is, celibate or castrated males. Some are born with this disposition, some are forced into it, some choose to remain unmarried.
Disciples' Literal New Testament: Serving Modern Disciples by More Fully Reflecting the Writing Style of the Ancient Disciples, Copyright © 2011 Michael J. Magill. All Rights Reserved. Published by Reyma Publishing
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