Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

The King Leaves Galilee For Judea. Large Crowds Follow Him And He Heals Them

19 And it came about that when Jesus finished^[a] these words, He went-away from Galilee and came into the districts^[b] of Judea, beyond the Jordan. ² And large crowds followed Him, and He cured them there.

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^[c] to send-away^[d] his wife for any reason^[e]?” ⁴ And the One, having responded, said, “Did you not read [in Gen 1:27] that the One having created from the beginning^[f] ‘made them male and female’? ⁵ And He said [in Gen 2:24], ‘For this reason^[g] a man will leave-behind his father and his mother and will be joined^[h] 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^[i], let a person^[j] not separate”. ⁷ They say to Him, “Why then did Moses command us to give a certificate^[k] of divorce and send her away?” ⁸ He says to them that “Moses permitted^[l] you to send-away your wives because of your hardness-of-heart. But from the beginning it has not been so^[m]. 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^[n] to marry!” ¹¹ But the One said to them, “Not all give-way-to^[o] this statement, but [only] ones to whom it has been given. ¹² For there are eunuchs^[p] 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”.