Genesis 2v18: And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.
Genesis 2v24: Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.
Matthew 19v4-6a: And He answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that He which made them at the beginning made them male and female, And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh.
Mark 10v6-8: But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife; And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh.

From these verses we see that it was God's plan from the beginning for one man and one woman to be joined together in marriage.

1 Corinthians 7v2-4: Nevertheless, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband. Let the husband render unto the wife due benevolence: and likewise also the wife unto the husband. The wife hath not power of her own body, but the husband; and likewise also the husband hath not power of his own body, but the wife.
1 Corinthians 7v8-9: I say therefore to the unmarried and widows, It is good for them if they abide even as I. But if they cannot contain, let them marry: for it is better to marry than to burn.
Hebrews 13v4: Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge.

Marriage is the only way to avoid sin that otherwise would plague our lives. We are reminded that God will judge those that do not marry but are guilty instead of sexual immorality.

2 Corinthians 6v14: Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelivers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?

Here Paul tells us that believers should not be married to unbelievers. For the simple fact that we have been made righteous by Christ whilst they are still in their sins.

1 Corinthians 7v10-16: And unto the married I command, yet not I, but the Lord, let not the wife depart from her husband: But and if she depart, let her remain unmarried, or be reconciled to her husband: and let not the husband put away his wife. But to the rest speak I, not the Lord: If any brother hath a wife that beliveth not, and she be pleased to dwell with him, let him not put her away. And the woman which hath a husband that believeth not, and if he be pleased to dwell with her, let her not leave him. For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbeileving wife is sanctified by the husband: else were your children unclean; but now are they holy. But if the unbelieving depart, let him depart. A brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases: but God hath called us to peace. For what knowest thou, O wife, whether thou shalt save thy husband? or how knowest thou, O man, whether thou shalt save thy wife?
1 Peter 3v1-2: Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives; While they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear.

Whilst it is not God's ideal that a believer be married to an unbeliever it is conceivable that after marriage one partner gets saved but the other does not. It is clearly stated in these Scriptures that the believer is not to seek a divorce but should seek to win their partner for Christ by living a Godly life. However, if the unbeliever wishes to divorce then they should not stop them.

Deutronomy 24v1: When a man hath taken a wife, and married her, and it come to pass that she find no favour in his eyes, because he hath found some uncleanness in her: then let him write her a bill of divorcement, and give it in her hand, and send her out of his house.
Matthew 5v31-32: It hath been said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement: But I say unto you, that whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery: and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced committeth adultery.
Matthew 15v19: For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.
Matthew 19v3-9: The Pharisees also came unto him, tempting him, and saying unto him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause? And He answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that He which made them at the beginning made them male and female. And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. They say unto him, Why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement, to put her away? 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. 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.
Luke 16v18: Whosoever putteth away his wife, and marrieth another, committeth adultery: and whosoever marrieth her that is put away from her husband committeth adultery.

The Lord then says that if a man divorces he is not to remarry otherwise he is committing adultery. Also that a man is not to marry a divorcee otherwise he likewise will be committing adultery.
Here the Lord Jesus tells that from the beginning it was NEVER God's plan for a man and a woman to divorce. It has never been part of God's ideal plan for mankind. However, because of the hardness of the Israelites' hearts, He suffered them to put away their wives. This does not mean that it suddenly became part of God's ideal plan but that God in His mercy allowed it to happen. We need to learn the difference between God's perfect, ideal plan, and what He suffers us to do.
The only case the Lord allows divorce is if the man or woman commit fornication. However, what exactly is fornication? Some expositors consider it to be all forms of sexual immorality including adultery while others say it does not include adultery. If we look later on in Matthew's Gospel (chapter 15 verse 19) we see that the Lord includes adultery in his list of evils despite already having mentioned fornication. Under Jewish law there was a 1 year engagement prior to marriage, if one party was guilty of sexual immorality during this period it would be fornication and not adultery and it is only in this situation that a divorce is allowed. However, as we read in Luke, neither party is to remarry.

1 Timothy 5v11: But the younger widows refuse: for when they have begun to wax wanton against Christ, they will marry;

This is the only case in Scripture where remarriage is allowed, it is after the death of one of the partners.

Ecclesiastes 5v4-5: When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for He hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed. Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay.

When a couple get married they make a vow to each other before the Lord. Most vows end with until death do us part. This vow is made before God that no matter what happens they will support each other until one partner dies. The preacher reminds us that if we make a vow before God we should pay it, for He has no pleasure in us if we do not.

Having read what the Scriptures saith on marriage and divorce, now read What saith the Scriptures
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