Till Death?

Should Christians divorce their spouses? Why or why not? What does the Bible say about this?

We all know someone affected by divorce. Whether it be a parent, aunt, uncle, cousin, sibling, friend, neighbor...we are all touched by it. Divorce is becoming more prevalent in our society.

In Malachi 2:16, God says that He hates divorce. The word for divorce means "detest" in Hebrew. Matthew 19 discusses the topic in more detail. The Pharisees asked Jesus, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason?" Jesus replied with a reference to Genesis 1:27: "God created man in His own image...male and female he created them." He then points to Genesis 2:24: "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh." They are no longer two, but have become one. "Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate" (Matthew 19:6).

But it does seem that Jesus makes an exception to divorce. Matthew 19:9 says, "anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery." Here we see Jesus accepting of divorce if it's a result of unfaithfulness between spouses. This same exception is seen again in Matthew 5:32.

In most circumstances, I don't think Christians should divorce their spouses. I agree with God's word that unfaithfulness could be reason for divorce, but I also believe that marriage is a lifetime commitment. I think that even when adultery is committed, a couple can work through the situation with God's grace. Marriage is a covenant before God. It should not be taken lightly.