Divorce and Remarriage: What Does the Bible Really Say? [Paperback]

Ralph Woodrow (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 2002

Though Old Testament law permitted divorce--the Lord himself, figuratively, went through a divorce--by the time of Jesus, Jewish men were abusing this law by divorcing wives "for any cause." This book answers the questions: In which situations does the New Testament permit divorce? Are divorced Christians who have remarried "living in adultery"? Church dogma often targets the wounded, rejecting the very ones who need Christ's healing touch, thereby further complicating the pain and rejection of these wounded ones. While not encouraging frivolous marriage dissolutions, this book deals with the issues of divorce and remarriage from a biblical perspective--looking below the surface of what some have SAID the Bible teaches--to understand the obvious intent of Scriptural passages which deal with these issues.

Editorial Reviews

Review

...the best and most sensible book I have ever read on the subject. -- Michigan.

A copy of your book was recently loaned to me.... I found it to be very helpful in my study of this vital topic.... I appreciate the fresh, honest, and clear presentations of what the Scriptures teach on this important concern for the church. -- pastor, Nebraska.

I just finished your book "Divorce and Remarriage" and think it is the best on that subject that I have found. Like all your studies it is deep but easy to read. Keep up the good work. -- minister, Pennsylvania

I think [your book] is tops...a friend of mine was blessed by the book-not only as to the subject of divorce, but in lessons learned as to how to study, interpret and apply scriptures in other areas. -- minister/writer, Iowa

I thoroughly benefited from your book....I thank God that you have care and courage enough to refute the legalist posture regarding this controversial issue. A great many believers (myself included) have suffered unspeakable agonies at the hands of some of our own brothers in Christ....Your book has released a heavy load of fear and guilt which I have carried as a special burden before God for too many years. Thank you so much for caring enough to write it. It will make a significant difference in the way I serve our Savior from this day forward. -- Colorado.

Just a short note of "thanks" for your book....You have done a good job of putting a most difficult subject into its proper biblical perspective. How many lonely and dejected Christian brothers and sisters have suffered because of the narrow minded Roman Catholic doctrines of forbidding to marry!...Only God knows! Why these unscriptural doctrines got started in the Christian church, I'll never know. They are so plainly contrary to Holy Scripture, as you have explained so very nicely in this book. May this clear explanation help, and save many from a life of despair and loneliness. -- doctor, New York.

I have read every one of your books. They are excellent. But the book on "Divorce and Remarriage" has been an eye opener and should be in the hands of teachers and ministers. I could hardly put it down.... Thank God for people like you who will go a step further and search the scriptures daily to see if "these things are so." You have a precious spirit and though we haven't met, there's a rejoicing in my heart and a bond of Christian love for you. -- California.

From the Author

DOES GOD REQUIRE DIVORCE? A man in Indiana became interested in the Bible through listening to a radio program. He sent off for free literature. What he read and heard seemed to make a lot of sense, so he requested a visit from church representatives. When they quizzed him about previous marriages, he explained that while he was still in his teens he had a brief marriage; that he had now been married to his present wife for twenty years; that they had three children. He was told that he was living in "adultery"; that in order to be a part of God's "one true church," he would have to divorce his present wife and go back to his first wife-or live single. To go back to his first wife was impossible, so he moved into an apartment across town where he spent a frustrated, miserable, lonely existence apart from his wife and family. Sadly, one day he was found dead in his closet-he had hung himself!

Why do some teach that God requires divorce? This idea is based, supposedly, on the words of Jesus: "Whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, commits adultery" (Matt. 19:9). At the time of Jesus, many of the Jews practiced a type of divorce, popularized by Rabbi Hillel, known as divorce "for every cause." Such had become a mere excuse for immorality. When the Pharisees sought to put Jesus on the spot, they asked if it was lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause. In his reply, Jesus called it just what it was: adultery (see Matt. 19:3-11).

Today, by taking the words of Jesus out of their proper setting, some have gone to the other extreme. They argue that there are never any Biblical grounds for divorce and remarriage; that God recognizes only "first" marriages; that all remarried people are living in adultery.

If the statement of Jesus was an inflexible rule intended to cover all kinds of divorce-allowing no ground, no forgiveness-then it would be true: a remarried man would have to break up his present marriage (get a divorce) and go back to his first wife. If she has remarried, she would have to get a divorce. But clearly, this teaching, instead of curing divorce, would actually cause divorce!

If a man has gone through a divorce and must live the rest of his life single, alone, how would we explain Genesis 2:18: "It is not good that the man should be alone"?

In the Bible, Old Testament and New, no one was forbidden marriage. At Corinth, known in the ancient world as a very immoral city, many people had found the Lord-including married people, remarried people, single people, virgins, and widows. Marriage was forbidden to none: "Let EVERY man have his own wife, and let EVERY woman have her own husband" (1 Cor. 7:2). According to Paul, forbidding to marry was a "doctrine of devils" (1 Tim. 4:1-3).

Some at Corinth, having become Christians, were now married to unbelievers-they were saints married to sinners! They wondered if sexual relations in such a marriage were unholy and even if children born to such relations would be unholy. Their question was not so much "does God permit divorce?"-rather, "Does God require divorce-the divorce of an unbelieving spouse?" Notice Paul's answer:

"If any brother has a wife that believes not, and she is pleased to dwell with him, let him not put her away. And the woman which has a husband that believes not, and if he is pleased to dwell with her, let her not leave him" (1 Cor. 7:12,13). Children born from such unions were not unholy (verse 14). God did not require divorce.

On the other hand, in certain circumstances, divorce was permitted. Paul goes on to say that if the unbeliever is not pleased and decides to depart, to "let him depart, a brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases" (1 Cor. 7:15)-that is, the believer is no longer bound to the marriage.

There are some who suppose that no matter how miserable their marriage is, no matter how many atrocities they face, that God requires them to forever remain in that situation! A woman may face the threat of AIDS, not only for her, but unborn children; nevertheless, there are legalists who insist she should become a marital martyr!

Make no mistake about it: Marriage for life-not divorce-is the ideal. Divorce is a major surgery. As with a physical affliction, a wise doctor will first try to treat the affliction with methods less drastic. So is it with divorce. It is a last resort alternative. But, by God's grace, there can be life after divorce.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 105 pages
• Publisher: Ralph Woodrow; Second edition (July 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0916938069
• ISBN-13: 978-0916938062
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #136,127 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #5 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Parenting & Families > Family Relationships > Divorce
  • #90 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Religious Studies > Gender & Sexuality

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The most inclusive book on divorce, October 12, 2005

By 

Ann Knox (Harrisburg, Oregon USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Divorce and Remarriage: What Does the Bible Really Say? (Paperback)

This book includes all references in the Bible about divorce and how the divorce and remarriage issue needs to be considered by the complete context of a Biblical view of God's forgiveness. It is a reference book that everyone who has been touched by divorce and remarriage needs to read. Most writers pick and choose passages to prove their point of view, but this writer includes all of the verses plus a historial backgroung for this book. It is also a very easy read.

11 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best I've Read on the Subject, September 9, 2002

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Carol (Wisconsin) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Divorce and Remarriage: What Does the Bible Really Say? (Paperback)

This book is the voice of sanity! Having read books on the subject of divorce and remarriage from the nonsensical viewpoint of the legalists, this book is like a breath of fresh air and common sense!

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent treatise on Divorce & Remarriage, September 12, 2005

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Scott R. Moose (Springfield, MO USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Divorce and Remarriage: What Does the Bible Really Say? (Paperback)

As a Christian in a healthy, happy marriage for 17 years, I was not looking for a book on divorce for my sake. The conventional translation/interpretation regarding NT verses on the subject don't seem to make much sense in light of what we know about the character of God through the incarnate Christ. All sin, including murder, can be forgiven, and grace can be extended to all but the divorced/remarried. So, if asked, we tell those in broken, unmendable marriages that they must remain in the marriages, but if they are already divorced/remarried, we accept them into the church and pretend not to notice the "elephant in the room." This book does an excellent job expanding on all the absurdities that must occur if we try to apply the traditional understand. It does an even better job explaining the full context of the Bible so that a better understanding is available. He doesn't delve much into the Greek and Hebrew meanings behind "putting away" and "certificate of divorcement," but other books are available, like "Divorce, A Gift of God's Grace," for further reading.