1Yahweh said to Moses, 2“Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them, ‘I am Yahweh your God. 3You shall not do as they do in the land of Egypt, where you lived. You shall not do as they do in the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you. You shall not follow their statutes. 4You shall do my ordinances. You shall keep my statutes and walk in them. I am Yahweh your God. 5You shall therefore keep my statutes and my ordinances, which if a man does, he shall live in them. I am Yahweh.
6“‘None of you shall approach any close relatives, to uncover their nakedness: I am Yahweh.
7“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father, nor the nakedness of your mother: she is your mother. You shall not uncover her nakedness.
8“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s wife. It is your father’s nakedness.
9“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your sister, the daughter of your father, or the daughter of your mother, whether born at home or born abroad.
10“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your son’s daughter, or of your daughter’s daughter, even their nakedness; for theirs is your own nakedness.
11“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s wife’s daughter, conceived by your father, since she is your sister.
12“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s sister. She is your father’s near kinswoman.
13“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your mother’s sister, for she is your mother’s near kinswoman.
14“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s brother. You shall not approach his wife. She is your aunt.
15“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your daughter-in-law. She is your son’s wife. You shall not uncover her nakedness.
16“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your brother’s wife. It is your brother’s nakedness.
17“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of a woman and her daughter. You shall not take her son’s daughter, or her daughter’s daughter, to uncover her nakedness. They are near kinswomen. It is wickedness.
18“‘You shall not take a wife in addition to her sister, to be a rival, to uncover her nakedness, while her sister is still alive.
19“‘You shall not approach a woman to uncover her nakedness, as long as she is impure by her uncleanness.
20“‘You shall not lie carnally with your neighbor’s wife, and defile yourself with her.
21“‘You shall not give any of your children as a sacrifice to Molech. You shall not profane the name of your God. I am Yahweh.
22“‘You shall not lie with a man as with a woman. That is detestable.
23“‘You shall not lie with any animal to defile yourself with it. No woman may give herself to an animal, to lie down with it: it is a perversion.
24“‘Don’t defile yourselves in any of these things; for in all these the nations which I am casting out before you were defiled. 25The land was defiled. Therefore I punished its iniquity, and the land vomited out her inhabitants. 26You therefore shall keep my statutes and my ordinances, and shall not do any of these abominations; neither the native-born, nor the stranger who lives as a foreigner among you 27(for the men of the land that were before you had done all these abominations, and the land became defiled), 28that the land not vomit you out also, when you defile it, as it vomited out the nation that was before you.
29“‘For whoever shall do any of these abominations, even the souls that do them shall be cut off from among their people. 30Therefore you shall keep my requirements, that you do not practice any of these abominable customs which were practiced before you, and that you do not defile yourselves with them. I am Yahweh your God.’”
Most Christians throughout history have believed that marriage was intended for one man and one woman for as long as they both live. They have further believed that, with one exception, adultery is committed by a person who divorces his or her spouse and marries another. The question is, what is meant by πορνείᾳ (porneia—“except for immorality”); three possibilities have generally been given.
If the word immorality was used in its more restrictive sense, possibly referring to an illegal marriage under Jewish Law (see Lev 18:6-18; Matt 14:1-3), or the unfaithfulness of a Jewish bride during her betrothal (see Deut 22:13ff; Matt 1:18-19), then there are no biblical grounds for divorce and remarriage for those in a fully consummated, biblically legal marriage. This has been the historical view of the Church Fathers and the Roman Catholic Church.
If, on the other hand, the word that is translated immorality was used in the sense of sexual sin, including marital infidelity, then there are biblical grounds for divorce. In such cases, the innocent partner is free to remarry without committing adultery because the original marriage was nullified by the guilty partner's sexual misconduct (see Deut 24:1-4; Matt 19:1-10). This has been the majority view held by the Reformers and evangelicals.
Others have argued that Jesus did not discuss other biblical grounds for divorce, such as neglect (Exod 21:10-11), but He did not disapprove of divorce on these grounds. This position sees Jesus answering a very specific question, relating to a debate that had begun between the Hillel and Shammaite rabbinic schools over divorce. In the early years of the first century A.D., the Hillel school began to issue divorce certificates for “any matter,” while the Shammaites argued that divorces were only allowed for “matters of indecency” (which included sexual sin, as well as neglect). Jesus seems to have sided with the Shammaites, since He used almost the exact same phrase. This argument would also negate the seeming contradiction between Jesus and Paul on the subject (1 Cor 7:15).
For more information on the first two views, see H. Wayne House, Divorce and Remarriage: Four Christian Views, and for the latter perspective, see David Instone-Brewer, Divorce and Remarriage in the Bible: The Social and Literary Context.
Other Scriptures that bear on this important subject, include: Gen 2:24; Mal 2:14; Mark 10:11-12; Luke 16:18; Rom 7:1-3; 1 Cor 7:10-11; 15, 39.