Words from the Rock
Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning. I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery.
Matthew 19:8–9 NIV
The Pharisees don’t let Jesus off the hook after his refresher course on marriage. They come right back at him, demanding to know why Moses allowed legal divorces so many years ago, if marriage is designed by God. Their plan is still to trip up Jesus, but he turns their plan against them to show what they’re really thinking.
Jesus is aware of the trend of religious leaders abusing the old divorce law as an excuse to get rid of an unwanted wife. It’s just another one of their nasty little legal loopholes they use to get what they want (in this case, probably a younger, prettier wife). Consequently, Jesus delivers his answer directly to the Pharisees, saying the only reason they’re permitted to divorce is because their hearts are so hard, and that divorce only becomes an option if a spouse has been unfaithful. And even in that case, he warns, a remarriage is considered adultery.
Naturally, this isn’t what the Pharisees want to hear. They probably stomp off mad. Jesus nailed it when he said their hearts were hard. It was, in fact, the hardness of their hypocritical hearts that spoiled not only their marriages but everything they touched. It made them bitterly jealous of Jesus, and sadly, it blinded them to the fact that the God they supposedly served was doing something amazing right in front of them.
Hearts sometimes get hardened when our plans don’t match up with God’s. That’s why he invites us to stay in relationship with him, so that our plans can align with his and our hearts can remain soft.
My Prayer
Dear God,
I know a hardened heart is like being blind and falling down flat on my face. Please let me never harden my heart toward you.
Amen.
Final Word
When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone.
James 1:13 NIV
Stone for the Journey
I will trust God’s perfect plan for my life.