Matthew 5:31-32

Matthew 5:31-32

[31] Whosoever  shall put away  his  wife,  let him give  her  a writing of divorcement:  [32] But  I  say  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. 

What does Matthew 5:31-32 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

Not only is lust the moral equivalent of adultery, but so is divorce. The connective de ("and," NASB) that begins Matthew 5:31 ties this section in very closely with the one that precedes ( Matthew 5:27-30). In Israel a man divorced his wife simply by giving her a written statement indicating that he divorced her (cf. Deuteronomy 24:1-4). It was a domestic matter, not something that went through the courts, and it was quite common. In most cases a divorced woman would remarry another husband, often for her own security. Jesus said that divorcing a woman virtually amounted to causing her to commit adultery since she would normally remarry. Likewise any man who married a divorced woman committed adultery with her because in God"s eyes she was still married to her first husband. Jesus" explanation would have helped his hearers realize the ramifications of a decision that many of them viewed as insignificant, namely, divorcing one"s wife. Women did not have the right to divorce their husbands in ancient Israel.
We could also add the exception clause in the last part of Matthew 5:32 since that seems to have been Jesus" intention (cf. Mark 10:12). He probably did not repeat it because He did not want to stress the exceptional case but to focus on the seriousness of the husband"s decision to divorce his wife. Jesus had more to say about divorce in Matthew 19:3-9 (cf. Mark 10:11-12; Luke 16:18).
". . . Jesus introduces the new and shocking idea that even properly divorced people who marry a second time may be thought of as committing adultery. The OT, allowing divorce, does not regard those who remarry as committing adultery.... Marriage was meant to establish a permanent relationship between a man and a woman, and divorce should therefore not be considered an option for the disciples of the kingdom." [1]
Some interpreters limit fornication ("unchastity," "immorality," Gr. porneia) to unfaithfulness during the betrothal period, the year between a Jewish couple"s engagement and the consummation of their marriage. [2] The problem with this view is that porneia has a broader range of meaning than this.