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1 When Jesus finished speaking these things, he left Galilee and went to the region of Judah, beyond the Jordan. 2 A large crowd followed him, and he healed them there. 3 The Pharisees came to test him, saying, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason?” 4 He answered and said, “Have you not read that from the beginning, the Creator made them male and female?” 5 He continued, “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and join with his wife, and the two will become one flesh, 6 so that they are no longer two, but one. Therefore, what God has joined, man should not separate.” 7 They said, “Why then did Moses command that a man who divorces his wife give her a bill of divorce?” 8 He said, “Moses yielded and permitted you to divorce your wives because of the hardness of your hearts, but it was not this way from the beginning. 9 I say to you that whoever divorces his wife, except in cases of sexual immorality, and marries another commits adultery. [And whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.]” 10 His disciples said to him, “If this is the case with men and women, then it is better not marry.” 11 He said to them, “Not everyone can live by this ideal, but to some it is granted. 12 There are eunuchs who are born that way, eunuchs made the way they are by others, and eunuchs who live the way they do for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven. Whoever can accept this ought to accept it.”

Comments

Prompted by a question from the Pharisees, Jesus repeats his teaching on marriage and divorce first presented in 5.31-32 (see above for comment). Verse 9 has long puzzled commentators: the Greek word porneia can refer to any form of sexual immorality, and it is not clear when Jesus is allowing for divorce in the case of adultery, or if he referring to something else, such as unknowingly marrying a close relative, leading to unintentional incest. The second half of verse 9 is not found in all manuscripts. When his disciples comment that it might be better to not marry at all, Jesus responds that celibacy, while not possible for everyone, is a valid life choice for some and a grace given by God. While marriage and family life were the norm in Jewish culture, voluntary celibacy was not unknown. Sometimes widowed people would remain single after the death of their spouse (e.g. Anna in Lk 2.36-38). Members of the Essene community lived as celibate monks. The prophet Jeremiah felt called by God to remain single to avoid bringing children into the disastrous situation Judah would soon face (Jer 16.1-4). It is traditionally assumed that Jesus, like Jeremiah, chose to remain single given the demands of his vocation. His use of the harsh term eunuch perhaps represents Jesus owning a word that he had been called as an insult.