A question about divorce

[heron]

Leviticus 19 contains a whole page of offenses one might commit within a marriage. (Consequences not listed, but a "spew you out" in 20:22.)

Leviticus 20 gives death penalty for people who offer child sacrifice, and excommunication for onlookers who don't stop the crime.

20:14 ... A man who marries the mother and daughter gets burnt to a crisp (not paid to talk on the Jerry show).

20:17, 19 Incest or possibly familial voyeurism -- cut off.

20:18 Disrespect for PMS -- cut off.

 

[jrlinz]

20:17, 19 Incest or possibly familial voyeurism -- cut off.

20:18 Disrespect for PMS -- cut off.

Gulp! Dare I ask? what does the scripture mean "cut off"?

 

[heron]

Consequences for unlisted consequences... a sin offering.
Lev. 5:5,6
So it shall be when he becomes guilty in one of these, that he shall confess [SIZE=-1][/SIZE]that in which he has sinned. He shall also bring his guilt offering to the Lord for his sin which he has committed.
Lev. 5:17 Now if a person sins and does any of the things which [SIZE=-1][/SIZE] the Lord has commanded not to be done, though he was unaware, still he is guilty and shall bear his punishment.

 

[heron]

Lol, buy the book.

 

[Tamara224]

What if the marriage is warrant for divorce?

I know there are cases where spouses are abused, raped, etc...

Would that justify the divorce, or not?

Yes. It at least warrants a separation. And, if the abuser claims to be Christian, the church should deal with him harshly.

I suggest a very good book on this subject - "Domestic Violence: What Every Pastor Needs to Know" by Al Miles

http://www.amazon.com/Domestic-Violence-Every-Pastor-Needs/dp/0800631757

For all those people who naively assume that it doesn't happen in their church... you NEED to read this book.

 

[he4rty]

As one who is Divorced, I would say buy a book on it, Its a long complicated issue.

I think an interesting side note to all this is these two pionts

1 Marraige is instituated by God, Divorce is regulated by God

2 Divorce is not a sin, only what causes the divorce.

some good qoutes on divorde

1 if there was more courting in marraiges, there'd be less marraiges in court

2 if it was as hard to get married as it is to get divorced, they might be less divorces.
I think now a lot more churches are starting to run marriage courses before a wedding so each party understands biblically what is expected of them, which is a good thing.

 

[heron]

Great advice, H4... separating out generalities. Abuse gets a foothold long before someone is too fed up to stay in the same house.

The book is cheap!
"According to the American Medical Association, one quarter of American women will be abused by an intimate partner at some point in their lives."

 

[Yitzchak]

What if the marriage is warrant for divorce?

I know there are cases where spouses are abused, raped, etc...

Would that justify the divorce, or not?

Yes. You will findplaces in scripture where God makes exceptions to even His rules for the sake of saving life and doing good. The story of the good samaritan is one example of jews who were commanded by God concerning purity laws and made an exception. The pharisees doing a cricumsion on the sabbath day. Jesus healing on the sabbath day.

[BIBLE]Matthew 12:33[/BIBLE]
[BIBLE]Matthew 12:7[/BIBLE]

 

[Yitzchak]

[BIBLE]Mark 2:23-28[/BIBLE]
[BIBLE]Mark 3:1-5[/BIBLE]
[BIBLE]Luke 13:14-17[/BIBLE]
[BIBLE]John 5:18[/BIBLE]
[BIBLE]John 7:19-24[/BIBLE]
[BIBLE]John 9:16[/BIBLE]

Even an ambulance breaks the speed limit which is the law of the land on the way to the hospital. It is not a light thing to break the law of God. But in the case of the circumcision and the sabbath two laws of God were in conflict with one antoher so they chose the lesser of two evils. Do some research on it.

If the exception you are looking at is in order to save life , as in the case of abuse , you have scriptural precedent for doing so.

 

[Yitzchak]

By The Way , 1 Samuel 21 is where the story about David and the shewbread is found.

[BIBLE]1 Samuel 21:3-6[/BIBLE]

 

[Yitzchak]

[BIBLE]Numbers 15:32-36[/BIBLE]
[BIBLE]Isaiah 56:2[/BIBLE]
[BIBLE]Jeremiah 17:21-25[/BIBLE]

These passages show that violating this law of God is a serious thing. It also shows that the men who Jesus healed and told to carry his bed on the sabbath was not just breaking the traditions of the pharisees but the law of God.

The comment that Jesus made that the sabbath was made for man and not man for the sabbath doe snot mean to treat the commands of God lightly. But it does mean that there is an exception to even these ruels if it means saving Life and doing good.

 

[kidsminister]

Truthfully, I do not believe it would be scripturally justified. We have Jesus' words that adultery is the only justified grounds for divorce, and some other scriptures about loving those who continually abuse you. Personally, the thought of someone being abused by a loved one is heartbreaking, truly, to me.

Am I hearing you right? I apologize if I misunderstood you, but do you honestly believe that God expects a person to stay in an abusive marriage?

 

[charityagape]

I don't justify divorce. But I think that there are times when one spouse wants a divorce and the other one doesn't. Sometimes it is out of one spouses control.

But even if its out of the other spouses control if they first spouse didn't commit adultry they'd still be bound wouldn't they?

 

[Girly3302]

In the light of Jesus' words in Matt. 5:32, knowing that we are under the Blood of Christ, how are we to justify a divorce?

I am not putting this out to start a big argument, I just want some of you theologians out there to help me understand.

Also, I am not devorced, and I do not see a divorced person as lost. I don't think the church at large does either, because there are divorced pastors, and deacons.

Doesn't the new testament also say divorce is allowed for abandonment?

Girly

 

[mekkin]

I am divorced due to marital unfaithfulness (not on my part.) If that wouldn't have happened, I would not have been led back to the Lord and baptized, saved by His grace! There are many times I try to figure out these "rules."

 

[Christina M]

And, if the abuser claims to be Christian, the church should deal with him harshly.

If an abuser is actively abusing, I do not see how it is at all possible he is Christian. It's an oxymoron: Christian Spouse Abuser:o

 

[Christina M]

Am I hearing you right? I apologize if I misunderstood you, but do you honestly believe that God expects a person to stay in an abusive marriage?

God HATES a man who covers his wife in violence... scripture is clear. If anything breaks covenant it is abuse.

Malachi 2:16
"For the LORD God of Israel says
That He hates divorce,
For it covers one's garment with violence,"
Says the LORD of hosts.
"Therefore take heed to your spirit,
That you do not deal treacherously."

 

[Svt4Him]

In the light of Jesus' words in Matt. 5:32, knowing that we are under the Blood of Christ, how are we to justify a divorce?

I am not putting this out to start a big argument, I just want some of you theologians out there to help me understand.

Also, I am not devorced, and I do not see a divorced person as lost. I don't think the church at large does either, because there are divorced pastors, and deacons.

Jesus was not talking about divorce, He was talking about putting away, which is a totally different issue.

 

[icedtea]

I always wished I had gotten divorced.
My husband took all my money for drugs, commited adultery hundreds of times (with men) and abandoned me for a month. And was abusive.
Thankfully, he died, and I was quite happy about that.
He supposedly got back to God right before he died.

 

[Yitzchak]

But even if its out of the other spouses control if they first spouse didn't commit adultry they'd still be bound wouldn't they?

Divorced is divorced even if it is for the wrong reasons.
That is why Deuteronomy 24 says that a divorced woman cannot go back to her first spouse later after they are divorced.