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In Matthew, Jesus says a man who divorces his wife, except for immorality, and remarries commits adultery. In the Shepherd of Hermas, a believer similarly may not remarry after divorcing an adulterous wife, but must take her back if she repents.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Matthew 19:9
New Testament
3 Then some Pharisees came to him in order to test him. They asked, “Is it lawful to divorce a wife for any cause?” 4 He answered, “Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator made them male and female, 5 and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and will be united with his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? 6 So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.” 7 They said to him, “Why then did Moses command us to give a certificate of dismissal and to divorce her?” 8 Jesus said to them, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because of your hard hearts, but from the beginning it was not this way. 9 Now I say to you that whoever divorces his wife, except for immorality, and marries another commits adultery.”
Shepherd of Hermas 29:6
Early Christian
4 I said to him, “Sir, allow me to ask you a few more questions.” “Go ahead,” he said. “Sir,” I said, “if a man who has a wife who is faithful in the Lord finds her in adultery, does the husband sin by living with her?” 5 “As long as he does not know,” he said, “he does not sin; but if the husband knows about her sin, and the wife does not repent but continues in her immorality, and her husband lives with her, he becomes responsible for her sin and an accomplice in her adultery.” 6 “Then what, Sir,” I said, “must the husband do if the wife remains like this?” “Let him divorce her,” he said, “and let the husband remain alone; but if after divorcing his wife he marries another, he also commits adultery.” 7 “If then, Sir,” I said, “after the wife is divorced, she repents and wants to return to her own husband, should she not be taken back?” 8 “Certainly,” he said, “if the husband does not take her back, he sins and brings great sin on himself; indeed, the one who has sinned and has repented must be taken back, but not many times; for there is only one repentance for the servants of God. So, because of her repentance, the husband ought not to marry someone else. This is how husband and wife ought to act.
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Notes and References
“... If that is the case, then the "divorce" of the wife in the case of adultery is for all practical purposes a "separation." The situation is similar for Hermas, who categorically forbids a second marriage and designates as [...] "separation" without the possibility of a new marriage. [...] Hermas, Man. 4.1.4–8 = 29:4-8 (here, to be sure, with the possibility that the wife repents and returns to the husband). ...”
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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