What is the meaning of Matthew 19:8? Jesus replied “Have you not read,” Jesus has just reminded the Pharisees that “from the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female’ ” (Matthew 19:4). • He grounds every answer in the written Word, never in changing cultural sentiment (Matthew 4:4). • The reply comes after their question about lawful grounds for divorce (Matthew 19:3), showing that Scripture, not tradition, decides the issue (Mark 7:8-13). Moses permitted you to divorce your wives “Moses permitted” does not equal “Moses commanded” (Deuteronomy 24:1-4). • The certificate of divorce was a concession, not a celebration. • God’s moral standard in Malachi 2:16—“I hate divorce”—remained unchanged. • Jesus affirms that even Mosaic allowances sit beneath God’s higher, original design (Galatians 3:19). Because of your hardness of heart Hard-heartedness is willful resistance to God’s voice (Exodus 32:9; Hebrews 3:7-13). • Divorce arose because people refused to repent, not because God’s design failed. • Sinful hearts ruin what God joined together (Genesis 2:24), prompting the civil regulation that protected the innocent party, especially the woman. • Jesus exposes the root problem: internal rebellion, not external circumstances (Matthew 15:19). But it was not this way from the beginning • “From the beginning” reaches back to Eden, affirming the literal historical creation account (Genesis 1–2). • God’s first word on marriage—one man, one woman, lifelong union—still governs every later discussion (Genesis 2:24; Matthew 19:6). • Jesus re-sets the baseline: redemption in Him restores the original blueprint, overcoming hardness of heart (Ezekiel 36:26; 2 Corinthians 5:17). summary Matthew 19:8 teaches that divorce is a temporary concession granted to restrain sin, never part of God’s perfect design. Jesus points past Moses to creation itself, reaffirming that God joins husband and wife in a permanent covenant. The real issue is the human heart; when hearts are softened by God’s grace, the original, lifelong marriage plan can be lived out as He intended. |
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