Bible Study Notes

Mark 10:1-12

Addressing His Society

 

Scripture Outline

          I.        Divorce—The Sting of Sophistry (Mar_10:1-12)

        II.        Children—The Stigma of Smallness (Mar_10:13-16)

      III.        Wealth—The Sadness of Success (Mar_10:17-31)

 

Divorce: The Sting of Sophistry

Speed and intensity take over as Jesus moves toward Jerusalem. Leaving Galilee for the last time, He journeys south through Samaria and east over the Jordan into the Peraean region of Judea. Here Jesus reopens His public ministry and the Pharisees reopen their public attack.

 

While Jesus is teaching the people, the Pharisees arrive with another of their loaded questions, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?" (Mar_10:2). Satan has many agents and comes in many forms. Mark informs us that the Pharisees are again "testing Him" (Mar_10:2), not with an honest question, but with the intent to do evil. The motive of the Pharisees does not differ from Satan's attack in the wilderness. Probe after probe is being aimed at Jesus to find the spot where He will either sin against God or give His enemies a reason for putting Him to death.

 

This time, the Pharisees test Jesus with a probe of many prongs. By posing the question about divorce, they try to force Jesus into a corner where He has to alienate someone with His answer. If He opposes divorce on legal grounds, He contradicts the Law of Moses. If He makes divorce a moral issue, He exposes Himself to the same fate as John the Baptist at the hands of the adulterer, Herod Antipas. At the same time, if He accepts divorce on legal grounds, He subjects Himself to the Law of Moses and the interpretation of the Pharisees. But if He refuses to accept divorce on moral grounds, He chooses to side with the Shammai faction of the rabbinical school in their heated debate with the students of Hillel. Scholars of the high priest, Shammai, contended that divorce could be granted only for immorality on the part of the husband, while the more liberal Hillelites interpreted the Law of Moses to permit a man to divorce his wife for any reason of dissatisfaction, including burnt bread or a fairer female.

 

Wisdom and experience have taught Jesus to lead the Pharisees into their own trap by asking a counterquestion rather than giving them a direct answer. Choosing His words carefully, He turns the question back to them, "What did Moses command you?" (Mar_10:3). Feeling false security in their knowledge of Mosaic Law, the Pharisees recite the provision for divorce that Moses "permitted." They do not say "commanded." Jesus takes advantage of their choice of words to address the question of divorce from God's perspective.

 

Moses' Permission For Divorce Is An Indictment On The Human Condition.

Jesus acknowledges Moses' provision for a certificate of divorce that spells out the conditions of separation. Divorce had become the mode among his people and, as their leader, he had the responsibility to limit and regulate a behavior that threatened to destroy a nation built upon the family. At best, Moses hoped that his temporary legislation would be superseded by a revival among the Jews that would once again put the Spirit of love above the letter of the Law.

 

God's Purpose For Marriage Has Not Changed.

Jesus calls a spade a spade. Moses' temporary provision for divorce is not God's norm; it is proof of man's sin. Jesus might have launched into a fiery sermon on divorce, as evidence of the blackness and hardness of man's heart. But instead of dignifying divorce, with all its grubby details, He chooses to elevate the sacredness of marriage. God's intention for marriage, Jesus says, is revealed in the very beginning. Two distinct sexes were created by God for the purpose of marriage. Thus, a man is to break away from his parents and be joined to his wife so that "1 + 1 = 1" in their relationship. Yoked together by marriage vows taken in the presence of God, the relationship of husband and wife is permanent. Jesus has not dodged the Pharisees' question. By their own scriptures, they must admit that God's original intention for marriage has not changed.

Later on, when Jesus and His disciples are alone in the house, the conversation continues in detail. Confusion still exists in the disciples' minds about divorce. If Jesus' public statement is taken literally, divorce is not permissible under any circumstances. Jesus' response to their continuing question is difficult to interpret. Some take it as new legalism in which divorce and remarriage on the part of either husband or wife is adultery. Others refer to Matthew's account of the same conversation in which He makes "sexual immorality" a legitimate exception for divorce and remarriage. Still others find Jesus correcting the anti-feminism of Jewish law which let a man divorce his wife for any reason, but left no recourse for her, even if the husband were guilty of adultery.

 

The Spirit Of The Law Has Contemporary Meaning.

We need to rethink this difficult passage in terms of the Spirit, rather than the letter of the Law. Never once does Jesus introduce a new legalism that would be the stuff out of which Pharisees of the future could be made. At the same time, He does not back away from the truth that divorce is a symptom of man's sin and permanent marriage is God's intention. Thus, the Spirit of the Law still prevails. Divorce may have to be recognized in a secular society. Whether we like it or not, legislation may be necessary to limit and regulate its spread. For instance, a law calling for a six-month waiting period and counseling on "irreconcilable differences" may not be Christian, but it may be best under the circumstances of human nature to declare formally the primacy of the family and informally the seriousness of the marriage vows. Jesus would be the first to recognize divorce as a fact of life which may have to be permitted under certain circumstances, but the last to condone it as God's original purpose. Divorce is still a primary symptom of our sclerotic hearts. We continue to ask, "Is it legally permissible?" when we should be asking, "Is it God's intention?"