Divorce

The topic of divorce is one of the most sensitive and often misunderstood subjects in Scripture. Both the Old and New Testaments address it, reflecting God’s design for marriage and humanity’s struggle to live up to that divine ideal. The Bible translates several Hebrew and Greek terms as “divorce,” and understanding their meanings sheds light on the biblical teaching surrounding marriage, separation, and covenant faithfulness.

Old Testament Usage

Hebrew Terms

The primary Hebrew word translated divorce in the Bible (NASB95) is שְׁלִיחוּת (shelîchûth) or more commonly כְּרִיתוּת (kerîythuth), derived from the root כָּרַת (karath), meaning “to cut off” or “to sever.”

Deuteronomy 24:1 says, “When a man takes a wife and marries her, and it happens that she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some indecency in her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out from his house.”

The phrase “certificate of divorce” translates the Hebrew סֵפֶר כְּרִיתוּת (sepher kerîythuth) — literally, “a scroll of cutting off.” This phrase emphasizes the legal and final separation between husband and wife, formally dissolving the marriage covenant.

The verb shalach (שָׁלַח), meaning “to send away,” is also frequently used in connection with divorce, describing the act of dismissing or sending away a spouse (see Malachi 2:16).

Theological Significance

In the Old Testament, divorce was tolerated but not commanded. Moses’ law provided a legal framework (Deut. 24:1–4) to regulate divorce and protect women from abuse or hasty dismissal. However, God’s ideal was always permanent covenantal faithfulness between husband and wife.

Malachi 2:16 says, “For I hate divorce,” says the LORD, the God of Israel, “and him who covers his garment with wrong,” says the LORD of hosts. “So take heed to your spirit, that you do not deal treacherously.”

Here, God’s hatred of divorce underscores His covenantal nature, faithfulness and steadfast love are central to His character and to His design for marriage.

New Testament Usage

Greek Terms

The key Greek verb translated divorce in the Bible is ἀπολύω (apolyō), meaning “to release,” “to send away,” or “to dismiss.”

Matthew 19:3 says, “And some Pharisees came to Jesus, testing Him and saying, ‘Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason at all?’”

Another related noun is ἀποστάσιον (apostasion), meaning “certificate of divorce” or “a bill of dismissal,” corresponding directly to the Hebrew sepher kerithuth.

Matthew 19:7 says, “They said to Him, ‘Why then did Moses command to give her a certificate of divorce and send her away?’”

Jesus’ Teaching

Jesus acknowledges that Moses permitted divorce “because of your hardness of heart” (Matt. 19:8), but He reaffirms God’s original intent from creation. Our Lord said in Matthew 19:6,“What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.”

Jesus’ teaching elevates marriage as a sacred, lifelong covenant, not merely a social contract that can be ended at will. Divorce, though permissible in limited cases (such as sexual immorality in Matthew 19:9), is never God’s ideal.

Pauline Teaching

The Apostle Paul echoes this understanding. In 1 Corinthians 7:10-11 Paul wrote, “But to the married I give instructions, not I, but the Lord, that the wife should not leave her husband (but if she does leave, she must remain unmarried, or else be reconciled to her husband), and that the husband should not divorce his wife.”

Paul upholds both the sanctity of marriage and the call to reconciliation whenever possible. Divorce may be recognized in the case of abandonment by an unbelieving spouse (See 1 Corinthians 7:15), but even then, it is presented as a concession, not a command.

Summary of Meaning

Language	Word	Meaning	Emphasis
Hebrew	Kerîythuth (כְּרִיתוּת)	Cutting off, severance	Legal dissolution of marriage
Hebrew	Shalach (שָׁלַח)	To send away	Act of dismissal or separation
Greek	Apolyō (ἀπολύω)	To release, dismiss	Sending away a spouse
Greek	Apostasion (ἀποστάσιον)	Certificate of dismissal	Legal document of divorce

Theological Reflection

Divorce in Scripture is a concession to human sin, not a divine command. It reflects the brokenness of human relationships in contrast to God’s covenantal faithfulness. The biblical witness consistently points back to Genesis 2:24 where marriage is a union between a man and a woman into “one flesh” ordained by God.

God’s hatred of divorce (Mal. 2:16) is not rooted in legalism but in love; love for His people, for the sanctity of covenant, and for the wholeness that marriage represents. Yet, Scripture also reveals God’s mercy toward the divorced and broken, as He redeems and restores those who turn to Him.

Conclusion

In both Testaments, the word divorce represents a cutting off, a tragic separation that contrasts sharply with God’s design for lifelong unity. While human hardness of heart made divorce a social reality, God’s heart still calls His people to covenant faithfulness and reconciliation. The biblical teaching on divorce, therefore, balances truth and grace: upholding God’s ideal while extending compassion to those who fall short of it.