Bible Strands
Matthew 19:8
Jesus replied, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because of your hardness of heart. But it was not this way from the beginning.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Jesus responds to the Pharisees’ inquiry about Moses’ divorce certificate by contrasting a later concession with the original creation order. He addresses them directly at the moment they question the legal basis for sending a wife away.
The words — σκληροκαρδίαν (sklērokardian) literally means hardness of heart, denoting the stubborn resistance that led Moses to permit divorce documents. This term identifies the human condition that necessitated a temporary regulatory adjustment.
The thread — The phrase “from the beginning” directly references Genesis 2:24, which records the original one-flesh union that divorce severs. The call to return to foundational standards aligns with the ancient paths in Jeremiah 6:16 and the covenant failure highlighted in Malachi 2:13.
Why it lands — The text requires readers to distinguish between a concession to human stubbornness and the original divine design. It demands that religious practice align with the initial creation order rather than accommodate compromised customs.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
He saith unto them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so.
Cross-references
- Malachi 2:13 And this is another thing you do: You cover the altar of the LORD with tears, with weeping and groaning, because He no longer regards your offerings or receives them gladly from your hands.
- Genesis 2:24 For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.
- Jeremiah 6:16 This is what the LORD says: “Stand at the crossroads and look. Ask for the ancient paths: ‘Where is the good way?’ Then walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But they said, ‘We will not walk in it!’
- Zechariah 7:12 They made their hearts like flint and would not listen to the law or to the words that the LORD of Hosts had sent by His Spirit through the earlier prophets. Therefore great anger came from the LORD of Hosts.
- Mark 10:5 But Jesus told them, “Moses wrote this commandment for you because of your hardness of heart.
- Genesis 7:7 And Noah and his wife, with his sons and their wives, entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood.
- Matthew 3:15 “Let it be so now,” Jesus replied. “It is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness in this way.” Then John permitted Him.
- 1 Corinthians 7:6 I say this as a concession, not as a command.
- Psalms 95:8 do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah, in the day at Massah in the wilderness,
- Matthew 8:31 So the demons begged Jesus, “If You drive us out, send us into the herd of pigs.”