To the married I give this command (not I, but the Lord): A wife must not separate from her husband.
But if she does, she must remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband. And a husband must not divorce his wife.
Now for the matters you wrote about: It is good to abstain from sexual relations.
But because there is so much sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman her own husband.
The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband.
The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife.
Do not deprive each other, except by mutual consent and for a time, so you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again, so that Satan will not tempt you through your lack of self-control.
. . .
“For I hate divorce,” says the LORD, the God of Israel. “He who divorces his wife covers his garment with violence,” says the LORD of Hosts. So guard yourselves in your spirit and do not break faith.
Husbands, in the same way, treat your wives with consideration as a delicate vessel, and with honor as fellow heirs of the gracious gift of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered.
Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come!
All this is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation:
But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, brings adultery upon her. And he who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
Do not deprive each other, except by mutual consent and for a time, so you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again, so that Satan will not tempt you through your lack of self-control.
For the unbelieving husband is sanctified through his believing wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified through her believing husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but now they are holy.
When Jesus had finished saying these things, He left Galilee and went into the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.
Large crowds followed Him, and He healed them there.
Then some Pharisees came and tested Him by asking, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason?”
Jesus answered, “Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’
and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’?
. . .
So then, if she is joined to another man while her husband is still alive, she is called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from that law and is not an adulteress, even if she marries another man.
Jesus answered, “Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’
and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’?
So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.”
Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who submit to or perform homosexual acts,
nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor verbal abusers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.
If a man marries a woman, but she becomes displeasing to him because he finds some indecency in her, he may write her a certificate of divorce, hand it to her, and send her away from his house.
If, after leaving his house, she goes and becomes another man’s wife,
and the second man hates her, writes her a certificate of divorce, hands it to her, and sends her away from his house, or if he dies,
then the husband who divorced her first may not remarry her after she has been defiled, for that is an abomination to the LORD. You must not bring sin upon the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance.
If a man is newly married, he must not be sent to war or be pressed into any duty. For one year he is free to stay at home and bring joy to the wife he has married.
. . .
If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a ringing gong or a clanging cymbal.
If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have absolute faith so as to move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.
If I give all I possess to the poor and exult in the surrender of my body, but have not love, I gain nothing.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no account of wrongs.
. . .
A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to marry anyone she wishes, as long as he belongs to the Lord.
Then some Pharisees came and tested Him by asking, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason?”
Jesus answered, “Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’
and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’?
So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.”
“Why then,” they asked, “did Moses order a man to give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?”
. . .
So He told them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery against her.
And if a woman divorces her husband and marries another man, she commits adultery.”
It has also been said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.’
But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, brings adultery upon her. And he who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”
If a man marries a woman, but she becomes displeasing to him because he finds some indecency in her, he may write her a certificate of divorce, hand it to her, and send her away from his house.
If, after leaving his house, she goes and becomes another man’s wife,
and the second man hates her, writes her a certificate of divorce, hands it to her, and sends her away from his house, or if he dies,
then the husband who divorced her first may not remarry her after she has been defiled, for that is an abomination to the LORD. You must not bring sin upon the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance.
Nevertheless, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending side by side for the faith of the gospel,
without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a clear sign of their destruction but of your salvation, and it is from God.
For if, when we were enemies of God, we were reconciled to Him through the death of His Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through His life!
Then Jesus left that place and went into the region of Judea, beyond the Jordan. Again the crowds came to Him and He taught them, as was His custom.
Some Pharisees came to test Him. “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” they inquired.
“What did Moses command you?” He replied.
They answered, “Moses permitted a man to write his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away.”
But Jesus told them, “Moses wrote this commandment for you because of your hardness of heart.
. . .
When Jesus had finished saying these things, He left Galilee and went into the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.
Large crowds followed Him, and He healed them there.
Then some Pharisees came and tested Him by asking, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason?”
Jesus answered, “Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’
and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’?
. . .
Then Jesus left that place and went into the region of Judea, beyond the Jordan. Again the crowds came to Him and He taught them, as was His custom.
Some Pharisees came to test Him. “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” they inquired.
“What did Moses command you?” He replied.
They answered, “Moses permitted a man to write his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away.”
But Jesus told them, “Moses wrote this commandment for you because of your hardness of heart.
. . .
It was the first day of the week, and that very evening, while the disciples were together with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them. “Peace be with you!” He said to them.
After He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.
Again Jesus said to them, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent Me, so also I am sending you.”
When He had said this, He breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.
If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you withhold forgiveness from anyone, it is withheld.”
So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you,
leave your gift there before the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
These are the words of King Lemuel—the burden that his mother taught him:
What shall I say, O my son? What, O son of my womb? What, O son of my vows?
Do not spend your strength on women or your vigor on those who ruin kings.
It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine, or for rulers to crave strong drink,
lest they drink and forget what is decreed, depriving all the oppressed of justice.
. . .
If your brother sins against you, go and confront him privately. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over.
But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’
If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, regard him as you would a pagan or a tax collector.
If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, regard him as you would a pagan or a tax collector.
Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord.
And the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick. The Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven.
Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother who sins against me? Up to seven times?”
Jesus answered, “I tell you, not just seven times, but seventy-seven times!
Because of this, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.
As he began the settlements, a debtor was brought to him owing ten thousand talents.
Since the man was unable to pay, the master ordered that he be sold to pay his debt, along with his wife and children and everything he owned.
. . .
As a prisoner in the Lord, then, I urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling you have received:
with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love,
and with diligence to preserve the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.
At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who then is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
Jesus invited a little child to stand among them.
“Truly I tell you,” He said, “unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
And whoever welcomes a little child like this in My name welcomes Me.
. . .
For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive yours.
All this is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation:
that God was reconciling the world to Himself in Christ, not counting men’s trespasses against them. And He has committed to us the message of reconciliation.
that God was reconciling the world to Himself in Christ, not counting men’s trespasses against them. And He has committed to us the message of reconciliation.
For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him,
and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through the blood of His cross.
Once you were alienated from God and were hostile in your minds because of your evil deeds.
But now He has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy, unblemished, and blameless in His presence—
and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through the blood of His cross.
Once you were alienated from God and were hostile in your minds because of your evil deeds.
For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.
For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.
Moses slaughtered the bull, took some of the blood, and applied it with his finger to all four horns of the altar, purifying the altar. He poured out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar and consecrated it so that atonement could be made on it.
When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain and sat down. His disciples came to Him,
and He began to teach them, saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
. . .
For at just the right time, while we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.
Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die.
But God proves His love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Therefore, since we have now been justified by His blood, how much more shall we be saved from wrath through Him!
For if, when we were enemies of God, we were reconciled to Him through the death of His Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through His life!
. . .
But if the unbeliever leaves, let him go. The believing brother or sister is not bound in such cases. God has called you to live in peace.
How do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband? Or how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife?
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her
to sanctify her, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word,
and to present her to Himself as a glorious church, without stain or wrinkle or any such blemish, but holy and blameless.
In the same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.
Indeed, no one ever hated his own body, but he nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church.
. . .
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this world’s darkness, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself unblemished to God, purify our consciences from works of death, so that we may serve the living God!
This is the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants what must soon come to pass. He made it known by sending His angel to His servant John,