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THE MESSAGE

Mark 10:5

Jesus said, "Moses wrote this command only as a concession to your hardhearted ways. In the original creation, God made male and female to be together. Because of this, a man leaves father and mother, and in marriage he becomes one flesh with a woman—no longer two individuals, but forming a new unity. Because God created this organic union of the two sexes, no one should desecrate his art by cutting them apart."

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Heart;   Jesus, the Christ;   Marriage;   Polygamy;   The Topic Concordance - Divorce;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Heart, Character of the Unrenewed;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Adultery;   Divorce;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Command, Commandment;   Divorce;   Hardening, Hardness of Heart;   Marriage;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Conflagration;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Divorce;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Marriage;   Pentateuch;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Celibacy;   Divorce;   Hardness of the Heart;   Mark, the Gospel of;   Marriage;   Unity;   Woman;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Ethics;   Jesus Christ;   Mss;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Asceticism (2);   Celibacy (2);   Claim;   Commandments;   Commission;   Common Life;   Discourse;   Divorce (2);   Ethics (2);   Eunuch ;   Fall (2);   Hardening of Heart;   Hating, Hatred;   Home (2);   Law of God;   Matthew, Gospel According to;   Moses ;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Chief parables and miracles in the bible;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Divorce;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Divorce in New Testament;   Family;   Hard;   Inspiration;   Precept;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Marriage;  

Devotionals:

- Daily Light on the Daily Path - Devotion for September 29;   Every Day Light - Devotion for May 25;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
But Jesus told them, “He wrote this command for you because of the hardness of your hearts.
King James Version (1611)
And Iesus answered, and said vnto them, For the hardnesse of your heart, he wrote you this precept.
King James Version
And Jesus answered and said unto them, For the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept.
English Standard Version
And Jesus said to them, "Because of your hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment.
New American Standard Bible
But Jesus said to them, "Because of your hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment.
New Century Version
Jesus said, "Moses wrote that command for you because you were stubborn.
Amplified Bible
But Jesus said to them, "Because of your hardness of hearts [your callousness and insensitivity toward your wives and the provision of God] he wrote you this precept.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
But Jesus said to them, "Because of your hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment.
Legacy Standard Bible
But Jesus said to them, "Because of your hardness of heart he wrote for you this commandment.
Berean Standard Bible
But Jesus told them, "Moses wrote this commandment for you because your hearts were hard.
Contemporary English Version
Jesus replied, "Moses gave you this law because you are so heartless.
Complete Jewish Bible
But Yeshua said to them, "He wrote this commandment for you because of your hardheartedness.
Darby Translation
And Jesus answering said to them, In view of your hard-heartedness he wrote this commandment for you;
Easy-to-Read Version
Jesus said, "Moses wrote that command for you because you refused to accept God's teaching.
Geneva Bible (1587)
Then Iesus answered, & sayd vnto them, For the hardnes of your heart he wrote this precept vnto you.
George Lamsa Translation
Jesus answered and said to them, It was because of the hardness of your heart, that he wrote for you this particular law.
Good News Translation
Jesus said to them, "Moses wrote this law for you because you are so hard to teach.
Lexham English Bible
But Jesus said to them, "He wrote this commandment for you because of your hardness of heart.
Literal Translation
And answering, Jesus said to them, With respect to your hardheartedness he wrote this command to you.
American Standard Version
But Jesus said unto them, For your hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment.
Bible in Basic English
But Jesus said to them, Because of your hard hearts he gave you this law.
Hebrew Names Version
But Yeshua said to them, "For your hardness of heart, he wrote you this mitzvah.
International Standard Version
But Jesus said to them, "It was because of your hardness of heart that he wrote this command for you.
Etheridge Translation
Jeshu answered and said to them, On account of the hardness of your heart he wrote for you this commandment.
Murdock Translation
Jesus answered and said to them: On account of the hardness of your heart, Moses wrote you this precept.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And Iesus aunswered, and sayde vnto the: For the hardnesse of your heart, he wrote this precept vnto you.
English Revised Version
But Jesus said unto them, For your hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment.
World English Bible
But Jesus said to them, "For your hardness of heart, he wrote you this commandment.
Wesley's New Testament (1755)
And Jesus answering said to them, For your hardness of heart he wrote you this precept.
Weymouth's New Testament
"It was in consideration of your stubborn hearts," said Jesus, "that Moses enacted this law for you;
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
`To whiche Jhesus answeride, and seide, For the hardnesse of youre herte Moises wroot to you this comaundement.
Update Bible Version
But Jesus said to them, For your hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment.
Webster's Bible Translation
And Jesus answered and said to them, For the hardness of your heart, he wrote you this precept.
New English Translation
But Jesus said to them, "He wrote this commandment for you because of your hard hearts.
New King James Version
And Jesus answered and said to them, "Because of the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept.
New Living Translation
But Jesus responded, "He wrote this commandment only as a concession to your hard hearts.
New Life Bible
Jesus said to them, "Because of your hard hearts, Moses gave you this Law.
New Revised Standard
But Jesus said to them, "Because of your hardness of heart he wrote this commandment for you.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
But, Jesus, said unto them - In view of your hardness of heart, wrote he for you this commandment;
Douay-Rheims Bible
To whom Jesus answering, said: Because of the hardness of your heart, he wrote you that precept.
Revised Standard Version
But Jesus said to them, "For your hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment.
Tyndale New Testament (1525)
And Iesus answered and sayd vnto the: For ye hardnes of youre hertes he wrote this precept vnto you.
Young's Literal Translation
And Jesus answering said to them, `For the stiffness of your heart he wrote you this command,
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Iesus answered, and sayde vnto them: Because of ye hardnesse of yor hert dyd Moses wryte you this commaundement.
Mace New Testament (1729)
but Jesus answered them, it was out of regard to your untractable temper, that Moses gave you this permission.
Simplified Cowboy Version
But Jesus was already shaking his head. "Yeah, he said that, but only because you are weak and don't understand nothin'.

Contextual Overview

1From there he went to the area of Judea across the Jordan. A crowd of people, as was so often the case, went along, and he, as he so often did, taught them. Pharisees came up, intending to give him a hard time. They asked, "Is it legal for a man to divorce his wife?" 3 Jesus said, "What did Moses command?" 4 They answered, "Moses gave permission to fill out a certificate of dismissal and divorce her." 5Jesus said, "Moses wrote this command only as a concession to your hardhearted ways. In the original creation, God made male and female to be together. Because of this, a man leaves father and mother, and in marriage he becomes one flesh with a woman—no longer two individuals, but forming a new unity. Because God created this organic union of the two sexes, no one should desecrate his art by cutting them apart." 10When they were back home, the disciples brought it up again. Jesus gave it to them straight: "A man who divorces his wife so he can marry someone else commits adultery against her. And a woman who divorces her husband so she can marry someone else commits adultery."

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

For: Deuteronomy 9:6, Deuteronomy 31:27, Nehemiah 9:16, Nehemiah 9:17, Nehemiah 9:26, Matthew 19:8, Acts 7:51, Hebrews 3:7-10

Reciprocal: Deuteronomy 31:9 - Moses Matthew 5:32 - whosoever Matthew 19:5 - said

Cross-References

Genesis 10:1
This is the family tree of the sons of Noah: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. After the flood, they themselves had sons.
Genesis 10:20
These are the descendants of Ham by family, language, country, and nation.
Isaiah 41:5
"Far-flung ocean islands see it and panic. The ends of the earth are shaken. Fearfully they huddle together. They try to help each other out, making up stories in the dark. The godmakers in the workshops go into overtime production, crafting new models of no-gods, Urging one another on—‘Good job!' ‘Great design!'— pounding in nails at the base so that the things won't tip over.
Isaiah 42:10
Sing to God a brand-new song, sing his praises all over the world! Let the sea and its fish give a round of applause, with all the far-flung islands joining in. Let the desert and its camps raise a tune, calling the Kedar nomads to join in. Let the villagers in Sela round up a choir and perform from the tops of the mountains. Make God 's glory resound; echo his praises from coast to coast. God steps out like he means business. You can see he's primed for action. He shouts, announcing his arrival; he takes charge and his enemies fall into line: "I've been quiet long enough. I've held back, biting my tongue. But now I'm letting loose, letting go, like a woman who's having a baby— Stripping the hills bare, withering the wildflowers, Drying up the rivers, turning lakes into mudflats. But I'll take the hand of those who don't know the way, who can't see where they're going. I'll be a personal guide to them, directing them through unknown country. I'll be right there to show them what roads to take, make sure they don't fall into the ditch. These are the things I'll be doing for them— sticking with them, not leaving them for a minute."
Isaiah 49:1
Listen, far-flung islands, pay attention, faraway people: God put me to work from the day I was born. The moment I entered the world he named me. He gave me speech that would cut and penetrate. He kept his hand on me to protect me. He made me his straight arrow and hid me in his quiver. He said to me, "You're my dear servant, Israel, through whom I'll shine."
Isaiah 59:18
We Long for Light but Sink into Darkness Look! Listen! God 's arm is not amputated—he can still save. God 's ears are not stopped up—he can still hear. There's nothing wrong with God; the wrong is in you. Your wrongheaded lives caused the split between you and God. Your sins got between you so that he doesn't hear. Your hands are drenched in blood, your fingers dripping with guilt, Your lips smeared with lies, your tongue swollen from muttering obscenities. No one speaks up for the right, no one deals fairly. They trust in illusion, they tell lies, they get pregnant with mischief and have sin-babies. They hatch snake eggs and weave spider webs. Eat an egg and die; break an egg and get a snake! The spider webs are no good for shirts or shawls. No one can wear these weavings! They weave wickedness, they hatch violence. They compete in the race to do evil and run to be the first to murder. They plan and plot evil, think and breathe evil, and leave a trail of wrecked lives behind them. They know nothing about peace and less than nothing about justice. They make tortuously twisted roads. No peace for the wretch who walks down those roads! Which means that we're a far cry from fair dealing, and we're not even close to right living. We long for light but sink into darkness, long for brightness but stumble through the night. Like the blind, we inch along a wall, groping eyeless in the dark. We shuffle our way in broad daylight, like the dead, but somehow walking. We're no better off than bears, groaning, and no worse off than doves, moaning. We look for justice—not a sign of it; for salvation—not so much as a hint. Our wrongdoings pile up before you, God, our sins stand up and accuse us. Our wrongdoings stare us down; we know in detail what we've done: Mocking and denying God , not following our God, Spreading false rumors, inciting sedition, pregnant with lies, muttering malice. Justice is beaten back, Righteousness is banished to the sidelines, Truth staggers down the street, Honesty is nowhere to be found, Good is missing in action. Anyone renouncing evil is beaten and robbed. God looked and saw evil looming on the horizon— so much evil and no sign of Justice. He couldn't believe what he saw: not a soul around to correct this awful situation. So he did it himself, took on the work of Salvation, fueled by his own Righteousness. He dressed in Righteousness, put it on like a suit of armor, with Salvation on his head like a helmet, Put on Judgment like an overcoat, and threw a cloak of Passion across his shoulders. He'll make everyone pay for what they've done: fury for his foes, just deserts for his enemies. Even the far-off islands will get paid off in full. In the west they'll fear the name of God , in the east they'll fear the glory of God , For he'll arrive like a river in flood stage, whipped to a torrent by the wind of God . "I'll arrive in Zion as Redeemer, to those in Jacob who leave their sins." God 's Decree. "As for me," God says, "this is my covenant with them: My Spirit that I've placed upon you and the words that I've given you to speak, they're not going to leave your mouths nor the mouths of your children nor the mouths of your grandchildren. You will keep repeating these words and won't ever stop." God 's orders.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And Jesus answered and said unto them,.... With respect to this command, or sufferance of Moses, which they urged:

for the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept; it was, not because it was right in its own nature, or according to the original will of God; but, because the Jews were such cruel, and hard hearted men, that if this had not been permitted, some of them, that had wives not so agreeable to them, would have used them in a very inhuman manner, if not murdered them; and therefore to prevent further, and greater mischief, Moses indulged them with such a precept; :-.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

See this question about divorce explained in the notes at Matthew 19:1-12.

Mark 10:12

And if a woman shall put away her husband - It would seem, from this, that a woman, among the Jews, had the power of separating herself from her husband, yet this right is not given her by the law of Moses. There is not, however, any positive evidence that females often claimed or exercised this right. Cases had occurred, indeed, in which it had been done. The wife of Herod had rejected her former husband and married Herod. And though instances of this kind “might” have been attempted to be defended by the example of Pagans, yet our Saviour was desirous of showing them that it did not free them from the charge of adultery. The apostles were going forth to teach Pagan nations, and it was proper for Christ to teach them how to act in such cases, and to show them that they were cases of real adultery.


 
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