marriage on Nostr: Matthew 19:9: "But I am saying to you°, Whoever divorces his wife not over ...

Matthew 19:9: "But I am saying to you°, Whoever divorces his wife not over fornication, and should marry another, is committing adultery, and he who marries her who has been divorced is committing adultery."

Some try to use this verse to justify divorce and remarriage. At best, the verse makes no comment on divorce over fornication. An interpretation assuming permission for divorce and remarriage is inconsistent with the rest of Scripture.

The Law of Moses required death for the offenders who committed fornication. The Pharisees are asking Jesus a question of law, "is it lawful?" so Jesus answers precisely. The Pharisees very well knew the penalty for "sexual immorality" of any kind was death, so there was no need to discuss divorce for these cases. The "exception" here is not an exception to allow divorce or remarriage, but rather an exclusion from the discussion; it is an all-inclusive clause to include every non-capital reason one might want to divorce.

We know God disallowed divorce for sexual offenses in the Law of Moses because the penalty was death, not divorce. Then Jesus came along and banned divorce for all non-sexual offenses. Between the two, divorce was prohibited for each and every cause.

The account in Mark 10 without any exception is a separate occurrence when the disciples are asking Jesus privately on the matter with no reference to the Law of Moses and no need to distinguish one case from another.
Mark 10:10-12: "And his disciples in the house asked him again concerning the same thing. And he says to them, Whoever divorces his wife and should marry another is committing adultery against her; and if a woman divorces her husband and should marry another, she is committing adultery."