The disciples’ response to Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 19:10 shows how they were captive to the mindset of their day. If marriage was so hard to dissolve, they saw it as a heavy yoke that one should not take upon oneself. The right response would have been to see how they could use this institution for the good of their wives, themselves, their children, their fellow human beings, and God’s kingdom.
The disciples seemed to be thinking of unhappy marriages that, while no adultery had been committed, were so unpleasant that it seemed better to end them. To them, a marriage without the chance of divorce seemed hopeless. To understand this reaction properly, note that 1) Most marriages in that time were arranged by parents, and 2) young women at the time lived with the constant risk of being divorced, and so exerted themselves to try and make sure the marriage succeeded. If the certificate of divorce were removed, the quality of arranged marriages could fall in a world where couples did not choose one another.
Also, having children was seen as a biblical duty for every Jewish man, and so if a man were bound to a barren wife due to the ban on divorce, he could not fulfill the creation mandate to fill the earth. This made the possibility of divorce seem desirable, both to allow arranged marriage and to secure offspring.
The disciples’ response to Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 19:10 shows they were still very much captive to the Jewish mindset of their day. If marriage was so difficult to dissolve, they regarded it as a heavy yoke—one that was better not taken upon oneself. The right response would have been to consider how they could use this divine institution for the good of their wives, themselves, their children, their fellow human beings, and ultimately the kingdom of God.1
The disciples were apparently thinking of the many unhappy marriages wherein, although no adultery had been committed, there were nevertheless so many unpleasant circumstances that, humanly speaking, it seemed better to bring such marriages to an end.2 To them, a marriage without the possibility of divorce seemed hopeless. This may sound like a selfish reaction, but to understand it properly we must remember two things: 1) Most marriages in that time were arranged by the parents, and 2) young women at the time lived with the constant risk of being divorced, and so for that reason they exerted themselves to try and make sure the marriage succeeded. If the certificate of divorce were removed, the quality of arranged marriages could quickly deteriorate in a world where couples did not choose one another.
Furthermore, having children was considered a biblical duty for every Jewish man, and so if a man were permanently bound to a barren wife because of the prohibition against divorce, he would fall short of the creational mandate to fill the earth. Within the framework of their worldview, the possibility of divorce seemed desirable—both for the sake of the development of marriages and for the sake of securing an offspring.3
10 The disciples said to him, “If such is the case of a man with his wife, it is better not to marry.”