29 Bible Verses about divorce, in OT

And they said, "Moses suffered to write a testimonial of her divorcement, and to put her away."

Then said they to him, "Why did Moses command to give unto her a testimonial of divorcement, and to put her away?"

If the priest's daughter be married unto a stranger, she may not eat of the hallowed heave offerings. Notwithstanding, if the priest's daughter be a widow, or divorced, and have no child, but is returned unto her father's house again, she shall eat of her father's bread as well as she did in her youth. But there shall no stranger eat thereof.

If a man take a wife, and when he hath lain with her hate her, and lay shameful things unto her charge and bring up an evil name upon her and say, 'I took this wife, and when I came to her, I found her not a maid': Then let the father of the damsel and the mother bring forth the tokens of the damsel's virginity, unto the elders of the city, even unto the gate.read more.
And let the damsel's father say unto the elders, 'I gave my daughter unto this man to wife and he hateth her: and lo, he layeth shameful things unto her charge saying: I found not thy daughter a maid. And yet these are the tokens of my daughter's virginity.' And let them spread the vesture before the elders of the city. Then let the elders of that city take that man and chastise him, and merce him in a hundred sicles of silver and give them unto the father of the damsel, because he hath brought up an evil name upon a maid in Israel. And she shall be his wife, and he may not put her away all his days.

The vow of a widow and of her that is divorced, and all that they have bound their souls withal, shall stand in effect with them.

If a man find a maid that is not betrothed and take her and lie with her and be found: Then the man that lay with her shall give unto the damsel's father fifty sicles of silver. And she shall be his wife, because he hath humbled her, and he may not put her away all his days.

When a man hath taken a wife and married her, if she find no favour in his eyes, because he hath spied some uncleanness in her: Then let him write her a bill of divorcement and put it in her hand and send her out of his house. If, when she is departed out of his house, she go and be another man's wife,

and the second husband hate her and write her a letter of divorcement and put it in her hand and send her out of his house, or if the second man die which took her to wife; her first man which sent her away may not take her again to be his wife, inasmuch as she is defiled. For that is abomination in the sight of the LORD: that thou defile not the land with sin, which the LORD thy God giveth thee to inherit.

As for your mother, ye shall chide with her, and reprove her: for she is not my wife, neither am I her husband, unless she put away her whoredoms out of my sight, and her adultery from her breasts.

It is said, Whosoever put away his wife let him give her a testimonial also of the divorcement.

Commonly, when a man putteth away his wife, and she goeth from him, and marrieth with another, then the question is: should he resort unto her any more after that? Is not this field then defiled and unclean? But as for thee, thou hast played the harlot with many lovers, yet turn again to me, sayeth the LORD.

Have we not all one father? Hath not one God made us? Why doth every one of us then despise his own brother, and so break the covenant of our fathers? Now hath Judah offended: yea the abomination is done in Israel and in Jerusalem, for Judah hath defiled the Sanctuary of the LORD, which he loved, and hath kept the daughter of a strange God. But the LORD shall destroy the man that doth this, yea both the master and the scholar, out of the tabernacle of Jacob, with him that offereth up meat offering unto the LORD of Hosts.read more.
Now have ye brought it to this point again, that the altar of the LORD is covered with tears, weeping, and mourning: so that I will no more regard the meat offering, neither will I receive or accept anything at your hands. And yet ye say, 'Wherefore?' Even because that whereas the LORD made a covenant betwixt thee and the wife of thy youth, thou hast despised her: Yet is she thine own companion and married wife. So did not the one, and yet had he an excellent spirit. What did then the one? He sought the seed promised of God. Therefore look well to your spirit, and let no man despise the wife of his youth. If thou hatest her, put her away, sayeth the LORD God of Israel and give her a clothing for the scorn, sayeth the LORD of Hosts. Look well then to your spirit, and despise her not.

"'They shall take no wife that is an whore, or polluted, or put from her husband: for a priest is holy unto his God.

He answered, and said unto them, "Have ye not read, how that he which made man at the beginning, made them man and woman? and said, 'For this thing, shall a man leave father and mother, and cleave unto his wife, and they twain shall be one flesh.' Wherefore now are they not twain, but one flesh. Let not man therefore put asunder, that which God hath coupled together."read more.
Then said they to him, "Why did Moses command to give unto her a testimonial of divorcement, and to put her away?" He said 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.

They shall marry no widow, neither one that is put from her husband: but a maiden of the seed of the house of Israel, or a widow that hath had a priest before.

And Jesus answered, and said unto them, "For the hardness of your hearts he wrote this precept unto you. But at the first creation, God made them man and woman, saying, 'And for this thing's sake shall man leave his father and mother, and bide by his wife,read more.
and they twain shall be made one flesh.' So then are they now not twain, but one flesh. Therefore, what God hath coupled, let not man separate."

The LORD said also unto me, in the time of Josiah the king, "Hast thou seen what that shrinking Israel hath done? How she hath run up upon all high hills, and among all thick trees, and there played the harlot? Hast thou seen also, when she had done all this, how I said unto her that she should turn again unto me, and yet she is not returned? Judah, that unfaithful sister of hers also saw this: Namely, that after I had well seen the adultery of the shrinking harlot Israel, I put her away, and gave her a bill of divorcement. For all this, her unfaithful sister Judah was not ashamed, but went back and played the whore also.read more.
Yea, and the noise of her whoredom hath defiled the whole land. For she hath committed her adultery with stones and stocks. Nevertheless, her unfaithful sister Judah is not turned unto me again with her whole heart, but feignedly, sayeth the LORD."

Thus sayeth the LORD: Where is the bill of your mother's divorcement, that I sent unto her? Or who is the usurer, to whom I sold you? Behold, for your own offenses are ye sold: and because of your transgression, is your mother forsaken.

For this cause shall a man leave father and mother and cleave unto his wife, and they shall be one flesh.

not after the covenant that I made with their fathers, when I took them by the hand, and led them out of the land of Egypt: which covenant they brake, wherefore I punished them sore, sayeth the LORD:

Fear not, for thou shalt not be confounded. Be not ashamed, for thou shalt not come to confusion. Yea, thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the dishonour of thy widowhood. For he that made thee, shall be thy LORD and husband, whose name is the LORD of Hosts: and thine avenger shall be even the holy one of Israel, the LORD of the whole world. For the LORD shall call thee, being as a desolate sorrowful woman, and as a young wife that hath broken her wedlock, sayeth thy God.read more.
A little while have I forsaken thee, but with great mercifulness shall I take thee up unto me. When I was angry, I hid my face from thee for a little season, but through everlasting goodness shall I pardon thee, sayeth the LORD thine avenger.

When a man hath taken a wife and married her, if she find no favour in his eyes, because he hath spied some uncleanness in her: Then let him write her a bill of divorcement and put it in her hand and send her out of his house.

and put her raiment that she was taken in from her, and let her remain in thine house and beweep her father and her mother a month long and after that go in unto her and marry her and let her be thy wife. And if thou have no favour unto her, then let her go whither she lusteth: for thou mayest not sell her for money nor make chevisance of her, because thou hast humbled her.

From this time forth thou shalt never be called the forsaken, and thy land shall no more be called the wilderness. But thou shalt be called Hephzibah, that is, my beloved; and thy land Beulah, that is, a married woman: for the LORD loveth thee, and thy land shall be inhabited. And like as a young man taketh a daughter to marriage, so shall God marry himself unto thy sons. And as a bridegroom is glad of his bride, so shall God rejoice over thee.

Then came unto him the Pharisees to tempt him, and said to him, "Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for all manner of causes?"

"'Nevertheless, I will remember the covenant that I made with thee in thy youth, insomuch that it shall be an everlasting covenant: So that thou also remember thy ways, and be ashamed of them. Then shalt thou receive of me thy elder and younger sisters, whom I will make thy daughters: and that beside thy covenant. And so I will renew my covenant with thee, that thou mayest know that I am the LORD:read more.
That thou mayest think upon it, be ashamed, and excuse thine own confusion no more: when I have forgiven thee all that thou hast done, sayeth the LORD God.'"

And Ezra the priest stood up, and said unto them, "Ye have transgressed, that have taken strange wives, to make the trespass of Israel yet more: confess now therefore unto the LORD God of your fathers, and do his pleasure, and separate yourselves from the people of the land, and from the strange wives."

"Wherefore behold: I will call her again, bring her into a wilderness, and speak friendly unto her. There will I give her, her vineyards again; yea, and the valley of Achor also, to show her hope and comfort. Then shall she sing there as in the time of her youth, and like as in the day when she came out of the land of Egypt. Then, sayeth the LORD, she shall say unto me, 'O my husband,' and shall call me no more Baal.

And Shecaniah the son of Jehiel, one of the children of Elam, answered, and said unto Ezra, "We have trespassed against the LORD our God, in that we have taken strange wives of the people of the land. Now there is hope yet in Israel concerning this: for now will we make a covenant with our God, that we shall put away all the wives - and such as are born of them - according to the counsel of the LORD and of them that fear the commandment of our God, that we may do according to the law.