HEBREW WORD STUDY – DIVORCE (ARAMAIC) SHAVITA שׁבתא
Matthew 19:9: “And I say unto you, whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committed adultery: and whoso married her which is put away doth commit adultery.” KJV
Matthew 19:9 “I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery.” NIV
When I read the Gospels in the Aramaic I find little that contradicts my Greek New Testament, I simply find a richer and deeper understanding and appreciation for the Words of Jesus. The Eastern Church believes that the Gospels were originally written in Aramaic and later translated into Greek. The jury is still out on that matter. I believe the Gospel writers wanted to preserve the rich poetic quality of the teachings of Jesus. The Eastern Church also retained its Semitic influence and the influence of the Jews where Constantine in the Western Church bumped the Jews out of the church with his pagan influence and therefore lost its Semitic input.
In Matthew 19:9 Jesus said that whoever divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery. This is how it is read in the Greek text. The word divorce in the Greek is apolyse meaning divorce, release, or dismiss. The Greek text really reads “And marries another (Greek: allen) commits adultery and whoever marries another who is divorced (apoleimenen) commits adultery. “ Many modern translations, like the NIV, simply put the two another and one who is divorced together making it clear that any remarriage after divorce is adultery.
The Aramaic reads a little different and seems to allow a little wiggle room. The Aramaic text reads “Whoever divorces his wife dala’ gavara’ and nasav (translated as marries) commits adultery. Dala’ gavara’ means without a charge of adultery. Note, Jesus does not say marries another, but nasav another. The word nasav is a colloquial expression, literally translated as take but means simply to have sex with another. The thinking of Jesus’s day was not unlike that of today. A man cannot have sex with another woman while married, but if he is divorced, he is allowed to sleep around until he gets married. After all, no harm done, no broken hearts, just sleeping around, testing the waters so to speak to find someone that satisfies you. Jesus is saying: “Just because you are divorced does not give the right to sleep around, you have sex with someone outside vows of marriage then you are committing adultery.
But look at what else Jesus said. In the Greek, it says: “if you marry a divorced woman you are committing adultery.” The Aramaic says almost the opposite. The word divorced in Aramaic shrita. That word is not used here; instead, the word shavita is used. This means a woman who is not divorced or an undivorced woman. If you marry a woman who is not yet divorced, you are committing adultery. There is the belief today as in that day that if a woman was just separated from her husband, you could sleep with her while the husband was working out the details of the divorce. Again the word that is used is nasav which simply means to have sex with and does not necessarily imply marriage.
In the Aramaic text, Jesus was not declaring that once divorced you cannot remarry as indicated in the Greek text, but once divorced you do not have the right to sleep around. Jesus was preserving the sanctity of marriage, that sex only takes place within marriage vows. Moses in Deuteronomy 24:1-4 allowed for divorce. Divorce is a legal term. Men were divorcing their wives and leaving them destitute. Moses had them write a bill of divorcement which are terms that take care of the woman who is being divorced as in those days a woman had no way to support herself without a husband. Jesus did not forbid remarriage. Jesus ratified Deuteronomy 24:1-4. He did not like divorce but due to man’s hardness of his heart, He allowed it. He did, however, set some pretty strong rules in the interim between marriages and that is you do not play around, particularly with a woman who is still within the vows of a marriage.
Thank you for your time and attention for this, as well as, the volumes of word studies that you have generated. As I read today’s word study I was wondering how does Matthew 19:8 flow into Matthew 19:9, it seems as if there could be a contradiction inferred.
This topic is a sore spot with me because of the divorce bashing that takes place. Churches and individuals treat the divorced as though divorce was the unpardonable sin. That’s one. Two is that it takes two to be married, but only one to get a divorce. Half of the divorced persons maybe didn’t want to become divorced at all, but it was thrust on them by their spouse. I once sat in a meeting where two long-time MARRIED elders harangued about divorce–and you could look around the hall and see folks who were divorced feeling shamed–when it might not have been within their control. This is just WRONG. Churches that disfellowship the divorced or don’t allow the divorced as members should realize that YHWH Himself couldn’t belong to their church.
We totally agree!
What is your thought on taking a second wife? I know many of the patriarchs had multiple wives. But, when I read these words of Yeshua’s, I can’t help but think, if it is adultery to marry another woman when you haven’t divorced the first, how is it better to marry another when you are still married to the first? Isn’t it essentially the same thing?
My thought: The issue with it all is–well, the “issue.” If a man sleeps around, his seed is potentially everywhere. Families would endure the “mixing” of lines that we actually are seeing today–along with all the attendant problems. (Just for one instance, look at all the “boyfriends” who kill or abuse the woman’s child or children.)
A woman who had been with another man as “put away” (without legal divorce) could be pregnant by that second man when her husband would come for her again. We can see how important lineages are in the great genealogies in the bible–as well as those that become marred. If a man takes a second wife, he is not to diminish the provision to the first. We see YHWH handing Saul’s wives over to David. A second wife will still maintain the line.