Are Divorced People Free to Marry Another Biblically?

It may seem peculiar but I think that this solves a riddle about why scripture speaks the way it does on the topic of divorce. Jesus acknowledged divorce but taught that it didn't always free you from your moral obligation to your prior spouse. Paul, in 1 Cor 7, taught that a divorced couple was really divorced but still obliged to get back together or stay unmarried. In my view, this view comes naturally from taking the Bible at face value on it's teaching on divorce and remarriage. If you want to understand better what ends your moral obligation to a prior spouse then please watch the BIG video (the 1st one in the playlist below) which also has time stamps to help you find exactly what you are looking for.

[danielsell]

My wife filed for and was granted a divorce 8 years ago. We are both Christians and have both remained single. I am praying for reconciliation. Our wedding vow was a covenant. With God nothing is impossible…including restoring my marriage.

[dekelanson]

My wife and I separated 2 1/2 years ago. She has made it abundantly clear that she doesn't love me anymore and doesn't want to be with me anymore. I still want to be with her. She recently started seeing another man she met at church. I'm trying to move on, but it's very hard. I'm praying for strength to get through each day.

[LampWaters]

My parents divorced, but we still did family things together and eventually they would go on the occasional date together. Dad ended up with cancer yrs after the divorce and mom moved back in immediate and cared for him. Dad wud always ask me if I thought mom was ready to get remarried yet... until his dieing day he only wanted to marry my mom and its all he talked about. I had such respect for both of them in how they handled everything in the end and mom and i can talk openly about it. My grandparents married 20 yrs, divorced 20 yrs and remarried each other again and another 30 yrs. They celebrated over 50yrs together before Grammy passed away last month.

[connormccauley]

So why is your moral obligation ended when the other party sinfully marries another? Why does that alleviate you of your obligation to that person? Does that mean once someone marries another you're allowed to as well? That logic doesn't seem to follow if you're supposed to remain unmarried regardless

[gloryintherd]

This tells me I'm glad I have yet to be married and I'm going to wait as long as it takes and be as careful as careful can possibly be when it comes to deciding who I'm going to marry that's for sure

[ST]

My husband committed adultery over and over, and then abandoned me and our 10-month-old daughter. We divorced, and for the record, it was hard for the court to find him. I divorced him because of the above-mentioned sins, and because he refused to go to counseling with me.

My present husband and I went for counseling with our pastor before marrying, and we were told that I was free to marry again. I did, and we have been married for 36 years, praise the Lord.

[robertramsey]

Me and my first wife divorced after only 2 years of marriage and one child. She left me for another man. That didn't stop me from trying though. They ended up getting married and at that point I started dating my current wife. We have been together for 25 years and married for 20. If something ever happened between us, I would stay single the test of my life. Atleast that's how I see things now, but I dont see that happening, we have already been through so much that if we were going to split up, we would have already. We are pretty solid. Praise the LORD!

[BananaGrace]

My parents were married for 23 years before my mom finally divorced my father. He had been abusive to her and to my three siblings and me. She stayed in an abusive marriage because she was convinced that “divorce was a sin”.. and finally felt peace from the Lord that it was not a sin for her to get out of an abusive marriage. I wish this was more commonly taught in the churches.. and that a husband or wife in an abusive marriage shouldn’t be shamed for leaving. Both my parents remarried by the time I was 8 years old and have stayed married to my step parents both for almost 20 years..

[robertblackwell]

The woman at the well Jesus was not concerned about the fact the woman had been marred 5 times and the man she was living with she was not married to him. Jesus was offering her and that man Living Water for Jesus came not to condemn the world but to save those that were lost.

[soyouwantagodlywoman]

Interestingly, I married someone "in church" despite a warning from an elder pastor to my father saying, "Don't let her marry him. He's a bum!" Needless to say, the pastor had knowledge of why he was a bum but wasn't free to give the details. It was one week before the wedding and I married him anyway.

He was abusive although I didn't realize it. Once he showed a temper that he wouldn't submit to God that was destructive of property, I drew a line in the sand that if he ever touched me in anger, I was out. That was before our children were born. Slowly I began to realize all the ways he was cruel or selfishly manipulative even to our kids. After 7 years of him not working while I worked sometimes 2 jobs, I witnessed him violently abusing our teenagers. I confront him alone. He denied he did anything wrong and this was just the "worse" in the vows for better or for worse. I went to an elder in the church. They advised to confront him again but this time give the consequence if he didn't get help and stop, I would call the police if I saw it again. That night he strangled me. Thank God he didn't do it until I was dead. When he left the room, I called the police and he left to evade arrest.

I filed for divorce. We have been separated over 5 years and divorced over 3. I have not had another real relationship or remarried obviously. Some of you will say I'm condemned to never be a wife again or ever know a truly loving and godly marriage. Maybe so. But honestly, you can't decide that. I know my God is just. I told Him I didn't want to marry again unless it was beyond the shadow of a doubt that He is in it! That's all my broken heart can bear 🤷🏼‍♀️

[novacain]

Yes, divorce then remain single. I am 37 yrs old and have been single for going on 6 yrs. This is possible through the Lord & it’s actually pretty easy as time goes on.

[c.u.c]

My divorce was a 1 Corinthians 7:15 situation. I was in a arrange marriage situation. Both me and my ex were both Muslims. 16 years onto our marriage, i had an encounter with Jesus. I accepted Jesus as my lord and saviour. My walk with christ did not strengthen our marriage because my ex kept giving me altimatums. End result: he filled for divorce. And now, he's engaged to be married to someone else. The book of Deuteronomy makes it clear that if your ex moves on and for some strange reason things didn't work out with that person, your not supposed to take your ex back because they are defiled. Scripture makes it clear that to reconcile with your ex in that situation is an abomination before the Lord. As result I truly believe my marriage was not ordained by God. To this day, im still the believing Christian and my ex is still the non believer.

[steveptasznik]

I think God is doing everyone a favor by saying not to make the same mistake twice.

[sarahm.]

Everybody focuses on unbiblical grounds for divorce, but what about the unbiblical grounds for marrying in the first place?

[jackdaw]

"Whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery"
Jesus

[jules_]

I've read the verse which says 'remain unmarried' in 1 Cor 7:11 hundreds of times. It seems obvious (due to the following verses) that the word simply means you cannot marry anyone else, (you're living like an unmarried single person BUT you need to reconcile with your husband if you can v 11. So it's clear that the word 'unmarried' doesnt mean that the covenant of marriage has been broken by a legal divorce. Jesus accepts that there is such a thing a legal divorce but says clearly in Matt 5:32, 19:9 Mark 10:11-12, Luke 16:18, and Romans 7:2-3 that remarrying post divorce while your first covenant spouse is alive is adultery. God joins a couple into a one flesh union for life.

[shirlspark_stardust]

I’m married I am a believer my husband isn’t I was considering divorcing him cause of harsh treatment we separated for a few months about 5 months I have since reconciled with my husband I understand God doesn’t agree with divorce I fear God I don’t want to live in any way that displeases him.

[bradynixon]

My ex wife was extremely violent to me and I was the victim of much abuse. In the end it never improved and I separated and then divorced her. The courts prohibit her from being anywhere near me. There were so many Christian’s and pastors telling me I couldn’t ever leave her and I should be reconciled, but clearly and evidently there was zero chance of that. I’ll live with being called an adulterer if that be the charge for remarrying years later. That ex wife has gone on to destroy her life and remains highly problematic. My personal opinion is that there can be no way that my God would ever want me to be in a violent relationship. It doesn’t really say much in the Bible to support my position but common sense prevails, we should never have anything to do with such evil people.

[FreedomInTruth]

No divorced people are not free to marry another before their current spouse dies, according to the bible for those who actually read what it says instead of trying to make it say what they want it to say, in order to remarry you must first be widowed. Everyone who believes that it's okay to remarry before becoming a widower needs to dust their bibles off and actually read it.

[stephm]

We have to test the spirits. Just because one says they are a believer doesn't mean they are. If they are refusing repentance and don't have the fruits of the Spirit and are destroying the other person emotionally, verbally, or physically, the unbeliever verses apply and God's verses on unrepentant wickedness apply, so an abandoned marriage where one partner is basically enslaved, is one where you've been called to peace. God forgives all sin and we are all adulterers since looking with lust is adultery. Our covenant with God far exceeds any vows we make in this life. As Christians, we need to do our best to walk in righteousness and stop judging other people's decisions since only they know what went on in their own home. Separation or divorce can actually be deliverance on the path of righteousness for some.