Introduction
Israel was always required to follow the covenant they had made with God. The covenant could be thought of as a marriage covenant in which Israel was called God’s wife or His betrothed. Thus, covenantal violations throughout her history became described as adulterous or harlotrous behavior with God often raising up judges or prophets to bring her to repentance.
With the advent of the prophetic books, covenantal violations often became described as sexual impurity (e.g. playing the harlot). The language was intended to confront Israel with her idolatry, making it synonymous with adultery or harlotry.
The language was also applied to Israel while seeking security from threatening armies, when she sought to make military treaties with the nations around her, putting her confidence in the strength of nations around her rather than in God. It was another form of idolatry. No one was more powerful or faithful than God. Why would Israel call upon the weak hands of men when she could, and should, depend upon God for her security?
Idolatry was a distrust of God and false trust in others or idols. The prophets formulated their criticisms as adulterous behavior with the implication that the it warranted divorce. Israel had violated the covenant, showing herself unworthy. God’s response provides the basis for understanding regulations on divorce and remarriage.
Before moving to the heart of the discussion of divorce and remarriage, the seriousness of the charge of idolatrous behavior should be established. It is important that the extent of the infidelity be exposed as it factors into God’s divorce decision. With the extent and seriousness of covenantal violations established, it becomes easier to grasp His heart and actions against His people.
For this reason, a number of the prophetic scriptures dealing with Israel’s adultery and harlotry will be examined. These scriptures are important as extensive study of the prophets and idolatry is rare in churches today. It is thus best to catalogue Israel’s failings in the hope that the reader will gain an improved understanding of what God patiently endured and why his actions were justified.
Examples of Israel’s Idolatry in Harlotrous Terms
Israel’s idolatry began shortly after consummation of the covenant. She agreed to follow the covenant (Exodus 19:5, 8; 24:7-8), where the first two commandments forbid idolatry (Exodus also 20:3-5, cf. 20:23). The first instance is found in Exodus 32 (cf. Numbers 14:33). [1]
Though idolatrous worship of the golden calf was not specifically called harlotry in Exodus 32, in conversation with Moses (Exodus 34:15-16), God subsequently warned against Israel playing the harlot (זנה zanah) by worshiping Canaanite idols. Idolatry as sexual infidelity developed early in Israel’s history and continued through the prophetic books.
Israel’s history consistently revealed spiritual harlotry, with numerous authors using words like “adultery”, “adulteries”, “adulterous”, “adulteress”, “whore”, “whoring”, “whoredoms” and “playing the harlot” [2] – charges pointing to spiritual adultery (Exodus 34:15-16; Leviticus 17:7; 20:5-6; Numbers 15:39; 25:1; Deuteronomy 31:16; Psalm 73:27). A sampling of these charges emphasizes their breadth and seriousness:
39 They defiled themselves by what they did; by their deeds they prostituted themselves. Psalms 106 (cf. Numbers 25:1)
21 See how the faithful city has become a harlot! Isaiah 1
3 “But you . . . you offspring of adulterers and prostitutes . . . 5 You burn with lust among the oaks and under every spreading tree; you sacrifice your children in the ravines . . . Forsaking me, you uncovered your bed, you climbed into it and opened it wide; you made a pact with those whose beds you love, and you looked on their nakedness. 9 You went to Molech with olive oil . . . Isaiah 57
7 “Why should I forgive you? Your children have forsaken me and sworn by gods that are not gods. I supplied all their needs, yet they committed adultery and thronged to the houses of prostitutes. Jeremiah 5
Return, O Virgin Israel, return to your towns. 22 How long will you wander, O unfaithful daughter? Jeremiah 31
9 Then in the nations where they have been carried captive, those who escape will remember me—how I have been grieved by their adulterous hearts, which have turned away from me, and by their eyes, which have lusted after their idols. Ezekiel 6
15 “‘But you trusted in your beauty and used your fame to become a prostitute. . .. 16 You took some of your garments to make gaudy high places, where you carried on your prostitution. . . 17 You also took the fine jewelry I gave you, the jewelry made of my gold and silver, and you made for yourself male idols and engaged in prostitution with them. . . . 20 “‘And you took your sons and daughters whom you bore to me and sacrificed them as food to the idols. Was your prostitution not enough? 21 You slaughtered my children and sacrificed them to the idols. 22 In all your detestable practices and your prostitution you did not remember the days of your youth, when you were naked and bare, kicking about in your blood.
26 You engaged in prostitution with the Egyptians, your lustful neighbors, and provoked me to anger with your increasing promiscuity. . . .28 You engaged in prostitution with the Assyrians too, because you were insatiable; and even after that, you still were not satisfied. 29 Then you increased your promiscuity to include Babylonia, a land of merchants, but even with this you were not satisfied. 30 “ ‘How weak-willed you are, declares the Sovereign LORD, when you do all these things, acting like a brazen prostitute! . . . 32 “ ‘You adulterous wife! You prefer strangers to your own husband!’ ” Ezekiel 16
1 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, there were two women, daughters of the same mother. 3 They became prostitutes in Egypt, engaging in prostitution from their youth. . . 5 “Oholah engaged in prostitution while she was still mine; and she lusted after her lovers, the Assyrians—warriors . . .7 She gave herself as a prostitute to all the elite of the Assyrians and defiled herself with all the idols of everyone she lusted after. 8 She did not give up the prostitution she began in Egypt, when during her youth men slept with her, caressed her virgin bosom and poured out their lust upon her. . . 11 “Her sister Oholibah saw this, yet in her lust and prostitution she was more depraved than her sister. 12 She too lusted after the Assyrians” Ezekiel 23
9 Now let them put away from me their prostitution and the lifeless idols of their kings, and I will live among them forever. Ezekiel 43
2 When the LORD began to speak through Hosea, the LORD said to him, “Go, take to yourself an adulterous wife and children of unfaithfulness, because the land is guilty of the vilest adultery in departing from the LORD.” Hosea 1
1 Do not rejoice, O Israel; do not be jubilant like the other nations. For you have been unfaithful to your God; you love the wages of a prostitute at every threshing floor. Hosea 9
7 All her idols will be broken to pieces; all her temple gifts will be burned with fire; I will destroy all her images. Since she gathered her gifts from the wages of prostitutes, as the wages of prostitutes they will again be used.” Micah 1
The passages above speak directly to Israel’s idolatry in adulterous and harlotrous terms. The passages reveal harsh words from multiple prophets over three centuries (the eighth through sixth centuries). When read sequentially, it is hard to ignore the distress of the prophets. Israel has at length, repeatedly behaved as an unfaithful wife, a harlot, too willing to prostitute herself for the attention of worthless pagan idols.
God’s frustration is palpable. He created a people, set them apart and deeply desired to purify them so that they could accomplish His purposes on earth and join Him for eternity. Yet Israel has no interest, save a remnant. How will God deal with His unappreciative, unloving and unfaithful wife? What will He do, given her irrepressible desire to prostitute herself to useless idols?
Israel’s History of Idolatry
Idolatry was present during the period of the Judges but briefly fell from view under King David, and for a time under Solomon. However, late in Solomon’s reign, he fell into idolatry (1 Kings11:4-10), bringing a division of the kingdom (11:11-13). The division brought the Northern tribes under Jeroboam and the Southern tribe of Judah under Rehoboam. It is helpful to note how Scripture describes the various kings of each kingdom.
Idolatry in the Northern Kingdom
Idolatry began in the Northern Kingdom with her creation. Jeroboam recognized that the Northern Kingdom had no legitimate center of worship. He feared that the temple in Jerusalem, as the central meeting point for all Israelites would legitimize the reign of Rehoboam and diminish his power.
His solution was to craft two golden calves, locate them in Bethel and Dan, introduce his own idolatrous religion, appoint his own illegitimate priests and create a false festival so that his subjects would no longer need to trek to Jerusalem for worship. The idolatry he introduced persisted until the destruction of the Northern Kingdom, revealing extensive spiritual damage wrought upon the Northern Kingdom. Note the extent of idolatry of the Northern Kingdom in Table 1:
Table 1: Idolatry of the Kings of the Northern Kingdom
A long consistent history of idolatry is evident, promoted by kings from her inception to destruction. The end came through Shalmaneser, who captured Samaria, deported the people to Media and the Northern kingdom ceased to exist. Those exiled would never return to the land. The Northern Kingdom was subsumed into Assyria, never to re-emerge. The author of 2 Kings offers an epitaph:
7 All this took place because the Israelites had sinned against the Lord their God . . . They worshiped other gods 8 and followed the practices of the nations . . . as well as the practices that the kings of Israel had introduced . . . 12 They worshiped idols, though the Lord had said, “You shall not do this.” 13 The Lord warned Israel and Judah through all his prophets and seers . . . 15 They followed worthless idols and themselves became worthless . . . 16 They forsook all the commands of the Lord their God and made for themselves two idols cast in the shape of calves, and an Asherah pole. They bowed down to all the starry hosts, and they worshiped Baal. 17 They sacrificed their sons and daughters in the fire. They practiced divination and sought omens and sold themselves to do evil in the eyes of the Lord, arousing his anger. 18 So the Lord was very angry with Israel and removed them from his presence. Only the tribe of Judah was left, 19 and even Judah did not keep the commands of the Lord their God. They followed the practices Israel had introduced. 20 Therefore the Lord rejected all the people of Israel; he afflicted them and gave them into the hands of plunderers, until he thrust them from his presence. 21 When he tore Israel away from the house of David, they made Jeroboam son of Nebat their king. Jeroboam enticed Israel away from following the Lord and caused them to commit a great sin. 22 The Israelites persisted in all the sins of Jeroboam and did not turn away from them 23 until the Lord removed them from his presence, as he had warned through all his servants the prophets. So the people of Israel were taken from their homeland into exile in Assyria, and they are still there. 2 Kings 17
Tragically, the commentary continues:
27 Then the king of Assyria gave this order: “Have one of the priests you took captive from Samaria go back to live there and teach the people what the god of the land requires.” 28 So one of the priests who had been exiled from Samaria came to live in Bethel and taught them how to worship the Lord. 29 Nevertheless, each national group made its own gods in the several towns where they settled, and set them up in the shrines the people of Samaria had made at the high places . . . 32 They worshiped the Lord, but they also appointed all sorts of their own people to officiate for them as priests in the shrines at the high places. 33 They worshiped the Lord, but they also served their own gods in accordance with the customs of the nations from which they had been brought. 34 To this day they persist in their former practices. They neither worship the Lord nor adhere to the decrees and regulations, the laws and commands that the Lord gave the descendants of Jacob, whom he named Israel. 35 When the Lord made a covenant with the Israelites, he commanded them: “Do not worship any other gods or bow down to them, serve them or sacrifice to them. 36 But the Lord, who brought you up out of Egypt with mighty power and outstretched arm, is the one you must worship. To him you shall bow down and to him offer sacrifices. 37 You must always be careful to keep the decrees and regulations, the laws and commands he wrote for you. Do not worship other gods. 38 Do not forget the covenant I have made with you, and do not worship other gods. 39 Rather, worship the Lord your God; it is he who will deliver you from the hand of all your enemies.” 40 They would not listen, however, but persisted in their former practices. 41 Even while these people were worshiping the Lord, they were serving their idols. To this day their children and grandchildren continue to do as their ancestors did.
Within the history of Israel’s kings are numerous efforts by God to bring repentance. These actions were to no avail. Israel and her kings had been consistently unfaithful and unrepentant. Every king promoted idolatry, and almost without exception, every king followed the idolatry introduced by Jeroboam.
The authors of the books of the kings sought to emphasize the gravity of the sins of Jeroboam, who reintroduced the worship of a golden calf first seen in the wilderness at the foot of Sinai. [3] There is a measure of irony that Israel never escaped her first sin, returning to the very golden calf worship at Sinai. Her consistent failure to honor the covenant, to even attempt to honor the covenant is shocking, spanning eighteen kings and nearly two hundred forty years.
What action would God take? Ultimately, He acted according to the promised curses of the Sinaic covenant, driving Israel from the land into exile as He had done to the Canaanites. Through her idolatry, Israel had become no different from the Canaanites, embracing their detestable practices. So it was only fitting that like the Canaanites, she was also driven from the land.
The Idolatry of the Southern Kingdom
Judah’s idolatrous history was similar, yet her kings periodically sought repentance, even if imperfect and even if repentance of the people at times was only in pretense. Also, God’s promise to David (1 King 11:13, 34-36; 2 Kings 8:19; 19:34; 20;6; 2 Chronicles 21:7) [4] compelled Him to defend His own name’s sake. Thus, He would not allow complete destruction of Judah despite her repeated idolatry, evident in Table 2.
Table 2: Idolatry of the Kings of the Southern Kingdom
| King | Reigned | Epithet | |
| 1 | Rehoboam | 17 years | “Judah did evil in the eyes of the Lord . . . They also set up . . . high places, sacred stones and Asherah poles. . . even male shrine prostitutes” (1 Kings 14:22-24) |
| 2 | Abijah | 3 years | “He committed all the sins his father had done; his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord” (1 Kings 15:3) |
| 3 | Asa | 41 years | “He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord . . . He expelled the male shrine prostitutes . . . and got rid of all the idols” 1 Kings 15:11-12) |
| 4 | Jehoshaphat | 25 years | “he followed the ways of his father Asa and did not stray from them; he did what was right . . . the high places, however, were not removed, and the people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense there.” (22:43) |
| 5 | Jehoram | 8 years | “He followed the ways of the kings of Israel, as the house of Ahab had done . . .He did evil” (2 Kings 8:18). “for the sake of his servant David, the Lord was not willing to destroy Judah” (vs 19) |
| 6 | Ahaziah | 1 year | “He followed the ways of the house of Ahab and did evil . . . as the house of Ahab had done” (8:27) |
| 7 | Athaliah | 6 years | “Proceded to destroy the whole royal family” (11:1) . . . “she was put to death” (11:16) |
| 8 | Joash | 40 years | “Did what was right . . . the high places, however, were not removed; the people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense there” (12:2-3) |
| 9 | Amaziah | 29 years | “He did what was right . . . but not as his father David had done. In everything he followed . . . his father Joash. The high places, however, were not removed; the people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense there.” (14:3-4) |
| 10 | Azariah (Uzziah) | 52 years | “He did what was right . . . just as his father Amaziah had done. The high places, however, were not removed; the people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense there.” (15:3-4) |
| 11 | Jotham | 16 years | “He did what was right . . . as his father Uzziah had done. The high places, however, were not removed; the people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense there.” (15:34-35) |
| 12 | Ahaz | 16 years | “Unlike David his father, he did not do what was right . . . He followed the ways of the kings of Israel and even sacrificed his son in the fire, engaging in detestable practices of the nations . . . He offered sacrifices and burned incense at the high places, on the hilltops and under every spreading tree.” (16:3-4) |
| 13 | Hezekiah | 29 years | “He did what was right . . . just as his father David had done. He removed the high places, smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles.” (18:3-4) “There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah . . . he held fast to the Lord and . . . kept the commands the Lord had given Moses” (vss 5-6) |
| 14 | Manasseh | 55 years | “He did evil . . . following the detestable practices of the nations . . . He rebuilt the high places . . . he also erected altars to Baal and made an Asherah pole . . . He bowed down to all the starry hosts and worshiped them. He sacrificed his own son in the fire, practiced divination, sought omens, and consulted mediums and spiritests. He did much evil . . .” (21:2-6). “Moreover, Manasseh also shed so much innocent blood that he filled Jerusalem from end to end – besides the sin that he had caused Judah to commit” (vs 16) |
| 15 | Amon | 2 years | “He did evil . . . as his father Manasseh had done. He followed completely the ways of his father, worshiping the idols his father had worshiped . . . He forsook the Lord” (21:20-22) |
| 16 | Josiah | 31 years | “He did what was right . . . and followed completely the ways of his father David” (22:2). Josiah renewed the covenant and destroyed all the idols, shrines and idolatrous priests. (23:1-27) |
| 17 | Jehoahaz | 3 months | “He did evil . . . just as his predecessors had done” (23:32) |
| 18 | Jehoiakim | 11 years | “He did evil . . . just as his predecessors had done” (23:37) |
| 19 | Jehoiachin | 3 months | “He did evil . . . just as his father had done” (24:9) |
| 20 | Zedekiah | 11 years | “He did evil . . . just as Jehoiakim had done . . . in the end he [God] thrust them from his presence.” (vs 20) |
Judah’s history reveals periodic national repentance by kings who acted justly, as David had done. At times their righteousness fell short of perfect and idolatry persisted, but this was despite their righteous kings’efforts.
In the end, repentance was short-lived and dependent upon the king. Without a righteous king who sought the Lord as David did, the people quickly regressed back to idolatry. Even with righteous kings, there was a persistent spirit of idolatry where large swaths of the people continued to offer sacrifices in the high places. The people of Judah were no more righteous than those of the Northern Kingdom. Both had an insatiable lust for idolatry.
Relevance to Christians Today
Numerous lessons are found in these texts. It is striking the difference one man as leader can make. David was a difference-maker for righteousness, leaving a legacy for later generations. It was David’s righteousness that brought God’s commitment to preserve Judah, if only in a remnant.
Solomon, by contrast, was a negative difference-maker. His sin of intermarrying pagan women led him personally into the sin of idolatry. It brought a judgment of division of his kingdom that except for David’s righteousness, would likely have brought total destruction to all Israel, Judah included.
Solomon’s disobedience brought Jeroboam’s revolt, which then brought the deliberate introduction of idolatry to the Northern Kingdom to secure Jeroboam’s political power. Jeroboam’s institutionalization of idolatry then left a legacy of idolatry that threaded through the entire history of the Northern Kingdom, even negatively influencing Judah.
Similarly, Ahab and other kings introduced Baal worship to Israel through their sin of intermarrying pagan idolatrous women, a legacy whose genesis is also found in Solomon’s sins. Baal worship brought the additional sin of bloodshed through the offering of children to the Baals.
Israel’s history is thus a history of two kingdoms encapsulated in two men. Both kingdoms were abject failures, yet one had the personal commitment of God because one of the two men behind these kingdoms pursued God whole-heartedly. While the people sinned by practicing idolatry, the author holds that idolatry’s source was found in the leadership, causing the people to sin.
In the history of these two kingdoms, one is seen wholly devoid of repentance. Over a period of eighteen kings and two hundred forty years, there was unbroken idolatry. Not one king bears any fruit of repentance despite warnings from God’s prophets and the manifest work of His mighty hand in their kingdoms.
Despite God’s great patience and warnings, His vineyard produced no fruit and was abandoned. The wild vine was corrupt and had to be uprooted from His garden. The covenantal promise His people made had no value.
To extend any further patience risks making a mockery of God’s grace and forgiveness. The people have made their decision. They have no interest in relationship with Him. They have chosen death and death must now follow for the kingdom and the people.
The other kingdom is seen to bear limited fruits of repentance. It is a cyclical history of unfaithfulness followed by repentance, only to lapse again into unfaithfulness. God’s commitment and patience with Judah is seen in even greater measure, spanning twenty kings and nearly four hundred years.
Yet Judah is without excuse, having witnessed God’s judgment upon the Northern Kingdom. Each incidence of repentance is short-lived. Her repeated repentance risks trampling God’s grace. It is repentance in pretense, desiring the benefits of covenant relationship while breaking the covenant. Israel wanted to remain in the garden while partaking of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
This is the background of the prophets’ accusations of covenantal unfaithfulness pictured as an unfaithful wife. Are His people living lives that mock God? What witness to the nations can God offer when His people serve other gods daily? Does Israel’s persistent unbroken harlotries warrant a covenantal divorce? And what of Judah? How many times must He forgive her feigned repentance?
If God allows the cycle of repentance and idolatry to persist, what expectation can He have that they will truly turn from idolatry and devote themselves wholly to Him? Should He covenantally divorce Judah? If so, should He then covenant with a new people envisioned as a remarriage?
If so, how does He honor His promise to David? How will divorce or separation show forth the great love of God? These are the difficult choices God faces that must be answered theologically if we are to provide further light upon His views of divorce and remarriage.
Developing an Old Testament Theology of Divorce & Remarriage
With Israel’s intractable idolatry established, God’s judgments can now be examined. Yet establishing a theology of divorce and remarriage from prophetic passages is no small task. References to divorce are few, and remarriage seems envisioned as a rededication to the covenant.
The covenant itself is of little assistance. The few references to divorce and remarriage only point to its acceptability as part of the covenant with restrictions largely uncommunicated. Even Deuteronomy 24 speaks indirectly of divorce and remarriage, placing a restriction on a husband’s ability to remarry his divorced wife after she has been married to another.
Apart from that, there are a few divorce prohibitions. For example, divorce is prohibited if a husband defames his wife’s reputation (Deuteronomy 22:13-21) or if a man had raped his wife (Deuteronomy 22:28-29). These restrictions are aimed at protecting the woman against unjust divorce. Beyond these few Sinaic references, one must examine prophetic passages to gain some insight into God’s view of divorce and remarriage.
The Testimony of Hosea
Hosea was the first prophet to extensively describe the covenant-relationship using marital language. The book involves uncertainties and significant complexities yet it provided source material for later prophets such as Jeremiah and Ezekiel. Little is known of Hosea and less of his spouse Gomer. Some have questioned if Hosea’s marriage in chapter 3 was to another woman, complicating analysis.
What can be established is that Hosea prophesied against the Northern Kingdom, who he often described as Ephraim. He provides a prophetic picture of God’s view of Samaria, the kingdom which did not have the Davidic promise Judah had.
During Hosea’s ministry, the Northern Kingdom experienced an economic boom driven by trade with Assyria and other neighboring nations. That boom however, may have exposed her to other cultures and religions, possibly contributing to her religious demise.
It is also known that Hosea’s marriage was to an adulteress though there is not agreement whether Gomer was a promiscuous wife or like most in Israel, simply practicing idolatry, and thus figuratively an adulteress. [5] Such a distinction may not be important as Canaanite idolatry involved illicit fertility practices, making its participants sexually unfaithful.
While the relationship of Hosea to Gomer has been the focus of much study, Stuart has argued that Hosea’s prophetic message is built upon Sinaic covenant curses and blessings. His message is thus a message to God’s people about the inevitability of coming curse-judgments for their covenantal failures with promise-blessings to follow in the distant future of the approaching eschaton.
In communicating this message, his marriage to Gomer provides a living illustration of God’s faithfulness and Israel’s unfaithfulness as a prophetic drama acted out. Hosea’s focus then, is not upon his marriage to Gomer, but upon the relationship between God and unfaithful Israel.
His marriage reveals prophetic judgment seen in the names given to his children (Jezreel, Lo-Ruhamah and Lo-Ammi). Jezreel seems to predict Assyria’s military campaign as judgment. It predicts the end of national Israel. Lo-Ruhamah (not loved) portends removal of God’s love and protection from Israel while Lo-Ammi (not my people), signifies abrogation of the covenant.
Hosea envisaged Israel’s covenant-relationship as a marriage, with the names of his third child, if not also his second child pointing to divorce in abrogation of the covenant. Stuart suggests the failure to repent with the portended judgment of “not loved” had with time, brought the third judgment of divorce. [6]
The divorce language is further seen in Hosea 2:2-5 with the covenant abrogated and marriage dissolved. Israel are no longer God’s people. Yet despite the divorce and dissolution of the covenant, God has not abandoned His people. It is immediately clear following the announcement of the birth of Lo-Ammi:
10 “Yet the Israelites will be like the sand on the seashore, which cannot be measured or counted. In the place where it was said to them, ‘You are not my people,’ they will be called ‘children of the living God.’ 11 The people of Judah and the people of Israel will come together; they will appoint one leader and will come up out of the land, for great will be the day of Jezreel. (Hosea 1) [7]
Hosea prophesies God’s faithfulness amidst Israel’s unfaithfulness. In Hosea’s day, Israel’s population was not numerous, perhaps 400,000 (and similarly for Judah perhaps 200,000), with every expectation that Israel’s number would drop significantly with Assyria’s conquest. [8] Yet Hosea prophetically delivers a promise of innumerable Israelites, reunited with Judah, together serving one king in fulfillment of the Abrahamic promise.
Jezreel, the place of God’s judgment in destruction of Israel (via Assyria) would gain an entirely new significance, not as the place of judgment and death, but the place of restoration and life! Hosea’s message, bitter as it is near term, affirms God’s great love for Israel. Yes, today there is a divorce due to Israel’s unfaithfulness, but God still loves Israel and His actions are designed to bring her to repentance and restoration – to restore the marriage relationship.
Hosea’s prophecy is consistent with the terms of the covenant (Deuteronomy 4:25-31). Israel will face severe judgment that will bring her into a far-away land that will ultimately bring her to repentance (Hosea 2:7b).
Her path to repentance begins in judgment with God blocking her path with thornbushes (an Edenic-judgment reference) and walling her in so that she cannot find her way (2:6). Her destiny is to chase after her lovers without catching them, looking for them but not finding them so that she concludes it is best to return to her husband where she was better off (2:7).
God divorces her, allowing her to pursue her sinful heart knowing her sins will never satisfy her. His divorce is not for the purpose of a new marriage to another, but for the purpose of displaying His great love and faithfulness to His people. His great love will be seen in His actions toward Israel while she is in exile where He will “allure her” and “lead her into the wilderness and speak tenderly to her (2:14)”. God’s tender words renew the covenant again described as a marriage:
16 “In that day,” declares the Lord, “you will call me ‘my husband’; you will no longer call me ‘my master.’ 17 I will remove the names of the Baals from her lips; no longer will their names be invoked. 18 In that day I will make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field, the birds in the sky and the creatures that move along the ground. Bow and sword and battle I will abolish from the land, so that all may lie down in safety. 19 I will betroth you to me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion. 20 I will betroth you in faithfulness, and you will acknowledge the Lord.
Most important is the promise of a new covenant (vs 18) that is likened to a betrothal. Yet this betrothal is “forever” (vs 19). God’s faithfulness will not only win over Israel but will bring a covenant that is better than the one that has just been abrogated. Israel will be betrothed “in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion . . . in faithfulness” in which Israel will finally acknowledge God (vs 20). The new covenant allows Israel to finally be faithful!
With the better covenant brings blessing foreshadowed in the Sinaic covenant, in which “not my loved one” becomes loved, “not my people” become God’s people and Yahweh becomes their God (vs 23). The implication of “you are my God” (vs 23) is that Israel will finally be faithful with the coming of the new covenant!
An interesting expression from Hosea 1:11 is “and will come up out of the land”, which Stuart interprets as “and will come up from the land/be resurrected”. He sees possible dual connotation in which Israel returns from exile and also resurrection from death. [9]
If true, the meaning of Jezreel becomes inverted – from a place of death, defeat and covenantal curse to a place of life, victory and eschatological resurrection to covenant-blessing. It brings a picture of Israel’s restoration as resurrection from the dead, fitting given the implications of the abrogation of the covenant and Israel’s national destruction.
Abrogation of the covenant brought spiritual death. Their destruction by Assyria and subsequent exile represents a recapitulation of the Eden-narrative with Adam banished from the garden for failure to obey God’s commands. Physical death followed both in judgment. With the abrogation of the covenant, how will Israel regain spiritual life? She is separated from God and out of covenant relationship. God in love must graciously reestablish the covenant.
It will be done by Him, who will allure Israel to Himself and reestablish covenant relationship while Israel is in the wilderness of the surrounding nations. [10] Hosea certainly views the reestablishment of covenant as resurrection (see e.g. Hosea 13:14), as it returns relationship and brings spiritual life. But Israel must repent, as repentance is her path to restoration and resurrection (Hosea 14:1-3).
Israel’s promised end-time restoration is acted out in Hosea 3:1-5. Apart from the problematic reference to Hosea showing love again – whether to Gomer or to a new wife – God’s message is clear. Though the covenant has been abrogated, He will show love again to Israel, whether one chooses to view Israel as Gomer repurchased, or as a new Israel, a believing remnant transformed and resurrected by the power of God, repentant, forsaking her idolatry and responding to God’s love.
In purchasing his wife, Hosea now owns her and can compel her to remain with him and discontinue sexual relations with others, pointing toward a reformed Israel, no longer practicing idolatry. That Hosea does not indulge in sexual relations with her strongly contrasts with chapter one, where the result of sexual relations were predictions of judgment.
Here, there is an enforced abstinence that chastens Hosea’s bride, and by implication God’s people. They are to be purified, and both Hosea’s actions and what they predict are for Israel’s restoration and purification. Important is the destruction of all of Israel’s traditional institutions upon which she relied, and which she presumptively abused.
Their destruction likely brings disorientation, uncertainty and the needed deprivation to bring her to her senses. Where she prior had no fear of God when adulterously estranged from Him, she now evidences fear (3:5) in her return to Him. Her heart has been transformed. Hosea’s message is one of God’s undying love, showing the love He expects to be in evidence among His people.
Hosea was the basis for later prophets who spoke of Israel’s relationship with God as a marriage, building upon his work. Hosea however, includes a picture of resurrection from Israel’s divorce and death-decree, broadening our understanding of Israel’s tempestuous relationship with God.
Her unbroken unfaithfulness requires coventantal abrogation followed by judgment of national death. Yet unbelievably, God’s love for Israel continues unabated. He not only continues to love her, but His judgments will bring Israel to a renewed dependence upon Him that brings repentance and restoration.
God reveals her dependence upon Him by returning her to a wilderness like that following the Egyptian exodus where she was first brought to dependence upon Him and where she first experienced and responded to God’s love. His undying commitment to her brings a new covenant, resurrecting Israel and empowering faithfulness. One would have expected the end of relationship with the death of Israel. But not so. God’s love is so great that He will resurrect her.
The Testimony of Isaiah
Isaiah, in a prophetic sermon about God’s coming servant, senses that Israel is feeling forsaken by God and so He demands proof from Israel, stating:
1 This is what the Lord says: “Where is your mother’s certificate of divorce with which I sent her away? Or to which of my creditors did I sell you? Because of your sins you were sold; because of your transgressions your mother was sent away. 2 When I came, why was there no one? When I called, why was there no one to answer? Was my arm too short to deliver you? Do I lack the strength to rescue you? By a mere rebuke I dry up the sea, I turn rivers into a desert; their fish rot for lack of water and die of thirst. Isaiah 50
Israel was apparently unhappy that she was not seeing the fulfilment of God’s promise to her –not seeing it in accordance with her expectations, complaining God is unfair, saying “The Lord has forsaken me, the Lord has forgotten me” (Isaiah 49:14). This protest is in response to His promise to restore her to the land.
God’s answer is reassuring, “can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you!” He adds, “you will wear them [your children] all as ornaments; you will put them on, like a bride” (vs 18).
Despite further assurances (vss 19-23), Israel’s response is “Can plunder be taken from warriors, or captives be rescued from the fierce?” (vs24). God’s answer is yes, offering further assurance before demanding Israel show the bill of divorcement that sent her away. Again, God presses His point, demanding Israel show Him the creditors to whom He sold Israel.
The implication is that God has not divorced Israel. Rather, He has only separated Himself from her due to her sins. [11] Yet He also says “because of your sins you were sold; because of your transgressions your mother was sent away”, which could mean divorce.
The two statements stand in tension. That God acknowledges Israel being sold and sent away supports that He is speaking metaphorically of a divorce. Given Israel’s lengthy history of idolatry and failure to repent, He would be justified in either separating Himself from her (by sending her “away” – out from the land) or through divorce.
The point for Israel is that despite her unfaithfulness, God still loves her and deeply desires to be reconciled to her if she will repent – if she will only depart from her idolatry. However, if she refuses to repent, she should expect to remain estranged from God as her husband, who assures He has not forsaken her. She has forsaken Him. His love for Israel is unending.
The Testimony of Jeremiah
Jeremiah 3 states:
1 “If a man divorces his wife and she leaves him and marries another man, should he return to her again? Would not the land be completely defiled? But you have lived as a prostitute with many lovers— would you now return to me?” declares the Lord. 2 “Look up to the barren heights and see. Is there any place where you have not been ravished? By the roadside you sat waiting for lovers, sat like a nomad in the desert. You have defiled the land with your prostitution and wickedness. 3 Therefore the showers have been withheld, and no spring rains have fallen. Yet you have the brazen look of a prostitute; you refuse to blush with shame. 4Have you not just called to me: ‘My Father, my friend from my youth, 5 will you always be angry? Will your wrath continue forever?’ This is how you talk, but you do all the evil you can.” 6 During the reign of King Josiah, the Lord said to me, “Have you seen what faithless Israel has done? She has gone up on every high hill and under every spreading tree and has committed adultery there. 7 I thought that after she had done all this she would return to me but she did not, and her unfaithful sister Judah saw it. 8 I gave faithless Israel her certificate of divorce and sent her away because of all her adulteries. Yet I saw that her unfaithful sister Judah had no fear; she also went out and committed adultery. 9 Because Israel’s immorality mattered so little to her, she defiled the land and committed adultery with stone and wood. 10 In spite of all this, her unfaithful sister Judah did not return to me with all her heart, but only in pretense,” declares the Lord. 11 The Lord said to me, “Faithless Israel is more righteous than unfaithful Judah. 12 Go, proclaim this message toward the north: “‘Return, faithless Israel,’ declares the Lord, ‘I will frown on you no longer, for I am faithful,’ declares the Lord, ‘I will not be angry forever. 13 Only acknowledge your guilt—you have rebelled against the Lord your God, you have scattered your favors to foreign gods under every spreading tree, and have not obeyed me,’” declares the Lord. 14 “Return, faithless people,” declares the Lord, “for I am your husband. I will choose you—one from a town and two from a clan—and bring you to Zion.
Again Israel is confronted with a question. This time, it is about her unfaithful behavior, framed as a wife already divorced from her husband for her repeated adultery. Jeremiah encapsulates His indictment using one of the few divorce restrictions.
Jeremiah is attempting to describe Israel’s idolatrous behavior in a deeply personal way that would emphasize her betrayal and disregard for God and His covenant. The analogy of Deuteronomy 24 is imperfect as its legal restriction did not allow the husband to return to the wife, where Jeremiah has reworked the analogy from the viewpoint of the unfaithful wife returning to her husband. But even with this change, the meaning is clear. One must ask, is it even possible to return to God after their behavior?
This is hardly an unfair question given Israel ravished every corner of the land and adulterously chased her idolatrous lovers throughout the land. Given the prevalence of fertility rites associated with Canaanite worship of the Baals, it’s a fair analogy as Israel had prostituted herself willingly in fertility festivals, sexually interacting with cult prostitutes from pagan temples.
Jeremiah’s arguments point to the failure of the fertility rites given that God was withholding the rains. This was ostensibly the reason for the festivals – to guarantee harvests. Yet Jeremiah seems to show the reality of their hearts when he describes them as having “the brazen look of a prostitute” that refuses “to blush with shame”.
That the criticism immediately follows the announcement of no showers or rain reveals that Israel’s participation in the fertility festivals is hardly motivated by superstitions concerning future harvests. She participated because she enjoyed it.
What is particularly noxious is her attitude, spelled out in vss 4-5. She calls God Father and friend, seeming to expect forgiveness – “will you always be angry? Will your wrath continue forever?” – despite her unrepentant heart. It is as if she believes God is unfair to her. She wants it both ways, seeking His favor while rebelliously pursuing other lovers. [12]
If there is doubt, it is revealed in the indictment of vss 6-10, where God showed His expectation Israel would eventually return to Him but she did not. She should have seen the uselessness of serving idols and her despicably impure behavior, yet she did not.
Judah was watching, yet Israel’s destruction did not bring a change of heart. Judah’s national repentance under Josiah was largely sham, her return to God deceitfully only in pretense. [13] If there was doubt about a formal bill of divorcement from Isaiah 50, Jeremiah settles the matter. God has issued Israel her certificate of divorce.
The language does not imply God fulfilled a legal requirement. Rather, it points toward the end of Israel’s relationship with Him, evidenced in her national destruction. Her unrepentant adulterous sins persisted long enough that God was left without alternative. To continue to extend His grace and forgiveness would only make a mockery of His name before the nations.
This was to be a prophetic warning to Judah. Israel’s divorce was in part to save Judah, but she was only the more emboldened. Even the termination of the covenant signaling destruction, captivity and exile of the Northern Kingdom did not bring repentance or restrain her.
Judah’s behavior and frivolous disregard of the covenant implied that she too must be divorced. [14] It is stunning that Jeremiah sees Judah worse than Israel (vs 11). More shocking is His appeal to faithless Israel and faithless Judah to return to Him!
God continues to love His people long after they have stopped loving Him. His love for them is so great that it overwhelms any legal requirements of the covenant (Deuteronomy 24:1-4). How shocking, yet amazing is the character and love of God for His people! Both can be restored if they will repent and turn to Him (3:12-14). Repentance is Jeremiah’s objective. It will bring restoration. But repentance is not to be taken glibly:
. . . the prophet’s words that repentance is not simply a turning away from evil deeds. Much more than that is required, for evil actions are but the consequence of a deeper problem, namely, a fundamental dislocation of relationship. This dimension of repentance is brought out clearly in the prophet’s use of the language of marriage and marital unfaithfulness. In marriage, an act of unfaithfulness is critical by virtue of that which it designates, that is, a failure in the commitment of love by one partner to the relationship. And Israel’s catalogue of crimes, detailed at such length by the prophet, is critical because it points to a deeper fault lying beneath the surface. At root, Israel had lost sight of its love and faithfulness toward God in the relationship of covenant . . . Jeremiah’s impassioned plea for repentance was addressed to the chosen people; he desired to see them turn aside from their collision course with disaster. Yet the prophet’s vision was wider than that; he had not forgotten God’s larger purpose of the world, to be achieved through the instrumentality of God’s people. And, thus, part of his passion in seeking to turn the people back to God was related to the desire that all nations might be blessed by God through Israel (4:2). [15]
How would God address the deeper flaw beneath the surface? How would He turn them and set them upon the right path? How would He make them the blessing to the nations He had always intended?
Jeremiah follows the same path as Hosea, declaring that after Israel is judged (Jeremiah 30:1-7), she will be delivered and serve God faithfully (vs 9, 22; 31:1). Critically, Israel repents (31:19) and in her shame, “the woman returns to the man” (31:22) in keeping with Hosea.
“The days are coming . . . when I will make a new covenant” that “will not be like the covenant . . . they broke . . . though I was a husband to them . . . This is the covenant I will make . . . I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God and they will be my people” (vs 31-33). It is through the new covenant that Israel will be restored as God’s people though prior rejected as “not my people” (Hosea 2:23). It is the new covenant that allows Israel to live faithfully to the covenant.
The Testimony of Ezekiel
In describing Israel and Judah’s adulterous behavior, Ezekiel is by far most explicit. Of particular interest are Ezekiel 16 and 23. Both passages describe their prostitution in near pornographic detail. Israel’s harlotries had become so routine that she became incapable of sensing any shame. Ezekiel’s shocking language seeks to jar God’s people into seeing their shamefulness. Both passages speak of the sins of Israel and Judah without explicit mention of divorce. Yet divorce is implicit based upon their behavior and the specific allusions Ezekiel makes.
Insights From Ezekiel 16
Chapter 16 opens with an indictment of Jerusalem’s adulterous behavior, describing Jerusalem’s idolatrous ancestry (Amorite father and Hittite mother). He begins with a vivid description of her birth, in which she was despised and abandoned (vss 4-5). It was God who rescued her from certain death in the field where she had been deserted.
She was naked, left in the blood of her birth with umbilical cord uncut. God blessed her with life and caused her to grow and develop (vss 6-7), yet also showered her with great favors (vss 9-13), clothing her, giving her fine foods and jewelry. When she came of age, God entered into marital covenant with her (vs 8). Jerusalem became famous because of her beauty (vs 14), due to the splendor He had given her.
It made her beauty perfect (vs 14). But despite His gracious love and favor, Jerusalem put her confidence in her beauty (vs 15), took the wonderful gifts God as husband endowed on her and used them to become a prostitute (vss 15-19).
Yet this was not Jerusalem’s only despicable sin. She offered her children to the fires of the Baals, shedding innocent blood (vss 20-22). She also bore the guilt of forbidden military alliances with Egypt, Assyria and Babylon, acts couched in promiscuous language (vs 23-29). His judgments to reduce Jerusalem’s territories proved ineffective (vs 27).
Her behavior shocked even pagans, but did not constrain her lusts (vs 27). In His righteous anger, He addresses her as “you adulterous wife”, complaining Judah prefers strangers to her own Husband (vs 32). Worse, unlike other prostitutes who receive payment, she must bribe her suitors (vss 33-34).
God must act. He announces that He will gather all her lovers against her, strip her, exposing her shameful nakedness, and then have her sentenced “to the punishment of women who commit adultery and who shed blood” (vs 38).
There is much to unpack. There is irony in God’s use of talion in judgment. Those she gathered to commit her leud acts, will now be gathered to destroy her. She who willfully exposed herself to her suitors, uncovering herself of God’s covering, will now be publicly uncovered and exposed by them. She who exposed herself to men, will now be exposed to many women. She who began life naked but received a generous covering she despised, will now return to her initial state of nakedness in rejection by the very One who covered her (vs 8).
But there appears to be more. As covering one with the corner of their garment signaled a willingness to accept marriage obligations, being stripped symbolized a divorce, a discontinuance of the obligations of husband due to unfaithfulness (see Hosea 2:2-3). [16]
Because she was an adulteress, she will be punished in accordance with the law and stoned to death (vs 40). Worse, because she shed blood, her blood will be shed through the added humiliation of being hacked in pieces (vs 40). Note the talion and irony that she who started life abandoned and covered with blood, ends her life abandoned and covered in blood.
Her national destruction will bring a certain end to her penchant for entering into forbidden military covenants. Jerusalem, who had forgotten her past as a youth (vs 22, 43), in judgment is returned to the conditions of her youth in a way that is designed to bring her to remembrance!
While this judgment may seem extreme, it must be grasped in context. Ezekiel declared that Jerusalem was worse than “your older sister” Samaria and worse than “your younger sister” Sodom (vs 46). Jerusalem not only followed in their ways but proved “more depraved than they” (vs 47).
That “your sister Sodom and her daughters never did what you and your daughters [Jerusalem] have done” (vs 48), is a damning indictment. Having destroyed both Samaria and Sodom for their wickedness, how could He allow Jerusalem to escape?
Despite the harsh rhetoric and terrible judgment Jerusalem faces, God has still not fully dispensed with her. His commitment persists and future actions show He will bring Jerusalem to purity through her recognition of this shameful behavior. God proclaims He will restore the fortunes of Samaria, Sodom and Jerusalem with each to “return to what they were before” (vs 53-58). The restoration of Sodom (Edom) and Samaria has the purpose to despise Jerusalem, which seems another attempt to bring Jerusalem to a recognition of her shamefulness, through being despised by those she despised.
While dealing with Jerusalem “as she deserves” (vs 59), God has a greater objective. His actions bring Jerusalem to recognition of her shame that brings purification so that His glory can be revealed through her. Despite her shameless and unrepentant behavior, God is unwavering, “yet I will remember the covenant I made with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you. Then you will remember your ways and be ashamed . . . so I will establish my covenant with you, and you will know that I am the Lord. Then, when I make atonement for you for all you have done, you will remember and be ashamed and never again open your mouth because of your humiliation” (vs 60-63).
God’s love is thus seen in judgment. Because He loves Jerusalem, He must chasten her. It is His hope that Israel will realize her shame and desire to change. He will not forget the covenant He made with her. His love is on display and He will always be faithful to His wife.
More than that, the promise of a new covenant points toward a day when Jerusalem, having endured judgment, will see her shame, come to her senses and be restored to covenant relationship. Restoration, described as a new covenant points to a new restored, marital relationship.
Insights From Ezekiel 23
Ezekiel 23 parallels Ezekiel 16. Common to both narratives are two women (sisters), represented in Samaria (the Northern Kingdom) and Jerusalem (Judah, the Southern Kingdom). Absent from Ezekiel 23 is Sodom, though Sodom’s presence is hardly necessary.
The first sister Oholah, represents Samaria, who Ezekiel chronicles engaging in prostitution with the Assyrians (vss 5-8) until God “delivered her into the hands of her lovers, the Assyrians” who “stripped her naked, took away her sons and daughters and killed her with the sword” (vss 9-10). Her fate tracks the Samaritan sister in Ezekiel 16. Though no mention is made explicitly of divorce, the language of stripping her bare (cessation of the husband’s responsibilities) supports that Ezekiel sees divorce followed by national destruction to the Assyrians.
Despite Oholah’s death, her sister Oholibah (Jerusalem) became “more depraved than her sister” (vs 11). She not only prostituted herself to the Assyrians, but then lusted after the Chaldeans and sent for them. Though God turned from her in disgust, “she became more and more promiscuous” (vss 18-19).
As in Ezekiel 16, she will be put to death through national destruction by her idolatrous lovers (vss 22-30). Oholibah will drink Oholah’s cup of judgment. Both have practiced idolatry and shed innocent blood by giving their children to the fires of the Baals (vs 37).
Ezekiel 23 brings an additional charge not present in Ezekiel 16. Ezekiel charges that “they have defiled my sanctuary and desecrated my Sabbaths. On the very day they sacrificed their children to their idols, they entered my sanctuary and desecrated it. That is what they did in my house” (vss 38-39).
That charge is followed by “righteous judges will sentence them to the punishment of women who commit adultery and shed blood, because they are adulterous and blood is on their hands” (vs 45). They will be stoned and cut down with the sword (vs 47), echoing Ezekiel 16.
Desecrating Sabbath and Temple
The additional charge of desecrating the Sabbath and temple emphasizes the need for purification of God’s people. [17] Jewish marriage tradition is often linked to the temple:
One tannaitic interpretation of Canticles 3:11 asserts that “Solomon’s wedding day” refers to “the day that the Shekina dwelt in the Temple”. [18]
Similarly, Judaim linked the death of a wife with the destruction of the temple:
Rabbi Yohanan also said, “for any man whose first wife died while he was alive, it is as if the sanctuary was destroyed in his day, as it is said, ‘O mortal, I am about to take away the delight of your eyes from you through pestilence; but you shall not lament or weep or let your tears flow’ [Ezekiel 24:16], and it is written, ‘In the evening my wife died, and in the morning I did as I had been commanded’ [Ezekiel 24:18], and it is written, ‘I am going to desecrate My Sanctuary, your pride and glory the delight of your eyes . . .’ [Ezekiel 24:21].” [19]
Later, restoration of the temple came to be coupled with marriage. Jeremiah 33:10-11 is often read at orthodox weddings, recalling God’s promise to restore Jerusalem, redeem Israel and return the exiles. [20] Notably, John envisioned the consummation of God’s temple as a wedding feast.
Paul’s challenging statement in Ephesians 5 “husbands love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her” (vss 25-26), points to husbands loving their wives as Christ loved His new temple.
Ezekiel 23 emphasized that they desecrated God’s sanctuary and Sabbath, making the temple impure and unholy. God separated her from Him, effectively divorcing her. The covenant was no longer in force.
How Will God Purify “Dead” Israel
Restoration would require a multi-faceted program. Idolatry polluted God’s people making them impure, for which atonement would be needed. Idolatry also polluted the land for which purification must be made. In adding the desecration of God’s temple and Sabbath, the temple would require purification [21] and Sabbath rest reestablished.
And if Israel’s destruction was envisioned as the death of God’s wife, how would Israel be brought back from the dead? Ezekiel reveals that God will enter into a new covenant of peace with Israel, following the testimony of Hosea and Jeremiah.
The covenant will be forever (Ezekiel 34:25). God will give Israel “a new heart and put a new Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws . . . you will be my people, and I will be your God” (36:26-28). How is this done to “dead” Israel?
God will resurrect Israel (37:1-14). God promises, “I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them . . . I will put my Spirit in you and you will live . . . They will no longer defile themselves with their idols . . . for I will save them . . . and I will cleanse them. They will be my people and I will be their God . . .They will follow my laws and be careful to keep my decrees . . . I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant . . . I will be their God, and they will be my people” (37:12-27).
One might think that if Israel was put to death, it would signal the end of the covenant and would free God to choose another wife. Though Jewish law and practice allowed it, it is shocking that He chooses to pour out His love toward His people, with all His efforts focused upon their redemption and purification. Despite centuries enduring intense injury, His love for Israel remains. It is undiminished. He is so committed to restoration that He will resurrect her to newness of life!
The Testimony of Malachi
Malachi is the last of the prophets to speak of divorce. His view of the marriage covenant is seen in Malachi 2:10-16. The passage engulfs us in interpretative challenges with difficult Hebrew that can be problematic. Despite uncertainties, two schools of thought dominate: the first interprets the passage typologically in which Malachi is not speaking about literal marriage and divorce among the Jewish people but speaking symbolically of the people’s idolatry and unfaithfulness to the covenant.
The other school favors a literal understanding in which the Jewish people, in showing their covenantal unfaithfulness in marriage, are also showing covenantal unfaithfulness to God. Most expositors favor the second. Malachi ministered after the return from the Babylonian exile and completion of the second temple. It suggests a more literal interpretation given Israel’s covenantal unfaithfulness in their marriage covenants following their return (Ezra 9:1-2) and the high emphasis that would have been placed upon marital fidelity to avoid a repeat exile for idolatry.
Malachi’s complaint begins with a question, “Do we not all have one Father?” There are differing views on who the father is. Baldwin sees the father as Abraham while Smith sees reference to God. [22] Either is possible though the follow-on question, “Did not one God create us?” favors the latter. God as Creator and Father are seen as twin concepts together in Deuteronomy 32:6, Isaiah 63:15-16; 64:8 and Malachi puts these concepts together in 1:6. These two questions establish that Israel was created by God to be one community, one family in which all were to be treated in accordance with the covenant.
A third question is then posed, “why do we profane the covenant of our ancestors by being unfaithful to one another?” Marrying idolators from outside the community of Israel was violating the commands of God. Malachi criticizes Israel’s quick disrespect of the covenant. It was this very failure that brought Israel’s Babylonian exile.
His words should jar the Jewish people to respect the covenant and thus avoid a future exodus. The charge is leveled that “Judah has been unfaithful . . . “and “desecrated the sanctuary . . . by marrying women who worship a foreign god” (2:11). [23] Israel has violated the covenant by marrying Canaanite women who were idolaters and would lead them again into idolatry that brought exile. Malachi’s curse cuts off the guilty. A benefit of marriage was to raise godly children (vs 15) to fill the earth, unlikely with idolatrous wives.
Malachi further warns that their offerings were being rejected because they were violating the covenant by divorcing the wives of their youth (vs 14). The charge is covenantal unfaithfulness to their wives. “Did he not make one” is how Smith translates vs 15, seeing a reference to Genesis 2, where God made man and woman one flesh. [24]
The reason may be presented in vs 16, though again the Hebrew is challenging. Smith believes the best interpretation is “because I hate divorce, says Yahweh God of Israel”, with which Baldwin agrees, noting her belief that the text was redacted to bring agreement with Deuteronomy 24. [25] That God hates divorce is consistent with His actions seen with regard to Israel, where He worked tirelessly to avoid it, initiating it only when it was the only way to bring Israel to repentance and return her to Him.
If a literal interpretation is accepted, Malachi gives pragmatic counsel to the remnant of Jewish exiles who returned to the land but quickly fell away from covenantal fidelity, jeopardizing their future relationship with God. No wonder Malachi offers such outspoken criticism, hoping that Israel, having quickly fallen away, would as quickly return before judgment would again fall.
His counsel is consistent with the other prophets. Israel must live in compliance with her covenantal obligations including marriage, both in marrying within the covenant and also in the marriage obligations they entered with their wives for which God was witness (Genesis 31:50; Proverbs 2:17).
In an age when divorce and remarriage was allowed, Malachi’s testimony stands out. His arguments do not overtly forbid divorce or remarriage. Rather, they refocus Israel on the critical issue of honoring covenantal obligations into which they enter. They are to strive for holiness and achieve God’s purposes, not fulfill their personal desires.
His testimony is also ground-breaking in that his argument points back to God’s original plan and intent for marriage in Genesis 2. If so, it makes his testimony refreshing and important. Refreshing in that it redirects marriage and divorce controversies to covenant fidelity and God’s objectives. Important in that it would serve as basis for Christ’s “renewed” interpretation of marriage in the new age He was ushering in.
Relevance to Christians Today
In attempting to develop a theology of divorce and remarriage, some important observations can be made. But first it must be acknowledged that little detail is found in the Sinaic covenant regarding its allowances and restrictions. There is little to serve as governing regulation of divorce and less on remarriage.
The restrictions provided seem to focus not upon divorce and remarriage but upon protecting a woman against unjust divorce. But despite the lack of regulations, it must be admitted that divorce and remarriage were allowed in light of Deuteronomy 24:1-3; 22:13-21. Yet we are left with little upon which to build as regulations for divorce and remarriage are largely absent.
We are not left without testimony however. The prophets provide great insight and are all in agreement regarding the conditions under which God was divorcing His people. From these voices we learn essential aspects of God’s character and love for His people.
God’s love for His people is unbounded and continues unabated even in the midst of apostasy and idolatry. His love and grace are manifest in the prolonged unfaithfulness of His people and their failure to (truly) repent.
Even amidst centuries of unbroken idolatry and bloodshed, God’s love is undiminished. Even when divorce is decreed, it is with the sole intention of restoration. Even His harsh judgments are carefully planned to bring His people to repentance and purity. His harshest judgments will thus be justified – more so – He will be glorified when His love is seen on display before all creation.
His heart and actions set the standard for divorce. His love and actions to Israel provide insight on remarriage. In God’s economy, divorce may be permissible in the most extreme cases, but given God’s example, remarriage, while allowable within the covenant of Sinai, is not allowable under the new covenant without the death of the spouse. All focus, all effort and all spousal love must be directed toward restoration following a separation or divorce.
For many who have been the victim of divorce, our conclusion is bitter as some divorced spouses are not likely to return or seek restoration. But all who contemplate marriage or divorce must bear in mind the biblical truth that only a remnant come to a true faith in God. It is only a remnant that respond to God’s love and seek restoration.
There is no reason to expect it will be different in marital relations than in godly covenantal relations. But this is what makes the love of God so amazing. That Christ willingly suffered such an excruciating and humiliating death to redeem and restore only a remnant, is the greatest and most profound demonstration of His matchless love.
It requires great love, but also great faith that demands we conform ourselves to the image of Christ. We must have the faith to believe that even if we are not restored to our spouse, our acted-out drama can powerfully inspire those around us, and more powerfully move the heart of God to accomplish great things in our world. It begs a hard question: Is Christ’s love and faith sufficiently in evidence in our lives to impel us to follow His path, a path that changed all creation for all time.
In light of this difficult teaching, some closing remarks are in order. There is a striking difference in detail when comparing what is said of divorce in the Sinaic covenant and the prophetic books. The lack of detail in Sinaic regulations compared to the extensive discussions of the prophets leads one to conclude that divorce was not so much to accommodate man’s failing love as much as to reveal God’s unfailing love. An example is the lawful requirement that only a man could issue a divorce. While seeming biased against women, the requirement may have been included to point to God as the only One who could legally call for divorce as He was always faithful, leaving his wife Israel without legal basis.
If true, it may explain the lack of institutional detail in the Sinaic covenant concerning divorce and remarriage. It should refocus believers upon God’s efforts to assure a future for His people. This side of the debate seems largely overlooked in discussions about divorce and remarriage.
The extremes God undertook to demonstrate His love leave one speechless. God’s commitment overcomes divorce and even death, resurrecting His people, initiating a better covenant, celebrating a restored marital relationship that purifies His people. It is a marvel!
Despite that we proved ourselves treacherous for centuries, that He would enter into a new covenant and betroth Himself to us “forever” (Hosea 2:19) contrasts dramatically with the Sinaic covenant that accommodated and ended in divorce and dissolution. Those who would argue that the new covenant marital requirements should not differ substantially from those of Sinai miss this essential difference. We will never be left or abandoned. God will never issue a divorce decree against us as He has made peace with us, empowering us to live faithfully.
The new covenant should have no expectation of divorce because God has enabled us to live faithfully to the covenant! As Paul has indicated, our marriages should model the relationship between Christ and His church, a covenant that is forever. God has given us His Spirit, empowering faithful living. Thus, there is no longer need for a divorce requirement.
If one wishes to press the argument employing the exception clauses of Matthew 5:32 and Matthew 19:9, we would argue that based upon the testimony of the prophets, this point becomes largely moot. Godly love places such great restrictions upon divorce – seen in the extent of Israel’s marital unfaithfulness and their lengthy period of unrepentedness that few cases could justify divorce.
Even these cases might be resolvable with separation. Either way, remarriage would be biblically unjustified. Love must always overwhelm law. This is the critical point for divorcees who have seen their spouses remarry. For even God, while calling Deuteronomy 24 to His defense, proclaimed that His love would overwhelm even this legal restriction that should have prevented remarriage.
Difficult though it would be, divorcees must conduct themselves in Christlike fashion, always working toward restoration with their spouse despite recognition that many may continue to reject the selfless love they extend. That is the great witness we are called to proclaim.
Given the high standard, it is no surprise that Christ’s disciples felt it best not to marry (Matthew 19:10). Based upon our study, those who choose to covenant in marriage must take stock of the risks involved. They must accept that marriage has been architected as a means to show forth God’s unending love toward those most undeserving. It thus has powerful spiritual significance. Whether a marriage is blissful or blightful, when conducted in compliance with God’s word, it will be a powerful witness and can powerfully bless all involved.
[1] It is known Israel worshiped idols in Egypt (Ezekiel 20:4-13 and by allusion in Ezekiel 23:1-4). The actions of the Israelites to return to their Egyptian idols after God’s mighty deliverance and after entering into covenant with Him are the basis for our statement that Exodus 32 was the first instance of idolatry for Israel as a nation and people in covenant with God.
[2] See Judges 2:17; 8:27, 33; 2 Kings 9:22; 1 Chronicles 5:25; 2 Chronicles 21:11-13; Psalm 106:39; Isaiah 1:21; 57:3; Jeremiah 2:20; 3:1-9; 5:7; 6:9; 7:9; 13:27; 23:14, 43; 29:23; Ezekiel 6:9; 16:1-63; 23:1-48; Hosea 1:2; 2:2-5; 3:1-3; 4:2, 10-18; 5:3-4; 9:1; Micah 1:7; Matthew 12:39, 16:4; Mark 8:38.
[3] Noteworthy were the author’s efforts to show those kings who succumbed to Baal worship as a result of intermarriage with Canaanite idolators, following the model of Solomon.
[4] It is not coincidental that God would honor His promise to David in the face of what will be shown to be terrible idolatry. Throughout Israel’s history, the authors of the books of kings make David the standard-bearer upon which the kings behavior is judged, with virtually all of them falling short of the standard David established. David was standard-bearer in his relationship with God (e.g 1 Chronicles 18:14), putting Him first and ridding Israel of her idols. The standard is communicated to Solomon (1 Kings 9:4), and later becomes the defining standard by which later kings are judged, first with Solomon (1 Kings 11:4-6; 31-33; 2 Chronicles 7:17-18) and then through the kingly lines of Israel and Judah (1 Kings 11:38; 14:8; 15:3-5; 15:11; 2 Kings 14:3; 16:2; 18:3; 22:2; 2 Chronicles 11:17; 17:3; 21:12; 28:1; 29:2; 34:2-3).
[5] Stuart sees Gomer as guilty only of idolatry and not sexual unfaithfulness. He argues Hosea’s second marriage was to a different woman than Gomer, one who was a professional prostitute. Stuart, Douglas, Hosea -Jonah, Word Biblical Commentary, Vol 31, Waco, TX, Word Press, 1987, p. 11-12, 68. Baldwin sees Gomer as sexually unfaithful, at least as far as likely participation in fertility cults and sees Hosea’s second marriage as a remarriage to Gomer. Baldwin, J.G., Hosea, Book of, The Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Vol. 2, Sydney, Tyndale House, Hodder and Stoughton,1980, p. 662-665.
[6] Stuart, Douglas, Hosea -Jonah, Word Biblical Commentary, Vol 31, Waco, TX, Word Press, 1987, p. 32
[7] The promise of innumerable descendants is intended to assure Israel that God will fulfill His promise to Abraham. The further promise to re-unite divided Israel (the Northern Kingdom and Southern Kingdom) is often misunderstood as a promise to the ten physical tribes of the Northern Kingdom to raise them up again. The reality is found in 2 Chronicles 11:13-15 where the Levites sided with Rehoboam and abandoned the towns in Israel since Jeroboam had rejected them as priests. Note vs 16 “those from every tribe of Israel who set their hearts on seeking the Lord, the God of Israel, followed the Levites to Jerusalem . . .” Note also 2 Chron 15:9 which also speaks of many from Benjamin, Ephraim, Manasseh and Simeon “had come over to him from Israel when they saw that the Lord his God was with him”. In other words, God kept a faithful remnant from the unfaithful Northern tribes which moved to the Southern Kingdom, preserving these tribes.
[8] So Stuart, Douglas, Hosea -Jonah, Word Biblical Commentary, Vol 31, Waco, TX, Word Press, 1987, p. 37
[9] Ibid, p. 39. Stuart notes אֶרֶץ ‘erets can signify exile (Deuteronomy 4:27-30) or the earth surrounding the grave, or “nether world” poetically (Psalms 71:20; 95:4; Isaiah 43:6; Jeremiah 15:7). He notes other commentators who have seen a close connection with the resurrection language of Ezekiel 37:12-14).
[10] Stuart notes the surprise ending of the court proceedings where God will “seduce” her after the harsh judgments that bring Israel back to dependence upon Him. Stuart, Douglas, Hosea – Jonah, Word Biblical Commentary, Vol 31, Waco, TX, Word Press, 1987, p. 45
[11] So Watts, John D.W., Isaiah 34-66, Word Biblical Commentary, Vol. 25, Waco TX, Word Books, 1987, p. 193
[12] So Craigie, Peter C., Kelley, Page H. and Drinkard, Jr., Joel F., Jeremiah 1-25, Word Biblical Commentary, Vol. 26, Waco TX, Word Books, 1991, p. 52. The disingenuity of God’s people is evident in Jeremiah 2:23 where Israel attempts to deny she has sinned, serving the Baals. It is also evident in 2:25 where she gives in to her carnal desires without thought or effort. She loves her filthy lifestyle while pretending she is pure and above sin.
[13] This is a shocking accusation given that only Josiah and Hezekiah lived up to the model of king David. Even with Josiah’s perfect modeling of Davidic righteousness, the people continued in idolatry.
[14] So Craigie, Peter C., Kelley, Page H. and Drinkard, Jr., Joel F., Jeremiah 1-25, Word Biblical Commentary, Vol. 26, Waco TX, Word Books, 1991, p. 54
[15] Ibid, p. 69
[16] Block, Daniel I., The Book of Ezekiel, Chapters 1-24, Grand Rapids MI, William B. Eerdmans Publishing, 1997, p. 501. Block further notes harlots were punished with public exposure and stripping (Nahum 3:5; Jeremiah 13:22, 26),
[17] It may also provides justification for destruction of the Solomonic temple given its defilement.
[18] Satlow, Michael L., The Metaphor of Marriage in Early Judaism, published in Van Henten, Jan and Brenner, Athalya,Families and Family Relations, Leiden Germany, Deo Publishing, 2000, p. 31 quoting from Sifra Shemini, petihta 16 (ed. Weiss 44c).
[19] Ibid, p. 33
[20] Pilkington, C. M., Judaism, Lincolnwood IL, NTC Publishing Group, 1995, p. 110
[21] See The Cleansing of God’s Cosmic Temple Under The New Testament Transformation of God’s Temple
[22] Baldwin, Joyce G., Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, The Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries, downers Grove IL, Inter-Varsity Press, 1972, p. 237. Smith, Ralph L., Micah-Malachi, Word Biblical Commentary, Vol. 32, Waco TX, Word Books, 1984, p. 320-325
[23] In desecrating the sanctuary, the word qodesh is used, leaving some uncertainty if it was the temple that was desecrated, the holiness of God’s people or other sacred objects. The charge was serious as it profaned what was holy, whether sanctuary or people. In God’s eyes, the two concepts may have been inseparable (given God’s view of the temple as the people of God).
[24] Smith, Ralph L., Micah-Malachi, WordBiblical Commentary, Vol. 32, Waco TX, Word Books, 1984, p. 319, 324-325. He notes that this Malachian passage is the forerunner to Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 5:31-32; 19:4-9.
[25] Ibid, p. 319, 320, 324. Baldwin, Joyce G., Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, The Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries, downers Grove IL, Inter-Varsity Press, 1972, p. 241