Marriage and Remarriage: Facts and Questions
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Question: Is there an actual example of marriage? Where in the Bible does it explain what marriage is? Answer: Eve and Adam married when Eve gave Adam her virginity. They experienced a new dimension of their physical usefulness through having sex. Adam's intellect was opened due to the experiment: “And Adam knew Eve his wife ...” (Gn. 4:1). The word “knew” is “egno” in Greek and “yahdah” in Hebrew; the words in their context reveal Adam and Eve had a mental and physical learning experience of each other through sex. When the couple united physically, they became one flesh (Gn. 2:24). Jesus the Christ himself referred to the sexual and spiritual unity as an institution of marriage. Also, betrothel is a form of marriage without the sexual performance. A period of time (days, months or years) is set for this to occur. Jacob had to wait for Rachel. Regretfully, Occidental nations have not adopted this form. Nevertheless, learned Christian parents can guide the marriage of their sons and daughters through working out an agreement with an attorney. Religious and legal requirements can be discussed. The bible requires female virginity or a one-male cognizance factor for a clean union (marriage). Virginity law is explained in Exodus 22, Dt. 22:13-21, 28, 29. A biblical marriage is finalized and determined by the male parent of a female virgin, not the boyfriend, and not the ceremonial director! What is the difference between marriage and remarriage, and why is remarriage not tolerated today? To answer this requires a study and understanding of the Old and New Covenants, the first and second law (redaction), and the fulfillment of the law. Polygamy of males was promoted and acceptable under the first and second law, but not after the New Covenant reproof of the redaction (Deuteronomy--second law). Therefore, men could marry many women up until the time of Jesus. Having several chaste wives was a matter of a man adding marriages to his family estate; these incidences were not remarriages, they were marriages. The tribes of Israel evolved from acceptable and multiple marriages, which were clean and not defiled. This continued under both the first and second law. Remarriages legally occurred after the second law when an unclean woman (and/or a divorced woman) was tolerated to re-marry another man (Dt. 24:1-3). Moses tolerated this because of the hardness of the people's hearts. However, this was also stopped in the New Covenant after the reproof of the redaction. See “Second Marriages”. How can a defiled woman who has married (or remarried) repent? A defiled woman who has married can have the illegitimate relationship annulled. So can the woman who became defiled after marriage and returned to her former husband (Dt. 24:4)—forbidden! Links: |
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