¹Jesus left there and went into the territory of Judea along the other side of the Jordan River. Crowds gathered around him again, and he taught them as he usually did.

²Some Pharisees came to test him. They asked, “Can a husband divorce his wife?”

³Jesus answered them, “What command did Moses give you?”

⁴They said, “Moses allowed a man to give his wife a written notice to divorce her.”

⁵Jesus said to them, “He wrote this command for you because you’re heartless. ⁶But God made them male and female in the beginning, at creation. ⁷That’s why a man will leave his father and mother and will remain united with his wife, ⁸and the two will be one. So they are no longer two but one. ⁹Therefore, don’t let anyone separate what God has joined together.”

¹⁰When they were in a house, the disciples asked him about this. ¹¹He answered them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another woman is committing adultery. ¹²If a wife divorces her husband and marries another man, she is committing adultery.”

Jesus Blesses Children—Matthew 19:13–15; Luke 18:15–17

¹³Some people brought little children to Jesus to have him hold them. But the disciples told the people not to do that.

¹⁴When Jesus saw this, he became irritated. He told them, “Don’t stop the children from coming to me. Children like these are part of God’s kingdom. ¹⁵I can guarantee this truth: Whoever doesn’t receive God’s kingdom as a little child receives it will never enter it.”

¹⁶Jesus put his arms around the children and blessed them by placing his hands on them.

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