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Matthew 19:5–8

5 and said, ‘aFor this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and bthe two shall become one flesh’?

6 So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.”

7 They * said to Him, “aWhy then did Moses command to give her a certificate of divorce and send her away?”

8 He * said to them, Because of your hardness of heart Moses permitted you to 1divorce your wives; but from the beginning it has not been this way.

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Matthew 19:5–8 — The New International Version (NIV)

and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”

“Why then,” they asked, “did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?”

Jesus replied, Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning.

Matthew 19:5–8 — English Standard Version (ESV)

and said, Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.” They said to him, “Why then did Moses command one to give a certificate of divorce and to send her away?” He said to them, Because of your hardness of heart Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.

Matthew 19:5–8 — King James Version (KJV 1900)

And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. They say unto him, Why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement, and to put her away? He saith unto them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so.

Matthew 19:5–8 — New Living Translation (NLT)

And he said, ‘This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.’ Since they are no longer two but one, let no one split apart what God has joined together.”

“Then why did Moses say in the law that a man could give his wife a written notice of divorce and send her away?” they asked.

Jesus replied, Moses permitted divorce only as a concession to your hard hearts, but it was not what God had originally intended.

Matthew 19:5–8 — The New King James Version (NKJV)

and said, For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh? So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.”

They said to Him, “Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?”

He said to them, Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.

Matthew 19:5–8 — New Century Version (NCV)

And God said, ‘So a man will leave his father and mother and be united with his wife, and the two will become one body.’ So there are not two, but one. God has joined the two together, so no one should separate them.”

The Pharisees asked, “Why then did Moses give a command for a man to divorce his wife by giving her divorce papers?”

Jesus answered, “Moses allowed you to divorce your wives because you refused to accept God’s teaching, but divorce was not allowed in the beginning.

Matthew 19:5–8 — American Standard Version (ASV)

and said, For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and the two shall become one flesh? So that they are no more two, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. They say unto him, Why then did Moses command to give a bill of divorcement, and to put her away? He saith unto them, Moses for your hardness of heart suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it hath not been so.

Matthew 19:5–8 — 1890 Darby Bible (DARBY)

and said, On account of this a man shall leave father and mother, and shall be united to his wife, and the two shall be one flesh? so that they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate. They say to him, Why then did Moses command to give a letter of divorce and to send her away? He says to them, Moses, in view of your hardheartedness, allowed you to put away your wives; but from the beginning it was not thus.

Matthew 19:5–8 — GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

and that he said, ‘That’s why a man will leave his father and mother and will remain united with his wife, and the two will be one’? So they are no longer two but one. Therefore, don’t let anyone separate what God has joined together.” 

The Pharisees asked him, “Why, then, did Moses order a man to give his wife a written notice to divorce her?” 

Jesus answered them, “Moses allowed you to divorce your wives because you’re heartless. It was never this way in the beginning.

Matthew 19:5–8 — The Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)

and He also said:

For this reason a man will leave

his father and mother

and be joined to his wife,

and the two will become one flesh?

So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, man must not separate.”

“Why then,” they asked Him, “did Moses command us to give divorce papers and to send her away?”

He told them, Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because of the hardness of your hearts. But it was not like that from the beginning.

Matthew 19:5–8 — The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.” They said to him, “Why then did Moses command us to give a certificate of dismissal and to divorce her?” He said to them, It was because you were so hard-hearted that Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.

Matthew 19:5–8 — The Lexham English Bible (LEB)

and said, ‘On account of this a man will leave his father and his mother and will be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, man must not separate.” They said to him, “Why then did Moses command us to give a document—a certificate of divorce—and to divorce her?” He said to them, “Moses, with reference to your hardness of heart, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not like this.

Matthew 19:5–8 — New International Reader’s Version (1998) (NIrV)

He said, ‘That’s why a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife. The two will become one.’ They are no longer two, but one. So a man must not separate what God has joined together.”

They asked, “Then why did Moses command that a man can give his wife a letter of divorce and send her away?”

Jesus replied, “Moses let you divorce your wives because you were stubborn. But it was not this way from the beginning.


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