Separating From Unlawful Spouses In The Book Of Ezra

The book of Ezra describes the Israelites taking foreign wives in violation of Deuteronomy 7:3-4. Ezra 10:11 shows they were required to “separate” from these unlawful wives. We read pretty much the same thing in Mark 6:18 when John the Baptist told Herod that his marriage to Herodias was “unlawful” (because Herodias was previously married to Philip). Though these cases were not under New Testament law, we do learn from these examples that when people today contract adulterous marriages violating passages like Matthew 19:9 and Romans 7:2-3, God expects them to get out of those unscriptural marriages. Wonder why most churches today are not enforcing this teaching?

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