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In Gospel of Matthew chapter 19, Jesus was asked about marriage and divorce. He responded by pointing back to God’s original design from Genesis.
Here is the key passage:
“And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female,
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.”
— Matthew 19:4–6 KJV
Later Jesus also says:
“Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so.”
— Matthew 19:8 KJV
What Jesus Was Emphasizing
Jesus pointed people back to:
- creation,
- covenant,
- and God’s original intention.
Notice the wording:
- “male and female”
- “his wife”
- “they twain”
- “one flesh”
The emphasis is on a unified covenant relationship.
Jesus explains that some practices in the Old Testament were permitted because of:
- human hardness,
- sinfulness,
- and fallen culture,
but God’s original design existed “from the beginning.”
Why This Passage Matters
Matthew 19 is one of the clearest places where Jesus:
- reaffirms Genesis 2:24,
- teaches covenant marriage,
- and stresses the seriousness and unity of marriage.
It became one of the foundational passages Christians use when discussing:
- marriage,
- divorce,
- faithfulness,
- and God’s design for husband and wife.