Product Description

A biblical and practical summary of the three main views among evangelicals on remarriage after divorce, including some of the practical implications for church life, author interactive responses to each chapter, and group discussion questions.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #384843 in Books
• Published on: 2006-05-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 176 pages

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• ISBN13: 9780310255536
• Condition: USED - LIKE NEW
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From the Back Cover
A biblical and practical case for three main evangelical views on remarriage after divorce Among born-again Christians, 27 percent have experienced divorce as compared to 24 percent in the general population. Yet no consensus exists among evangelicals on their views of remarriage, leaving many Christians confused. This single volume summarizes and explores three main evangelical views: no remarriage, remarriage after adultery or desertion, and remarriage for a variety of reasons. Each of the three contributors offers his point of view succinctly with biblical support, and each interacts with the others to help readers come to their own conclusions. Contributors include: Gordon J. Wenham • No remarriage after divorce William A. Heth • Remarriage (two grounds) Craig S. Keener • Remarriage (variety of reasons)

About the Author
Mark Strauss (PhD, Aberdeen) is professor of New Testament at Bethel Seminary in San Diego. He has written The Davidic Messiah in Luke-Acts, Distorting Scripture?, The Challenge of Bible Translation and Gender Accuracy, and Luke in the Zondervan Illustrated Bible Background Commentary series. Forthcoming books include The Gospels and Jesus, Mark in the revised Expositor's Bible Commentary series, and Mark in the Zondervan Exegetical Commentary series.

Craig S. Keener (PhD, Duke University) is professor of biblical studies at Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Remarriage after Divorce in Today’s Church Copyright © 2006 by Mark L. Strauss, Gordon J. Wenham, William A. Heth, and Craig S. Keener Requests for information should be addressed to: Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49530 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Wenham, Gordon J. Remarriage after divorce in today’s church : 3 views / Gordon J. Wenham, William A. Heth, Craig S. Keener ; Mark L. Strauss, general editor. p. cm. — (Counterpoints) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-0-310-25553-6 ISBN-10: 0-310-25553-8 1. Remarriage — Religious aspects — Christianity. I. Heth, William A. II. Keener, Craig S., 1960 – III. Strauss, Mark L. IV. Title. V. Counterpoints (Grand Rapids, Mich.). BV838.W46 2006 241'.63 — dc22 2005034268 All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked ESV are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Copyright © 2000, 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked TNIV are taken from the Holy Bible, Today’s New International Version®. TNIV®. Copyright © 2001, 2005 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked NRSV are taken from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America, and are used by permission. All rights reserved. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means — electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other — except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher. Printed in the United States of America 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 • 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Contents Abbreviations 7 Introduction: Are Cindy and Bob in Your Church? 11 Mark L. Strauss 1. No Remarriage after Divorce 19 Gordon J. Wenham Responses Wiliam A. Heth 43 Craig S. Keener 49 2. Remarriage for Adultery or Desertion 59 Wiliam A. Heth Responses Gordon J. Wenham 85 Craig S. Keener 91 3. Remarriage for Circumstances beyond Adultery or Desertion 103 Craig S. Keener Responses Gordon J. Wenham 121 Wiliam A. Heth 127 Conclusion: Three Key Questions for You to Answer 137 Mark L. Strauss Resources for Further Study 143 About the Contributors 145 Discussion and Reflection Questions 147 Scripture Index 151 Subject Index 157 Chapter One No Remarr iage after Divorc e 19 No Remarr iage after Divorc e Gordon J. Wenham The issue of remarriage after divorce painfully divides evangelical Christians. Perhaps you have seen tension over this issue in your own family or church or among your friends. I hope to shed light on what I believe Scripture teaches about this sensitive issue. My goal is that you will become biblically informed and feel better equipped to discuss the issue. But before I set out the reasons why I think divorced Christians should not remarry, I want to set out some points about marriage with which I believe my coauthors agree. Perhaps you will agree as well. Points of Agreement about Marriage First, the Bible advocates lifelong, monogamous heterosexual marriage as best for human welfare. Jesus points to two passages in Genesis as foundational for his view of marriage (Mark 10:6 – 7; Matt. 19:4 – 5). The first is Genesis 1:27 – 28, which tells of God’s creation of man and woman in his image. Their union is blessed by God as a means of perpetuating the human race for the benefit of creation. They are told to “be fruitful and increase in number.” The second passage Jesus cites, Genesis 2:24, is even more explicit about biblical ideals for marriage. Adam’s loneliness could not be satisfied by the creation of the animals or by the creation of other men, but by just one woman. Adam’s joy at Eve’s creation shows that monogamous heterosexual partnership offers the most satisfying sort of human relationship. It 20 | Remarriage after Divorce in Today’s Church is noteworthy, too, that Eve is created out of Adam’s rib. She is formed from him, which indicates the intimate bond between them — and between every married couple. This is summed up in Jesus’ quotation of Genesis 2:24 in Matthew 19:5: “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” The Hebrew term here translated “be united,” which may also be rendered “stick,” suggests a bond that cannot easily be broken. Indeed, the statement that they become “one flesh” is a description of the relationship between close relatives (cf. Gen 29:14), which endures whatever changes occur to the related individuals. The second point of agreement with my colleagues is that marriage is an image of the relationship between God and Israel, and in the New Testament it’s an image of Christ and the church. Traditionally, Song of Songs, which on the surface is all about human love, has been understood as an image of God and his bride, Israel, or the church. The prophets identify the infidelity of Israel as adultery against God (cf. Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Hosea). The apostle Paul is most explicit: “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. . . . ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’ This is a profound mystery — but I am talking about Christ and the church” (Eph. 5:25, 31 – 32). The third point of agreement is the understanding that divorce is a failure due to sin. As Jesus put it, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning” (Matt. 19:8). Though all of us are sinners, and this fact will have an obvious impact on the marriage relationship, to agree that divorce is caused by sin is not to say that, when it occurs, both parties are equally to blame. Some divorced people are more innocent than others. But when divorce occurs, it demonstrates a breakdown in relationships, which is at odds with the gospel message of forgiveness and reconciliation. God loves us even though we are sinners (Rom. 5:8), so his people should love each other despite the experience and reality of sin. The fourth point of agreement is the awareness that the present situation is catastrophic. The present anarchy in sexual No Remarriage after Divorce | 21 behavior is leading to family and social instability on an unparalleled scale. In Western societies, about half of marriages end in divorce. A large percentage of children are born out of wedlock. One in five pregnancies is aborted. Teenage homelessness is largely caused by conflict with stepfathers. Violence between partners is five times as common in cases where the couple cohabits rather than marries. Child abuse is thirty times more common in situations where single mothers have a series of boyfriends. The non-Western world is appalled as they look at the West and its destruction of family values.1 None of us would suggest that simply banning divorce and remarriage will cure the breakdown of family life. But I believe that the rejection of the traditional Christian approach to this issue is one part of the package of secularism that has led to our present situation.

Customer Reviews

A change of pace for the Counterpoints series
This is the 7th "Counterpoints" book I've read, and it's quite different from all the others in this series. All 3 authors see the Bible as granting Christians permission to divorce under certain circumstances. The 3 positions defended are:

Permission only to divorce, & never to remarry (Gordon Wenham)
Permission to remarry only in cases of adultery or desertion (William Heth); and
Permission to remarry for a variety of reasons. (Craig Keener)

This book is more of an introductory primer to the remarriage-after-divorce debate: the chapters are shorter (about 30 pages each, contrasted w/ 50-100 in earlier Counterpoints) and the responses 5-6 pages. Also the argumentation is more abridged and less technical: none of the authors refer to the original biblical languages much in defending their positions, other than a passing reference to the word _porneia_ ("adultery, sexual immorality") and its possible meanings in Matt. 19:9. Also, the authors frequently refer to other published works, not just in defense of thier own views, but as a substitute for defending their own views; at several points the contributors dismiss a defense of a certain point they are making by simply mentioning another author or book that defends it, and adding that the issue is treated more exhaustively there. This book, more than any of the other Counterpoints that I've read, left me wanting to read more from each of the contributors on the topic.

One benefit of this more cursory treatment is that the book is an easier and quicker read than earlier Counterpoints books. It also returns to the original practice (abandoned in recent years) of allowing each author to respond to the others' chapters, which are usually some of the most engaging parts of this series of books. The authors are also very respectful of each other in the responses, without any puffed egos, practically falling over themselves to show goodwill and appreciation to each other -- although the responses are occasionally redundant, repeating some of the main points that the authors make in their own chapters.

Another positive about this book is that it focuses exclusively on the issue of remarriage, which is sometimes eclipsed in similar books on this topic, by the topic of divorce itself. While it is certainly important to have a biblical understanding of divorce, it is no less important to have a biblical understanding of remarriage -- especially if (like me) you are a pastor who is asked to marry 2 individuals who have already been married before. So this book is more pastoral and practical than some of the Counterpoints books, as it addresses a topic that impacts the way people live and not just how they think.

Overall, this is a very good intitial look at the question of what the proper biblical response is to divorced Christians who want to remarry. Each author balances biblical and pastoral/ practical issues in trying to come up with an appropriate answer. Probably the biggest downside to this book is that it is unlikely to change anyone's opinion on the subject, due to (a) its brevity; and (b) a number of presuppositional questions which strongly affect how one interprets the biblical data. However, the editor (Mark Strauss) does a good job of listing these presuppositions in a final concluding chapter, which does not so much try to identify a "winner" in the debate so much as point out some of the key issues on which the debate hangs.

a thought provoking, short book
Up to a year or so ago, I had always thought divorce and remarriage was acceptable in the cases of unrepentant adultery or desertion. I would quote the exception clause in Matthew 19 as well as the one about an unbeliever leaving in 1 Corinthians 7. Yet, I had simply accepted them without a lot of thoughtful study or consideration. After some study, I came to the determination that remarriage while the spouse is alive is prohibited. I've held this viewpoint ever since.
This book has been very helpful for me. Gordon Wenham is one of the leading proponents of the No-Remarriage position. I've thought he has had a rock solid argument and agree(d?) with him wholeheartedly. William Heth, who had co-authored a book with Wenham, after many years as a no-remarriage advocate has now changed his stance on remarriage to the traditional Reformation/Protestant understanding of remarriage allowable in cases of unrepentant adultery and desertion by an unbelieving spouse--the position I had formerly accepted blindly. Heth changed his position because of many of the same questions & issues that I still feel uncomfortable with on this side of the remarriage/theological fence. Heth deals with texts; he doesn't run from them (so does Craig Keener...although I certainly don't agree with his permissive viewpoint of other circumstances than adultery and desertion). All three authors extensively deal with the many practical issues that result from divorce and remarriage. This book is very balanced in its approach and allows each position to be presented clearly and evenhandedly. While the book is short enough to start a debate and answer as well as create some questions, it is not complete enough in its format to fully convince or change one's mind. It's a great primer and exposure to the viewpoints, but not sufficient enough to fully examine them in detail. Then again, it is not designed to do that.
Whether or not remarriage is possible, I know that the Lord will be with me and either way it will be excellent--with a wife, or without one. Praise God for His sovereign goodness to work all things to our joy and His glory!

Food for Thought
This is a hot topic in Christanity. This book is good because it presents all the different views in a pure form and allows you to form your own opinion about the matter.

If you have an opinion already, don't be tempted to read only the author who agrees with you. Broaden yourself some! You may be right - you may be wrong.