Does God allow someone who has divorced to get married again when their ex-spouse is still living? Should a divorced person file for divorce again if they have already been married again? How does God feel about two divorced persons getting back together in a new marriage?
God detests divorce (Malachi 2:16) and only permits it when one or both spouses have been unfaithful (Matthew 19:9). God does not demand or want divorce, even in cases of unfaithfulness; He just enables it (Matthew 19:7-8). It’s not clear-cut how this consent is to be precisely understood. Christians have had differing views on this throughout history.) God wants both parties to turn from their sins when they have caused unfaithfulness or other relationship-destroying transgressions. They must reconcile and extend forgiveness to one another (Luke 17:3–4).
Forgive each other
It is always necessary to forgive, because it is sinful to not forgive (Matthew 6:15). Forgiveness could be hard to come by and might take some time. Yet God always desires our forgiveness of people. It might be the case in some couples that continued infidelity or abuse makes a reconciliation impossible. For the foreseeable future, at least, it is not feasible. The couple should not attempt to reconcile as it is not prudent or secure.
The other spouse who wants to make amends is not required to make their unrepentant partner stay married to them if at least one of them has a stubborn, unrepentant attitude (1 Corinthians 7:15). God wants individuals to forgive and make amends. In fact, He wants divorced couples to work toward their mutual reconciliation and eventually get back together as a married couple. For a marriage who has divorced, this would be the best possible result. However, what happens if it appears that the couple will never reconcile and one or both of them choose to remarry? Jesus declares:
“It is adultery for anyone to divorce their spouse and remarry someone else. And it is adultery for a man to wed a lady who has been divorced from her spouse. Luke 16:18
Possibility of reconciliation
This implies that God is against a divorced individual getting married again. It is not acceptable to remarry someone else as long as there is still hope for reconciliation and reunification in the marriage. Sin is what it is. According to the Bible:
“I, the Lord, deliver this command to the married. It is improper for a wife to leave her spouse. If she does, though, she ought either stay single or make amends with her spouse. Furthermore, a husband shouldn’t divorce his spouse. First Corinthians 7:10–11
The surviving spouse is free to marry if the deceased spouse passes away:
For as long as her husband is alive, a wife is obligated to him. However, in the event of her husband’s passing, she is free to marry anybody she chooses—but only in the Lord.” Corinthians 7:39
Cutting off the reunification
God would not desire a remarriage to result from a former spouse who is still living and sinfully marries someone else rather than pursuing reconciliation. Even when the remarried spouse came to see that getting married rather than pursuing reconciliation was a sin. According to what the Bible says, if a person gets divorced, gets remarried, and that second marriage dissolves (for whatever reason), the first couple cannot reconcile.
“When a man takes a wife and marries her, if then she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some indecency in her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out of his house, and she departs out of his house, and if she goes and becomes another man’s wife, and the latter man hates her and writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out of his house, or if the latter man dies, who took her to be his wife, then her former husband, who sent her away, may not take her again to be his wife, after she has been defiled. For that is an abomination before the LORD. And you shall not bring sin upon the land that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance.” (Deuteronomy 24:1-4)
Therefore, the spouse who held out for remarrying their former spouse is now free to marry someone else if the previous spouse remarries, eliminating any chance of getting back together in marriage.
