Jesus clearly sees divorce as a tragedy. Divorce is therefore a failure of divine purpose as the marriage covenant has a direct connection to God's covenant. So divorce is extremely difficult to advise or to condone for the Christian while Matthew's gospel does include what has been termed "the exception clause" (except on the ground of sexual immorality). Jesus addressed the extreme distortion of God's Law by the rabbinic tradition even in his discussion on divorce. Divorce is so horrendous that God hates any hint of it (Malachi 2:16). Yet the religious leaders of the rabbinic tradition had so expanded the exceptions for divorce from Deuteronomy that divorce had become ridiculously easy and abusive, especially toward women. Jesus makes his teaching clear and precise. If adultery is so horrendous, and used as a reason for divorce, then consider the consequences. Divorce makes the parties of the marriage adulterers. More importantly, divorce breaks the most sacred of vows taken before God. As God witnesses this holy union, God witnesses the sinful consequences of breaking the marriage vow.
