To many; the New Testament's teaching on divorce and remarriage seems to be both impractical and unfair. The "plain" meaning of the texts allows for divorce only in cases of adultery or desertion; and it does not permit remarriage until the death of one's former spouse. But are these proscriptions the final word for Christians today? Are we correctly reading the scriptures that address these issues?By looking closely at the biblical texts on divorce and remarriage in light of the first-century Jewish and Greco-Roman world; this book shows that the original audience of the New Testament heard these teachings differently. Through a careful exploration of the background literature of the Old Testament; the ancient Near East; and especially ancient Judaism; David Instone-Brewer constructs a biblical view of divorce and remarriage that is wider in scope than present-day readings.Among the important findings of the book are that both Jesus and Paul condemned divorce without valid grounds and discouraged divorce even for valid grounds; that both Jesus and Paul affirmed the Old Testament grounds for divorce; that the Old Testament allowed divorce for adultery and for neglect or abuse; and that both Jesus and Paul condemned remarriage after an invalid divorce but not after a valid divorce. Instone-Brewer shows that these principles are not only different from the traditional church interpretation of the New Testament but also directly relevant to modern relationships.Enhanced with pastoral advice on how to apply the biblical teaching in today's context; this volume will be a valuable resource for anyone seeking serious answers about married life.
#260911 in Books 2003-09-19Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.12 x 1.64 x 6.50l; 2.48 #File Name: 0802822304770 pages
Review
0 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Kindle editionBy Kim ReynoldsThe kindle edition I received does not work at all. It won't let me access the table of contents and every time I try to access a page manually it closes and redirects me back to my library. Very disappointing; especially since I was not able to return it for a refund.0 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Great readBy Junius R.Class was cancelled however this book is a good read.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Excellent Choice for a Personal LibraryBy Ansen PlopbundleGetting through both of these volumes took me awhile; but I finally finished them. There's not a whole lot to be said in terms of a review. The title basically says it all. It's a compilation of primary source document citations since 1877. It picks up right where the last volume left off and is updated every several years; apparently. There are excellent introductions to the chapters and the selections on suggested reading material are incredibly thorough.I'm not sure if I'd buy this new or not; but a used copy is only a few bucks and definitely worth the price.
