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Matthew 19:7

They say unto him, Why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement, and to put her away?

KJV

λέγουσιν αὐτῷ· τί οὖν Μωϋσῆς ἐνετείλατο δοῦναι βιβλίον ἀποστασίου καὶ ἀπολῦσαι;

Greek NT

Dicunt illi : Quid ergo Moyses mandavit dare libellum repudii, et dimittere ?

Vulgate

They say unto him, Why then did Moses command to give a bill of divorcement, and to put her away?

ASV

They say to him: Why then did Moses command to give a bill of divorce, and to put away?

Douay-Rheims

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In this verse

People Moses

In the original Greek

11 distinct Greek words appear in this verse.

Μωσεύς
moseus
noun · 81×
αὐτός
autos
pronoun · 5564×
βιβλίον
biblion
noun · 32×
δίδωμι
didomi
verb · 414×
καί
kai
conjunction · 8973×
λέγω
lego
verb · 2256×
οὖν
oun
conjunction · 489×
τίς
tis
interrogative_pronoun · 533×
ἀπολύω
apoluo
verb · 67×
ἀποστάσιον
apostasion
noun · 3×
ἐντέλλομαι
entellomai
verb · 16×

Textual variants

1 variant unit attested by manuscript witnesses and modern critical editions.

trivial
SBLGNT: αὐτήν | NIV/RP: αὐτήν
  • αὐτήν — SBLGNT
  • αὐτήν — Reader's GNT (NA27), Robinson-Pierpont
source: sblgnt-apparatus

Historic Christian voices

13 passages from patristic writers, Reformers, and church catechisms citing this verse.

§1620Both the sacrament of Matrimony and virginity for the Kingdom of God come from the Lord himself. It is he who gives them meaning and grants them the grace which is indispensable for living them out in conformity with his will.117 Esteem of virginity for the sake of the kingdom118 and the Christian understanding of marriage are inseparable, and they reinforce each other: Whoever…
§2053To this first reply Jesus adds a second: "If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me."2 This reply does not do away with the first: following Jesus Christ involves keeping the Commandments. the Law has not been abolished,3 but rather man is invited to rediscover it in the person of his Maste…
§2364The married couple forms "the intimate partnership of life and love established by the Creator and governed by his laws; it is rooted in the conjugal covenant, that is, in their irrevocable personal consent."146 Both give themselves definitively and totally to one another. They are no longer two; from now on they form one flesh. the covenant they freely contracted imposes on th…
…and 1 more from this source.
At first God deemed it sufficient to inscribe the natural law, or the Decalogue, upon the hearts of men; but afterwards He found it necessary to bridle, with the yoke of the Mosaic law, the desires of the Jews, who were abusing their liberty; and even to add some special commands, because of the hardness of their hearts. 1. They (the Jews) had therefore a law, a course of disci…
Source. Translated by J. Walker, J. Sheppard and H. Browne, and revised by George B. Stevens. From Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, First Series, Vol. 11. Edited by Philip Schaff. (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1889.) Revised and edited for New Advent by Kevin Knight. <https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/210212.htm>. Contact information. The editor of New Adven…
Theology of the Body · 4 passages
The Meaning of Man's Original Solitude In the last reflection of the present cycle we reached an introductory conclusion, taken from the words of Genesis on the creation of man as male and female. We reached these words, that is, the "beginning," to which the Lord Jesus referred in his talk on the indissolubility of marriage (cf. Mt 19:3-9; Mk 10:1-12). But the conclusion at w…
Creation As a Fundamental and Original Gift Let us return to analyzing the text of Genesis 2:25: "And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed" (Gn 2:25). According to this passage, the man and the woman saw themselves, as it were, through the mystery of creation. They saw themselves in this way, before knowing that they were naked. This seeing each other is n…
Original Innocence and Man's Historical State Today's meditation presupposes what has already been established by the various analyses made up to now. They sprang from the answer Jesus gave to his interlocutors (cf. Mt 19:3-9; Mk 10:1-12). They had asked him a question about the indissolubility and unity of marriage. The Master had urged them to consider carefully that which w…
…and 1 more from this source.
1. The Power of Harmony in Relation to Prayer. Again I say unto you that if two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them. Matthew 18:19 The word symphony is strictly applied to the harmonies of sounds in music. And there are indeed among musical sounds some accordant and others discordant. But the Evangelic Scripture is fam…

Cross-references

  • Deut 24:1 — When a man hath taken a wife, and married her, and it come to pass that she find no favour in his eyes, because he hath found some uncleanness in her: then let him write her a bill of divorcement, and
  • Deut 24:1 — When a man hath taken a wife, and married her, and it come to pass that she find no favour in his eyes, because he hath found some uncleanness in her: then let him write her a bill of divorcement, and
  • Isa 50:1 — Thus saith the LORD, Where is the bill of your mother’s divorcement, whom I have put away? or which of my creditors is it to whom I have sold you? Behold, for your iniquities have ye sold yourselves,
  • Jer 3:8 — And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played t
  • Mal 2:16 — For the LORD, the God of Israel, saith that he hateth putting away: for one covereth violence with his garment, saith the LORD of hosts: therefore take heed to your spirit, that ye deal not treacherou
  • Mark 10:4 — And they said, Moses suffered to write a bill of divorcement, and to put her away.
  • Mark 10:4 — And they said, Moses suffered to write a bill of divorcement, and to put her away.
  • Matt 1:19 — Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put her away privily.
  • Matt 5:31 — It hath been said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement:
  • Matt 5:31 — It hath been said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement: