Mark 10:4

Mark 10:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And they said, Moses suffered to write a bill of divorcement, and to put her away.
• New International Version (NIV)They said, “Moses permitted a man to write a certificate of divorce and send her away.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)They said, "Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of divorce and to send her away."
• New King James Version (NKJV)They said, “Moses permitted a man to write a certificate of divorce, and to dismiss her.”

Context of Mark 10:4

2Some Pharisees came to test him. They asked, “Can a husband divorce his wife?” 3Jesus answered them, “What command did Moses give you?” They said, “Moses allowed a man to give his wife a written notice to divorce her.” 5Jesus said to them, “He wrote this command for you because you’re heartless. 6But God made them male and female in the beginning, at creation.

Mark 10:4 word by word

οἱ δὲ εἶπαν· ἐπέτρεψεν Μωϋσῆς βιβλίον ἀποστασίου γράψαι καὶ ἀπολῦσαι.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• Andδέde · thenG1161
• they saidλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
• MosesΜωϋσῆς, ΜωσῆςMōseus Mōsēs Mōusēs · MosesG3475
• sufferedἐπιτρέπωepitrepō · to permitG2010
• to writeγράφωgraphō · to writeG1125
• a billβιβλίονbiblion · scrollG975
• of divorcementἀποστάσιονapostasion · divorceG647
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• to putἀπολύωapoluō · to release: divorceG630
• awayἀπολύωapoluō · to release: divorceG630

Cross-references for Mark 10:4

• Deuteronomy 24:1This is what you must do if a husband writes out a certificate of divorce, gives it to his wife, and makes her leave his house. (He divorced her because he found out something indecent about her and she no longer pleased him.)
• Isaiah 50:1This is what the Lord says: Where are your mother’s divorce papers? Did I give her any to get rid of her? To which of my creditors did I sell you? You were sold because of your sins. I got rid of your mother because of your rebellion.
• Jeremiah 3:1A saying: If a man divorces his wife and she leaves him and marries another man, her first husband shouldn’t go back to her again. The land would become thoroughly polluted. “You have acted like a prostitute who has many lovers. And now you want to come back to me!” declares the Lord.
• Matthew 1:19Her husband Joseph was an honorable man and did not want to disgrace her publicly. So he decided to break the marriage agreement with her secretly.
• Matthew 5:31“It has also been said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife must give her a written notice.’
• Matthew 19:7The Pharisees asked him, “Why, then, did Moses order a man to give his wife a written notice to divorce her?”

Commentaries on Mark 10:4

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-12Verses 1-12 See this question about divorce explained in the notes at Matthew 19:1-12. Mark 10:12 And if a woman shall put away her husband - It would seem, from this, that a woman, among the Jews, had the power of separating herself from her husband, yet this right is not given her by the law of Moses. There is not, however, any positive evidence that females often claimed or exercised this right. Cases had occurred, indeed, in which it had been done…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4The Pharisees quoted what Moses permitted. There was much debate among rabbis as to what constituted the "some indecency" that made divorce permissible (see Deuteronomy 24:1). Rabbi Shammai allowed divorce only on the basis of sexual immorality. Rabbi Hillel permitted divorce even if a woman burned her husband’s dinner or was less attractive than someone else (Mishnah Gittin 9:10).Read the comment

Topics related to Mark 10:4

• Jesus, the Christ
• Marriage
• Polygamy

In the dictionaries

• Moses
• Bill of Divorcement
• Deuteronomy
• Divorce
• Lordship
• Mock
• Ransom
• Resort
• Divorce in the New Testament
• Divorce in the Old Testament

Commentaries on Mark 10

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Catena Aurea
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• John Lightfoot Commentary
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings