New Testament · Gospel

Mark 10:11

The Servant King

So He told them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery against her. Mark 10:11 · Berean Standard Bible
What It Means

Mark 10:11, in plain English

Jesus said plainly, 'Whoever divorces his wife and marries someone else commits adultery against her.' He gave women a dignity and standing that the culture denied them.

Why it's here

In that time, men had all the power in marriage. Jesus flipped the script by saying wives deserve the same faithfulness and respect as husbands.

Who's speaking

Jesus speaks directly about the reality of divorce and remarriage.

Where it sits in the story

In a world where divorce was a man's right and a woman had no say, Jesus declared that she mattered — that breaking faith with her was a sin against her. Revolutionary.

A Closer Look

The scholar's commentary

Jesus states categorically that divorce and remarriage constitutes adultery 'against her' (ep' autēn), a remarkable statement in a culture where adultery was defined only as a violation of another man's rights.

Language and setting

By saying a man commits adultery 'against her,' Jesus elevates the wife to a status of equal dignity and rights — a revolutionary position in first-century Judaism.

Voice

Jesus gives private, unambiguous teaching to His disciples.

Significance

In private, Jesus makes an extraordinary claim: a man who divorces and remarries commits adultery against his wife. In a patriarchal culture, this recognition of a woman's rights was radical.

In context

Mark 10:9–13

9Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.”

10When they were back inside the house, the disciples asked Jesus about this matter.

11So He told them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery against her.

12And if a woman divorces her husband and marries another man, she commits adultery.”

13Now people were bringing the little children to Jesus for Him to place His hands on them, and the disciples rebuked those who brought them.

Read all of Mark 10 — Jesus redefines greatness. The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve — and to give His life as a ransom.

Understand every verse, not just this one

This page covers one. BibleKey does all 31,102 — tap any verse for its meaning, any word for its Hebrew or Greek root, and keep reading without leaving the chapter.

Get BibleKey
In the App

What's in the app that isn't here.

Seven translations

NIV, NLT, NKJV, KJV and the Berean — plus the Catholic NLT-CE and Douay-Rheims, with the full deuterocanon in the reading order.

Every verse, as you read

Tap any of the 31,102 for what it means, and any word for its Hebrew or Greek root, without leaving the chapter.

Selah

Start recording at church and put your phone away. You get the transcript, the key moments, and every verse referenced.

Prayer Maker

Say what's sitting on your heart and hear it back as a real prayer, in a warm voice. Keep the ones that land.

Every Word

The whole Bible in a year — five chapters a day, five days a week, weekends off. Built to be finished.

Today's Light

A verse each morning with its meaning, how it lands today, something to sit with, and a prayer to close it.

Understand every verse.

Not just the famous ones. BibleKey is free on iPhone and iPad.

Download on the App Store

Free on iPhone & iPad