ISB ~ Mark 10 v4

a certificate of divorce:Moses permitted Israelite laymen to divorce their wives under the Old Covenant (Deut 24:1-4). This was a temporary legal concession tailored to the weaknesses of Israel (10:5). Jesus now revokes Mosaic divorce legislation by returning to God’s original intention for every married couple: lifelong monogamy (10:6-9).

See essay:Jesus on Marriage and Divorceat Mt 19.

• Divorce is one of many concessions that Yahweh made for Israel in Deuteronomy. This is seen by a careful reading of the Pentateuch, which distinguishes the Levitical covenant ratified at Mt. Sinai (Ex 1924; Lev 27:34) from the Deuteronomic covenant that was ratified 40 years later on the plains of Moab (Deut 1:1-5; 29:1). There are, in fact, many laws distinctive to Deuteronomy that are absent in earlier Mosaic legislation: cultic worship was confined to a single, central sanctuary (Deut 12:11), genocidal warfare was permitted for the first time (Deut 20:16-17), animals once sacrificed at the sacred Tabernacle could now be slaughtered in profane contexts (Deut 12:15-24), allowance was made to collect interest on money loaned (Deut 15:3; 23:20), and the grim reality of divorce was tolerated and regulated (Deut 24:1-4). These and other laws indicate that Deuteronomy was a less than perfect law that lowered the standards of covenant faithfulness for wayward Israel (Ezek 20:25). It was always a temporary and concessionary arrangement designed to permit lesser evils in order to avoid greater ones.