Question #264
Please explain your Answer to Question # 214.
I really don’t understand your answer to Question 214 on your list of questions. Is the single person free to marry someone other than the married woman? I’m in a similar situation where I became involved with a married woman, who divorced because of it, and after God’s conviction, prayer, and study, I realized I couldn’t get married to her. We’ve repented of our sin and our intimate relationship has ceased. She is in a position where she has to stay unmarried or reconcile with her husband as long as he is alive, from what I understand. What is my standing? Am I free to marry someone who’s available?
The Answer:
You need to read the answer to both Question 214 and Question 171. In them it is made as clear as I can make it that it takes two things to constitute adultery: 1) a putting away of a spouse for a reason other than fornication and 2) a remarriage. If you were single you did not meet the first condition. If you did not remarry, you did not meet the second. Had you married the woman who as the guilty party in the termination of her marriage you would have met the second which applies to a person who, even though not guilty of adultery, married a person who was. She would have committed adultery when she married you. You would have committed adultery when you married her. As a single person you were guilty of fornication and an additional sin of breaking up a marriage. You would have been scripturally eligible to marry another scripturally eligible person.
Do you have more questions about the Bible? Then you have come to the right place! We have hundreds of answers to submitted questions, we have thousands of pages of detailed notes on Bible books (including Daniel, Zechariah, Revelation, Hosea, and Joel), we have hundreds of audio and video Bible classes, we have thousands of sermons (many in video), and we have much, much more! Please take a few minutes to look around, and don't forget to bookmark the site! Thanks for visiting!