The New Testament shows that Jesus took the Scriptures very seriously. When tempted by the devil to turn stones into bread, Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 8:3, saying, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God’ ” (Matthew 4:4). In His great Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:17-19). Jesus would not compromise even one stroke of a letter of the law of Moses.

With this background, consider what Jesus said in response to the question of divorce in Matthew 19 and Mark 10. Jesus acknowledged that Moses wrote the precept of Deuteronomy 24:1-4 because of the hardness of the people’s hearts (Matthew 19:8; Mark 10:3-5); however, He then went back to the beginning to show God’s intention for marriage. In contrast to what different teachers were saying in His day, Jesus said, “But from the beginning of the creation, God ‘made them male and female’” (Mark 10:6). Jesus referred to the statements made in Genesis 1:27 and Genesis 5:2, which say God made Mankind in His image, male and female. Jesus followed this up with a quotation from Genesis 2:24: “‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’; so then they are no longer two, but one flesh” (Mark 10:7, 8). The underlying Hebrew translated to be joined to, or “cleave,” is covenantal language. Notice the word “cleave” in the KJV in Deuteronomy 4:4; 10:20; and 30:20. Thus, marriage is a covenant into which a man and woman enter requiring fidelity (Malachi 2:13-15). “One flesh” also refers to sexual intercourse (1 Corinthians 6:16).

Jesus interpreted these passages of the Torah as not merely descriptive of what happened at creation, but as a divine order for all time. While gender seems to be a confusing subject in today’s world, the Bible from the very beginning equates gender to biological sex. Jesus recognized this. The statement in Genesis 1:27 of both male and female being made in the image of God is followed by God blessing them, the male and female, and giving them the command to, “Be fruitful and multiply” (Genesis 1:28). Male and female are defined according to their complementary anatomical features that make reproduction possible. How else could reproduction occur in the ancient world?

In regard to marriage, did Jesus understand the decree that a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife in one flesh as the general rule to be followed by all generations? Yes. Exceptions exist, such as the choice to remain single (1 Corinthians 7:8). However, Jesus is referring to the ordinary practice that a biological male, the offspring of his father and mother, finds a biological female, enters into a covenant with her, and becomes “one flesh” so reproduction may occur. If Genesis 2:24 is a decree for future generations, as Jesus interpreted it, then it is His original formula for how the reproduction of Genesis 1:28 should occur.

God could have created only one gender that was able to reproduce itself. He could have created three genders, or any number for that matter. However, God created them male and female. Jesus recognized two genders based on the two biological sexes: male and female.

Jesus emphasized the permanence of the marriage covenant that a male and female enter into by saying, “Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate” (Mark 10:9). The decrees of humans may say a lot of things, but God’s word still stands. Jesus would not compromise the word of God, and neither should we.