Uploaded December 2020 | Updated September 2026, 3 hours ago
The famous Reformer John Calvin (1509-1564) was angry at men who abused their wives. He thought those tyrannical husbands should divorce and let their wives go free.
Here's how John Calvin translated Malachi 2:16 in his Geneva Bible:
"If thou hatest her, [a]put her away, saith the Lord God of Israel, yet he covereth [b]the injury under his garment, saith the Lord of hosts: therefore keep yourselves in your spirit, and transgress not."
His commentary on Malachi 2, gives this interpretation to Malachi 2:16 (the so-called God-Hates-Divorce verse):
Here John Calvin is talking directly to abusive husbands who try to hide their bullying behavior from God and others.
"What else is this," he says, "but to cover by a cloak your violence, or at least to excuse it? for ye do not openly manifest it: but God is not deceived, nor can his eye be dazzled by such a disguise: though then your iniquity is covered by a cloak, it is not yet hid from God; nay, it is thus doubled, because ye exercise your cruelty at home; for it would be better for robbers to remain in the wood and there to kill strangers, than to entice guests to their houses and to kill them there and to plunder them under the pretext of hospitality. This is the way in which you act; for ye destroy the bond of marriage, and ye afterwards deceive your miserable wives, and yet ye force them by your tyranny to continue at your houses, and thus ye torment your miserable wives, who might have enjoyed their freedom, if divorce had been granted them."
Treachery Behind Closed Doors: When A Person Ought to Feel Safe
Notice how Calvin says it's one thing for a robber to kill a traveler in a forest out in the open, where that person knows there is danger. But it's especially treacherous for a robber to offer hospitality and invite a guest into their home and then kill and pillage them. And yet this is what cruel men do to their wives. They pretend to honor the marriage bond, but instead they torment their wife under her own roof, secretly, hidden under a cloak, in the one place that ought to be safe. John Calvin says, God sees it, and he isn't dazzled by clever concealment. In fact, the concealment makes it twice as bad. It would be better to let the tormented wife go and enjoy her freedom.
DID YOU KNOW?
Malachi 2:16 was written about 500 BC. Between 500 BC and AD 1600, NOT ONE Bible translation interpreted that verse as "God hates divorce" or "I have divorce"? Here's the timeline of Malachi: lifesavingdivorce.com/malachi
DISCUSSION BY TWO REFORMED PASTORS WHO CONDONE DIVORCE FOR ABUSE
https://cryingoutforjustice.blog/2014/05/22/thursday-thought/
LINK TO LIST OF OTHER PASTORS WHO CONDONE DIVORCE FOR ABUSE.
There are many pastors (including some Calvinists) who condone divorce for abuse: lifesavingdivorce.com/pastors-biblical-grounds-divorce
The famous Reformer John Calvin (1509-1564) was angry at men who abused their wives. He thought those tyrannical husbands should divorce and let their wives go free.
Here's how John Calvin translated Malachi 2:16 in his Geneva Bible:
"If thou hatest her, [a]put her away, saith the Lord God of Israel, yet he covereth [b]the injury under his garment, saith the Lord of hosts: therefore keep yourselves in your spirit, and transgress not."
His commentary on Malachi 2, gives this interpretation to Malachi 2:16 (the so-called God-Hates-Divorce verse):
Here John Calvin is talking directly to abusive husbands who try to hide their bullying behavior from God and others.
"What else is this," he says, "but to cover by a cloak your violence, or at least to excuse it? for ye do not openly manifest it: but God is not deceived, nor can his eye be dazzled by such a disguise: though then your iniquity is covered by a cloak, it is not yet hid from God; nay, it is thus doubled, because ye exercise your cruelty at home; for it would be better for robbers to remain in the wood and there to kill strangers, than to entice guests to their houses and to kill them there and to plunder them under the pretext of hospitality. This is the way in which you act; for ye destroy the bond of marriage, and ye afterwards deceive your miserable wives, and yet ye force them by your tyranny to continue at your houses, and thus ye torment your miserable wives, who might have enjoyed their freedom, if divorce had been granted them."
Treachery Behind Closed Doors: When A Person Ought to Feel Safe
Notice how Calvin says it's one thing for a robber to kill a traveler in a forest out in the open, where that person knows there is danger. But it's especially treacherous for a robber to offer hospitality and invite a guest into their home and then kill and pillage them. And yet this is what cruel men do to their wives. They pretend to honor the marriage bond, but instead they torment their wife under her own roof, secretly, hidden under a cloak, in the one place that ought to be safe. John Calvin says, God sees it, and he isn't dazzled by clever concealment. In fact, the concealment makes it twice as bad. It would be better to let the tormented wife go and enjoy her freedom.
DID YOU KNOW?
Malachi 2:16 was written about 500 BC. Between 500 BC and AD 1600, NOT ONE Bible translation interpreted that verse as "God hates divorce" or "I have divorce"? Here's the timeline of Malachi: lifesavingdivorce.com/malachi
DISCUSSION BY TWO REFORMED PASTORS WHO CONDONE DIVORCE FOR ABUSE
https://cryingoutforjustice.blog/2014/05/22/thursday-thought/
LINK TO LIST OF OTHER PASTORS WHO CONDONE DIVORCE FOR ABUSE.
There are many pastors (including some Calvinists) who condone divorce for abuse: lifesavingdivorce.com/pastors-biblical-grounds-divorce
