2 Nephi 12

There is one of the teachings that the Savior taught in His ministry and in the Americas that I have read and struggled to understand which is -

"It hath been written, that whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement.
32 Verily, verily, I say unto you, that whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery; and whoso shall marry her who is divorced committeth adultery."  (Book of Mormon | 3 Nephi 12:31 - 32)

I spent a great deal of time contemplating these words trying to bring them in context to the teachings of the prophets of modern day.  First of all, I recognize that the Mosaic law was a higher law than the Israel had learned in Egypt.  It was more demanding to be a schoolmaster to prepare for the highest law of celestial law that would be taught by the Savior.

It seems that the under the Mosaic law, the scribes and law makers had allowed the letter of the law be clarified more than the spirit of the law.  In the first verse, the Savior referred to the interpreted Mosaic law which seemed to be more practiced in the process of divorce may have been done more verbally.  That is why the Savior first taught that this process must be done according to the law in writing.  In other words, it was allowed seemed to be practiced in a much lesser manner.

It is verse 32 that I seemed to struggle with a little more.  It seemed to come to me this morning where the Lord was teaching the higher law of marriage and eternal commitment.  He states that "whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication"...would suggest that there were many men, even in the Americas, that were divorcing for very selfish reasons when they divorce their wife without cause except were the wife had committed fornication.  A review of the bible dictionary on adultery and even fornication does not necessarily mean sexual activity, but failure to keep their covenants, ordinances and commandments of God.  This is obvious as this metaphor was used with Israel as they would not keep their covenants.

In my mind, the only reason one would divorce other than for the taught reason suggested to me that a man would marry only for selfish or lustful reasons, and once satisfied would then divorce.  It seemed as no commitment other than to make legal sexual of selfish desires. This seems to make more sense as the wife would then be passed on to the next to do the same.  All in all would cause the woman to lose her individual worth and become a slave which would cause anyone to discourage and not keep her covenants.

Nephi wrote -

"...I know that the Jews do understand the things of the prophets, and there is none other people that understand the things which were spoken unto the Jews like unto them, save it be that they are taught after the manner of the things of the Jews."  (Book of Mormon | 2 Nephi 25:5)

I believe the Jews and the people in the Americas really understood what the Savior was teaching.