In the Greco-Roman world, marriage was assumed to be a matter of mutual consent, and when that consent broke down, the marriage would end. Gaius, a jurist of the second century B.C.E., provided a derivation of the word divortium [divorce]:
[It] is derived either from the difference of minds (of the parties), or from the fact that the parties who are tearing the marriage asunder are going their different ways” (Dig. 24.2.2.pr).
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Author: David Instone-Brewer
Keywords: Marriage, Divorce, Bill of divorcement, Certificate of divorce, Certificate of divorcement, Bill of divorce, School of Hillel, School of Shammai, Any cause, Every cause, Divorce for any cause, Divorce of every cause, Rabbinic debate, Commits adultery, Remarriage, remarried, remarry, Divorcement, Exception clause, Put away, Put assunder, Putteth away, Divorcee, matter of indecency, no fault divorce, any matter, divorce marriage, divorce remarriage, domestic violence, sexual abuse, husbands and wives
Bible reference(s): Deuteronomy 24:1-3, Malachi 2:16, Matthew 5:31-32, Matthew 19:3-9, Mark 10:4, Mark 10:11-12, Luke 16:18, Romans 7:2-3, 1 Corinthians 7:10-11, 1 Corinthians 7:13, 1 Corinthians 7:15, 1 Corinthians 7:27
Source: Divorce and Remarriage in the Bible: The Social and Literary Context (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002), pp. 72-4, 190-1.
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