Going through a divorce—especially one you didn’t want—is one of the hardest challenges a woman can face. Women experience heartbreak, uncertainty, and overwhelming emotions. It’s normal to feel lost. Here are some comforting Bible verses concerning divorce.
So if you’re suffering from your husband’s choices, that you may not be aware of. You’re also healing from years of emotional abuse. To see if you experienced any one of these 19 different types of emotional abuse, take our free emotional abuse quiz.
7 Bible Verses Concerning Divorce
1. Isaiah 54:4
“Do not be afraid; you will not be put to shame. Do not fear disgrace; you will not be humiliated. You will forget the shame of your youth and remember no more the reproach of your widowhood.”
Even if you’re husband has lied to you and harmed you, you’re not worthless. Because you are a daughter of God experiencing oppression and abuse. Then to learn more about this type of abuse, listen to The FREE Betrayal Trauma Recovery Podcast.
2. Isaiah 54:5
“For your Maker is your husband—the Lord Almighty is his name—the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; he is called the God of all the earth.”
While you may grieve the loss of your husband’s role in your life, know that God is your constant provider and protector. He will stand by you, offering comfort and strength as you rebuild.
3. Isaiah 54:7-8
“For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with deep compassion I will bring you back. In a surge of anger I hid my face from you for a moment, but with everlasting kindness I will have compassion on you,” says the Lord your Redeemer.
This verse acknowledges the depth of your pain, but also assures you that God will lead you to resources that can help you. To learn more about how Christ wants us to deal with dangerous people, enroll in The Betrayal Trauma Recovery Living Free Workshop.
4. Isaiah 54:10
“Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,” says the Lord, who has compassion on you.
Even when life feels like it’s crumbling, God’s love is steady and unshakable. In fact He promises peace that surpasses understanding, even in the midst of heartache.
5. Isaiah 54:14
“You will be established in righteousness; tyranny will be far from you; you will have nothing to fear. Terror will be far removed; it will not come near you.”
Also this verse offers reassurance that God is leading you to a place of safety and peace. He will protect you and strengthen you to walk forward with confidence.
6. Isaiah 54:17
“No weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and this is their vindication from me,” declares the Lord.
This verse reminds us that God is by your side. He is fighting for you and will bring justice in His perfect timing.
7. Isaiah 54:11-12
“Afflicted city, lashed by storms and not comforted, I will rebuild you with stones of turquoise, your foundations with lapis lazuli. I will make your battlements of rubies, your gates of sparkling jewels, and all your walls of precious stones.”
This verse speaks of restoration and beauty. God has a plan to rebuild your life, piece by piece, into something stronger and more beautiful than before.
The Bible A Reminder For You
These verses from Isaiah are here to encourage you in moments of doubt, grief, or despair. Lean into God’s promises and trust that His love and peace will carry you through. If you need more support or just someone who gets what you’re going through, remember there’s a whole community of women ready to walk beside you. Attend a Betrayal Trauma Recovery Group Session TODAY.
God loves you. Although He’s still writing your story. Keep moving forward—you are stronger than you think!
Transcript: Bible Verses Concerning Divorce
Anne: If women go to the Bible and look in the index and try to find the word abuse, the likelihood of finding it is not high. So consider searching the Bible for other words that actually describe abuse. For example, widows. You are effectively a widow because of your husband’s choices. Even if you’re still married. Our Savior, Jesus Christ, loves widows. If you look up widow or widowhood in the index, you’ll find some Bible verses concerning divorce.
Wickedness is another one to look up. You’ll see lying, deceit, double minded as wicked behaviors. That’s describing abuse. Along those same lines, you’ll see that God continually talks about separating ourselves from wickedness. Modern context, that may be divorce. Or it may be separation. So instead of trying to find the exact word “divorce” when searching the scriptures, consider searching for traits your husband has. For example, is a liar?
A long time ago, I did an episode where I read verses from Isaiah. And so many of you messaged me and told me that you listened to it over and over, and it helped you feel peaceful. So here’s that recording from long ago.
Reading Isaiah 54:1-9
Anne: This is from Isaiah chapter 54. Listen to these Bible verses concerning divorce.”Fear not, for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not be put to shame: for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood anymore.” I’m going to say that one more time.
“And shall not remember the reproach of thy widowhood anymore. For thy Maker is thine husband; the Lord of hosts is his name, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: The God of the whole earth… For the Lord hath called thee as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of youth, when thou wast refused, saith thy God.”
“For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee. In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment, but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the Lord thy Redeemer. For this is as the waters of Noah unto me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee.”
Isaiah 54:10-17
These are more Bible verses about what God says about abuse. “For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee. O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay thy stones with fair colors, and lay thy foundations with sapphires.”
“And I will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles, and all thy borders of pleasant stones. All thy children shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace of thy children. In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee.”
“Behold, they shall surely gather together, but not by me: whosoever shall gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake. Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy. No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper;”
“and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.”
Bible Verses Concerning Divorce: Personal Reflections On Isaiah
Anne: I love Isaiah. I’ve always loved Isaiah. This brought me so much peace this morning as I was studying these Bible verses concerning divorce. And then I took some time to talk about how I personally felt about God and how God had helped me. It kind of bore my testimony of my belief in God. If you don’t want to listen to that, just skip this episode. If that interests you, again, this is from that podcast episode so long ago.
Growing close to God is so important to me, because He’s the only person that can help me through this mess that I didn’t cause. I find comfort through the scriptures and through prayer. And I do want to say that there was a nine month period where I read my scriptures and prayed about what to do about my addict husband. I felt hopeless and despair. I felt awful, but I continued to pray and read the scriptures. The parts that stand out to me are isaiah 54:4. “And thou shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood anymore.”
Meaning, we may be widows, but all the trials that go along with that will be made right somehow. Which by the way, I have not seen in my own life yet. And I don’t even know what that means. But it does bring me peace that here a prophet talks specifically about that. And then in verse 5 He says “For thy maker is thine husband;” I think about all the things I wish I had, a husband to protect my family and to provide for us.
My Thoughts About Isaiah
Anne: And I realize that God can be that person for me during this time of my widowhood, that I can have a provider and a protector, and that if I turn to God and trust him, he has promised me those things.
Verse six, here is what God says about boundaries in marriage, “For the Lord hath called thee as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of youth, when thou wast refused,” This is a woman who is grieved and forsaken, and she’s been refused. Your husband harmed you through no fault of your own. You’ve been rejected. And then in verse seven, “For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies, I will gather thee.”
I think the small moment for me was nine months of praying and getting no answers, praying and getting no comfort. I remember going in my closet and just bawling because the pain was so excruciating. It was an awful time. And now I feel his peace. In verse 8 he says, “In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee,”
Then verse 9, he talks about Noah and how the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth. I think this is an interesting verse to put here. The flood that Noah experienced is similar to the plague of abuse and pornography. It is everywhere, it touches everything. And then he tells us in 10, That “the mountains shall depart and the hills will be removed;”
This means huge, big things will happen in our lives. Huge changes. Serious, serious stuff that will harm us, perhaps. “but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed,”
Promises of God’s Peace
Anne: God promises peace as I turn to him through Bible verses concerning dovorce. . Peace is one of the blessings of obeying the commandments. And then in verse 11, “O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted,” And that’s how I was for nine months, right after my ex husband’s arrest. It completely tossed and afflicted me. He says, “I will lay thy stones with fair colours, and lay thy foundations with sapphires.” You’ve heard on the podcast people talk about a post betrayal transformation.
That’s what God wants for us. He would like us to rise like a phoenix out of the ashes. Into strong, powerful women who have more or less stared Satan down face to face, held strong and stood for truth and righteousness. And then in verse 12, he says, “I will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles, and all thy borders of pleasant stones.”
I have no idea what that means, but I assume that it’s wonderful things and blessings coming to us. Then 13, “And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord, and great shall be the peace of thy children. In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear and from terror; it shall not come near thee.” Wonderful promises in these Bible verses concerning divorce.
14 is really important because we have all felt oppressed and we have felt the terror of seeing our families completely ripped apart. And then he promises, “Behold, they shall surely gather together, but not by me:”
Bible Verses Concerning Divorce: Isaiah Continued
Anne: Meaning your enemies, “whosoever shall gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake. Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy.” I think this means people who harm other people eventually harm themselves.
So a Christian version of karma, perhaps, and then God ends with verse 17. “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.”
Sisters, I hope that as we create a healthy army of women who can set boundaries and stand for truth, we can walk through the Red Sea on dry ground together. We can release ourselves and our children from the bondage of abusive behaviors to truly establish peace in our own families. I don’t know how to free us from the bondage of our husband’s sins, if you will. I know that because of what Jesus says about abuse as we take one step at a time, toward peace, God will help us.
God loves you. Jesus Christ is my Savior. For those who aren’t religious, or those who aren’t Christian, I love you, and I care about you. And we are all in this together, regardless of what religion we are, regardless of where we are in the process. And as we hold hands together and support each other, we will walk through the sea of sadness and terror on dry ground and make it to the other side.
Living Free Strategies
Anne: Although I recorded that long before I ever discovered The Betrayal Trauma Recovery Living Free Strategies, but I was praying to discover them. And I did. And I received delivery for my children and me because of those strategies. We have a peaceful life now. To learn more about the strategies I learned over the years through the process of interviewing so many women, and also all my studying and prayer, click on the link at the beginning of this paragraph.
I loved this week’s podcast so much. What really stuck out to me was that the bible really does talk about divorce a ton, it just doesn’t use that word. Thank you!
I’m so glad it’s helpful.
Wow. These bible verses really hit home for me. My husband has been “sober” for ten years. But I felt (and still feel) like a widow for sure, our relationship is worse than ever.
He still lies about things, never shares with me his feelings (or anything) and if we disagree he won’t talk to me about it for weeks. Unless I seek him out. He controls when we talk. For instance, we had a four hour trip and after three hours told me we could now talk. He didn’t want to talk the whole time.
My situation is different. I see now that he isolated me from friends and family. But he did it/does it with fear. How own fear. After he was caught, he told me he was attracted to my mom, my sisters. It was so awkward that I pulled away from them. He would act so strangely with my friends. He’d skitter away, avoid looking at them, or not make eye contact. If I asked him why he was acting this way, he would blame me and say that he thought I’d accuse him of being attracted to them.
When I told him I wouldn’t, he would become flirty and touchy with them. When I told him I thought he had crossed the line-he would blow up and say he just “knew” I would accuse him.
This expanded to all outings. Soon he was sweating and turning red around certain women and if I said anything he would tell me he was just scared I would think he was attracted bc of how beautiful she was, thin she was or because she lacked stretch marks like I have (if she was in a bathing suit) things I hadn’t thought before.
After years of avoiding public situations with him and basically raising the kids myself bc he won’t go out with me or I won’t go out with him, I find myself exactly what he says. Now I DO see women he would be attracted to and for some reason it scares me.
Has anyone ever made a scary face like someone was behind you? And you just *feel* scared and you react as if there is?
That’s how I feel when I’m with him.
He doesn’t want to get counseling or therapy. And the last therapist I talked to made me feel so small. I don’t know why I’m afraid now. I know it’s an overreaction to him being attracted. But it’s how I feel now. Just paranoid.
He tells me I’m the cause of all of this, but I know I never felt this way before he started doing these things.
Even now, he’ll be rude to some girl at work and blame it on me. Like I would have over reacted if he was nice. And then the next time he’ll be too nice. It’s so strange.
I almost wish he would yell or be overtly domineering.
But I can see how this strange “fear” of his is really blaming me and making me question myself and then I eventually act like he says I will.
He controls the narrative in our house, and his fear and blame have controlled me.
These verses have helped me see that Christ came to deliver me from this type of abuse!
Thank you so much for sharing! Your experience will help other women in abusive relationships.
Same. I’ve been searching the bible for peace, and this is exactly what I needed
Thank you. These verses have helped me feel more peace than I’ve felt in a long time!
I’ve been praying to feel God’s peace during this time of such serious emotional pain. I’ve been reading the bible, put until I read this, I hadn’t found anything I felt totally applied to my situation.
I have the same problems in my marriage. I didn’t realize that I did feel like a widow until you pointed that out! It’s so true! The bible talks about widows all the time and of course it’s about divorce!
Everything you’ve said is just like in my marriage. A passive aggressive husband, who thinks by being quiet and avoiding looking at women he is keeping himself pure.
No matter how many times I’ve told him that looking isn’t the problem, lust is his problem. In avoiding looking at women – he’s also de-humanizing them. He should be able to look at women through the eyes of Christ and see them for who they are not through the eyes of lust. He says he’s stopped acting out – even though he hasn’t. And he won’t take accountability for his abuse – including lying. He’s still lying. He says he’s “trying” to tell the truth and “trying” to be a good man.
I asked him why is it so difficult for him to be honest and treat women with respect. He didn’t reply. Our relationship after 40 years of marriage is platonic, and I initiated an in-house separation just over a year ago. I can’t bear the thought of him ever touching me again, and I struggle with trusting any man to such an extent that I can’t even attend church. I’m constantly wondering just how many of the men in church are or have abused their wives physically, spiritually, emotionally, verbally, financially, and/or mentally. All things my husband had done to me throughout our marriage.
Now at the age of 64 he decides he will “change” which means he says he wants to stop his bad behavior, but hasn’t actually stopped. There is no connection with me on any other level. He says if I allow him back into the bedroom then he will connect with me in all other levels; emotionally, intellectually, spiritually. I tried explaining to him that his thinking is warped and backwards. That physical touch of any kind comes last. Makes no difference.
I’ve been searching so much scripture trying to find clarity and strength to get through this. I know God hates divorce, but I also know He loves and values me too. I’ve been reading verses about how God is near the brokenhearted (Psalm 34:18) and how He will never leave me nor forsake me (Hebrews 13:5). The story of the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4 reminds me that Jesus sees me, even in all this pain. I keep praying for guidance and for God to give me the courage to move forward, whatever that looks like. I’m also leaning on verses about wisdom, like James 1:5, because I need so much of it right now. It’s hard, but I know I’m not alone in this, even when it feels like it.
Oh my! I feel so much of all THIS! Exactly! Women are made in the image of God! We are his image bearers and you are devaluing us in divorce. We are born with the bodies we have. They weren’t designed for your pleasure, they were made out of love and for love. Women are more than body parts and more than lust, we’re human beings for crying out loud!
In that vein I am reeeeallly struggling with going to church. When I found out how many clergy are caught up in online exploitation and betrayal my stomach literally dropped. How do you see your congregation clearly? How do you tell us how to treat our fellow humans while you’re doing that? It’s so so hard and I feel so stuck and scared and sad and broken. I hate that my spiritual life has suffered so much. It’s so hard to hear them read bible verses knowing they don’t live in a way that’s respectful to women. They just use the bible to oppress women!
Thank you for sharing bible verses that are meant to free us from their oppression!
I really appreciate the BTR articles and perspective. Especially that all women are welcome here, whether religious or not. Lying, manipulation, omissions, controlling the narrative and victimization is truly abusive to the other person in the relationship. That was hard for me to admit, that I had let myself be “abused” for so long. It causes cumulative damage for sure. I wish I had fully understood the concept of boundaries 20+ yrs ago. Looking back, there was never any true repentance or restoration attempts only the “I’m sorry, I won’t do it again” until the next time and the next time. I thought my feelings, my pain was heard and understood. It obviously was heard and disregarded. I continue to work through that and heal. Thanks for what you do 🙂
Yeah, this type of abuse is so hard to spot and heal from. Welcome.
This was so powerful. Thank you for sharing these hopeful verses with us! You have a way of helping me feel better. Everyone else, especially clergy always makes me feel worse.
My heart has recently been pulled to understand this as domestic abuse – with God’s help now I see that it’s not just physical violence is abuse.
I did know that in my head, but now that knowledge is connected to my heart, and understanding and I will continue to learn more so that my support is as valuable as it possibly can be!
My boyfriend had been lying to me the first half of our relationship and hiding his disgusting addiction… He took a lot of anger out on me and said so many super hurtful things I cannot forget. The awful things he said play over and over in my mind. He kept using bible verses to try to manipulate me to do what he wanted.
The lying was so bad. I didn’t know until the spirit was practically yelling at me to check his phone. I found everything. It made me feel physically ill. I wanted to vomit. Since then I’ve felt so inadequate. He then told me he has “wandering eyes” and made it clear that if I ever called him out on it in public, he would leave me and not let me back into our apartment.
Things got worse. I was so on edge. I checked his phone and all social media platforms. There was so much exploitative stuff he was watching. I started growing a resentment toward the women he watches online. My self confidence plummeted along with any trust I had in him. He kept lying about how he wasn’t looking it, but I found out he uses incognito mode. I hate that! It’s so shady! He would ask me, “When are you ever going to get over it?” or “When will you trust me again?”
It’s hard to trust someone who used bible verses and lied the entire time! He had the audacity to tell me he missed the way I used to be and it sent me spiraling into this deep depression where I had thought about just ending it. I couldn’t take the lies or the thought of him going back to old habits. Feeling like I was less than and the woman he looks at. It’s been a mental struggle. He says he hasn’t viewed that stuff for months, but he doesn’t understand the damage is done. I love him and even through the hard times I still showed him love and compassion. But now I get these remarks and he jokes around that he still looks at it or he slept with a client and it just puts me right back into flight or fight. It’s terrible! I told him to stop playing like that because if he’s not that shouldn’t even be a thought or a joke. I’ve gone back to checking his phone ( nothing found) I always ask if he’s gone back, and I am having trouble not worrying he will. I feel like I’m on the uphill of a roller-coaster and my mind is breaking how do I fix this and know for sure things are alright?! I really feel like sometimes I’m going crazy, and I cry all the time. When he can’t get an erection, I assume it’s because he’s masturbating to that nasty crap again. It’s really tearing me apart. He’s shown he has made improvements. How do I stop this insanity going on in my mind??
I’m so sorry you’re going through this. I’m so so sorry. It actually doesn’t sound like he’s stopped at all. I’d assume he’s actually not joking, but telling you the truth – also, he doesn’t seem to care about your or mind hurting you. Have you considered that you’re actually currently a victim of emotional and psychological abuse and coercion?
You are brave and amazing.
My story sounds so much like yours. I never knew it was abuse I just couldn’t wrap my head around what was happening. As I have listened to these 4 podcast episodes. This podcast validates everything I went through. I thought I was the only person in the world in my circumstances. It’s a lonely place to be when you feel alone.
Stay strong and may God bless you as you figure out your journey.