Matthew 19:3

Matthew 19:3. Came unto him Pharisees. Even in remote Perea, almost the only remaining field of labor, Christ's opposers sought Him.

Tempting him, or, ‘trying Him.'

It is lawful, etc. A matter of dispute between the schools of Hillel and Shammai. Herod Antipas, in whose dominions Christ now was, had imprisoned John the Baptist for too free an utterance on this point.

For every cause. The school of Hillel held that almost any charge on the part of a husband would justify divorce. They wished not only to entangle Him in their party disputes but also to place Him in opposition to the law of Moses (Matthew 19:7). An affirmative answer would probably have called forth the charge of lax morality.