Is There a Real Life Historical Case Like This?
1) Direct answer
Yes. The Bible gives real historical cases that show exactly this principle.
2) Scriptural explanation
- Michal and David: Michal was David’s lawful wife. Saul later gave her to another man (Paltiel) while David still lived (1 Samuel 18:27; 25:44). When David demanded her, she was returned to him and the second union ended (2 Samuel 3:14–16). This shows the first marriage remained binding, and the later union had to cease.
- Sarah and Abimelech: Sarah was taken into Abimelech’s house under a mistaken assumption, but God said, “She is a man’s wife… restore the man his wife” (Genesis 20:2–7). Even in ignorance, God upheld the first covenant.
- Herod and Herodias: John said to Herod, “It is not lawful for thee to have thy brother’s wife” (Mark 6:17–18). While the first husband lived, the second relationship was condemned as unlawful.
- The rule stated: “If, while her husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress… but if her husband be dead, she is free” (Romans 7:2–3).
3) Simple clarifying logic
Now notice: in every case, the living first covenant governed the outcome. Mistake, time, or a second union did not dissolve it. Restoration to the original covenant—or separation from the unlawful union—was required.
4) Short reinforcing statement
You see, the Bible’s history and its doctrine match: the first bond stands while he lives.
Ask a Follow-up Question
What did the Laodicean Church Age (our age) Angel (- messenger) Say about this?
Ranked passages from the local William Branham sermon and Church Age Book database. Relevance is relative, not a statement of doctrinal certainty.
The Kinsman Redeemer
60-1002 §87
...ver others do, I'll take the way with the Lord's despised few, I've started in with Jesus and I'm going through. I'm going through, yes, I'm going through, I'll ... (Do you really mean it now? If you do, come up here and stand.) whatever others do, I'll take the way ... (Are you ready to cleave, like Naomi of old?) I've started with Jesus and I'm going through. From Bethlehem's manger came forth a Stranger, On earth I long to be like Him; All through life's journey from earth to glory, I only ask to be like Him. To...
To whom shall we go?
60-0604 §17
Here some time ago, I believe it was in Louisville, there was a young man, and he got something wrong with one of his ears. Well, he went to his doctor, and his doctor waited on him for a number of weeks, and it grew worse. Finally the doctor said, "I got to send you to a specialist." And when the specialist diagnosed the case, it was some great medical name that I don't believe if I knew it... If I could say it, I'd have to have it wrote out and practice on it an hour to spell it, and then you wouldn't know what I...
Experiences
47-1207 §38
...as flown down to El Dorado with a little Cessna, a plane, to a girl that was a poor people, that was, the girl expecting to die at any time. She'd been a cripple all of her life, a victim of polio. She was about twenty-eight, thirty years old. And the cancer had become a fibery cancer and went all through her and the doctor, as I spoke to him as I went in after the plane landed... And if they had me--went out there and met me and took--taken me in to the home and there was... The doctor said that he cut around four...
A Trial
64-0427 §15
Now, I'm going to make this like a courtroom, if you'll just suffer with me. I know it sounds kind of unusual, but we're just a little gathering here now, that we want to bring this Word, which I claim is God's Word. And I'm here to defend it. And now, we're going to bring it to a court trial, just exactly like it was in the days when Herod give Him a trial, Pilate ... before Pilate's court. We're going to bring Him before the court of this Ramada room this 1964---April 27th, l964. Now, we're going to make this a c...
Seeking after Jesus
53-0531 §9
Now, I want to say this in behalf of many, probably, people tonight who wouldn't understand divine healing ... or, critics of it, we do not claim to be divine healers, now. There is a lot of fanaticism hooked up with divine healing. There's a lot of fanaticism hooked up with every phase of anything you want to go at. In your churches, there's people that's real fanatics, religious fanatics, but that don't mean that God isn't real. That doesn't mean that there isn't a real true Christian. It only indicates that ther...