What does a wife do when she finds out her husband lied about committing adultery against his former wife?

Question:

This question is in reference to a friend. She grew up in the church, and she was baptized. She entered into a marriage with someone, but her spouse committed adultery against her.

My friend remarried sometime later and was under the assumption that she was entering into a scriptural marriage. Her new spouse had been married before but stated his divorce was due to adultery. A few years into the marriage my friend found out from a family member of her spouse that adultery did indeed take place in that previous marriage, but her spouse was the adulterer. My friend had been lied to by her spouse. My friend has not approached her spouse yet.

I told my friend they were in an unscriptural marriage and the only way to not be living in sin was to not be in the marriage. Would that leave my friend in a position to be able to be married again in the future or not? My friend is very concerned that because she is not living a Christian life during the marriage that it's her fault ... almost in a way to justify staying married. I told her that regardless of the past if she wanted to repent fully and recommit to living a Christian life she had to ensure she was not living in sin by being in an adulterous marriage.

Am I correct in my thoughts so far with this matter? What advice would you give?

Thank you so much for your time.

Answer:

First off, she only has one witness to the fact that she's been lied to. While the information is likely to be correct, truth is established by two or more witnesses, so she needs to collect the evidence.

If it turns out that he was the reason his marriage failed, because he had committed adultery, then her current marriage is not valid and they are living in adultery. Since his former spouse is still living, the only solution is to end the improper marriage. Since it was a marriage that should not have taken place, she would still be free to marry someone who did have a right to get married.

Response:

Thank you so much for your response! It is very helpful and ensures I am on the right path as far as helping.

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