The Seventh Commandment (Exodus 20:14, Deuteronomy 5:18)
Ours is an age of intense confusion over all things sexual. And it seems that everywhere we turn there is someone or something attempting to pull us in the same direction of confusion. But it is not so in Scripture. And this commandment to not commit adultery is much more comprehensive than we might first read it to be. And this is helpful for our society has lots its way concerning sexuality. And there is a lot of damage being done because of it.
All manner of sexual purity seems to be included in the commandment not to commit adultery. This is because the model for all marriage and sexual relationships is found in the marriage of Adam and Eve. Anything outside one man, one woman, for life ends up being a breaking of the Seventh Commandment.
This means that the positive aspect of this commandment is essentially Hebrews 13:4.
“Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous.” (Hebrews 13:4 ESV)
This is also why divorce gets such particular treatment in passages like Deuteronomy 22:13-21, 24:1-4.
So, let’s look at some passages of Scripture and see what is encompassed in this commandment. Then we will discuss what this means for us today.
Adultery Was Forbidden
Adultery occurs when a person is married and has sex outside of marriage. Most of the time when we think of this command this is the sin that we think of. And the reason is simple. That is the plain reading of the command.
“You shall not have intercourse with your neighbor’s wife, to be defiled with her.”—Leviticus 18:20 NASB
“If [there is] a man who commits adultery with another man’s wife, one who commits adultery with his friend’s wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death.”—Leviticus 20:10 NASB
“If a man is found lying with a married woman, then both of them shall die, the man who lay with the woman, and the woman; thus you shall purge the evil from Israel.”—Deuteronomy 22:22 NASB
Well, that seems pretty straightforward doesn’t it?
But does it?
Even here our culture seems to be on the attack. I have read studies that say that marriage should only be a part of life commitment. You know, like a 10-year contract. And the argument for it is basically that people are animals and can’t be caged for more than 20 years…which, I think everyone can see is an incredibly silly argument. But you can see our society’s attack on marriage at this point.
But know this. Marriage is a serious covenant. It is a lifelong covenant. It is nothing that people are to be fooling around with. I believe that Ronald Reagan is to blame for much of our society’s views on divorce. As governor he enacted the nation’s first “no fault divorce law”. As the people of God we must not be swayed by our society’s lack of understanding and sinfulness. We must stand against the culture and hold fast to the definition of marriage.
One Man + One Woman for Life
And we should not be moved away from that idea.
Fornication Was Forbidden
When we begin to examine the case laws that are found in the Pentateuch concerning this commandment we find a lot of commands against fornication. Fornication is sex while not married.
16 “If a man seduces a virgin who is not engaged, and lies with her, he must pay a dowry for her [to be] his wife. 17 “If her father absolutely refuses to give her to him, he shall pay money equal to the dowry for virgins.”—Exodus 22:16-17 NASB
23 “If there is a girl who is a virgin engaged to a man, and [another] man finds her in the city and lies with her, 24 then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city and you shall stone them to death; the girl, because she did not cry out in the city, and the man, because he has violated his neighbor’s wife. Thus you shall purge the evil from among you.”—Deuteronomy 22:23-24 NASB
This sin has found great acceptance in our day, probably more than you are aware of. According to Census information more and more couples are choosing to cohabitate and never get married. The number of people who will never get married is on the rise and will likely continue to be that way. Fornication has always been something that the Church has had to think about, but now we it is becoming very commonplace.
Divorce rates are going down in America. Well, the number of divorces in America is going down. But the reason is that less people are getting married. And here is the takeaway, less people are honoring marriage. They are doing the things that are supposed to only be done with in the bounds of marriage by cohabitating.
Rape Was A Horrible Crime, Worthy of Death and Rape Victims Were Treated As Victims
25 “But if in the field the man finds the girl who is engaged, and the man forces her and lies with her, then only the man who lies with her shall die. 26 “But you shall do nothing to the girl; there is no sin in the girl worthy of death, for just as a man rises against his neighbor and murders him, so is this case. 27 “When he found her in the field, the engaged girl cried out, but there was no one to save her.”—Deuteronomy 22:25-27 NASB
Despite what many people claim, rape was taken seriously in the Old Testament era. In fact, the penalty for rape was worse than the penalty for rape today. And, much like what we say today, the rape victim was to be treated as a victim and not as a perpetrator.
This does help us to think through how we are to treat a rapist and a rape victim biblically. Rape is a horrific crime akin to murder and should be treated as such. And that is how we should view the rapist in a crime. This also informs us of how we should treat the rape victim. The rape victim is the victim of a horrific crime and should be treated as a victim of a horrific crime. We don’t shame victims of rape, we mourn with them.
Homosexual Acts, Bestiality, Incestuous Relationships, And Prostitution Are Treated In The Same Passages And Were Crimes
I know that I am not allowed to discuss homosexuality in our society the way that it is about to be discussed. I want to be faithful to God’s Word, and not in a mean-spirited way. But I think that there is no way to word this that will keep some from thinking it is a hate-filled screed.
Anyway, homosexuality in our day is thought to be on par with heterosexuality, but that is not at all how it is treated in Scripture. Homosexuality is lumped in with bestiality, incest, and prostitution. It is not treated as an option for the Christian. It is called an abomination numerous times along with these other perversions.
22 ‘You shall not lie with a male as one lies with a female; it is an abomination. 23 ‘Also you shall not have intercourse with any animal to be defiled with it, nor shall any woman stand before an animal to mate with it; it is a perversion. 24 ‘Do not defile yourselves by any of these things; for by all these the nations which I am casting out before you have become defiled. 25 ‘For the land has become defiled, therefore I have brought its punishment upon it, so the land has spewed out its inhabitants. 26 ‘But as for you, you are to keep My statutes and My judgments and shall not do any of these abominations, [neither] the native, nor the alien who sojourns among you 27 (for the men of the land who have been before you have done all these abominations, and the land has become defiled); 28 so that the land will not spew you out, should you defile it, as it has spewed out the nation which has been before you. 29 ‘For whoever does any of these abominations, those persons who do [so] shall be cut off from among their people. 30 ‘Thus you are to keep My charge, that you do not practice any of the abominable customs which have been practiced before you, so as not to defile yourselves with them; I am the LORD your God.'”—Leviticus 18:22-30 NASB
13 ‘If [there is] a man who lies with a male as those who lie with a woman, both of them have committed a detestable act; they shall surely be put to death. Their bloodguiltiness is upon them. 14 ‘If [there is] a man who marries a woman and her mother, it is immorality; both he and they shall be burned with fire, so that there will be no immorality in your midst. 15 ‘If [there is] a man who lies with an animal, he shall surely be put to death; you shall also kill the animal. 16 ‘If [there is] a woman who approaches any animal to mate with it, you shall kill the woman and the animal; they shall surely be put to death. Their bloodguiltiness is upon them.”—Leviticus 20:13-16 NASB
Now, I know that society is trying with all its might to tell me that I can’t think this way about homosexuality, but that is definitely how it is viewed in Scripture. And the New Testament teaches the same thing (1 Corinthians 6:9-10, 1 Timothy 1:10, Romans 1:26-27).
This commandment is here to uphold and to honor marriage. Marriage is between one man and one woman for life. That is the Scriptural view of marriage. Anything else is a perversion and a mirage. There is no such thing as same-sex marriage. It is only a mirage.
As a Christian, I have to decide that I am going to uphold God’s view of marriage in the world. I must decide to stand against the culture. This does not mean that I am to be mean and angry at every homosexual person that I meet, but it does mean that I am to work to uphold the meaning of marriage and its sanctity in this lost world.
Prostitution Was A Crime
Many in our society want to make prostitution legal. This was definitely not the case in Israel. It was considered to be a breaking of the commandment to not commit adultery.
29 “’Do not profane your daughter by making her a harlot, so that the land will not fall to harlotry and the land become full of lewdness.”—Leviticus 19:29 NASB
17 “None of the daughters of Israel shall be a cult prostitute, nor shall any of the sons of Israel be a cult prostitute.”—Deuteronomy 23:17 NASB
Conclusion
Now, how are we to think of this and apply it to our lives.
I believe that thinking about this using the three uses of the Law will be quite helpful here.
As a mirror this helps us to spot sins in our own lives. We can see our own shortcomings and flee to Jesus for forgiveness.
The Civil use of the Law helps us to see what a God-honoring society would look like. Or, what laws we should be striving to see in place. I know that it is unpopular to say but many of the laws on the books today do great harm to the sanctity of marriage. Ronald Reagan did a lot of damage when he was governor of California and enacted “no fault divorce”. This caused what seemed to be a tidal wave of destruction among many people. And now the mirage of homosexual marriage has been enshrined into law across the country. As Christians we should stand against these laws and teach a better way through our own healthy, vibrant marriages.
And, as a guide, we see that this teaches us about the kind of sex that honors God. It is sex within the bounds of marriage.
R. Dwain Minor