do not commit adultery

the roadmap to national restoration 2014 apr 04
learning righteousness and wickedness from the ten commandments 2012 nov 19

1st commandment: have no other gods before God 2012 nov 20
2nd commandment: you shall not make idols 2012 dec 09
3rd commandment: do not profane YHVH’s name 2012 dec 18
4th commandment: honor the Sabbath day 2012 dec 21
5th commandment: honor your father and mother 2013 jan 07
6th commandment: do not commit murder 2013 jan 16

God will do three things — hear from heaven, forgive our sin, and heal our land — after His people do three things — humble themselves and pray, seek His face, and turn from our wicked ways (2 Chr 7:14). The cooperation of atheists and the ungodly is not required. We are examining the summary of Torah, God’s definition of righteousness and wickedness, in the Ten Commandments, in order to understand what He considers wicked about our ways, from which He is waiting for us to turn.

The Ten Commandments are given in Deu 5. The 7th commandment, Do not commit adultery, is explained in Deu 21:10-23:14. Following is the summary of what Deu 21:10-23:14 teaches ‘Do not commit adultery’ means. Please visit the links for the fascinating in-depth analysis. But the real reason for the in-depth analysis, is so that we can recognize any wicked way among us, in falling short, and repent of it! As His people do so, He will hear us from heaven, will forgive us these sins, and will heal our land!

The Hebrew paragraph divisions are:

Deu 21:10-14 {s} Treatment of the captive woman
Deu 21:15-17 {s} Do not reject the legitimate firstborn
Deu 21:18-21 {s} Treatment of the rebellious son
Deu 21:22-23 {s} Treatment of the executed criminal
Deu 22:1-3 {s} Treatment of a neighbor’s lost animals
Deu 22:4 {s} Treatment of a neighbor’s burdened animals
Deu 22:5 {s} Sanctity of gender distinction
Deu 22:6-7 {s} Treatment of a mother bird
Deu 22:8-9 {s} Preventing bloodguilt and defilement
Deu 22:10-11 {s} Prohibition of unlike mixtures
Deu 22:12 {s} You shall wear tzitzit on the four corners of your clothing
Deu 22:13-19 {s} Justice for the pure bride
Deu 22:20-21 {s} Justice for the impure bride
Deu 22:22 {s} Justice for the adulterous wife
Deu 22:23-24 {s} Justice for the betrothed virgin in the city
Deu 22:25-27 {s} Justice for the betrothed virgin in the country
Deu 22:28-29 {s} Justice for the unbetrothed virgin
Deu 22:30 {s} Unlawful unions prohibited
Deu 23:1 {s} Assembly membership prohibited (inability to produce seed)
Deu 23:2 {s} Assembly membership prohibited to 10th generation (seed of unlawful unions)
Deu 23:3-6 {s} Assembly membership prohibited to 10th generation (Ammon + Moab)
Deu 23:7-8 {s} Assembly membership allowed in 3rd generation (Edom + Egypt)
Deu 23:9-14 {s} Holiness in the army camp

While we can see that some of these paragraphs have to do with marriage and intimacy, some do not seem to. But, they all contain amazing wisdom to be applied to Do not commit adultery. The Hebrew word means any intercourse outside of the marriage covenant, therefore a prohibition of premarital intercourse is also included in this command. One of the hard sayings of Jesus is His teaching on adultery, found in Mat 5:27-32: whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery in his heart. But by it we learn that just as the act of murder is a fruit that first must come from a seed of hatred in the heart, the act of adultery is a fruit that first must come from a seed of lust in the heart. In fact the ancient Hebrew pictograph for adultery is interesting: na’aph, the nun + aleph + pey. The seed of strong lust or craving (pey as the ravenous open mouth that is not satisfied). It is wisdom to be satisfied and enraptured with the spouse of your youth (Pro 5:18-19). Satisfaction is a choice we make in the heart!

By way of command, God protects the captive woman from suffering rape and humiliation on the battlefield, and in so doing, preserves the sanctity of the warrior’s own marriage. But the command about adultery is not only all about us: the Torah marvelously reveals that preserving the sanctity of the marriage covenant also preserves the sanctity of the next generation, as well as the sanctity of the land. But how do we protect our marriage from our heart? It is by practicing kindness toward our mate, in treating them as we ourselves wish to be treated. It is in realizing the high importance that Torah places on mothers, as the source of the next generation. In fact this kind treatment is the key to preserving our faithfulness to our spouse!

There is an amazing spiritual application to fencing your roof, and strengthening your vineyard, all with the goal of preserving the sanctity of the next generation. The root of the New Testament admonition to not be unequally yoked but to pay attention to the state of our heart and walk, is here. The marriage covenant is so sacred in the eyes of God precisely because keeping it keeps the next generation, a theme repeated over and over again in this section. The chiastic structure for Deu 21:10-23:14 reveals even more amazing truths!

The studies on ‘Do not commit adultery’ linked in this explanation:

kind treatment of captives (deu 21:10-22:7) 2013 jan 28
the value of the next generation (deu 21:10-22:7) 2013 jan 28
the integrity of the land (deu 21:10-22:7) 2013 jan 29
kind treatment of animals (deu 21:10-22:7) 2013 jan 30
the importance of mothers (deu 21:10-22:7) 2013 jan 31
deu 21:10-22:7 chiastic structure 2013 feb 03
fencing your roof (deu 22:8-12) 2013 feb 04
strengthening your vineyard (deu 22:8-12) 2013 feb 05
do not be unequally yoked (deu 22:8-12) 2013 feb 06
tzitzit and adultery (deu 22:8-12) 2013 feb 07
the sacredness of marital intimacy (deu 23:13-29) 2013 feb 10
the integrity of the assembly (deu 22:30-23:8) 2013 feb 11
seventh commandment chiastic structure (deu 21:10-23:14) 2013 feb 13