THOU SHALT NOT COMMIT ADULTERY

God intended that marriage be an exclusive, one man one woman, relationship, Gen. 2. 21-25. Lamech was the first to deviate from that pattern, Gen. 4. 19, and from then on, human history has been littered with tales of marital infidelity. This seventh com­mandment forbids such extra-marital ‘affairs’ and is expanded elsewhere to include premarital sexual relationships and remar­riage subsequent to divorce. The Bible insists that the God given procreative drive must be satisfied within the confines of a divinely ordained marriage.

Men and women find it exciting to ignore the divine com­mand, for ‘stolen waters are sweet’, Prov. 9. 17, but inevitably, sexual impurity produces a harvest of misery. Reuben’s miscon­duct rankled with his father till his dying day, Gen. 49. 3-4. Judah’s folly brought bitter shame, Gen. 38. David’s wretched last years were the legacy of an adulterous relationship. These incidents are beacons of warning. Broken hearts and broken homes, diseases and disorders, can all be the product of illicit relationships. There is a stern warning of the judgement of God for fornicators and adulterers, Heb. 13. 4.

God’s will for His children is that they live holy lives, and that involves abstinence from sexual sins, 1 Thess. 4. 3. It makes the believer different from the tainted society around him, v. 5, and is the very purpose for which God called him, v. 7. He empowers holy living by the presence of His Holy Spirit within us, v. 8.

In His teaching, the Lord Jesus expanded commandment seven to incorporate the lustful look, Matt. 5. 28. What Samson saw led him into sin, Judg. 16. 1. What David saw stoked the flames of lust, 2 Sam. 11. 2. No wonder the Saviour said, ‘if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee’, Matt. 5. 29. So much in today’s world appeals to the lust of the eyes, so it is vital to be guarded about what we read and observe, and to ‘make not provision for the flesh’, Rom. 13.14. Remember, God will never lower His standards to accommo­date a promiscuous society. The original commandment still stands, so ‘keep thyself pure’, 1 Tim. 5. 22.