2014.01.61.03.04 3: What does scripture say about adultery?
Created by James on 4/18/2019 5:07:40 PM

3: What does scripture say about adultery?

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What does scripture say about adultery?

A comprehensive analysis of the subject of adultery, what it REALLY is and the penalties for it

Note that believers will be tormented in the place of correction (aka Hell) for their sin and THEN admitted into Heaven, they will NOT be tormented for eternity -- see the page on Hell for more information

 

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3: What does scripture say about adultery?

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CHAPTER 3

 

 

WHAT DOES SCRIPTURE SAY ABOUT ADULTERY?

 

Since adultery is THE sin which relates to ungodly sexual conduct and is widely used by modern Christians to describe a man who has sexual intercourse with more than one woman, it is necessary that we analyse the scriptural definition of adultery.

11. DEFINITION OF ADULTERY

a. ADULTERY DEFINED IN DEUTERONOMY 22

Let us consider the definition of adultery. Deuteronomy 22:22 states:

22 "If a man is found lying with a woman married to a husband, then both of them shall die-- the man that lay with the woman, and the woman; so you shall put away the evil from Israel.

This is quite unambiguous, adultery involves a man (any man, marital state unspecified) lying with a very specific woman, a woman married to a husband and the penalty for adultery is death to both guilty parties.

b. ADULTERY DEFINED IN ROMANS 7

Romans 7:1-3 states:

1 Or do you not know, brethren (for I speak to those who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives?

2 For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is released from the law of her husband.

3 So then if, while her husband lives, she marries another man, she will be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she has married another man. (NKJ)

Can there be any uncertainty regarding the definition of adultery? It is clearly a woman who marries another man while her husband lives!

c. ADULTERY DEFINED IN PROVERBS 6

There are numerous other verses which give the same definition. Proverbs 6:23-35 is particularly explicit:

23 For the commandment is a lamp, and the law a light; reproofs of instruction are the way of life,

24 To keep you from the evil woman, from the flattering tongue of a seductress.

25 Do not lust after her beauty in your heart, nor let her allure you with her eyelids.

26 For by means of a harlot a man is reduced to a crust of bread; and an adulteress will prey upon his precious life.

27 Can a man take fire to his bosom, and his clothes not be burned?

28 Can one walk on hot coals, and his feet not be seared?

29 So is he who goes in to his neighbor's wife; whoever touches her shall not be innocent.

30 People do not despise a thief if he steals to satisfy himself when he is starving.

31 Yet when he is found, he must restore sevenfold; he may have to give up all the substance of his house.

32 Whoever commits adultery with a woman lacks understanding; he who does so destroys his own soul.

33 Wounds and dishonor he will get, and his reproach will not be wiped away.

34 For jealousy is a husband's fury; therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance.

35 He will accept no recompense, nor will he be appeased though you give many gifts. (NKJ)

This is also quite clear, adultery involves "going in to" one's neighbours WIFEand jealousy is the HUSBAND'S fury. There is no such provision regarding a man who is already married to another woman "going into" a virgin. There is also NO provision for jealousy as a wife's fury. Female jealousy is a Satanic counterfeit of the Godly jealously of a husband!

d. ADULTERY DEFINED IN PROVERBS 7

Proverbs 7:5-27 states:

5 That they may keep you from the immoral woman, from the seductress who flatters with her words.

6 For at the window of my house I looked through my lattice,

7 And saw among the simple, I perceived among the youths, a young man devoid of understanding,

8 Passing along the street near her corner; and he took the path to her house

9 In the twilight, in the evening, in the black and dark night.

10 And there a woman met him, with the attire of a harlot, and a crafty heart.

11 She was loud and rebellious, her feet would not stay at home.

12 At times she was outside, at times in the open square, Lurking at every corner.

13 So she caught him and kissed him; with an impudent face she said to him:

14 "I have peace offerings with me; today I have paid my vows.

15 So I came out to meet you, diligently to seek your face, and I have found you.

16 I have spread my bed with tapestry, Colored coverings of Egyptian linen.

17 I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.

18 Come, let us take our fill of love until morning; let us delight ourselves with love.

19 For my husband is not at home; he has gone on a long journey;

20 He has taken a bag of money with him, and will come home on the appointed day."

21 With her enticing speech she caused him to yield, with her flattering lips she seduced him.

22 Immediately he went after her, as an ox goes to the slaughter, or as a fool to the correction of the stocks,

23 Till an arrow struck his liver. As a bird hastens to the snare, he did not know it would cost his life.

24 Now therefore, listen to me, my children; pay attention to the words of my mouth:

25 Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways, do not stray into her paths;

26 For she has cast down many wounded, and all who were slain by her were strong men.

27 Her house is the way to hell, descending to the chambers of death. (NKJ)

This woman is clearly an adulteress, she is seeking "love" with a man other than her husband. Equally clearly, the spiritual consequences of adultery are too terrible to contemplate, reference is made to an ox to the slaughter, a fool to the stocks, an arrow stiking his liver, a bird hastening to a snare. It is quite clear that this one act will cost him his life, that she has slain many strong men and that her house is the way to hell. Can there be any doubt that adultery will commit the soul of the offender to Hell?! Certainly true repentance, confession of sin and asking for forgiveness will deliver the soul of the offender who sin's unwittingly but what of the many who keep sinning because they cannot keep their sexual drive within the bounds of enforced monogamy?

e. ADULTERY DEFINED IN PROVERBS 9

Proverbs 9:13-18 states:

13 A foolish woman is clamorous; she is simple, and knows nothing.

14 For she sits at the door of her house, on a seat by the highest places of the city,

15 To call to those who pass by, who go straight on their way:

16 "Whoever is simple, let him turn in here"; and as for him who lacks understanding, she says to him,

17 "Stolen water is sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant."

18 But he does not know that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of hell. (NKJ)

Again, can there be any doubt that those who partake of adultery and harlotry are committing their souls to hell?! How then can the church dare to define adultery as anything that it is not and institute doctrines which, of necessity, require that adultery is condoned?

f. ADULTERY DEFINED IN NUMBERS 5

As a further confirmation of what the Word of God has to say in terms of providing a definition of Adultery, consider Numbers 5:11-31:

11 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

12 "Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: 'If any man's wife goes astray and behaves unfaithfully toward him,

13 'and a man lies with her carnally, and it is hidden from the eyes of her husband, and it is concealed that she has defiled herself, and there was no witness against her, nor was she caught--

14 'if the spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he becomes jealous of his wife, who has defiled herself; or if the spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he becomes jealous of his wife, although she has not defiled herself--

15 'then the man shall bring his wife to the priest. He shall bring the offering required for her, one-tenth of an EPHAH of barley meal; he shall pour no oil on it and put no frankincense on it, because it is a grain offering of jealousy, an offering for remembering, for bringing iniquity to remembrance.

16 'And the priest shall bring her near, and set her before the LORD.

17 'The priest shall take holy water in an earthen vessel, and take some of the dust that is on the floor of the tabernacle and put it into the water.

18 'Then the priest shall stand the woman before the LORD, uncover the woman's head, and put the offering for remembering in her hands, which is the grain offering of jealousy. And the priest shall have in his hand the bitter water that brings a curse.

19 'And the priest shall put her under oath, and say to the woman, "If no man has lain with you, and if you have not gone astray to uncleanness while under your husband's authority, be free from this bitter water that brings a curse.

20 "But if you have gone astray while under your husband's authority, and if you have defiled yourself and some man other than your husband has lain with you"--

21 'then the priest shall put the woman under the oath of the curse, and he shall say to the woman--" the LORD make you a curse and an oath among your people, when the LORD makes your thigh rot and your belly swell;

22 "and may this water that causes the curse go into your stomach, and make your belly swell and your thigh rot." Then the woman shall say, "Amen, so be it."

23 'Then the priest shall write these curses in a book, and he shall scrape them off into the bitter water.

24 'And he shall make the woman drink the bitter water that brings a curse, and the water that brings the curse shall enter her to become bitter.

25 'Then the priest shall take the grain offering of jealousy from the woman's hand, shall wave the offering before the LORD, and bring it to the altar;

26 'and the priest shall take a handful of the offering, as its memorial portion, burn it on the altar, and afterward make the woman drink the water.

27 'When he has made her drink the water, then it shall be, if she has defiled herself and behaved unfaithfully toward her husband, that the water that brings a curse will enter her and become bitter, and her belly will swell, her thigh will rot, and the woman will become a curse among her people.

28 'But if the woman has not defiled herself, and is clean, then she shall be free and may conceive children.

29 'This is the law of jealousy, when a wife, while under her husband's authority, goes astray and defiles herself,

30 'or when the spirit of jealousy comes upon a man, and he becomes jealous of his wife; then he shall stand the woman before the LORD, and the priest shall execute all this law upon her.

31 'Then the man shall be free from iniquity, but that woman shall bear her guilt.'" (NKJ)

Again, there is no ambiguity here, it is quite clear that it is the woman who goes astray with another man. There is no reference to a married man taking a second woman as a wife being adultery.

g. ADULTERER'S BARRED FROM THE ASSEMBLY

*** reference from Lamsa "No adulterer shall enter into the assembly of the Lord"

h. ABRAHAM AND ABIMILECH

In order to obtain another perspective of the way God views adultery, let us consider another passage of scripture.

In Genesis 20:1-18 we read the following report:

1 And Abraham journeyed from there to the South, and dwelt between Kadesh and Shur, and stayed in Gerar.

2 Now Abraham said of Sarah his wife, "She is my sister." And Abimelech king of Gerar sent and took Sarah.

3 But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, "Indeed you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is a man's wife."

4 But Abimelech had not come near her; and he said, "Lord, will You slay a righteous nation also?

5 "Did he not say to me, 'She is my sister'? And she, even she herself said, 'He is my brother.' In the integrity of my heart and innocence of my hands I have done this."

6 And God said to him in a dream, "Yes, I know that you did this in the integrity of your heart. For I also withheld you from sinning against Me; therefore I did not let you touch her.

7 "Now therefore, restore the man's wife; for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you shall live. But if you do not restore her, know that you shall surely die, you and all who are yours."

8 So Abimelech rose early in the morning, called all his servants, and told all these things in their hearing; and the men were very afraid.

9 And Abimelech called Abraham and said to him, "What have you done to us? How have I offended you, that you have brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? You have done deeds to me that ought not to be done."

10 Then Abimelech said to Abraham, "What did you have in view, that you have done this thing?"

11 And Abraham said, "Because I thought, surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will kill me on account of my wife.

12 "But indeed she is truly my sister. She is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife.

13 "And it came to pass, when God caused me to wander from my father's house, that I said to her, 'This is your kindness that you should do for me: in every place, wherever we go, say of me, "He is my brother."'"

14 Then Abimelech took sheep, oxen, and male and female servants, and gave them to Abraham; and he restored Sarah his wife to him.

15 And Abimelech said, "See, my land is before you; dwell where it pleases you."

16 Then to Sarah he said, "Behold, I have given your brother a thousand pieces of silver; indeed this vindicates you before all who are with you and before everybody." Thus she was rebuked.

17 So Abraham prayed to God; and God healed Abimelech, his wife, and his female servants. Then they bore children;

18 for the LORD had closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech because of Sarah, Abraham's wife. (NKJ)

In this passage we see that adultery is a sin against God, that even although Abimilech had done this thing after Abraham and Sarah had deliberately misled him and Abimilech had acted in good faith, God told him that he was "a dead man". Furthermore, God closed up ALL the wombs in the house of Abimilech, both of his wife and his female servants. Thus, although Abimilech already had at least one wife, God defined adultery as being the taking of "a mans wife" and would have executed judgement, even death, if he had actually consummated the relationship or had not repented!

Further, we see that even if a woman lies about her marital state, the man is guilty. Presumably this applies as much to a woman who lies to the effect that her hymen was perforated in athletics or through the use of a tampon, or who says her husband is dead or says that God permitted her to get divorced or for that matter who is mistaken in her belief. We have ministered to a woman who was seduced under hypnosis when she was in her teens and only had the full situation revealed to her by the Holy Spirit when she was in her forties and had been living in adultery in the sight of God for nearly twenty years!

Clearly it is also a sin if the pastor has said that she is free to remarry! In such a case the pastor will presumably also be found guilty on the day of judgment!

Can one do other than exclaim Woe to this evil and perverse generation!

Adultery is not to be taken lightly, it truly is an abomination in the sight of God. This is confirmed throughout scripture. Surely, to call marriage that is acceptable in the sight of God, that is the taking of more than one wife, "adultery" must also rank as an abomination in His sight?

i. SEXUAL IMMORALITY IS SIN AGAINST ONE'S OWN BODY

1 Corinthians 6:13-20 states:

13 Foods for the stomach and the stomach for foods, but God will destroy both it and them. Now the body is not for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body.

14 And God both raised up the Lord and will also raise us up by His power.

15 Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a harlot? Certainly not!

16 Or do you not know that he who is joined to a harlot is one body with her? For "the two," He says, "shall become one flesh."

17 But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him.

18 Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body.

19 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?

20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's. (NKJ)

Clearly sexual union with a harlot or adulteress joins the man's body, the temple of the Holy Spirit, to hers. Refer section 43, page 127 on the one flesh bond for more details. How then can the church permit men and women to remarry when they are not divorced in the sight of God? How can they prevent a man from taking a woman whose virginity he has taken as a second wife because he is already married, thus condemning her to widowhood or adultery? Is this not the most heartless religious heresy? And an afront to the Holy Spirit and our uncompromisingly righteous Saviour?

j. ADULTERY IS SIN AGAINST GOD

In the previous section we see that God Himself states that adultery is sin against Him.

In Psalm 51, David repents of his sin in his adultery with Bathsheba and the murder of her husband (2 Samuel 11 and 12):

1 Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness; according to the multitude of Your tender mercies, blot out my transgressions.

2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.

3 For I acknowledge my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.

4 Against You, You only, have I sinned, and done this evil in Your sight-- that You may be found just when You speak, and blameless when You judge.

5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me.

6 Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts, and in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom.

7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

8 Make me to hear joy and gladness, that the bones You have broken may rejoice.

9 Hide Your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities.

10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

11 Do not cast me away from Your presence, and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.

12 Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me by Your generous Spirit.

13 Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, and sinners shall be converted to You.

14 Deliver me from bloodshed, O God, the God of my salvation, and my tongue shall sing aloud of Your righteousness.

15 O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall show forth Your praise.

16 For You do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it; you do not delight in burnt offering.

17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart-- these, O God, You will not despise.

18 Do good in Your good pleasure to Zion; build the walls of Jerusalem.

19 Then You shall be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness, with burnt offering and whole burnt offering; then they shall offer bulls on Your altar. (NKJ)

This scripture is perhaps the most powerful example of true repentance in the entire Bible. Clearly David truly feared that God would cast him away and take His Holy Spirit from David. David had also apparently lost the joy of his salvation. This Psalm clearly portrays the cry of a desperate man who has known God and knows the magnitude of his sin. At this time he had approximately ten wives in addition to Bathsheba and ten concubines. Surely we should not refer to anything as adultery if it is not? Likewise, we should surely not do anything to downplay the seriousness of adultery when it occurs?

Appendix N, page 277 lists a range of scriptures containing the words adultery, adulterer, adulteress, fornication, fornicators, harlot in order to illustrate just how seriously God views these sins.

Appendix D, page 233 contains many more examples of scriptures which support the fact that Yahweh permits a man to have more than one wife.

k. THE CURSES OF THE LAW

Appendix S, page 292 lists the curses associated with breaking the Mosaic Law or Mosaic Covenant or Torah. These curses apply to all those laws which are listed from Deuteronomy, Leviticus, Numbers, Exodus and Genesis. In other words, they apply to those who add to or take away from the commandments of God, they apply to those who commit adultery and harlotry, etc. In other words, they apply to all those who have taught the heresies addressed in this book AND to all those who wittingly or unwittingly have sinned as a consequence of these heresies. Conservatively we are talking of millions of people, probably we are talking about billions!

But Jesus became a curse for us, I hear you cry! Yes, certainly Jesus became a curse for us but we must still repent of our sins, confess them before God and ask for and receive forgiveness. Under the old covenant the sin offering was put to death on behalf of the sinner. This required the sinner to bring the sacrifice to the temple. Under the New Covenant, Jesus became our sacrifice, once and for all BUT we must still bring our sacrifice of a broken and a contrite heart before the throne of grace and ask for forgiveness!

Equally, if we sin wilfully we crucify Jesus again! Hebrews 6:1-8 states:

1 Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God,

2 of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.

3 And this we will do if God permits.

4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit,

5 and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come,

6 if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame.

7 For the earth which drinks in the rain that often comes upon it, and bears herbs useful for those by w

https://www.eti-ministries.org/men-women/scriptural-definition-of-marriage/3-adultery

 

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