Today we begin Deuteronomy Chapter 23.
For the Complete Jewish Bible, click here.
For the King James version, click here.
In the last chapter, we saw how the idea of adultery was taken to a whole new level and was explained to us via the motif of “unauthorized mixtures”.
Whenever we hear the word “adultery”, most folks have a tendency to think of it in only sexual terms.
However. after studying Deuteronomy 22 (the last chapter), I think you can now understand that it really means to take anything in its pure or clean state and corrupt it by mixing it with something else.
In fact, that’s basically the modern day dictionary definition of the word “adulterate”.
Here are the different spheres with the examples the Scriptures gave us in which adultery can occur:
THE SEXUAL SPHERE
A man having sex with a married woman who is NOT his wife or a man having sex with a woman who is betrothed to another man. In both cases, both parties are put to death.
THE WORK SPHERE
An ox and a donkey being yoked together to pull the same plow.
THE FOOD SPHERE
Eating unclean foods such as pork or shellfish.
THE PLANT SPHERE
The act of planting two different kinds of seeds in the same place.
THE CLOTHING SPHERE
The act of wearing a garment of SHA’ATNEZ or a cloth woven out of both linen and wool.
As you can see, the Torah gives us many different examples of mixtures and unions he says are NOT to be formed.
Unfortunately, more often than not, the rationale behind why the Lord forbade these unions is not always readily apparent.
Although we can know with confidence that the Lord’s commands are physical illustrations of the higher God-principles that have been established in the heavens…,
….outside of that, on this side of heaven we may never be able to know the real WHY behind the WHAT of God’s commands.
This is where trust and faith come in.
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