Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

God Blesses His Worshipers

When a Husband Accuses His Wife

Moses said to Israel:

¹³ Suppose a man starts hating his wife soon after they are married. ¹⁴ He might tell ugly lies about her, and say, “I married this woman, but when we slept together, I found out she wasn't a virgin.”

¹⁵ If this happens, the bride's father and mother must go to the town gate to show the town leaders the proof that the woman was a virgin. ¹⁶ Her father will say, “I let my daughter marry this man, but he started hating her ¹⁷ and accusing her of not being a virgin. But he is wrong, because here is proof that she was a virgin!” Then the bride's parents will show them the bed sheet from the woman's wedding night.

¹⁸ The town leaders will beat the man with a whip ¹⁹ because he accused his bride of not being a virgin. He will have to pay her father 100 pieces of silver and will never be allowed to divorce her.

²⁰ But if the man was right and there is no proof that his bride was a virgin, ²¹ the men of the town will take the woman to the door of her father's house and stone her to death.

This woman brought evil into your community by sleeping with someone before she got married, and you must get rid of that evil by killing her.

Laws about Illegal Sex

Moses said:

²² People of Israel, if a man is caught having sex with someone else's wife, you must put them both to death. That way, you will get rid of the evil they have done in Israel.

^23-24 If a man is caught in town having sex with an engaged woman who isn't screaming for help, they both must be put to death. The man is guilty of having sex with a married woman.^[a] And the woman is guilty because she didn't call for help, even though she was inside a town and people were nearby. Take them both to the town gate and stone them to death. You must get rid of the evil they brought into your community.

^25 (A) If an engaged woman is raped out in the country, only the man will be put to death. ²⁶ Do not punish the woman at all; she has done nothing wrong, and certainly nothing deserving death. This crime is like murder, ²⁷ because the woman was alone out in the country when the man attacked her. She screamed, but there was no one to help her.

^28 (B) Suppose a woman isn't engaged to be married, and a man forces her to have sex with him. If he is caught, ²⁹ they will be forced to get married. He must give her father 50 pieces of silver as a bride-price and^[b] can never divorce her.

^30 (C) A man must not marry a woman who was married to his father. This would be a disgrace to his father.

Questions about Marriage

7 Now I will answer the questions you asked in your letter. You asked, “Is it best for people not to marry?”^{[a] 2} Well, having your own husband or wife should keep you from doing something immoral. ³ Husbands and wives should be fair with each other about having sex. ⁴ A wife belongs to her husband instead of to herself, and a husband belongs to his wife instead of to himself. ⁵ So don't refuse sex to each other, unless you agree not to have sex for a little while, in order to spend time in prayer. Then Satan won't be able to tempt you because of your lack of self-control. ⁶ In my opinion that is what should be done, though I don't know of anything the Lord said about this matter. ⁷ I wish all of you were like me, but God has given different gifts to each of us.

⁸ My advice for the unmarried and for widows is that it is acceptable for them to remain single, just as I am. ⁹ But if you don't have enough self-control, then go ahead and get married. After all, it is better to marry than to burn with desire.^[b]