Ep 984 – Deuteronomy 22:13-21

In Deuteronomy 22:13-21, we have yet another strange scenario presented by Moses to the people of Israel. This one involves the institution of marriage, something near and dear to the heart of God because it was His idea. As we look at this particular regulation, it is essential that we keep God’s view of the sanctity of marriage in mind. He knew full well that the Israelites, due to their sinful dispositions, would be prone to treat the marriage covenant flippantly, and to view any commitments they made as essentially non-binding. Lust would tend to overshadow love. Infidelity would become commonplace, with the all-male leadership of Israel developing all kinds of work-arounds and loopholes that would allow them to violate God’s ban on divorce with impunity. But God wasn’t going to make it easy on them. For Him, the holiness of His people was non-negotiable and the sanctity of the marriage covenant would be key to them living set-apart lives.