Adultery, biblical definition please?

Question

In my previous question about the banning of homosexual marriages, the whole question was based on my understanding of adultery.

However, with many insightful answers that I recieved for that question ( thankyou all very much, by the way ) I feel I may have misunderstood what adultry is.

With that in mind, please answer with a definition of adultery and any supporting data ( be it scripture or what ever ).

Again, thankyou for all your answers. This has been something that has been bothering me for some time. I appreciate all your thoughts.

Main questions:
Is adultery having sex with anyone you're not married to..?
OR
Is adultery having sex with some one else while you're married?

Answer 1

Adultry is when you are married and do it with another woman

It's one of the commandments

also should add that Jesus said if you look at a woman to lust for her, you have committed adultry in your heart.

you can check out an online bible where you can search for things that you want to know

maybe I should add one more thing, that doesn't mean you can do it with another guy and it's not adultry, I would say it still is and also that would be another great sin.

Answer 2

1

Answer 3

Your last comment limited adultery to having sex in different situations. Jesus defined adultery as leaving one to marry another; as simply as that. Fornication is having sex outside marriage; pre-marital, while married with a person NOT your spouse, homosexual sex, self-abusive sexual activity, personal lacivious responses to pornography..., ALL are fornication and this is all over the New testament in several of the "letters to the churches".
When Jesus was questioned, howbeit deceptively by the Pharisees, in order to get Him to say something against what the Law already taught, He answered according to the Law and even expounded upon it. (Matthew 5:27-32; Matthew 19:9; Mark 10:11-12; Luke 16:18; Galatians 5:19) Read these for yourself and it becomes clear wht Jesus taught on the subject. Now, there also seems to be a few times when the translators used the word "adultery" when the word "fornication" was the actual activity from the context of the scripture like the woman ''caught in the act of adultery'' and I am not sure exactly what happened, but I suspect she wasn't just packing up a few clothes to run off from her husband to go marry some other guy, but I think the context there (or it's always preached that way) was she was having a sexual encounter with someone and I always got the idea she was probably a single woman???, but who knows.
Back to the "adultery" again; spiritual adultery is leaving God and going after another such as the Old Testament Israelites did running after Baal or some fertility god(dess). I think for us to go after anything in life in place of making our commitment to the Lord primary and only is spiritual adultery also. This is an excellent question and most people are confused on it as per their language. Even the legal system calls sexual unfaithfulness within a marriage 'adultery' when in fact, it is fornication and sexual unfaithfulness. If the divorce happens, which is a legal document and neither of the parties were commiting fornication during the marriage, then to leave and marry another IS adultery, according to the law of God.
Now we are under grace and not law and there is the Pauline privilege (as called) in 1 Corinthians 7:10 -17, 39 -40. The only comment I would make in this is that "commmiting adultery" is like committing any other sin and there can be forgiveness without undoing lives. By that I mean, there are people and religious groups who teach that to get forgiveness for adultery, you have to leave whoever you have married because sexual unfaithfulness was NOT part of the divorce problem and you have to go back and be reconciled with your first spouse or remain single the rest of your life. I don't think you can change all your sins. If you murdered, you can't un-do it, you just begin where you are and receive your forgiveness and go from there. I base this on 1 Corinthians 7:24 & 1 Corinthians 6:9- 11; especially verse 11 "and such were some of YOU...etc.

Answer 4

7 Paul also said that some in these last days would be “disloyal, having no natural affection, not open to any agreement.” The marriage vow is a solemn promise that should lead to a permanent bond, not to treachery. (Malachi 2:14-16) Some, though, have turned their amorous attentions to individuals other than their spouses. One wife in her 30’s whose husband left her explained that even before he left, he acted too familiarly, too affectionately, toward other women. He failed to recognize what was inappropriate conduct for a married man. She was deeply hurt when she saw this happening and tactfully tried to warn him of the dangerous path he was treading. Still, he fell into adultery. Even though kind warnings were given, the offending partner did not want to pay attention. He fell headlong into the trap.—Proverbs 6:27-29.

8 How clearly the Bible warns against adultery! “Anyone committing adultery with a woman is in want of heart; he that does it is bringing his own soul to ruin.” (Proverbs 6:32) Usually, adultery is not a spontaneous, impulsive act. As the Bible writer James pointed out, a sin such as adultery usually takes place only after the thought has been conceived and entertained. (James 1:14, 15) The offending spouse gradually ceases to be loyal to the mate to whom he or she vowed lifelong fidelity. Jesus said: “You heard that it was said, ‘You must not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone that keeps on looking at a woman so as to have a passion for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”—Matthew 5:27, 28.

9 Therefore, the wise and loyal course is the one encouraged in the book of Proverbs: “Let your water source prove to be blessed, and rejoice with the wife of your youth, a lovable hind and a charming mountain goat. Let her own breasts intoxicate you at all times. With her love may you be in an ecstasy constantly. So why should you, my son, be in an ecstasy with a strange woman or embrace the bosom of a foreign woman?”—Proverbs 5:18-20.) Adultery: “Voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and a partner other than the lawful husband or wife.”—The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language.

Answer 5

The webster defintion for adultery
sexual unfaithfulness of a married person

The webster defintion for fornication
consensual sexual intercourse between two persons not married to each other

And the Bible says:

I Thessalonians 4:3-5
For this is the will of God , even sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication: That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honor; Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God


Ephesians 5:3
But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints:

For as homosexuality is an abominations to the Lord because He made Adam and Eve for recreation to be fruitful and replentious the land with more babies. However, in order to prove my point lets read what the Bible says in Romans 1:24-27
Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who change the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. A-men. For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that whch is aganist nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.


Now the real question is which sin is worse homosexual or murder?
I do not know but the Bible says ye without sin cast the first stone. However, I would perfer to work with a homosexual than a murder. And I know that God jugdes people hearts.....

Answer 6

Adultry:

If you are single and have sex with a married person, you have both committed adultry.

If you are married and have sex with a single person, you have committed adultry.

If you are single and have sex with another single person, you have committed fornication, witch is sex without marriage and just as wrong as adultry.

Hope this helps a bit.

If you are trying to put homosexual acts within either of these definitions, you shouldnt be.

The homosexual act itself would fall under the definition of gross sexual immorality, or abomintion.

So, if you are a married person and have sex with another person other than your spouse and that person happens to be the same sex as you, biblically you have not committed adultry, just as bad as adultry, but another word to describe it is used, the end result would still be the same.

A rose by any other name, is still a rose.

Answer 7

Before Judah realized Tamar was pregnant by him, he said, "Bring her forth, and let her be burnt." Genesis 38:24b This is not a double standard because Levirate marriage made Tamar the betrothed of Shelah and sexual acts committed by her with others are adultery and punishable by death, whereas a man visiting a prostitute also commits a sin, it is not the death penalty sin of adultery unless the prostitute is married. The case of Judah and Tamar provides a precedent for Jesus later remarks, "...whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery..." Matthew 5:32. Judah recognized that he had caused Tamar to commit adultery and no penalty was imposed on her.

So we can understand now that a harlot is not only a woman that gives it away for free but also a woman who sells herself. Let's now turn to an example of a woman who gives presents to her lovers, this is the worst type of harlot and is the most common among today's harlots. She can be found anywhere from your local Junior High school to the mall to your church!

Answer 8

this more explains what it is not.
Galatians 5:19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,
Galatians 5:21 of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
---Exzucuh on 3/20/07

for the complicated what it Is (or WAS) check through and towards the bottom of the page of this..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adultery

Answer 9

Matthew 5:28
But I say unto you, That whosoever looks on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.

Jesus said looking at a woman with lust has committed adultery.
Nowhere is it mentioned if the person is married or not. Thus, sex outside of marriage, or coveting that does not belong to you is adultery.

Answer 10

Adultry starts in the heart/mind way before it becomes physical. Jesus states this when he says that if a man even looks at a woman lustfully he has already sinned.