The Integrity of Marriage and Sexual Relationships: The progression through the Ten Commandments as a framework for other laws continues with this short section fairly obviously related to the seventh commandment forbidding adultery (see the commentary and additional notes on 5:18). These laws relating to marriage, adultery, fornication, rape, and incest were not merely matters of sexual morality alone but have at heart the vital integrity of the family as the fundamental unit of the covenant community—a concern that explains the severity of the penalties attached to these laws.
22:13–21 A wife accused of premarital unchastity. In this case, a man makes a charge against his new wife that constitutes a legal accusation against her parents (see additional notes). It is a serious charge becaus…