The Importance Of The Covenant In Marriage

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“Sexual activity alters the status of the woman debt-slave, but not that of the male.” (Jackson, 234) Women tend to feel like they are missing a piece of them and the male has it because of the intercourse. The baggage is giving them more opportunities to put on a facade of who they really are and the true character is now being shown after they are married. “She never complained about anything. Everything I did before was wonderful, but once we were married, it seemed I could do nothing right. I honestly don’t know what happened.” (Chapman, 13) In the understanding that we have in the importance of the covenant in marriage, we also understand that it takes two people jointly working towards keeping a connection with God in order to …show more content…
Each needs to make an unconditional commitment. Neither can say ‘well, I commit myself to you if you commit yourself to me.’ Only on the basis of a commitment without such conditions can a genuine covenantal relationship come into being.” (Goldingay, 200) On the other hand, some marriages are rushed into for various reasons including sexual intercourse. “Another issue on which the narratives provide no single account of the institutive rules of the social institution of marriage is that of intercourse between the parties before negotiations between the heads of family.16 Some narratives treat such intercourse as itself constituting a marriage (‘Raubehe’17).” (Jackson, 225) Other reasons for marriage may be one person’s insecurity or ego leading the couple to get married outside of God’s will. An example of this issue was shown with David in regard to Bathsheba. “Perhaps the most prominent regulatory rule of marriage (here including betrothal) is that the husband has an exclusive claim to the sexual activities of his wife.” (Jackson, 239) David was not Bathsheba’s husband, but had sexual intercourse with her anyhow. Bathsheba was actually someone else’s wife. David broke the law, by having sexual intercourse with her while she was …show more content…
“Marriage itself was regarded as much more than an agreement to live together. The laws and financial arrangements attached to it show that Mesopotamian society intended marriages to involve lifelong commitments.” (Wenham, 7) It is very interesting to find out that marriage had a cost back in those day. Before this paper I only knew that a man who wanted to get married would help the father of the bride to be by doing work for their household or land before marrying his daughter. I knew that the groom to be would plan to financial accommodate the bride after they were married. I understood that there was a cost to that, but it is clearer that marriage is a true financial commitment even before children are involved. “The average man could not have afforded to pay bride-money more than once, let alone support several wives. In fact the wisdom literature and the prophets presuppose monogamy as the norm. (See, for example, Proverbs 5.15-19; Ecclesiastes 9.9; Isaiah 54.6f) Jeremiah 2.2).” (Wenham, 15) As someone who has read numerous bible stories about singles and married couples it is very interesting that I don’t have any examples that stick out in my mind about clearly talking about their financial needs before marrying. Often you read that someone is attracted to someone and ask them to get married, but there is

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