Adultery

Adultery is sexual relations between a married person and someone other than their spouse. It is forbidden in the Ten Commandments and is used as a picture of unfaithfulness to God.

The commandment

• Exodus 20:14
  Thou shalt not commit adultery.You shall not commit adultery.
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• Deuteronomy 5:18
  Neither shalt thou commit adultery.You shall not commit adultery.
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• Leviticus 20:10
  And the man that committeth adultery with another man’s wife, even he that committeth adultery with his neighbour’s wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death.If a man commits adultery with another man’s wife—with the wife of his neighbor—both the adulterer and the adulteress must surely be put to death.
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• Romans 13:9
  For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.The commandments “Do not commit adultery,” “Do not murder,” “Do not steal,” “Do not covet,” and any other commandments, are summed up in this one decree: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”
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Adultery of the heart

• Matthew 5:27-28
  ²⁷Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’ ²⁸But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
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• Matthew 15:19
  For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, and slander.
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Warnings in Proverbs

• Proverbs 6:32
  But whoso committeth adultery with a woman lacketh understanding: he that doeth it destroyeth his own soul.He who commits adultery lacks judgment; whoever does so destroys himself.
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• Proverbs 5:3-5
  ³For the lips of a strange woman drop as an honeycomb, and her mouth is smoother than oil:Though the lips of the forbidden woman drip honey and her speech is smoother than oil, ⁴But her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a twoedged sword.in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a double-edged sword. ⁵Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell.Her feet go down to death; her steps lead straight to Sheol.
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• Proverbs 7:21-23
  ²¹With her much fair speech she caused him to yield, with the flattering of her lips she forced him.With her great persuasion she entices him; with her flattering lips she lures him. ²²He goeth after her straightway, as an ox goeth to the slaughter, or as a fool to the correction of the stocks;He follows her on impulse, like an ox going to the slaughter, like a deer bounding into a trap, ²³Till a dart strike through his liver; as a bird hasteth to the snare, and knoweth not that it is for his life.until an arrow pierces his liver, like a bird darting into a snare— not knowing it will cost him his life.
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Faithfulness in marriage

• Hebrews 13:4
  Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge.Marriage should be honored by all and the marriage bed kept undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterers.
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• Proverbs 5:18-19
  ¹⁸Let thy fountain be blessed: and rejoice with the wife of thy youth.May your fountain be blessed, and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth: ¹⁹Let her be as the loving hind and pleasant roe; let her breasts satisfy thee at all times; and be thou ravished always with her love.A loving doe, a graceful fawn— may her breasts satisfy you always; may you be captivated by her love forever.
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• Malachi 2:14-15
  ¹⁴Yet ye say, Wherefore? Because the Lord hath been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth, against whom thou hast dealt treacherously: yet is she thy companion, and the wife of thy covenant.Yet you ask, “Why?” It is because the LORD has been a witness between you and the wife of your youth, against whom you have broken faith, though she is your companion and your wife by covenant. ¹⁵And did not he make one? Yet had he the residue of the spirit. And wherefore one? That he might seek a godly seed. Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth.Has not the LORD made them one, having a portion of the Spirit? And why one? Because He seeks godly offspring. So guard yourselves in your spirit and do not break faith with the wife of your youth.
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• 1 Corinthians 7:2-4
  ²Nevertheless, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband.But because there is so much sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman her own husband. ³Let the husband render unto the wife due benevolence: and likewise also the wife unto the husband.The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. ⁴The wife hath not power of her own body, but the husband: and likewise also the husband hath not power of his own body, but the wife.The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife.
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David and Bathsheba

• 2 Samuel 11:2-4
  ²And it came to pass in an eveningtide, that David arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king’s house: and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself; and the woman was very beautiful to look upon.One evening David got up from his bed and strolled around on the roof of the palace. And from the roof he saw a woman bathing—a very beautiful woman. ³And David sent and enquired after the woman. And one said, Is not this Bath–sheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?So David sent and inquired about the woman, and he was told, “This is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite.” ⁴And David sent messengers, and took her; and she came in unto him, and he lay with her; for she was purified from her uncleanness: and she returned unto her house.Then David sent messengers to get her, and when she came to him, he slept with her. (Now she had just purified herself from her uncleanness.) Then she returned home.
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• 2 Samuel 12:7-9
  ⁷And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man. Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I anointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul;Then Nathan said to David, “You are that man! This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. ⁸And I gave thee thy master’s house, and thy master’s wives into thy bosom, and gave thee the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too little, I would moreover have given unto thee such and such things.I gave your master’s house to you and your master’s wives into your arms. I gave you the house of Israel and Judah, and if that was not enough, I would have given you even more. ⁹Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in his sight? thou hast killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon.Why then have you despised the command of the LORD by doing evil in His sight? You put Uriah the Hittite to the sword and took his wife as your own, for you have slain him with the sword of the Ammonites.
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• Psalm 51:1-4
  ¹Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions.Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your loving devotion; according to Your great compassion, blot out my transgressions. ²Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.Wash me clean of my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. ³For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me.For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. ⁴Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You may be proved right when You speak and blameless when You judge.
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Forgiveness

• John 8:3-11
  ³And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery; and when they had set her in the midst,The scribes and Pharisees, however, brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before them ⁴They say unto him, Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act.and said, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. ⁵Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou?In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such a woman. So what do You say?” ⁶This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not.They said this to test Him, in order to have a basis for accusing Him. But Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with His finger. ⁷So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.When they continued to question Him, He straightened up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to cast a stone at her.” ⁸And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground.And again He bent down and wrote on the ground. ⁹And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.When they heard this, they began to go away one by one, beginning with the older ones, until only Jesus was left, with the woman standing there. ¹⁰When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?Then Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are your accusers? Has no one condemned you?” ¹¹She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.“No one, Lord,” she answered. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Now go and sin no more.”
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• 1 Corinthians 6:9-11
  ⁹Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who submit to or perform homosexual acts, ¹⁰Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor verbal abusers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. ¹¹And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
  Show context · Read 1 Corinthians 6 →

See also

• Marriage
• Sexual immorality
• Lust
• Divorce
• Ten Commandments

Notes

1. Verses are quoted in the translation chosen in the Translation menu at the top of the page. See Translations for sources and copyright notices.
2. Each reference links to the full chapter so the verse can be read in context.