LIFE SCRIPTS

16 “If a man seduces a virgin who is not pledged to be married and sleeps with her, he must pay the bride-price, and she shall be his wife. 17 If her father absolutely refuses to give her to him, he must still pay the bride-price for virgins.
Exodus 22:16‭-‬17 NIV

https://bible.com/bible/111/exo.22.16-17.NIV

The beauty with this instruction is it brought about sexual responsibility. Like in any traditional society, virginity was a gift a girl would deliver to her husband on their marriage bed. It was supposed to be celebrated and preserved. But what if a man seduced this lady and slept with her? Her future husband would notice that it had been stolen way before marriage. Culturally, this would have been frowned upon and brought disorder to the whole community. But it’s not just about culture, it’s also about responsibility. Sex unites two people in a way that’s hard to explain. Sexual acts by themselves carry a heavy responsibility…emotional baggage. Imagine the amount of baggage carried by someone who’s engaged sexually with multiple partners? God institutes a system of order that cements responsibility and discourages carelessness. Infact, even if the girl’s father refused to give her daughter off to the man, then he was still supposed to pay the bride price because later on, the husband to be would not pay fully upon discovery of the loss of virginity. In many ways, as men, we’ve failed in this…including myself. But there’s still hope for the lady who’s fallen prey to the deceiver who stole her virginity leaving her by the wayside. There is restoration. The story of Samaritan woman in Luke 4 opens up the life of a promiscuous woman who encountered Christ and was changed. In the book of Joshua, we shall encounter Rahab, the woman from Jericho who’s loose habits were transformed by the encounter with the God of Israel. Ultimately, she got married and was part of Christ’s lineage. Still in the book of Judges we encounter Samson, a man conceived through prophecy, dedicated as a Nazarite yet falls prey to sexual sin on multiple occasions. But God redeemed him and used him to His glory. Above all else, God calls us to responsibility especially in our sexual behavior.