The institution of marriage is of very ancient date. When Eve had been formed out of the rib of Adam, and was brought to him, he exclaimed, “She is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh,” and the account of the first marriage concludes thus: “Therefore man shall leave his father and his mother and cleave unto his wife, and they shall be one flesh” (Gen. ii. 24). Every married couple, husband and wife, bind themselves by a solemn promise to be true and faithful to each other, to remain throughout life united in love [[262]]and affection, and to establish a home founded on purity and sanctity. Adultery is the breaking of this promise. That love and affection which unites man and wife cannot be shared by a third person without involving a breach of the seventh commandment.
Jewish homes have always been distinguished by sanctity and purity. In order to retain this distinction it is necessary that we should be trained in this virtue from our childhood. Our language must be pure and holy; unclean and indecent expressions must never be uttered in our homes, either by the old or by the young. The purer our speech is, the more sanctified will our heart be. Bad society often corrupts the heart of the young through bad example in words and conduct. It is therefore essential that immoral persons should not come in contact with our children; that everything that is contrary to the virtue of modesty (צניעות) should be rigorously excluded from Jewish homes.
The seventh commandment forbids:—
- (1.) Faithlessness of a man to his wife, or a woman to her husband.
- (2.) The use of improper and indecent language.
- (3.) Immodest conduct.
- (4.) Associating with immoral persons.
Eighth Commandment.
“Thou shalt not steal.”
We do not like that any one should take a part of our property without our knowledge or consent. An old saying of the Rabbis teaches: “Let the property [[263]]of thy neighbour be as dear in thy eyes as thine own” (Aboth ii. 12); that is to say, as you do not wish a diminution or destruction of what is yours, so you must not cause a diminution or destruction of what belongs to your neighbour.
By secretly taking anything for ourselves that does not belong to us, we steal, and break the eighth commandment.
This commandment has also a wider sense, and forbids every illegal acquisition of property, whether it be directly by theft or robbery, or by cheating, by embezzlement or forgery. Property acquired by any of these or similar means may be considered as stolen property, and is by no means a blessing to him who possesses it. Even if human justice does not reach the evil-doer, he is watched by an All-seeing Eye, and will in due time receive his full punishment.
This commandment prohibits:—