Exodus 21:7 And if a man sell his daughter to be a maidservant, she shall not go out as the menservants do.
8 If she please not her master, who hath betrothed her to himself, then shall he let her be redeemed: to sell her unto a strange nation he shall have no power, seeing he hath dealt deceitfully with her.
9 And if he have betrothed her unto his son, he shall deal with her after the manner of daughters.
10 If he take him another wife; her food, her raiment, and her duty of marriage, shall he not diminish.
11 And if he do not these three unto her, then shall she go out free without money.
God made it very clear to the children of Israel that He was in charge. He gave Moses the law. Moses was simply the messenger that was to tell the people what God required. God’s Word is non-negotiable. Since Genesis 3 the devil has tried to corrupt God’s Word. We see in Genesis 3 that man is quite easily corrupted. That is certainly true of this generation.
In our text, God continued to give His judgments to Moses for him to give to the people. As we have noted before, God is holy. Moses needed to understand that early on. God does not speak to just anyone, however He wants all people to know Him.
II Peter 1:21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.
It is important to acknowledge that the Bible is God’s Word. It is not a book of suggestions. The problem since Genesis 3 is that the devil has put doubts into the minds of man regarding God’s Word. Over time there have been many corrupt texts developed by man to try to destroy God’s Word. There are currently well over 100 perversions of God’s Word in the English language, on the market. More are constantly being developed.
In our educational system, students are given certain text books for the school year. They cannot rewrite them and put their own answers down on the tests. They must follow what the teacher tells them and what the text book says. We expect that. Yet somehow, we assume that a person can make up anything they want about Who God is and what He says. We are told that we must accept all opinions as valid and we should be quiet if we do not agree with those opinions. The problem we face is that every opinion is accepted but the truth is not accepted.
Most people never choose to know the Lord. That does not mean they will not be held accountable by the Truth. Moses passed God’s law on to the people. A few wise people listened and believed the law of God. The majority ignored it. The majority suffered greatly for their rejection of the truth. The same is true today. The majority is suffering because they do not want to know the Lord.
Just this week we had a stabbing that took place on an Indian reserve. The guilty party eventually died as well. What would cause such an event? Were they studying the Bible and seeking truth? It is a fact that the North American Indians have a religion of paganism. They have no hope. They are constantly fighting for more money and more privileges. Yet they are not happy and they are not content. They will never find contentment within their pagan system. They need the Gospel of Christ just like all other people. The person that chooses to repent toward God and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation is saved and begins to live with the peace of God in their heart. All the noise of false religions cannot bring that peace about.
We read in verse 7 of our text, that the father had a responsibility for his daughter. Women are to be under the authority of men. A father is to provide for and protect his daughters. When and if his daughter gets married, she is to be protected and provided for by her husband. The feminist movement of our time is evil. Women who want to be independent and in fact dominant over men are not happy. They can gain power but they are not content in their rebellion.
We read here that the man may choose to sell his daughter as a maidservant. However, in doing so, she was not to be treated as the menservants were. There is a difference between men and women. God designed them different from the beginning and that is still true today. The confusion that the ungodly are trying to spread now is wicked. Since the majority of society rejects God, they have no answer to this confusion. That is why we see shootings like we recently witnessed in Minneapolis. A confused and rebellious young man who was raised by confused and rebellious parents, decided that his life was not worth living and he chose to shoot and kill and wound others before he took his own life. This would not happen if people lived in the fear of the Lord.
We read in verse 8 that this daughter may not please her master. To be betrothed is to be promised in marriage. Betrothal was a stronger term than our engagement. In the betrothal period there was a contract signed which was binding between the man and the woman. They did not live together. However, they were promised to one another.
During this betrothal period, which was usually a year in length, the man could decide if he really wanted to continue with this plan and marry the woman. If he did not like the woman, he needed to let her be redeemed. To be redeemed is to let her be purchased by someone. The women were not to be chattel to be bought and sold. However, they were worthy of a dowry. God placed value on the woman. They were not a door mat or a piece of trash to be abused and corrupted.
If the original man did not want the young woman, then she was free to go to another man. Keep in mind this is during the betrothal time. They are not married in the sense of consummating a marriage.
This woman could not be sold to a Gentile nation. This man claimed to want to marry this woman and he arranged for that through the betrothal. However, as we read here, he dealt deceitfully with her. He promised the father he would marry her, but he changed his mind. He was not an honourable man and he relinquished any authority over the woman because he did not like her.
In verse 9 we see that this woman needed to be looked after as if she were the father’s daughter. If a father agreed that his son could become betrothed to a woman, and the son did not want her, then the father of the son needed to look after that woman until she would be chosen by a suitable man. The woman was not to be left to fend for herself. Marriage, and preparation for marriage was not a game. It was a serious matter.
As we noted yesterday, God used the marriage as a picture of His gift of salvation. A marriage that ends in divorce spoils that picture. It does not spoil true salvation, but it gives a wrong picture of salvation. The Bible is clear that a person that is truly saved cannot lose their salvation. They have received a gift from God and they are held in the Father’s hand.
You notice in verse 10 that this woman is called a wife. As we mentioned, the betrothal period was a binding period. It was a serious commitment that the man was making to take this woman as his wife. After the betrothal period there was the actual wedding. However, due to the nature of the betrothal period, the woman was considered to be the wife of the man.
In verse 10 we see that if the man does not like the first woman and chooses a different woman, he must still look after the needs of the first woman that he chose. She cannot be left to fend for herself. Women were to be dependent upon a man in Bible times. The independence that many women demand today is not healthy for them and it is not according to God’s will.
In verse 11 we see that if the man fails in his duties to the woman, then she is free to go out without money. The woman did not break the betrothal. The man broke it off. She does not owe him anything for the time and effort he might have put into the betrothal. God knows the woman is the weaker vessel. He also knows that men can take advantage of women. He designed it so that the woman would be protected from a sinful man who does not want to be responsible.
Our society has corrupted God’s laws and many women suffer because they are not protected the way God intended. Some women choose to reject God’s protection and they think they are wiser than their fathers and they want to get out from under God’s protection. They can do so, but they also suffer due to the stress they put themselves under.
God cares about people. He designed people to know His blessing. When we submit to His will we benefit greatly. When we fight against His law, we lose out. The wise person humbles himself and submits to the will of God. That is what God was teaching the people in the time of Moses and that is still what God wants man to know in our time.
Pastor Bartel
