It is considered the sixth commandment by Roman Catholic and Lutheran authorities, but the seventh by Jewish and most Protestant authorities. What constitutes adultery is not plainly defined in this passage of the Bible, and has been the subject of debate within Judaism and Christianity.
The word fornication means illicit sex, prostitution, idolatry and lawlessness. Thou shalt not murder. Thou shalt not commit adultery. Thou shalt not steal. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour. The transgression of commandments is also called uncleanliness or defilement. This term is especially used of the chief and principal crimes, which are idolatry, adultery, and murder.
In reference to adultery, we read, "Defile not ye yourselves in any of these things. Leviticus defines what constitutes adultery in the Hebrew Bible, and it also prescribes the punishment as capital punishment.
In this verse, and in the Jewish tradition, [2] adultery consists of sexual intercourse between a man and a married woman who is not his lawful wife:. 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. Thus, according to the Hebrew Bible, adultery is not committed if the female participant is unmarried unless she is betrothed to be married [3] , while the marital status of the male participant is irrelevant he himself could be unmarried or married to another woman.
If a married woman was raped by a man who is not her husband, only the rapist is punished for adultery. The victim is not punished: as the Bible declares, "this matter is similar to when a man rises up against his fellow and murders him"; just as a murder victim is not guilty of murder, a rape victim is not guilty of adultery.
