No Military Service in First Year of Marriage — The BIRTH CONTROL Movie Project
Interestingly, on the heels of the laws governing divorce, Moses wrote another law about the first year of marriage.
“5 “When a man takes a new wife, he will not go out with the army nor be assigned any duty; he shall be free from the house for one year and shall give happiness to his wife whom he has taken.” (Deu 24:5 NASB)
God put family before war.
Men were prohibited from being drafted into military service, nor could they be assigned any travel duties throughout the first year of marriage. The placement of this law says, that divorce can be prevented by faithfully following this law which narrows the man’s focus on his wife, in a special way, in his first year of marriage. This will also naturally increase the opportunities for the marital bond and thus serve to make it more likely that children will be born to the couple as early in the marriage as possible.
Said exemption law promotes healthy, happy, harmonious marriages and families; it provided an opportunity for the love of the couple to take firm root; this allowed God to bless the couple with children. They provide a strong guard against divorce.
It is interesting that many Christians today put off having children, when God teaches the exact opposite. God is so concerned about marriage and fruitfulness that he wrote it into law!
One last note, modern Christians often wait until their children are grown and out of the house before they divorce. In this common cultural practice, we see that children can be a protection against divorce. God hates divorce. Christian couples must strive to put away sin, fulfill their God-given duties, and strengthen their marriage.
It is never too late to obey God’s law, and seek to implement His principles. God’s law is wise and for our good.
