I find it interesting that the Bible makes instructions regarding newlyweds… and what lovely instructions!
Upon marrying a new wife, the new husband is not to do anything extra for a whole year. He is not to go to war, not to deal with any business, nothing… he’s supposed to be free, at home, for one year.
Amusing to me is the reason why he should stay home for a year; to cheer up the wife he’s taken. Now why would a new wife need cheering up? Wouldn’t she be just beside herself with joy at being joined to her loved one?
Having observed at first hand the changes a new wife must go through, I can now understand why she would need cheering up. My brother recently married and when his wife joined him, she left all her friends, her family, the home she had lived in her whole life, her church… her state. Although she was delighted in the fact that she was married, it did require a paradigm shift and dealing with reality. No wonder God commanded that the man should be at home to cheer up his wife!
Additionally, I think it would be wise to remember the culture to which this commandment was given. Very rarely were marriages formed out of mutual attraction which led to marriage. Usually, infants or young children were betrothed (promised) to their future mate – a choice made by the parents of the children without their input. Since an individual was considered an adult at the age of 12, marriages occurred at a very young age. The period of cheering up would be necessary, not only for the new wife to become acquainted with and grow in love with her new husband, but would also be needed because of immaturity of emotions; emotional responses do not fully mature until late-teens, early twenties.
All in all, I think the idea of the husband staying at home for a year is a wonderful one, however impractical in today’s society.
