The following article was taken originally from the following website: www.discover-the-truth.com
Some modern Christians have attempted to show that Deuteronomy 22:28-29 does not condone or sanction a rapist to marry the rape victim. The verse in question is very clear in Hebrew. It categorically states that if a woman (“virgin”) was raped in ancient of days, the penalty for the rapist is that he has to pay fifty shekels and he gets to marry the victim. He was never allowed to divorce her. The woman (“virgin”) has no say in this marriage.
Now I know it is hard for some Bible believers to accept this, I am in the same shoe as them when I first read the passage. My personal view in regards to this is, that the verse may have been inserted by men into the Bible to satisfy their evil lustful desires.
Here are some of the translations for Deuteronomy 22:28-29, notice they all agree that the verse in question is in relation to “rape”.
Deuteronomy 22:28:29 Translations
GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)
“28 This is what you must do when a man RAPES A VIRGIN who isn’t engaged. When the crime is discovered, 29 the man who had sexual intercourse with her must give the girl’s father 1¼ pounds of silver, and she will become his wife. Since HE RAPED HER, he can never divorce her as long as he lives.” – Deuteronomy 22:28-29
Good News Translation (GNT)
“28 “Suppose a man is caught RAPING A YOUNG WOMAN who is not engaged. 29 He is to pay her father the bride price of fifty pieces of silver, and she is to become his wife, because he FORCED HER TO HAVE INTERCOURSE WITH HIM. He can never divorce her as long as he lives.” – Deuteronomy 22:28-29
Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
“28 If a man encounters a young woman, a virgin who is not engaged, takes hold of her and RAPES HER, and they are discovered, 29 the man who raped her must give the young woman’s father 50 silver shekels, and she must become his wife because he violated her. He cannot divorce her as long as he lives.” – Deuteronomy 22:28-29
International Standard Version (ISV)
“28 “However, if a man meets a girl who isn’t engaged to be married, and HE SEIZES HER, RAPES HER, and is later found out, 29 then the man who RAPED HER must give 50 shekels of silver to the girl’s father. Furthermore, he must marry her. Because he violated her, he is to not divorce her as long as he lives.” – Deuteronomy 22:28-29
Living Bible (TLB)
“28-29 If a man RAPES A GIRL who is not engaged and is caught in the act, he must pay a fine[a] to the girl’s father and marry her; he may never divorce her.” – Deuteronomy 22:28-29
The Message (MSG)
“28-29 When a man comes upon a virgin who has never been engaged and grabs and RAPES HER and they are found out, the man who RAPED HER has to give her father fifty pieces of silver. He has to marry her because he took advantage of her. And he can never divorce her.” – Deuteronomy 22:28-29
Names of God Bible (NOG)
“28 This is what you must do when a man RAPES A VIRGIN who isn’t engaged. When the crime is discovered, 29 the man who had sexual intercourse with her must give the girl’s father 1¼ pounds of silver, and she will become his wife. Since he raped her, HE CAN NEVER DIVORCE HER AS LONG AS HE LIVES.” – Deuteronomy 22:28-29
New English Translation (NET Bible)
“28 Suppose a man comes across a virgin who is not engaged and overpowers and RAPES HER and they are discovered. 29 The man who has raped her must pay her father fifty shekels of silver and she must become his wife because he has violated her; he may never divorce her as long as he lives.” – Deuteronomy 22:28-29
New International Reader’s Version (NIRV)
“28 Suppose a man happens to see a virgin who hasn’t promised to marry another man. And the man who happens to see her RAPES HER. But someone discovers them. 29 Then the man must weigh out 20 ounces of silver. He must give it to her father. The man must marry the young woman, because he raped her. And he can never divorce her as long as he lives.” – Deuteronomy 22:28-29
New International Version (NIV)
“28 If a man happens to meet a virgin who is not pledged to be married and RAPES HER and they are discovered, 29 he shall pay her father fifty shekels[a] of silver. He must marry the young woman, for he has violated her. HE CAN NEVER DIVORCE HER AS LONG AS HE LIVES.” – Deuteronomy 22:28-29
New International Version – UK (NIVUK)
“28 If a man happens to meet a virgin who is not pledged to be married and RAPES HER and they are discovered, 29 he shall pay her father fifty shekels[a] of silver. He must marry the young woman, for he has violated her. HE CAN NEVER DIVORCE HER AS LONG AS HE LIVES.” – Deuteronomy 22:28-29
Expanded Bible (EXB)
“28 If a man meets a virgin who is not engaged to be married and FORCES HER TO HAVE SEXUAL RELATIONS WITH HIM [L grabs her and lies with her] and ·people find out about it [L is discovered], 29 the man who ·had sexual relations [L lay] with her must pay the girl’s father about ·one and one-fourth pounds [L fifty shekels] of silver. HE MUST ALSO MARRY THE GIRL, because he has ·dishonored [humiliated; RAPED] her, and HE MAY NEVER DIVORCE HER FOR AS LONG AS HE LIVES [Ex. 22:16–17].” – Deuteronomy 22:28-29
Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)
“28 “A man might find a virgin girl who is not engaged and FORCE HER TO HAVE SEXUAL RELATIONS WITH HIM. If other people see this happen, 29 he must pay the girl’s father 20 ounces of silver.[a] And THE GIRL WILL BECOME THE MAN’S WIFE, because he used her for sexual sin. He cannot divorce her all his life.” – Deuteronomy 22:28-29
New Century Version (NCV)
“28 If a man meets a virgin who is not engaged to be married and FORCES HER TO HAVE SEXUAL RELATIONS with him and people find out about it, 29 the man must pay the girl’s father about one and one-fourth pounds of silver. HE MUST ALSO MARRY THE GIRL, because he has dishonored her, and he may never divorce her for as long as he lives.” – Deuteronomy 22:28-29
The Voice (VOICE)
“28 If a man meets a girl who’s a virgin and who isn’t engaged to someone else, and HE FORCES HIMSELF ON HER, when what he’s done is discovered, 29 he must pay 20 ounces of silver to her father as a bride price, and SHE WILL BECOME HIS WIFE. He can’t ever divorce her after this because he’s dishonored her.” – Deuteronomy 22:28-29
Tree of Life Version (TLV)
“28 Suppose a man finds a young virgin who is not engaged, GRABS HER and lies with her, and they are discovered. 29 Then the man who lay with her is to give to the young woman’s father 50 pieces of silver, and she is to be his wife, since he has HUMILIATED HER—he may not send her away all his days.” – Deuteronomy 22:28-29
It is quite evident from the above translations that the verse in question talks about rape. And that is, the law allowed and endorsed a rapist to marry the rape victim. And he was never allowed to divorce her.
Biblical Commentaries
Here are some of the Christian exegesis for the above verse in question.
Chuck Smith Bible Commentary:
“NOW, IF YOU RAPED A GIRL, and she is a virgin, and she is not betrothed to someone else, then YOU”RE TO TAKE HER AS YOUR WIFE to pay her father fifty shekels of silver (Deuteronomy 22:23-29).” (Chuck Smith Bible Commentary – Deuteronomy 22:29 – online source https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/csc/deuteronomy-22.html )
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible – Unabridged:
“But if SHE WAS FORCED, THE MAN ONLY WHO COMMITTED THE RAPE was to suffer for the violence, which was regarded as a capital crime. In the case of a maiden not betrothed being seduced, the man was OBLIGED TO MARRY HER, and he forfeited the right possessed by other husbands of giving her a divorce. …”(Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible – Unabridged – Deuteronomy 22:29 – online source https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/jfu/deuteronomy-22.html )
Reverend and Dr. Graham R. Hamborg:
“However, there are laws deigned to protect women. For example, Exod 22:15 (16) states that ‘When a man seduces a virgin who is not engaged to be married, and lies with her, he shall give the bride-price for her and make her his wife.’ Deuteronomy 22:28-29 instructs that in a case of the RAPE of a virgin (…) the man is to make her his wife. … “ (Still Selling The Righteous – A Redaction-Critical Investigation Of Reasons For Judgement In Amos 2:6-16 [Published by T & T Clark International, 2012], by Graham R. Hamborg, page 211)
Author Mike Berner:
“A non-engaged virgin with a man, any non-married man. God says, ‘If a man find a damsel that is a virgin, which is not betrothed, and lay hold on her, and lie with her, and they be found; then the man that lay with her shall give unto the damsel’s father fifty shekels of silver, and she shall be his wife; because he hath humbled her, he may not put her away all his days’ (DEUTERONOMY 22:28-29). If a man RAPES A NON-ENGAGED VIRGIN (‘lay hold on her’), the man is fined, forced to marry the woman, and can never divorce her. No divorce, period. (Brave New Marriage [ISBN 9781609574857 – Printed in the United States of America, 2010], by Mike Berner, page 54)
Note: the following commentaries were taken with permission from br Ibn Anwar’s site, which can be visited here: www.unveiling-Christianity.org
Biblical scholars John Walton, Victor Matthew and Mark Chavalas in their The IVP Bible Background Commentary have the following on Deuteronomy 22:25-27 which is the context of verses 28 and 29:
“In this case, Israelite law adds another criterion by specifying the guiltlessness of the woman who is RAPED in the countryside, where her screams were unlikely to attract assistance. The assumption of her innocence is based on the implied resistance to the rape in this circumstance.” (Walton, J. H., Matthew, V. H., & Chavalas, M. W. (2000). The IVP Bible Background Commentary: The Old Testament. Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press. page 196)
Biblical scholar and historian Philip King who was a professor of Biblical Studies in the Department of Theology at Boston College and Dorot Professor of the Archeology of Israel in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at Hardvard University Lawrence Stager writes:
“RAPE IS REFERRED TO ONLY IN DEUTERONOMY, but with no sharp distinction between rape and seduction. THE RAPIST “SHALL GIVE FIFTY SHEKELS OF SILVER TO THAT YOUNG WOMAN’S FATHER, AND SHE SHALL BECOME HIS WIFE. Because he violated her, he shall not be permitted to divorce her as long as he lives.”(Deut. 22:29) The Payment in this case represents the mohar.” (King, P. J, & Stager, L. E. (2001). Life in Biblical Israel. In Douglas A. Knight (ed.), Library of Ancient Israel. Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press. page 60)
The late conservative Biblical scholar Peter Craigie who held several top posts such as head of the religious studies department at the University of Calgary in his commentary on Deuteronomy 22:28-29 writes as follows:
“28-29 (iv) The RAPE OF A SINGLE WOMAN. THE MAN USES FORCE ON THE WOMAN, who is a virgin and is not betrothed to a man; the two are discovered while the crime is being committed. In this case, the man must pay damages to the father, in the amount of fifty pieces (shekels) of silver, and HE MUST MARRY THE WOMAN.” (Craigie, P. C. (1976). The New International Commentary on the Old Testament: The Book of Deuteronomy. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. Eerdmans Publishing Co. page 295)
The late Biblical scholar and specialist in Hebrew studies Roger Whybray writes:
“Deuteronomy 22:22-29 deals with adultery and RAPE, and make distinctions between RAPE in the open country, where the woman is defenceless, and RAPE in the town, where it is held that she could have shouted for help. Rape of an unbetrothed virgin is punished by a payment to her father.” (Whybray, R. N. (2002). The Good Life in the Old Testament. Edinburgh, Scotland: T&T Clark. page 50)
Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Salve Regina University T. J. Wray writes:
“The crime of rape in the Bible is varied and complex. In the world of biblical antiquity, RAPE is largely viewed as a crime of disordered lust. Today, we know that it is about must more, but in the Bible, if an unengaged virgin is RAPED, she may actually be required TO MARRY HER RAPIST, and the rapist may must pay the girl’s father a fee for defiling his daughter (Deuteronomy 22:28-29)! Though Deuteronomy stipulates the death penalty for the rape of an engaged female (Deut. 22:25-27, there are numerous cases of vigilante justice for victims of RAPE (Gen 34:25-29; Judges 19-20; 2 Sam 13:22-29), which leads us to conclude that perhaps in ancient Israel, the long arm of the law often falls short when it comes to rape.” (Wray, T. J. (2011). What the Bible Really Tells Us: The Essential Guide to Biblical Literacy. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. page 142)
Dr. Gary Hall, Professor of Old Testament and Hebrew at Lincoln Christian Seminary in his commentary on Deuteronomy 22:28-29 write:
“22:28-29 If the girl who was violated was not married or engaged, the penalty was not death but a fine and the loss of the right of divorce. The law protected both the girl (economic security) and the father (loss of bride price). The girl’s loss of virginity would have made her virtually unmarriageable. In Exodus 22:16 the father could refuse to let the girl marry the seducer. There is some question whether the act in view here was rape (NIV) or consensual. The word of verse 25 (“seize”) was not used but an apparently more mild word which meant “take hold of.” However, the explanation that the man had violated the girl POINTS TOWARD RAPE. The expression was also used of Shechem’s treatment of Dinah (Gen. 34:2).” (Hall, G. H. (2000). The College Press NIV Commentary: Deuteronomy. United States: College Press Publishing Co. page 339)
Avid Christian pastor and Bible instructor Warren W. Wiersbe writes:
“According to the law, if a man RAPED A VIRGIN not engaged to be married, he had to pay her father a fine and marry her, and HE COULD NEVER DIVORCE HER (Deut. 2:28-29).” (Wiersbe, W. W. (2003). The Bible Exposition Commentary: Old Testament History. Colorado Springs, Colorado: Cook Communications Ministries. page 342)
The IVP Bible Background Commentary agrees that it is about rape:
“34:2 ravishing women. RAPE AS A MEANS OF OBTAINING A MARRIAGE CONTRACT WAS APPARENTLY ONE STRATAGEM used in the ancient Near East. Laws regulating the practice are found in Exodus 22:16-17, Deuteronomy 22:28-29, the Middle *Assyrian Laws and the *Hittite laws. These often REQUIRE THE RAPIST to pay an especially high bride price and sometimes forbid any possibility of divorce.” (Walton, J. H., Matthews, V. H., & Chavalas M. W. (2000). The IVP Bible Background Commentary, Old Testament: An indispensable resource for all students of the Bible, accessibly providing the cultural background of every passage in the Old Testament. Downers Grove, Illinois: Intervarsity Press. Page 66)
Thomas P. Lowry writes:
“Deuteronomy 20:10 describes the divinely approved course of action after successfully besieging a city: kill all the men and use the women any way that pleases you. On the smaller scale of the individual victim, we are advised in 22:28 that if a man RAPES A GIRL, he must pay the girl’s father FIFTY PIECES OF SILVER, MARRY THE GIRL, and never divorce her. Whether she wishes to marry her assailant is not in the text.” (Lowry, T. P. (2006). Sexual Misbehavior in the Civil War: A Compendium. United States: Xilbris Corporation. page 115)
Theologian Dr David Garland who is Dean of George W. Truett Theological Seminary at Baylor University and his wife Dr. Diana Garland write:
“It is also declared in Deuteronomy 22:28-29:
If a man meets a virgin who is not engaged, and seizes her and lies with her, and they are caught in the act, the man who lay with her shall give fifty shekels of silver to the young woman’s father, and she shall become his wife. Because he violated her he shall not be permitted to divorce her as long as he lives.
The law implicitly assumed that the RAPED VICTIM was not damaged goods, and it was BEST FOR HER TO MARRY THE ASSAILANT.” (Garland, D., & Garland, D. (2007). Flawed Families of the Bible: How God’s Grace Works Through Imperfect Relationships. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Brazos Press. page 78)
Biblical scholar Dr. Cheryl Anderson in Women, Ideology, and Violence: Critical Theory and the Construction of Gender in the Book of the Covenant and the Deuteronomic Law which is based on her PhD thesis writes the following:
“To review briefly the provisions in Deut. 22:22-29, the penalties for a male and female who have intercourse vary according to the female’s marital status. If the female is single and had been RAPED, THE MAN MUST MARRY THE FEMALE AND CANNOT DIVORCE HER (Deut. 22:28-29).” (Anderson, C. B. (2004). Women, Ideology, and Violence: Critical Theory and the Construction of Gender in the Book of the Covenant and the Deuteronomic Law. London: T&T Clark International. page 67)
The late theologian and president of the conservative Dallas Theological Seminary John F. Walvoord comments on the verse and clearly identifies it as rape:
“22:28-29. A man who RAPED AN UNBETROTHED virgin was forced to marry her (after paying the bride-price of 50 shekels to her father) and had to forfeit the right of divorce.” (Wolvoord, J. F., & Zuck, R. B. (1983). The Bible Knowledge Commentary: Old Testament. Colorade Sprins, Colorado: David C. Cook. page 303)
Regarded as one of the most influential Old Testament scholars of recent times Old Testament scholar and theologian Walter Brueggmann in his commentary on Deuteronomy 22:28-29 writes:
“22:28-29: As the laws proceed in a movement toward less severe affronts, the fifth case is, from the perspective of the text, the least severe (vv. 28-29). This case involved an unengaged virgin, that is, a woman not yet possessed by a man other than her father. The man is aggressive and SEIZES (TAPAS) HER…The man is fined and forfeits his right to a future divorce. Again the settlement must be made between the two men. The WOMAN HAS BEEN RAPED, but she is not even acknowledged in the settlement, except that SHE IS ASSIGNED TO A LIFELONG PARTNERSHIP WITH HER RAPIST.” (Brueggmann, W. (2001). Abingdon Old Testament Commentaries: Deuteronomy. Nashville, Tennessee: Abingdon Press. page 225)
Anthropologist and academic Robin Fox writes:
“Jewish law stated that a man who RAPED A VIRGIN should pay her bride-price and be required to marry her (Exodus 22:16, Deuteronomy 22:28), but it is not said how this would apply to incestuous RAPE.” (Fox, R. (2011). The Tribal Imagination: Civilization and the Savage Mind. United States: Harvard University Press. page 141 – 142)
Conservative Evangelical Old Testament scholar Walter Kaiser Jr. who is Colman M. Mockler distinguished Professor of Old Testament writes:
“There are two cases in Deuteronomy 22:19-29 that record that divorce was denied on the basis of whim with attempted false slander or in the case of RAPE OF A VIRGIN for whom the man then gave the bride-price.” (Kaiser Jr., W. (1991). Toward Old Testament Ethics. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House. page 201)
Laurie L. Levenson who is David W. Burcham Chair in Ethical Advocacy at Loyola Law School in The Oxford Handbook of Jewish Ethics and Morality writes:
“The biblical laws on RAPE AND SEXUAL ASSAULT seem antiquated when they call upon women to resist their attackers, cry out for help, and be amenable to “PUNISHMENT” OF THE DEFENDANT BY REQUIRING HIM TO MARRY THE VICTIM or pay a fine.” (Levenson, L. L. (2013). Judaism and Criminal Justice. In Elliot N. Dorf & Jonathan K. Crane (eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Jewish Ethics and Morality. New York: Oxford University Press. page 479)
The above is footnoted with the following:
“Deuteronomy 22:28-29 (“and she shall be his wife, because he humbled her; and he may not put her away all his days”); Haim H. Cohn, “SEXUAL OFFENSES” (1952), in Elon, ed., The Principles of Jewish Law (at note 8 above), p. 485. He notes there that apart from specified acts, “RAPE as such is not a criminal offense in Jewish law” but requires compensation to the victim.” (Levenson, L. L. (2013). Judaism and Criminal Justice. In Elliot N. Dorf & Jonathan K. Crane (eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Jewish Ethics and Morality. New York: Oxford University Press. page 484 (footnote 54))
Christian author Gary Field writes:
“F. In INSTANCES OF RAPE:
….
2) Where the woman is an unbetrothed virgin, THE MAN WAS REQUIRED TO MARRY HER AND NEVER DIVORCE HER (Deuteronomy 22:28-29)” (Fields, G. E. (2010). All You Ever Wanted to Know About Exodus 20… And a Little Bit More. United States: Xulon Press. page 224)
In conclusion, readers would be aware that the context and the scholarly exegesis both, hand in hand agree that the verse in question speaks about rape. We see, that in the ancient of days a rape victim would have to marry the rapist. The victim most times, as was the law, had no choice but to marry the rapist.
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Related article:
(1) – “Biblical Law Forces Rapist To Marry Victim (‘anah/inna’)”
(2) – “Christin Country: Mozambique: Punishment for Sexually Raped Children and Women”
(3) – “Video: Couple Accused Of Raping Orphaned Teen For Years — And Using The Bible To Justify It” (* * *)
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