Introduction: The picture on the right has been distributed throughout the internet, to hundreds if not thousands of web pages. What it purports to do is list a number of different marriage configurations which are found in the Bible. Their purposes for this graphic are: (1) to shake the faith of the believer; and (2) to sell gay marriage (which this movement has renamed marriage equality). I suppose the idea is, there are all of these various kinds of marriages in the Bible—so why not gay marriage too?

They are not interested in the truth. What the Bible really says about the alternate marriages listed is not of any interest to these people. No one is going to read this examination of alternate marriages in the Bible and say, “Oops, got that one wrong. Let me redo this graphic to reflect that.” The study which follows is for believers; this is an examination of these passages for any believer who saw this graphic and perhaps was a little shaken by it. Furthermore, bear in mind, you are going to see a lot of dishonest graphics on the internet. Those on the left seem to love them. The graphics will defend liberals and Democrats, but mostly, they attack conservatives and Republicans, as well as disparage the Bible and the laws of divine establishment.

Preface:   With the advent of gay marriage, a relatively new idea, one of the arguments made is, the Bible is filled with alternative sorts of marriages; and the Bible never speaks against gay marriage; therefore, Christians ought to support gay marriage or marriage equality. There is also a somewhat dishonest and misleading graphic which is distributed on the internet, giving examples of alternatives to marriage found in Scripture, with the implicit suggestion that, if these are okay in the Bible, why not gay marriage? We will go through these alternatives one by one.

1.     First the general point: the Bible presents an honest approach to the history of man and his relationship to God. The mistakes and sins of men are not covered over, justified, or adopted as legitimate. So one cannot point to this or that thing done in the Bible and say, “God must like that.” Even the most jaded Bible critic does not think that God was in favor of Cain killing Abel. Similarly, there are a whole host of other things which occur in Scripture which do not invoke divine approbation.

2.     Jesus states the general principle of marriage in Matt. 19. The pharisees, as they often did, were looking to trip Jesus up, so they asked Him about divorce. This is how He responded: "Have you not read that He Who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, 'Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate." (Matt. 19:4–6; ESV mostly). This is the clear principle of marriage—one man and one woman, based upon creation and restoration. Then they said to Him, "Why then did Moses command one to give a certificate of divorce and to send her away?" He said to them, "Because of the scar tissue in your hearts, Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. And I say to you: whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery." (Matt. 19:7–9; mostly the ESV).

        1)     Therefore, marriage, as God designed it, is between one man and one woman. Divorce is a matter of the actions and thinking of men with sin natures (“Because of the scar tissue on your heart”).

        2)     At no time in the Bible does God endorse or condone any sort of alternative to the marriage of one man and one woman.

        3)     There are those who claim Jesus never says anything about homosexuality and gay marriage; however, here, He lays out clearly what marriage is. It is not necessary for Jesus to tell us what marriage is not. No one reading this passage comes away thinking, “Well, He seems to have left the door open for a man marrying his flat screen tv.” He didn’t leave that door open.

3.     Marriage is, in fact, is one of the divine institutions, which is essential to the stabilization of a society. Therefore, marriage is designed for the human race, and not just for Christians.

        1)     The divine institutions are the function of the human soul, work, marriage, family and nationalism. See the Doctrine of Divine Establishment (HTML) (PDF) (WPD) for an examination of the divine institutions.

        2)     Movements or philosophies which are against every person working, which are against a marriage between a man and a woman, which are against the nuclear family, and which are against nationalism, are also against God and against the people in that geographical area.

        3)     A society where marriage is supported and valued is a society which will prosper; a society which promotes marriage alternatives will not. The same can be said for any of the divine institutions listed.

4.     The Bible clearly deals with the problems of alternatives to His prescribed plan for marriage. We have the problem of polygamy as well as the problem of a man having a mistress (concubine):

        1)     The graphic reads: MAN + WOMAN + WOMAN + WOMAN... (POLYGAMY) — [several examples are then listed of those in the Bible are were polygamists]

        2)     King David had around 10 wives and 10 mistresses (concubines). Essentially, all of his children became wards of the state—that is, the taxpayers of Israel paid for these children, much like welfare/section 8 housing/food stamps today. Because their father David was distracted with being the king, with having too many wives and too many children, and with skirt-chasing, these children grew up committing several crimes, including rape and murder; and one led a revolution against King David. At no time was David’s lifestyle condoned by God or held up as an example in Scripture as a legitimate alternative to marriage.

        3)     King Solomon, David’s son, had about 1000 wives and mistresses, and still writes in the Song of Solomon of the frustration of not being able to score with just one more woman (the Shulamite woman).

        4)     Just because something occurs in the Bible, that does not mean that God approves of it. Kings David and Solomon’s polygamous marriages were problems for both of these men.

The Marriage Equality graphic comes from this liberal marriage equality website, accessed July 24, 2013. However, this particular graphic has been picked up and displayed upon hundreds of websites, if not thousands.

5.     The intent of such a graphic:

        1)     To cast aspersions on the Bible; to attempt to make it seem as a silly and outdated book with weird customs.

        2)     To present each of those customs spoken of in the Bible in their very worst possible light. The theme which is put before us again and again is, the men are pigs, the treat the women like property or worse, and these marriages represent the great sexism of the Bible.

        3)     These customs are always presented in such a way as to suggest that God gives His blessing to each of these different kinds of marriages.

        4)     By comparison, marriage between two members of the same gender should seem reasonable.

6.     This graphic may be dishonest, but it may also be simply a misunderstanding on the part of the marriage equality proponents. However, as already noted, marriage equality proponents will not change their graphic or take it off their website, even if they find out that it is dishonest. These people suggest that there is a third form of marriage in the Bible where a man simply takes a slave girl as his mistress (this refers back to Abraham in Gen. 16). This third form of marriage on this list is not really a marriage.

        1)     The graphic reads:

MAN + WOMAN + WOMAN’S PROPERTY GENESIS 16

———————

•man could acquire his wife’s property including her slaves

        2)     Sometimes a family owned slaves, sometimes a family business owned slaves, sometimes the husband owned personal slaves and sometimes the wife owned personal slaves. The only reason for this being listed above is, the person who made this chart simply does not understand that this is nowhere presented as a marriage in the Bible. Perhaps it was added to have an even 8 forms of marriage.

        3)     I think what the author of this graphic wanted was to show slavery as being okay in the Bible.

        4)     Maybe they were suggesting that the man could have sex with his wife’s female slaves? Whatever the purpose, it is clear in the Bible that Abraham having a son by Sarah’s personal maid was a bad idea.

7.     What about men in the Bible who have wives and mistresses?

        1)     The graphic reads: MAN + WIVES + CONCUBINES —— [Then a list of various men who had mistresses follows]

        2)     Abraham was talked into having sex with his wife’s personal maid in order to produce a child to fulfill the promises made by God (this was Sarah, his wife’s idea, not his, and certainly not God’s). Abraham agreed to this, and there were resultant problems in his marriage and in the interaction between the descendants of this son of this union (Ishmael) and the Jews, who are descended from Abraham and Sarah. Eventually, God had Hagar, the maid, and her son, separate from Abraham’s family. Essentially, Hagar acted as a surrogate, something which is not encouraged in any way in Scripture.

        3)     Elsewhere in Scripture, there are marriages which include mistresses (concubines). This is never presented as God’s ideal, any more than polygamy is (this is simply a form of polygamy).

        4)     The one person who could most easily collect wives is a king, and the Bible specifically forbids kings from taking several wives. This same passage also forbids a king from taking a huge amount of gold and silver to himself as well (also common temptations for a king). Deut. 17:17

8.     In the Bible, there is something known as a levirate marriage,

        1)     The graphic reads:

MAN + BROTHER’S WIDOW

(LEVIRATE MARRIAGE)

Genesis 38:6–10

——————————

•widow who had not borne a son required to marry her brother in law

•Must submit sexually to her new husband

        2)     The levirate marriage is described here: "If brothers dwell together, and one of them dies and has no son, the wife of the dead man shall not be married outside the family to a stranger. Her husband's brother shall go in to her and take her as his wife and perform the duty of a husband's brother to her. And the first son whom she bears shall succeed to the name of his dead brother, that his name may not be blotted out of Israel. And if the man does not wish to take his brother's wife, then his brother's wife shall go up to the gate to the elders and say, `My husband's brother refuses to perpetuate his brother's name in Israel; he will not perform the duty of a husband's brother to me.' Then the elders of his city shall call him and speak to him, and if he persists, saying, `I do not wish to take her,' then his brother's wife shall go up to him in the presence of the elders and pull his sandal off his foot and spit in his face. And she shall answer and say, `So shall it be done to the man who does not build up his brother's house.' And the name of his house shall be called in Israel, `The house of him who had his sandal pulled off.' (Deut. 25:5–10; ESV mostly). This is first mentioned in Gen. 38:6–10 And Judah took a wife for Er his firstborn, and her name was Tamar. But Er, Judah's firstborn, was wicked in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord put him to death. Then Judah said to Onan, "Go in to your brother's wife and perform the duty of a brother-in-law to her, and raise up offspring for your brother." But Onan knew that the offspring would not be his. So whenever he went in to his brother's wife he would waste the semen on the ground, so as not to give offspring to his brother. And what he did was wicked in the sight of the Lord, and he put him to death also.

        3)     The passage in Genesis suggests that this was a long-standing tradition, but no information is given to how this was started. However, this tradition was practiced by more than just the Hebrews, and, in some cultures, it was required (which is not the case for the Bible).

        4)     As a general principle, it should be noted that the Law of Moses was given to a particular people at a particular time within the confines of a particular culture. When applying the Mosaic Law to today, one needs to examine if the principles still hold up in the New Testament or whether they simply regulate practices in the ancient world. If a particular culture norm or practice disappears from society, then there is no longer a need to regulate that practice. However, at the same time, there are principles for things no longer found in our country (slavery for instance) which can be applied to analogous situations (some of the principles of slavery can be applied to the relationship between a business and its workers).

        5)     When it comes to the levirate marriage law, notice that this is not just for any set of brothers; these are brothers who dwell together; that is, they live in the same house or on the same compound. This could be applied by a family not living together, but the passage in Deuteronomy suggests this is the most common application.

        6)     The reason for this is, Jewish families in Israel were given a specific piece of land as an inheritance. One of the applications of a levirate marriage is, every family retained that piece of land for time and eternity. That is, this land grant was something which is for eternity as well. That does not mean that the typical Jewish family will be resurrected right there, in front of their old house; but that the land is both a temporal and an eternal inheritance for the Jews. Therefore, a custom of the ancient world was given some spiritual significance.

        7)     If a man is married, but dies before impregnating his wife, his brother is could be called upon to impregnate the wife, with the understanding that the son from that initial union would be as if he is the son of the man who has died, and by this, he would carry on his “father’s” name, inherit his “father’s” estate. It appears that the surviving brother would be responsible to some degree for this woman; and that the resulting son would be responsible for his mother when that time came. The way that this would work is, the first son would be heir to the husband who had died. The remainder of the children born would be heirs to their natural father.

        8)     This would be just as if a man had a son, went to war, died in that war, and his brother took up for him in the marriage. With one slight exception: the son would actually have been fathered by the brother.

        9)     When this was codified into Law by Moses, Moses was taking the long-standing concept of a levirate marriage and applying it to the concept of the continuing inheritance of Israel. That is, Israel had a real and eternal inheritance, because of their relationship to their father and because of their relationship to God. The Mosaic Law took several long-standing customs of that time period and gave them boundaries and limitations (slavery is an example of this).

        10)   In the illustration of Onan above, the problem was not in exercising a method of birth control, but that he had agreed to raise up a son to his brother, but did not. He enjoyed the sexual union with his brother’s wife, but intentionally did not impregnate her. That was contrary to the custom of that time.

        11)   In 2013 America, we have a very difficult time relating to this tradition, because so many men have married women who are not virgins. However, once a woman was taken in marriage, it was a rare situation where she would be considered by another man for marriage. She would not be a virgin, and that was, in most cases, a deal breaker. You may like this and you may not, but that was reality for millennia. Women having sex with several men has become much more widespread beginning in the 1960's. However, prior to this, marriage between two virgins was actually quite common. In some geographic areas, a marriage between virgins was the norm.

        12)   In the past, the union of just one man with just one woman was seen as God’s design for all mankind; so that once the husband or the wife passed, the remaining person had already tasted and enjoyed this unique relationship. In most cases, there was no second wife or second husband after the death of a spouse.

        13)   This levirate tradition preserved the name of the husband who had died and provided for the woman of the husband who had died.

        14)   A woman whose husband has died without any sons has no sons to take care of her; and, in that society, was going to have a very difficult time making it. Men did not tend to marry women who were not virgins, so such a woman was in a difficult circumstance. She often would remain unmarried and unprovided for. The Levirate marriage provides for such a woman in that society.

        15)   It should be clear that in the Law, this was not compulsory, but there was strong social pressure on the brother to fulfill this duty.

        16)   It should be clear by the narrative in Gen. 38 that, this was something which the woman, Tamar, truly wanted (I did not complete the narrative as it went too far afield of this study).

        17)   Tamar was tied now to Judah’s family, having married his firstborn. But, since her husband died, that broke the bond, and there was no longer a tie to his family. Furthermore, Tamar was no longer protected or provided for (Judah sent her packing to live with her own father).

        18)   In other words, the levirate marriage was just as important to the woman as it was to the husband who had passed; in fact, much more so. It is presented from the viewpoint of the deceased husband, but the levirate marriage gives the woman a proper place in society, which the death of her husband had taken from her.

        19)   If the woman did not desire a child in this way, then a levirate relation was not pursued.

        20)   An application of levirate marriage is found in the book of Ruth, where a relative, Boaz, preserved the inheritance for Ruth, whose husband died before he could father children by her. He was her kinsman-redeemer and is a picture of Jesus Christ. See exegesis of the Book of Ruth (HTML) for further information.

9.     A man marrying his rape victim is not accurate.

        1)     The graphic reads:

RAPIST + HIS VICTIM

Deuteronomy 22:29–29

———————

•virgin who is raped must marry her rapist

•Rapist must pay victim’s father 50 shekels of silver for property loss

        2)     There are several pertinent passages, which need to be taken together. Ex. 22:16–17 "If a man seduces a virgin who is not betrothed and lies with her, he shall give the bride-price for her and make her his wife. If her father utterly refuses to give her to him, he shall pay money equal to the bride-price for virgins.” Deut. 22:23–29 "If there is a betrothed virgin, and a man meets her in the city and lies with her, then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city, and you shall stone them to death with stones, the young woman because she did not cry for help though she was in the city, and the man because he violated his neighbor's wife. So you shall purge the evil from your midst. But if in the open country a man meets a young woman who is betrothed, and the man seizes her and lies with her, then only the man who lay with her shall die. But you shall do nothing to the young woman; she has committed no offense punishable by death. For this case is like that of a man attacking and murdering his neighbor, because he met her in the open country, and though the betrothed young woman cried for help there was no one to rescue her. If a man meets a virgin who is not betrothed, and seizes her and lies with her, and they are found, then the man who lay with her shall give to the father of the young woman fifty shekels of silver, and she shall be his wife, because he has violated her. He may not divorce her all his days.”

        3)     In Ex. 22:16–17, the man seduces the woman and takes her virginity. Her father makes the final determination whether a marriage will be allowed. The logic of the father making the decision here is, if she allowed herself to be seduced, she may not have the most objective viewpoint.

        4)     In Deut. 22:23–29, there are three different situations proposed; and three different outcomes. The first has a woman betrothed to be married, but before the marriage, she is sexually taken by a man. Because this occurs in the city, both she and the man are stoned to death because she could have protested loudly if this was rape so that others could hear her.

        5)     In Deut. 22:25–27, a man has sex with a woman who is a betrothed virgin. There is a verb here used to indicate that force was used; and because the woman could not call out and receive help, the man is stoned to death.

        6)     Finally, in Deut. 22:28–29, it sounds as if it is a similar situation to those previous verses, but there are several differences: (1) she is not betrothed to be married, but she is a virgin; and (2) the second verb used is different, which does not necessarily mean that this woman is raped. The verb found in v. 25 is clearly rape; but the verb found in v. 27 is not necessarily rape. So what are the options? Ex. 22:17 is applicable if she is seduced, which allows the father of the woman to make the determination of allowing them to get married or not. Ex. 22:27 tells us that, if she is raped, the man should be stoned to death. Deut. 22:29 is not a new law, but it simply designates the amount that the man must pay to marry her. (3) So the woman of Deut. 22:28–29 has not been raped. The man may have been quite aggressive here, but she has not cried out that she is being raped (as in v. 27), and yet they are still discovered. Therefore, this occurs in a populated area. (4) In v. 29, she is said to be humbled. This is because she was a virgin and now she is no longer a virgin. Again, this is something very difficult for people in our society to understand. In any case, this is not a woman who has been raped and the rapist now gets to marry her.

        7)     A reasonable objection at this point is, what about my Bible translation? It has the word “rape” in it? See the Addendum below, where this passage is exegeted word-by-word.

10.   The male soldier and the prisoner of war.

        1)     The graphic reads:

MALE SOLDIER + PRISONER OF WAR

Numbers 31:1–18, Deuteronomy 21:11–14

—————————————

•under Moses’ command, Israelites kill every Midianite man, woman and child; save for the virgin girls who are taken as spoils of war

•Wives must submit sexually to their new owners

        2)     Num. 31:1–18 is about taking vengeance against Midian. God gave Israel a direct order concerning Midian, which would suggest that God knows what He is doing. All of them were to be killed, with the exception of the virgin women. They had not made a choice, to the point, to marry a Midianite. All of the Midianites were to be killed, except for the women who were virgins, who could be taken as wives.

        3)     Deut. 21:10–14 "When you go out to war against your enemies, and the LORD your God gives them into your hand and you take them captive, and you see among the captives a beautiful woman, and you desire to take her to be your wife, and you bring her home to your house, she shall shave her head and pare her nails. And she shall take off the clothes in which she was captured and shall remain in your house and lament her father and her mother a full month. After that you may go in to her and be her husband, and she shall be your wife. But if you no longer delight in her, you shall let her go where she wants. But you shall not sell her for money, nor shall you treat her as a slave, since you have humiliated her.” In war, if a man is taken by the beauty of a woman, she may be taken to his home to be married. In the war, this means that her family has been killed. The man is to spend a month with her, after she has shaved her head, cut back her nails, and has mourned for her parents. This woman would look her worst and feel her worst. If after this, the man still desires her as his wife, he may take her as his wife. If he, after this month’s time, is no longer enthralled by her, then the soldier must allow her to leave freely. She cannot be sold into slavery or kept as a slave.

                 (1)    Some points need to be made here. When Israel came to the Land of Promise, everyone knew who they were and who their God was. What God had done for these slaves was unprecedented in history.

                 (2)    As they moved along the eastern coast of the Dead Sea, the other peoples could have brought them food and allowed them to pass through; or they could have caused the Jews trouble. The Midianites caused the Jews trouble, so they are beat down by the God of the Jews. Therefore, this becomes common knowledge among the people of that region.

                 (3)    When the Jews entered into the land, the various peoples there could make war with them or make peace with them. In some cases, individuals from an enemy group would ally themselves with the Jews.

                 (4)    When a nation decided to go to war against the Jews, they were doing this with the full knowledge that the God of Israel had delivered them out of Egypt against one of the greatest armies of that time; and that all who opposed the Jews when they came up the King’s Highway were defeated.

                 (5)    Rejecting the Jews was tantamount to rejecting the God of the Jews. Therefore, those who rejected the Jews would face warfare on earth and eternal damnation. Those who accepted the Jews were received with peace and blessing, and most of these are in Abraham’s bosom right now.

                 (6)    God allows the Jew soldiers to keep virgins alive for themselves, as long as certain steps were followed. In ancient wars, whether waged by Jews or by some other group, almost the entire population would either be killed or placed into slavery (a notable exception would be when a country is conquered and afterward they pay a tribute to the conquering country for the next few years or decades, as in the first few verses of Gen. 14).

                 (7)    What this was not was an opportunity for a soldier to take home a woman from every battle, have sex with her for a month, and then cut her loose. It was after a month that they chose to become married; and that would involve sex at that time.

                 (8)    I would guess, in most circumstances, the man would explain to the woman what the options were. It would be logical that some women, based upon the circumstances, would absolutely reject the Jewish soldier. That means no marriage and she goes free.

                 (9)    The only analogous situation that we have today are men who have fought in Vietnam or in Korea or in the Philippines at various times who have taken a wife from that area. In some cases, these were women who came from those who opposed the Americans; but such women chose to ally themselves with the Americans. While this is not an exact parallel, in an historical context, it is very similar. No one would look down on the marriage of a soldier and a woman from North Korea or North Vietnam. Similarly, a man who takes a bride from the enemy camp was not an unusual thing for that era (one would have to assume that there is some willingness on the part of the woman).

                 (10)  Throughout this liberal graphic, the free will of the woman is presented as not being an issue. However, that is not necessarily the case for the passages noted or anywhere else in the Bible. The Bible does speak of living with an unhappy woman. Prov. 27:15 reads: A wife that always wants to argue is like water that never stops dripping on a rainy day. (ERV) Similar passages are found here: Prov. 19:13 21:9, 19 25:24. Any man who has forced or even coerced a woman into doing something that she did not want to do has rarely found a good result. In the Bible, when you married a woman, you wanted her onboard. You did not just take whatever woman, and that was that.

11.   A male slave and a female slave.

        1)     The graphic reads:

MALE SLAVE + FEMALE SLAVE

Exodus 21:4

————————

•slave owner could assign female slaves to his male slaves

•female slaves must submit sexually to their new husbands

        2)     Ex. 21:4–6 If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall be her master's, and he shall go out alone. But if the slave plainly says, 'I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free,' then his master shall bring him to God, and he shall bring him to the door or the doorpost. And his master shall bore his ear through with an awl, and he shall be his slave forever. Essentially, this is one man and one woman in marriage, with the added fact that they are both slaves.

        3)     In slavery, there were strict laws placed upon it in the Mosaic Law. There was a time period for which a slave could be owned and there were other constraints.

        4)     Also, in slavery, the owner was to provide for the slaves. Here, the slave owner is providing a marriage partner. Note that the slave has the choice here of leaving or remaining, once his time is up.

        5)     Note that there is nothing said here about the female slave being required to submit to the male slave. Also take note of the significant difference of the language. In the graphic, the slave owner assigns a female slave to the male slave; however, in the text of Exodus, the slave owner gives a female slave to the male slave. These are very different words in the Hebrew. These things were added by this dishonest graphic. Liberals understand the power of hyperbolic language.

        6)     Although nothing is said in Exodus about the volition of the woman, that does not mean that she had no say in this matter. The focus of this law is upon a male slave being provided a wife by his master.

        7)     As an aside, what we think of as slavery was not allowed in the Bible. You could not go out, find a few men, capture them, and then sell them as slaves (Ex. 21:16). That was not allowed in the Bible; that is known as man-stealing and it was a sin. However, a person could work off his debts as a slave; and a person captured in war could be allowed to live and to serve as a slave.

        8)     Slaves to Jewish families had a much better time of it than slaves to a nation such as Egypt, because slavery was tightly regulated by the Mosaic Law.

12.   In short, there are 3 problems with many of these objections or characterizations which are made of marriages in the Bible:

        1)     Just because something is found in the Bible, that does not mean that God condones it.

        2)     Some of the “marriages” listed above are misrepresented in the description. Whether honestly or dishonestly, I cannot say. But, I can pretty much guarantee that, if they read this and understand the correct interpretation, they will not take down or revise their inaccurate graphics. They are not interested in truth; they are interested in changing minds in favor of gay marriage and against the Bible.

        3)     Finally, in many cases, proponents of gay marriage who distribute these graphics completely ignore the historical context and apply all current norms and standards to these ancient cultures. Such proponents would not like to see this reversed on them, or they would be executed (homosexual behavior was not just a sin but a crime punishable by death in the Old Testament).

As an aside, the information presented in this study is accurate; however, this is not to give you ammo for a come-back. Remember, when dealing with unbelievers, there is only one issue, and that is Jesus Christ. It is fine to discuss whatever with the unbeliever, but you need to always take this back to the most important issue, “What do you think of Christ?”

Addendum

Two word clouds follow...

Word Cloud for the Doctrine of Marriage Alternatives in the Bible

The word cloud above pertains to this doctrine that you are reading. You will note what stands out are the words which are used the most; and those words are exactly what this study is about.

Word Cloud for Robert Cargill’s Page on “Biblical Marriage”

There are many, many pages which feature the dishonest graphic on Biblical marriage. It is not that these pages are hosted by great Biblical scholars, or men who want to get the truth out—most of them do not believe in the Bible and most of them are not believers in Jesus Christ. This particular webpage probably had more about marriage than any of the others which I glanced at (I only looked at a half-dozen). However, those people of the liberal persuasion spread their message far and wide on the internet. This graphic is probably found on hundreds of facebook pages, and on hundreds—maybe thousands, of personal web pages. These people often have an agenda, and that agenda is often two-fold: (1) to denigrate the Bible and to present that which is found in the Bible in the worst possible light; and (2) to promote gay marriage.

Note that in the Word Cloud above, the word gay is more prominent than the name Jesus. This tells you much of what you need to know about this webpage.

——————————

The Exegesis of Deuteronomy 22:23–29

You may have gone through this study and thought, well, hmm, some translators have the woman marrying a rapist. Why are you right and they are wrong? So, what follows is an exegetical study of Deut. 22:23–29, so that you see every word that is here, just exactly what it means, with the Strong and BDB numbers provided, so that you can double-check my work.

The translation which follows comes directly from the exegesis of Deut. 22 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Ancient texts:

Targum of Onkelos                If a damsel a virgin is betrothed to a man, and another man find her in the city, and lie with her, they shall bring forth both of them to the door of the beth din of that city, and stone them with stones that they die; the damsel because she did not cry out in the city, and the man because he lay with his neighbour's wife; and you shall put away the evil doer from among you. But if a man find a damsel in the wilderness, and do violence to her and lie with her, the man only shall die who lay with her, for the damsel is not guilty of death; but her husband may put her away from him by a bill of divorcement; for as when a man lieth in wait for his neighbour and taketh his life, so is this matter: he found her upon the face of the field ; the betrothed damsel cried out for help, but there was no one to deliver her.

Latin Vulgate                          If a man have espoused a damsel that is a virgin, and some one find her in the city, and lie with her, You will bring them both out to the gate of that city, and they will be stoned: the damsel, because she cried not out, being in the city: the man, because he has humbled his neighbour”s wife. And you will take away the evil from the midst of you.

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        For he is a girl a virgin betrothed to a man and finds her a man in the city and he has lain with her; and you [plural] have brought a two of them unto a gate of the city the that, and you [plural] have stoned them in the stones and they have died—a girl upon a word that she had not called out [for help] in the city and the man upon a word that he humbled a woman of his neighbor. And you have removed the evil from a midst of you.

Peshitta (Syriac)                    If there is a damsel who is a virgin and who is betrothed to a man, and another man find her in the city and lie with her; Then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city, and you shall stone them with stones, that they die; the damsel, because she did not cry for help, being in the city; and the man, because he has treated shamefully his neighbors wife; so shall you put away evil from among you.

Septuagint (Greek)                And if there be a young woman espoused to a man, and a man should have found her in the city and have lain with her; you shall bring them both out to the gate of their city, and they shall be stoned with stones, and they shall die; the young woman, because she cried not in the city; and the man, because he humbled his neighbor's spouse: so shall you remove the evil one from yourselves.

Significant differences: 

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

Common English Bible           If a young woman who is a virgin is engaged to one man and another man meets up with her in a town and has sex with her, you must bring both of them to the city gates there and stone them until they die-the young woman because she didn't call for help in the city, and the man because of the fact that he humiliated his neighbor's wife.

Remove such evil from your community!.

Contemporary English V.       If a man is caught in town having sex with an engaged woman who isn't screaming for help, they both must be put to death. The man is guilty of having sex with a married woman. And the woman is guilty because she didn't call for help, even though she was inside a town and people were nearby. Take them both to the town gate and stone them to death. You must get rid of the evil they brought into your community.

Easy English                          Perhaps a man may meet a girl in a town. She has already promised to marry another man, but they have sex together. Then you must take both of them to the gate of that town. There you must throw stones at both of them until they die. The girl must die because she did not scream for help in the town. The man must die because he had sex with the future wife of another man.

Easy-to-Read Version            “A man might meet a virgin [139] girl engaged to another man. He might have sexual relations with her. If this happens in the city, then you must bring them both out to the public place near the gate of that city, and you must kill them with stones. You must kill the man, because he used another man’s wife for sexual sin. And you must kill the girl, because she was in the city but did not call for help. You must remove that evil from your people.

Good News Bible (TEV)         "Suppose a man is caught in a town having intercourse with a young woman who is engaged to someone else. You are to take them outside the town and stone them to death. She is to die because she did not cry out for help, although she was in a town, where she could have been heard. And the man is to die because he had intercourse with someone who was engaged. In this way you will get rid of this evil.

The Message                         If a man comes upon a virgin in town, a girl who is engaged to another man, and sleeps with her, take both of them to the town gate and stone them until they die--the girl because she didn't yell out for help in the town and the man because he raped her, violating the fiancée of his neighbor. You must purge the evil from among you.

New Century Version             If a man meets a virgin in a city and has sexual relations with her, but she is engaged to another man, you must take both of them to the city gate and put them to death by throwing stones at them. Kill the girl, because she was in a city and did not scream for help. And kill the man for having sexual relations with another man's wife. You must get rid of the evil among you.

New Life Bible                        "If a girl who has never had a man is promised in marriage to a man, another man might find her in the city and lie with her. Then you must bring them both to the gate of that city and kill them with stones. Put the girl to death because she did not cry for help in the city, and the man because he has sinned against his neighbor's wife. So you will get rid of the sin from among you.

New Living Translation           "Suppose a man meets a young woman, a virgin who is engaged to be married, and he has sexual intercourse with her. If this happens within a town, you must take both of them to the gates of that town and stone them to death. The woman is guilty because she did not scream for help. The man must die because he violated another man's wife. In this way, you will purge this evil from among you.

The Voice                               What if a man meets a girl who's a virgin but who's engaged to someone else, and he has sexual relations with her? If this happens in the city, bring them both out to the gate of that city where the public will stone them to death: the girl, because she was in the city and could have cried for help but didn't, meaning she consented; and the man, because he violated another man's wife. Expel the wicked from your community this way.

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          'And if a young woman is already engaged to a man, and another man in the city has sex with her, you must bring them both outside the city gate and stone them to death with rocks. her, because she didn't scream; and him, because he dishonored the woman of his neighbor. So, you must remove the evil ones from among yourselves.

Beck’s American Translation “If in a town a man finds a young virgin who is engaged to another man and he lies with her, take them both to the gate of that town and stone them to death, the birl because she didn’t cry out, being in the town, and the man because he sexually violated another man’s wife; and so you must get ride of such wickedness among you.

God’s Word™                         This is what you must do when a man has sexual intercourse with a virgin who is engaged to another man. If this happens in a city, take them to the gate of the city and stone them to death. The girl must die because she was in a city and didn't scream for help. The man must die because he had sex with another man's wife. You must get rid of this evil.

New Advent (Knox) Bible       A man has fallen in with a maid betrothed to some other, and mated with her. Was it done in the city? Then both must be taken to the city gate and stoned to death; she, because she made no outcry, with all the city close at hand, he, because he robbed his neighbour's wife of her maidenhood.

New American Bible              "If within the city a man comes upon a maiden who is betrothed [A maiden who is betrothed: a girl who is married but not yet brought to her husband's home and whose marriage is therefore still unconsummated.], and has relations with her, you shall bring them both out to the gate of the city and there stone them to death: the girl because she did not cry out for help though she was in the city, and the man because he violated his neighbor's wife. Thus shall you purge the evil from your midst.

New American Bible (R.E.)    If there is a young woman, a virgin who is betrothed [a girl who is married but not yet brought to her husband's home and whose marriage is therefore still unconsummated.], and a man comes upon her in the city and lies with her, you shall bring them both out to the gate of the city and there stone them to death: the young woman because she did not cry out though she was in the city, and the man because he violated his neighbor's wife. Thus shall you purge the evil from your midst.

NIRV                                      Suppose a man happens to see a virgin in a town. And she has promised to get married to another man. But the man who happens to see her has sex with her. Then you must take both of them to the gate of that town. You must put them to death by throwing stones at them. You must kill the woman because she was in a town and didn't scream for help. And you must kill the man because he had sex with another man's wife. Get rid of those evil people.

New Jerusalem Bible             'If a virgin is engaged to a man, and another man encounters her in the town and has sexual intercourse with her, you will take them both to the gate of the town in question and stone them to death: the girl, for not having called for help in the town; the man, for having exploited his fellow-citizen's wife. You must banish this evil from among you.

New Simplified Bible              »Suppose there is a girl who is a virgin engaged to a man, and another man has sexual relations with her. »You must bring them both out to the gate of that city and you must stone them to death! The girl did not protest what was happening and the man has violated his neighbor's woman. Thus you shall purge the evil from among you.

Today’s NIV                          If a man happens to meet in a town a virgin pledged to be married and he sleeps with her, you shall take both of them to the gate of that town and stone them to death--the young woman because she was in a town and did not scream for help, and the man because he violated another man's wife. You must purge the evil from among you.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Ancient Roots Translinear      When virgin maiden is betrothed to a man, and a man finds her in the city and lays with her: Proceed the two into the gate of that city, and execute them with stones to die: the maiden, over never crying the word in the city; and the man, over the word that he humbled his neighbor's woman. Ignite the evil from your center.

Bible in Basic English             If a young virgin has given her word to be married to a man, and another man meeting her in the town, has connection with her; Then you are to take the two of them to the doorway of the town, and have them stoned to death; the young virgin, because she gave no cry for help, though it was in the town, and the man, because he has put shame on his neighbour's wife: so you are to put away evil from among you.

The Expanded Bible              If a man meets a virgin in a city and ·has sexual relations [^Llies] with her, but she is engaged to another man, you must take both of them to the city gate and ·put them to death by throwing stones at [stone] them. Kill the girl, because she was in a city and did not scream for help. And kill the man for having sexual relations with ·another man's wife [the wife of his neighbor/friend]. You must ·get rid of [banish; purge] the evil among you.

Ferar-Fenton Bible                 When a young maiden who is engaged to a man, meets a man in a town, and he fornicates with her, bring both of them to the gate of the town, and stone them with stones, and kill the girl, because she did not cry out in the town; and the man because he has degraded the wife of his neighbor. Thus you shall burn that evil from your breast.

HCSB                                     If there is a young woman who is a virgin engaged to a man, and another man encounters her in the city and has sex with her, you must take the two of them out to the gate of that city and stone them to death--the young woman because she did not cry out in the city and the man because he has violated his neighbor's fiancée. You must purge the evil from you.

NET Bible®                             If a virgin is engaged to a man and another man meets [Heb "finds."] her in the city and has sexual relations with [Heb "lies with."] her, you must bring the two of them to the gate of that city and stone them to death, the young woman because she did not cry out though in the city and the man because he violated [Heb "humbled."] his neighbor's fiancée [Heb "wife."]; in this way you will purge [Heb "burn." See note on the phrase "purge out" in Deut 21:21.] evil from among you.

New Heart English Bible        If there is a young lady who is a virgin pledged to be married to a husband, and a man find her in the city, and lie with her; then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city, and you shall stone them to death with stones; the lady, because she did not cry, being in the city; and the man, because he has humbled his neighbor's wife: so you shall put away the evil from the midst of you.

NIV – UK                                If a man happens to meet in a town a virgin pledged to be married and he sleeps with her, you shall take both of them to the gate of that town and stone them to death-the young woman because she was in a town and did not scream for help, and the man because he violated another man's wife. You must purge the evil from among you.

Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

Complete Jewish Bible           "If a girl who is a virgin is engaged to a man, and another man comes upon her in the town and has sexual relations with her; you are to bring them both out to the gate of the city and stone them to death - the girl because she didn't cry out for help, there in the city, and the man because he has humiliated his neighbor's wife. In this way you will put an end to such wickedness among you.

exeGeses companion Bible   When a lass - a virgin betrothed to a man

and a man finds her in the city and lies with her;

then you bring the two of them

to the portal of that city

and stone them with stones that they die;

the lass, for the word

that she cried not, being in the city;

and the man, for the word

that he humbled the woman of his friend:

thus you burn evil from among you.

JPS (Tanakh—1985)               In the case of a virgin who is engaged to a man [I.e., for whom a bride-price had been paid; see Deut. 20:7] —if a man comes upon her in town and lies with her, you shall take the two of them out to the gate of that town and stone them to death: the girl because she did not cry for help in the town, and the man because he violated another man’s wife. Thus you will sweep away evil from your midst.

Judaica Press Complete T.    If there is a virgin girl betrothed to a man, and another man finds her in the city, and lies with her, you shall take them both out to the gate of that city, and you shall pelt them with stones, and they shall die: the girl, because she did not cry out even though she was in the city, and the man, because he violated his neighbor's wife. So shall you clear away the evil from among you.

Kaplan Translation                 The Betrothed Maiden

[This is the law] where a virgin girl is betrothed to one man, and another man comes across her in the city and has intercourse with her. Both of them shall be brought to the gates of that city, and they shall be put to death by stoning. [The penalty shall be imposed on] the girl because she did not cry out [This is considered prima facie evidence that she was not raped (Ramban; Ralbag; see Yehuda HaChasid).] [even though she was] in the city, and on the man, because he violated his neighbor's wife. You shall thus rid yourselves of evil.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           If a na'arah that is a betulah be betrothed unto a husband, and an ish find her in the town, and lie with her; Then ye shall bring them both out unto the sha'ar of that town, and ye shall stone them with avanim that they die; the na'arah, because she cried not, being in the town; and the ish, because he hath humbled his neighbor's isha; so thou shalt put away the rah from among you.

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

The Amplified Bible                If a maiden who is a virgin is engaged to be married, and a man finds her in the city and lies with her, Then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city and shall stone them to death-the young woman because she did not cry for help though she was in the city, and the man because he has violated his neighbor's [promised] wife. So shall you put away evil from among you.

Concordant Literal Version    In case there should be a maiden, a virgin, who is betrothed to a man, and another man finds her in the city, and he lies with her, then you must bring forth both of them to the gate of that city and stone them with stones so that they die, the maiden on the score that she did not cry for help in the city, and the man on the score that he humiliated the wife of his associate. Thus you will eradicate the evil from among you.

Context Group Version          If there is a damsel that is a virgin betrothed to a man { or husband }, and a man finds her in the city, and lies with her; then you { pl } shall bring them both out to the gate of that city, and you { pl } shall stone them to death with stones; the damsel, because she didn't cry, being in the city; and the man, because he has humbled his neighbor's woman { or wife }: so you shall put away the evil from the midst of you.

NASB                                     "If there is a girl who is a virgin engaged to a man, and another man finds her in the city and lies with her, then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city and you shall stone them to death [Lit with stones so that they die]; the girl, because she did not cry out in the city, and the man, because he has violated his neighbor's wife. Thus you shall purge the evil from among you.

New King James Version       "If a young woman who is a virgin is betrothed to a husband, and a man finds her in the city and lies with her, then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city, and you shall stone them to death with stones, the young woman because she did not cry out in the city, and the man because he humbled his neighbor's wife; so you shall put away the evil from among you.

New RSV                               If there is a young woman, a virgin already engaged to be married, and a man meets her in the town and lies with her, 24you shall bring both of them to the gate of that town and stone them to death, the young woman because she did not cry for help in the town and the man because he violated his neighbour's wife. So you shall purge the evil from your midst.

Syndein/Thieme                     If a damsel that is a virgin be betrothed unto an husband, and a man find her in the city, and lie with her; then you shall bring them both out unto the gate of that city, and you shall stone them with stones that they die; the damsel, because she cried not, being in the city; and the man, because he has humbled his neighbor's woman/wife. {'ishshah - Hebrew word for woman - also used for wife. A woman betrothed to a man falls under the category of wife for this purpose} So you shall put away evil from among you.

Webster’s Bible Translation   If a damsel [that is] a virgin shall be betrothed to a husband, and a man shall find her in the city, and lie with her; Then ye shall bring them both out to the gate of that city, and ye shall stone them with stones that they may die; the damsel, because she cried not, [being] in the city; and the man, because he hath humbled his neighbor's wife: so thou shalt remove evil from among you.

Young's Updated LT              “When there is a damsel, a virgin, betrothed to a man, and a man has found her in a city, and lain with her; then you have brought them both out unto the gate of that city, and stoned them with stones, and they have died: —the damsel, because that she has not cried, being in a city; and the man, because that he has humbled his neighbour’s wife; and you have put away the evil thing out of your midst.

The gist of this verse:          If a man and a woman pledged to another man are found to have had sex in a populated area, then they will be stoned to death by the citizens there to remove this evil from their midst. It is assumed, because she does not cry out for help, that this is consensual sex.

Translation: When it is [that] a young woman—a virgin—[about] to be married to a man,... Deuteronomy is a very unusual book. God has given the Law to Moses, which he delivered to the people, and that is a done deal. However, it is now about 38 years later, and they are about to go into the land, but Moses is not going with them. God will not allow that. So Moses is giving them additional laws; however, by the concept of divine inspiration, these laws given by Moses are equally inspired.

Moses has, over the past 38 or so years, has come up with a set of laws which would be helpful to the new nation Israel. One must bear in mind that these laws are designed for a nation at a particular time in history under specific conditions.

When it is [that] a young woman—a virgin—[about] to be married to a man,... The situation that we are now studying involves a woman who is promised to be married and she is still a virgin. This is demonstrable. Many marriages were arranged in this day and time. You will recall that Isaac did not lay eyes on his bride until she had been delivered to his front door (so to speak). Jacob, Isaac’s son, went himself to look into finding a bride.

In any case, the finding of a bride was different then than it is now. Often money was paid to the father of the bride-to-be in order to preserve the future union.

Translation: ...and a man discovers [or, meets] her in the city... A man has come upon this virgin in a populated area, but in such a way that they are alone together. Again, this is a rare situation.

The word translated to discover here can also mean to meet, suggesting that this might have been planned by both parties. The word allows for either interpretation. So, by using this word, Moses is not making a judgment on how they happened to run into one another—the man may have found her, not expecting to; or he may have met her, suggesting that she knew he would be there as well.

Translation: ...and he lays with her;... The man and the woman have sex. This is a euphemistic term used for sex and it is a neutral term. It can refer to sex within a marriage, outside of marriage and rape. It does not necessarily indicate rape—however, it does not mean that rape did not occur. Therefor, this word could refer to consensual relations or to rape.

The Bible does not spend a lot of time dealing with rape in the Mosaic Law. Under the society of that day, rape was difficult to occur. In order for a rape to occur, you need one man and one woman separate from the constraints of society (so, generally speaking, they are alone).

Translation: ...then you [all] will bring both of them to the city gate... Somehow, it becomes known that these two had sex. Bringing to the city gate is where trials took place in the ancient world. There were people interested in the law would also be by the gate. There would often be a judge there empowered to make decisions.

This was all by custom; it was not something invented by the Mosaic Law. Today, the analogous situation would be bringing people before the court.

Translation: ...and you [all] with stone them with stones... This was not a mob action, although one may misread this in that way. The trial took place at the city gate and then the stoning took place soon thereafter. If it was determined that they deserve death, then the man and the woman are executed outside of the city.

Translation: ...and they will die—the young woman because she did not cry out [for help] in the city... It is Moses’ reasoning that both the man and the woman are guilty because they are in the city limits—in a populated area—and yet the woman does not cry out for help. This suggests that they are both guilty of this immoral act.

Translation: ...and the man because he humiliated the [soon-to-be] wife of his neighbor. The man is guilty because he has humbled, humiliated and afflicted the woman.

Both of them are volitionally responsible.

Translation: [By this] you have removed immorality [lit., evil] from your midst. What has been removed is more than just immorality. The actual word use here means evil, which suggests that it does great harm to the society.

In this phrase, Moses begins speaking with the 2^nd person masculine singular, rather than the plural. He is not speaking to a particular man, but he is speaking of the collective, of nation Israel, as a national entity which preserves itself.

The individuals are doing nothing for their own personal morality. The morality they are preserving is that of the nation; that of the collective.

——————————

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Ancient texts:

Targum of Onkelos                But if a man find a damsel in the wilderness, and do violence to her and lie with her, the man only shall die who lay with her, for the damsel is not guilty of death; but her husband may put her away from him by a bill of divorcement; for as when a man lieth in wait for his neighbour and taketh his life, so is this matter: he found her upon the face of the field ; the betrothed damsel cried out for help, but there was no one to deliver her.

Latin Vulgate                          But if a man find a damsel that is betrothed, in the field, and taking hold of her, lie with her, he alone shall die: The damsel shall suffer nothing, neither is she guilty of death: for as a robber riseth against his brother, and taketh away his life, so also did the damsel suffer: She was alone in the field: she cried, and there was no man to help her.

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        And if in the field finds her the man the young woman the betrothed one and has seized in her the man and he has lain with her; and has died the man who laid with her to alone. And to the young woman you will not do a word; nothing to the young woman a sin of death, for as which rose up the man against his neighbor and he has murdered him a soul—so the word the this. For in the field he found her—she cried out [for help] the woman the betrothed one—and none saving to her.

Peshitta (Syriac)                    But if a man find a betrothed damsel in the field, and seize her by force, and lie with her; then the man only who lay with her shall die: But to the damsel you shall do nothing; because there is in the damsel no sin worthy of death; for as when a man rises against his neighbor and slays him, even so is this case. For he found her in the field, and the betrothed damsel cried for help, and there was no one to save her.

Septuagint (Greek)                But if a man find in the field a young woman that is betrothed, and he should force her and lie with her, you shall slay the man that lay with her only. And the young woman has not committed a sin worthy of death; as if a man should rise up against his neighbor, and slay him, so is this thing; because he found her in the field; the betrothed young woman cried, and there was none to help her.

Significant differences: 

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

Common English Bible           But if the man met up with the engaged woman in a field, grabbing her and having sex with her there, only the man will die. Don't do anything whatsoever to the young woman. She hasn't committed any capital crime-rather, this situation is exactly like the one where someone attacks his neighbor and kills him [See Deut. 19:11]. Since the man met up with her in a field, the engaged woman may well have called out for help, but there was no one to rescue her.

Contemporary English V.       If an engaged woman is raped out in the country, only the man will be put to death. Do not punish the woman at all; she has done nothing wrong, and certainly nothing deserving death. This crime is like murder, because the woman was alone out in the country when the man attacked her. She screamed, but there was no one to help her.

Easy English                          But perhaps a man may meet a girl in a country place. He makes her have sex with him. But she has already promised to marry another man. Then only the man who has done this must die. Do not hurt the girl. She has not done anything wrong. This thing is like a man who kills another person. This man made the girl have sex with him in a country place. She screamed for help, but there was no one to save her.

Easy-to-Read Version            “But if a man finds an engaged girl out in the field and forces her to have sexual relations with him, then only the man must die. You must do nothing to the girl. She did nothing that deserves the punishment of death. This is like a person attacking his neighbor and killing him. The man found the engaged girl out in the field. He attacked her. And maybe she called for help, but there was no one to help her. {So she must not be punished.}.

Good News Bible (TEV)         "Suppose a man out in the countryside rapes a young woman who is engaged to someone else. Then only the man is to be put to death; nothing is to be done to the woman, because she has not committed a sin worthy of death. This case is the same as when one man attacks another man and murders him. The man raped the engaged woman in the countryside, and although she cried for help, there was no one to help her.

The Message                         But if it was out in the country that the man found the engaged girl and grabbed and raped her, only the man is to die, the man who raped her. Don't do anything to the girl; she did nothing wrong. This is similar to the case of a man who comes across his neighbor out in the country and murders him; when the engaged girl yelled out for help, there was no one around to hear or help her.

New Berkeley Version           But if the man comes upon the betrothed girl in the open field and seizes her to lie with her, then the man alone shall die. You must do nothing to the girl, for there is no sin in her to deserve death for it is as when a man attacks his neighbor and murders him; the man found her in the open country; the betrothed birl cried out for help, but there was no one to hear her.

New Century Version             But if a man meets an engaged girl out in the country and forces her to have sexual relations with him, only the man who had sexual relations with her must be put to death. Don't do anything to the girl, because she has not done a sin worthy of death. This is like the person who attacks and murders a neighbor; the man found the engaged girl in the country and she screamed, but no one was there to save her.

New Life Bible                        But if the man finds a girl in the field who is promised in marriage, and makes her lie with him, then only the man who lies with her will die. Do nothing to the girl. There is no sin in the girl bad enough for her to be put to death. It is as if a man goes against his neighbor and kills him. When he found her in the field, the girl promised in marriage cried out. But there was no one to save her.

New Living Translation           "But if the man meets the engaged woman out in the country, and he rapes her, then only the man must die. Do nothing to the young woman; she has committed no crime worthy of death. She is as innocent as a murder victim. Since the man raped her out in the country, it must be assumed that she screamed, but there was no one to rescue her.

The Voice                               But if this happens out in the country-if a man finds an engaged girl out there and overpowers and rapes her-then only the man must die. But don't do anything to the girl; she did nothing wrong and doesn't deserve to die. When this man came after her, she cried for help, but no one was there to respond. She's as innocent as the victim of a sudden murderous attack—there was nothing she could do.

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          'However, if a man catches an engaged woman out in a field and rapes her, you must put just the man who did this to death; for, the woman hasn't committed a sin that she should be killed for. Something like this is just as serious as when one man murders another; because, he found and [raped] an engaged woman who screamed, when no one was around to help her.

Christian Community Bible     But if in the fields, a man meets a young woman promised in marriage, and violates her by force, then only the man shall die. The young woman shall not suffer punishment. She does not deserve death, for this case is similar to a highwayman who falls upon a man and murders him; in the same manner, the young woman was assaulted. She was alone in the fields, she cried but no one came to help her.

God’s Word™                         But if a man rapes an engaged girl out in the country, then only the man must die. Don't do anything to the girl. She has not committed a sin for which she deserves to die. This is like the case of someone who attacks and murders another person. The man found the girl out in the country. She may have screamed for help, but no one was there to rescue her.

New Advent (Knox) Bible       Or did the man fall in with this betrothed maid in the countryside, and force her to grant his will? Then he alone must die; no harm shall befall the woman. She has not deserved death; she was defenceless as a man suddenly attacked and killed by a brigand; cry as she might, far out in the countryside, no one could come to her aid.

New American Bible              "If, however, it is in the open fields that a man comes upon such a betrothed maiden, seizes her and has relations with her, the man alone shall die. You shall do nothing to the maiden, since she is not guilty of a capital offense. This case is like that of a man who rises up against his neighbor and murders him: it was in the open fields that he came upon her, and though the betrothed maiden may have cried out for help, there was no one to come to her aid.

New American Bible (R.E.)    But if it is in the open fields that a man comes upon the betrothed young woman, seizes her and lies with her, only the man who lay with her shall die. You shall do nothing to the young woman, since the young woman is not guilty of a capital offense. As when a man rises up against his neighbor and murders him, so in this case [in the absence of witnesses ("in the open field"), the presumption must be that the woman is the victim, and so guiltless.] [see Dt 19:4-6.]: it was in the open fields that he came upon her, and though the betrothed young woman may have cried out, there was no one to save her.

NIRV                                      But suppose a man happens to see a woman out in the country. And she has promised to marry another man. But the man who happens to see her rapes her. Then only the man who has done that will die. Don't do anything to the woman. She hasn't committed a sin that is worthy of death. That case is like the case of someone who attacks and murders his neighbor. The man found the woman out in the country. And she screamed. But there wasn't anyone around who could save her.

New Jerusalem Bible             But if the man ran into the betrothed girl in the open country and slept with her, having taken her by force, her ravisher alone must die; you must do nothing to the girl, she has not committed a capital offence. The case is like that of a man who attacks and kills his fellow: since he came across her in the open country, the betrothed girl may have called out, without anyone's coming to her rescue.

New Simplified Bible              »If an engaged woman is raped (forced to experience sex) only the man who commits the act will die. »Do nothing to the woman. There is no sin in the woman worthy of death. This is like the case where a man attacks and murders his neighbor. »When he found her in the field, the woman who is engaged protested, but there was no one to save her.

Revised English Bible            But if it is out in the country that the man encounters and rapes such a girl, then the man alone is to be put to death because he lay with her. Do nothing to the girl; no guilt deserving of death attaches to her: this case is like that of a man who attacks another and murders him: the man came upon her in the country and, though the girl may have cried for help, there was no one to come to her rescue.

Today’s NIV                          But if out in the country a man happens to meet a young woman pledged to be married and rapes her, only the man who has done this shall die. Do nothing to the woman; she has committed no sin deserving death. This case is like that of someone who attacks and murders a neighbor, for the man found the young woman out in the country, and though the betrothed woman screamed, there was no one to rescue her.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Ancient Roots Translinear      But if a man finds a betrothed maiden in the field, and the man fortifies with her, and lies with her: The man that laid with her dies alone. But do no word to the maiden. The maiden has no sin of death: for as a man rises toward his neighbor, and murders the soul, so as this word. For he found her in the field. The betrothed maiden cried, but none saved her.

Bible in Basic English             But if the man, meeting such a virgin in the open country, takes her by force, then only the man is to be put to death; Nothing is to be done to the virgin, because there is no cause of death in her: it is the same as if a man made an attack on his neighbour and put him to death: For he came across her in the open country, and there was no one to come to the help of the virgin in answer to her cry.

The Expanded Bible              But if a man meets an engaged girl out in the ·country [field] and ·forces her to have sexual relations with him [^Lseizes her and lies with her], only the man who ·had sexual relations [^Llay] with her must be put to death. Don't do anything to the girl, because she has not done a sin worthy of death. This is like the person who ·attacks [rises up] and murders a neighbor; the man found the engaged girl in the ·country [field] and she ·screamed [yelled for help], but no one was there to ·save [rescue] her.

Ferar-Fenton Bible                 But if the man meets the betrothed girl in the fields, and the man overpowers her and ravishes her, then the man alone who have ravished her shall die; and you shall do nothing to the girl. The girl has committed no sin for death, for as a man rises against his neighbor and murders him, so is this crime, for he met her in the field, —and the betrothed girl cried out, but none heard her.

HCSB                                     But if the man encounters the engaged woman in the open country, and he seizes and rapes her, only the man who raped her must die. Do nothing to the young woman, because she is not guilty of an offense deserving death. This case is just like one in which a man attacks his neighbor and murders him. When he found her in the field, the engaged woman cried out, but there was no one to rescue her.

NET Bible®                             But if the man came across [Heb "found," also in vv. 27, 28.] the engaged woman in the field and overpowered her and raped [Heb “lay with” here refers to a forced sexual relationship, as the accompanying verb “seized” (חָזַק, khazaq) makes clear.] her, then only the rapist [Heb "the man who lay with her, only him."] must die. You must not do anything to the young woman - she has done nothing deserving of death. This case is the same as when someone attacks another person [Heb "his neighbor."] and murders him, for the man [Heb "he"; the referent (the man who attacked the woman) has been specified in the translation for clarity.] met her in the field and the engaged woman cried out, but there was no one to rescue her.

NIV, ©2011                             But if out in the country a man happens to meet a young woman pledged to be married and rapes her, only the man who has done this shall die. Do nothing to the woman; she has committed no sin deserving death. This case is like that of someone who attacks and murders a neighbor, for the man found the young woman out in the country, and though the betrothed woman screamed, there was no one to rescue her.

Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

Complete Jewish Bible           "But if the man comes upon the engaged girl out in the countryside, and the man grabs her and has sexual relations with her, then only the man who had intercourse with her is to die. You will do nothing to the girl, because she has done nothing deserving of death. The situation is like the case of the man who attacks his neighbor and kills him. For he found her in the countryside, and the engaged girl cried out, but there was no one to save her.

JPS (Tanakh—1985)               But if the man comes upon the engaged girl in the open country, and the man lies with her by force, only the man who lay with her shall die, ut you shall do nothing to the girl. The girl did not incur the death penalty, for this case is like that of a man attacking another and murdering him. He came upon her in the open; though the engaged girl cried for help, there was no one to save her.

Kaplan Translation                 Rape

However, if the man encountered the betrothed girl in the field and raped her, then only the rapist shall be put to death. You must not impose any penalty whatsoever upon the girl, since she has not committed a sin worthy of death. This is no different from the case where a man rises up against his neighbor and murders him. After all, [the man] attacked her in the field, and even if the betrothed girl had screamed out, there would have been no one to come to her aid.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           But if the ish find a na'arah hame'orasah (betrothed woman) in the sadeh, and the ish overpower her, and lie with her; then the ish only that lay with her shall die. But unto the na'arah thou shalt do nothing; there is in the na'arah no chet mavet (sin worthy of death); for as when an ish riseth against his neighbor, and slayeth him, even so is this matter; For he found her in the sadeh, and the na'arah hame'orasah cried, and there was no moshia (savior) for her [see 2C 11:2-3 regarding Moshiach and his Kehillah Kallah and Hasatan's evil interference with the betrothal and the above three Scriptures T.N.].

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

The Amplified Bible                But if a man finds the betrothed maiden in the open country and the man seizes her and lies with her, then only the man who lay with her shall die. But you shall do nothing to the young woman; she has committed no sin punishable by death, for this is as when a man attacks and slays his neighbor, For he came upon her in the open country, and the betrothed girl cried out, but there was no one to save her.

Context Group Version          But if the man finds the damsel that is betrothed in the field, and the man forces her, and lies with her; then only the man that lays with her shall die: but to the damsel you shall do nothing; there is in the damsel no disgrace worthy of death: for as when a man rises against his neighbor, and kills him, even so is this matter; for he found her in the field, the betrothed damsel cried, and there was none to rescue her.

Darby updated Translation     But if a man find a betrothed damsel in the field, and the man force her, and lie with her, then the man only that lay with her will die; and unto the damsel you will do nothing: there is in the damsel no sin worthy of death; for as when a man rises against his neighbour, and murders him, so is this matter; for he found her in the field, the betrothed damsel cried, and there was no one to save her.

English Standard V. – UK       "But if in the open country a man meets a young woman who is betrothed, and the man seizes her and lies with her, then only the man who lay with her shall die. But you shall do nothing to the young woman; she has committed no offence punishable by death. For this case is like that of a man attacking and murdering his neighbour, because he met her in the open country, and though the betrothed young woman cried for help there was no one to rescue her.

NASB                                     "But if in the field the man finds the girl who is engaged, and the man forces her and lies with her, then only the man who lies with her shall die. But you shall do nothing to the girl; there is no sin in the girl worthy of death, for just as a man rises against his neighbor and murders him, so is this case. When he found her in the field, the engaged girl cried out, but there was no one to save her.

New King James Version       "But if a man finds a betrothed young woman in the countryside, and the man forces her and lies with her, then only the man who lay with her shall die. But you shall do nothing to the young woman; there is in the young woman no sin deserving of death, for just as when a man rises against his neighbor and kills him, even so is this matter. For he found her in the countryside, and the betrothed young woman cried out, but there was no one to save her.

New RSV                               But if the man meets the engaged woman in the open country, and the man seizes her and lies with her, then only the man who lay with her shall die. You shall do nothing to the young woman; the young woman has not committed an offence punishable by death, because this case is like that of someone who attacks and murders a neighbour. Since he found her in the open country, the engaged woman may have cried for help, but there was no one to rescue her.

Webster’s Bible Translation  But if a man shall find a betrothed damsel in the field, and the man shall force her, and lie with her; then the man only that lay with her shall die: But to the damsel thou shalt do nothing; [there is] in the damsel no sin [worthy] of death: for as when a man riseth against his neighbor, and slayeth him, even so [is] this matter: For he found her in the field, [and] the betrothed damsel cried, and [there was] none to save her.

Young’s Updated LT             “And if in a field the man find the damsel who is betrothed, and the man has laid hold on her, and lain with her, then has the man who has lain with her died alone; and to the damsel you will not do anything, the damsel has no deadly sin; for as a man rises against his neighbour and has murdered him—the life, so is this thing; for in a field he found her, she has cried—the damsel who is betrothed—and she has no saviour.

The gist of this verse:          If a man takes an engaged woman in an unpopulated area, this is assumed to be a rape, as the woman cannot call out for help.

Translation: If the man finds her in the field—the betrothed young woman... We have a second possible situation, where the man discovers this young bride-to-be out in the field—in other words, he discovers her in an unpopulated area.

The benefit of the doubt appears to be given to the young woman, for it is the man who discovers her.

Translation:...—and the man has seized her... Here we have a different verb not found in the previous section. Here, he grabs her, to takes a hold of her, he seizes her. As noted above, the BDB meanings are to be strong, grow strong; to prevail, prevail upon; to be firm, be caught fast, be secure; to press, be urgent; to grow stout, grow rigid, grow hard (bad sense); to be severe, be grievous; to strengthen.

A man can take a woman in a number of ways, when it comes to sexual contact. One way, which most married couples experience, is when the man is completely aggressive and the woman is completely submissive in her response (however, I am not saying that she is unresponsive). That is not rape. However, here, the verb suggests more than that, where the man’s power and strength are emphasized possibly in a negative sense. So, unlike what is found in vv. 22–24, the force used can be understood in a negative sense.

Translation: ...and he has lain with her,... We have a repetition now of the euphemism used in the previous section; the man lays with her, meaning that he has sexual relations with her. However, note what preceded this—he grabbed her first.

Given the entire context of vv. 25–27, this portion could be translated and he has seized her and raped her. It must be emphasized that this is understood in context.

Translation: ...then the man who laid with her will die only. Only the man this time will be executed, and Moses gives several reasons.

Translation: You will not to a thing to the young woman,... The 2^nd person masculine singular refers to the nation Israel or to the court of the city acting as a corporate body. They will not do anything to this woman.

Translation:...[for there is] no sin [done] by the young woman [worthy] of death;... The woman herself had done nothing worthy of death.

The Geneva Bible: [This means that] that the innocent cannot be punished.

Translation: ...for just as a man rising up against his neighbor... Then Moses makes an analogy. It is just as if this man had risen up against his neighbor.

In the previous example, it appears as if the man and the woman agreed upon their actions together. However, in this example, there is only one who is the aggressor, and that is the man.

Translation: ...to murder [his] soul, so this thing. This is just like the man rising up against his neighbor and killing him. The analogy is, the neighbor did not make this happen; the murderer made this all happen, so the murderer alone is guilty. So it is with the rapist.

The woman is no more guilty than the man who was murdered.

Translation: For he found her in the field... Moses explains why this is similar to murder. This is a situation where this man happens to find her in an uninhabited area.

Translation:...—[if] the betrothed woman called out [for help],... Because the area is uninhabited, calling out for help is futile. No one can hear her. So maybe she called for help and maybe she didn’t; it is a moot point, because they are in an unpopulated area.

Translation:...[there was] none to save her. There is no one around to save this woman from being raped.

I don’t believe that there is a specific word for rape in the Hebrew. What we have are circumstances and actions, and actions which reflect intent and involvement. The woman’s involvement here must be assumed to be nil, because she did not have an opportunity to call for help. Therefore, all of the responsibility is placed upon the man.

This may not seem revolutionary, but this was. According to Sharia law, there must be 4 witnesses in order for a woman to charge rape against a man. This is the 21^st century (and a deeply flawed law from centuries ago). What Moses is saying here is light years ahead of Sharia law, which has not even come about yet.

——————————

These next two verses have caused a lot of controversy. Because of some English translations, it sounds as if a rapist’s victim is forced to marry her rapist. However, that is not what is really found here.

To add to this confusion, there is a dishonest graphic which is all over the internet, a portion of which is reproduced on the right. This comes out of a list of Bible marriages, with the idea that, because these marriages are found in the Bible, we ought to accept gay marriage (or marriage equality). Besides interpreting this passage incorrectly, the overall graphic tends to leave out the fact that there are no Christian groups calling for the legalization of any of the marriages which are found and/or misrepresented in their graphic.

Part of what is found in this graphic is the idea that women are property, an incorrect notion which liberals like to assign to early Judaism or Christianity. When it comes to slavery found in the Bible, they do the same thing.

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Ancient texts:

Targum of Onkelos                If a man find a damsel who is not betrothed, and seize and lie with her, and they be found, then the man who lay with her shall give to her father, as a fine for her dishonour, fifty shekels of silver, and she shall be hiswife, because he humbled her, nor shall be have power to put her away by divorcement all his days.

Latin Vulgate                          If a man find a damsel that is a virgin, who is not espoused, and taking her, lie with her, and the matter come to judgment: He that lay with her will give to the father of the maid fifty sicles of silver, and will have her to wife, because he has humbled her: he may not put her away all the days of his life.

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        When finds the man a young woman a virgin who is not betrothed and he has taken her and he has lain with her and they are discovered; and has given the man, the one laying with her, to a father of the young woman 50 [shekels of] silver and to him she is for a wife upon which he has violated her. He is not able to send her away all his days.

Peshitta (Syriac)                    If a man finds a damsel who is a virgin who is not betrothed, and seizes her, and lies with her, and they are found; Then the man who lay with her shall give to the damsels father fifty shekels of silver, and she shall be his wife; because he has humbled her, he has no right to put her away all his days.

Septuagint (Greek)                And if anyone should find a young virgin who has not been betrothed, and should force her and lie with her, and be found, the man who lay with her shall give to the father of the damsel fifty silver shekels, and she shall be his wife, because he has humbled her; he shall never be able to put her away.

Significant differences: 

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

Common English Bible           If a man meets up with a young woman who is a virgin and not engaged, grabs her and has sex with her, and they are caught in the act, the man who had sex with her must give fifty silver shekels to the young woman's father. She will also become his wife because he has humiliated her. He is never allowed to divorce her.

Contemporary English V.       Suppose a woman isn't engaged to be married, and a man talks her into sleeping with him. If they are caught, they will be forced to get married. He must give her father fifty pieces of silver as a bride-price and can never divorce her.

Easy English                          Perhaps a man may make a girl have sex with him. The girl has not had sex with anyone before and someone discovers them. She has not yet promised to marry anyone. Then the man must pay 50 shekels of *silver to the father of the girl. He must also marry the girl because he has had sex with her. He must be her husband as long as he lives.

Easy-to-Read Version            “A man might find a virgin [A woman who has not had sexual relations with anyone.] girl that is not engaged and force her to have sexual relations with him. If other people see this happen, then he must pay the girl’s father 20 ounces of silver [This money became the dowry, the money a man paid to a woman’s father to seal the marriage agreement. Often the father saved this money to take care of the woman if something happened to her husband.]. And the girl will become the man’s wife. Why? Because he used her for sexual sin. He can’t divorce her all his life.

Good News Bible (TEV)         "Suppose a man is caught raping a young woman who is not engaged. 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.

The Message                         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.

New Berkeley Version           If, however, a man comes upon a girl who is a virgin and not betrothed and lays hold upon her and lies with her and they are discovered, then the man must pay her father fifty silver dollars, and she shall become his wife, because he has dishonored her, and he shall not divorce her all of his days.

New Century Version             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.

New Life Bible                        "If a man finds a girl who has never had a man and is not promised in marriage, and takes her and lies with her, and they are found, then the man who lay with her must give fifty pieces of silver to the girl's father. And she will become his wife, because he has put her to shame. He cannot divorce her as long as he lives.

New Living Translation           "Suppose a man has intercourse with a young woman who is a virgin but is not engaged to be married. If they are discovered, he must pay her father fifty pieces of silver [Hebrew 50 shekels of silver, about 1.25 pounds or 570 grams in weight.]. Then he must marry the young woman because he violated her, and he may never divorce her as long as he lives.

The Voice                               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, 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.

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          'And if any man should assault a young virgin who isn't engaged, and this can be proven; the man who assaulted her must pay her father fifty silver coins, then he must marry her and never be allowed to divorce her, because he dishonored her.

Beck’s American Translation “If a man finds a young bigin who isn’t engaged and forces her to lie with him and they are caught, the man who lay with her should give the girl’s father fifty shekels of silver, and she should be his wife, because he sexually violate her. He can’t divorce her as long as he lives.

Christian Community Bible     If a man meets a young virgin who is not promised in marriage to another man, and that man violates her by force, and they are caught by surprise, the man who lay with her shall give to the father of the young woman fifty pieces of silver, and take her as his wife, because he has dishonored her, and he cannot send her away all his life.

God’s Word™                         This is what you must do when a man rapes a virgin who isn't engaged. When the crime is discovered, the man who had sexual intercourse with her must give the girl's father 1 1/4 pounds of silver, and she will become his wife. Since he raped her, he can never divorce her as long as he lives.

New Advent (Knox) Bible       If a man falls in with a maid still unbetrothed, and forces her to do his will, and the matter is brought to judgement, the man who mated with her must pay her fifty sicles of silver, and keep her as his wife, now that he has robbed her of her maidenhood; as long as he lives he may not put her away.

New American Bible              “If a man comes upon a maiden that is not betrothed, takes her and has relations with her, and their deed is discovered, the man who had relations with her shall pay the girl's father fifty silver shekels and take her as his wife, because he has deflowered her. Moreover, he may not divorce her as long as he lives.

New American Bible (R.E.)    If a man comes upon a young woman, a virgin who is not betrothed, seizes her and lies with her, and they are discovered, the man who lay with her shall give the young woman's father fifty silver shekels and she will be his wife, because he has violated her. He may not divorce her as long as he lives. Dt 22:19; Ex 22:16-17.

NIRV                                      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. Then the man must weigh out 20 ounces of silver. He must give it to the woman's father. The man must marry the woman, because he raped her. And he can never divorce her as long as he lives.

New Jerusalem Bible             'If a man meets a young virgin who is not betrothed and seizes her, sleeps with her and is caught in the act, her ravisher must give the girl's father fifty silver shekels; since he has exploited her, she must be his wife and, as long as he lives, he may not divorce her.'

Today’s NIV                          If a man happens to meet a virgin who is not pledged to be married and rapes her and they are discovered, he shall pay her father fifty shekels of silver. He must marry the young woman, for he has violated her. He can never divorce her as long as he lives.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Ancient Roots Translinear      When a man finds a virgin maiden not betrothed, and seizes her and lays with her, and is found: the man laying with her gives to the maiden's father fifty silver, and she is his woman. He humbled her under him, and he can not send her all his days.

Bible in Basic English             If a man sees a young virgin, who has not given her word to be married to anyone, and he takes her by force and has connection with her, and discovery is made of it; Then the man will have to give the virgin's father fifty shekels of silver and make her his wife, because he has put shame on her; he may never put her away all his life.

The Expanded Bible              If a man meets a virgin who is not engaged to be married and ·forces her to have sexual relations with him [^Lgrabs her and lies with her] and ·people find out about it [^Lis discovered], 29 the man who ·had sexual relations [^Llay] with her must pay the girl's father about ·one and one-fourth pounds [^Lfifty 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].

Ferar-Fenton Bible                 When a man meets a young maiden, who is not engaged, and takes her and seduces her, —when he is discovered, the man who corrupted her shall give to the father of the girl fifty silvers, and she shall be his wife afterwards. Because he degraded, he shall not be able to divorce her all his days.

HCSB                                     If a man encounters a young woman, a virgin who is not engaged, takes hold of her and rapes her, and they are discovered, 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.

NET Bible®                             Suppose a man comes across a virgin who is not engaged and overpowers and rapes [Heb "lies with."] her and they are discovered. 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.

New Heart English Bible        If a man find a lady who is a virgin, who is not pledged to be married, and lay hold on her, and lie with her, and they be found; then the man who lay with her shall give to the lady's father fifty shekels of silver, and she shall be his wife, because he has humbled her; he may not put her away all his days.

NIV, ©2011                             If a man happens to meet a virgin who is not pledged to be married and rapes her and they are discovered, he shall pay her father fifty shekels [That is, about 1 1/4 pounds or about 575 grams] of silver. He must marry the young woman, for he has violated her. He can never divorce her as long as he lives.

Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

Complete Jewish Bible           "If a man comes upon a girl who is a virgin but who is not engaged, and he grabs her and has sexual relations with her, and they are caught in the act, then the man who had intercourse with her must give to the girl's father one-and-a-quarter pounds of silver shekels, and she will become his wife, because he humiliated her; he may not divorce her as long as he lives.

exeGeses companion Bible   When a man finds a lass - a virgin not betrothed

and captures her and lies with her

and they find them;

then the man who lies with her

gives fifty silver to the father of the lass

and she becomes his woman:

and because he humbled her

he cannot send her away all his days.

JPS (Tanakh—1985)               If a man comes upon a virgin who is not engaged and he seizes her and lies with her, and the are discovered, the man who lay with her shall pay the girl’s father fifty [shekels of] silver, and she shall be his wife. Because he has violated her, he can never have the right to divorce her.

aplan Translation                   The Unmarried Girl

If a man encounters a virgin girl [Only if she is between 12 and 12½ (Kethuvoth 38a).] who is not betrothed and is caught raping her, then the rapist must give the girl's father 50 [shekels] of silver [The normal dowry of a bride (see note on Exodus 22:15).]. He must then take [But only if the girl consents (Yad, Naarah Bethulah 1:3).] the girl he violated as his wife, and he may not send her away as long as he lives.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           If an ish find a na'arah that is a betulah, which is not orasah (betrothed), and lay hold on her, and lie with her, and they be found; Then the ish that lay with her shall give unto the avi hana'arah fifty [shekels] of kesef, and she shall be his isha; because he hath humbled her, he may not put her away all his yamim.

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

Concordant Literal Version    In case a man should find a maiden, a virgin who is not betrothed, and he grasps her and lies with her, and they are found, then the man who is lying with her must give to the maiden's father fifty shekels of silver, and she shall become his wife. Inasmuch as he humiliated her he shall not be able to dismiss her all his days.

Context Group Version          If a man finds a damsel that is a virgin, that is not betrothed, and lays hold on her, and lies with her, and they are found; then the man that lays with her shall give to the damsel's father fifty [ shekels ] of silver, and she shall be his woman { or wife }, because he has humbled her; he may not put her away all his days.

Darby Translation                  If a man find a damsel, a virgin, who 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.

NASB                                     "If a man finds a girl who is a virgin, who is not engaged, and seizes her and lies with her and they are discovered, then the man who lay with her shall give to the girl's father fifty shekels of silver, and she shall become his wife because he has violated her; he cannot divorce her all his days.

New RSV                               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.

Third Millennium Bible            "If a man find a damsel who is a virgin who 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.

Webster’s Bible Translation  If a man shall find a damsel [that is] a virgin, who 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 to 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.

Young’s Updated LT             “When a man findes a damsel, a virgin who is not betrothed, and has caught her, and lain with her, and they have been found, then has the man who is lying with her given to the father of the damsel fifty silverlings, and to him she is for a wife; because that he has humbled her, he is not able to send her away all his days.

The gist of this verse:          A man and a young virgin meet and they have sex, but they are discovered. The man must marry the woman because he has humbled her; and he will bring money to the father of the young woman.

Translation: When a man finds a young, virgin woman who is not to-be-married... Moses is continuing with the laws best for his nation, and he offers up the situation where this is a man who comes upon, discovers, or finds a young woman who is a virgin. This verb could also mean to meet, allowing for this to mutually agreed upon situation. We find the same verb used back in vv. 23 and 25; so, in all cases, this can refer to the man and the woman meeting, rather than the man coming upon the woman and discovering her unexpectedly (although, that is also a meaning for this verb).

Translation: ...and he takes her and he lays with her, but they are discovered;... The first verb here is different than the verb used back in v. 25. The verb used back in v. 25 is more forceful and can be understood in a negative sense. Here, the woman is taken, but it is more in the sense that she is taken and she responds.

As noted earlier, it is clear in the previous verse, given all of the context, that we are speaking of rape. In this verse, not only is rape not necessarily the case, but a different and weaker word is used to be translated take. That by itself should jump out at the translator and suggest, new situation. If the previous verse was a rape of an engaged woman, and this is the rape of an unengaged woman, then the verb to take would be the same.

The verb used for sex is neutral; it is simply euphemistic.

Then note what happens: they are discovered; they are found. In previous verses, we have a verb for the woman to cry out for help; but that verb is not found here. There is nothing said about where they are. Simply that the man takes her (which does not necessarily imply force; it can be simple male aggression to which a woman responds), but they are discovered. Wherever they happen to be, someone comes across them and this becomes public knowledge. The woman has not called out for help. That means that this is not rape; this is male aggression and female responsiveness.

That does not make this right—this is sex outside of marriage. The woman should not have allowed herself to get into this situation, but she did. The man should have held back, but he did not. So, both people are wrong here, and this is public knowledge. The wrong they have done is a moral wrong, not a criminal wrong. Again—the man has not raped her.

Translation: ...then the man—the one laying with her—will give the young woman’s father 50 [shekels of] silver... Moses offers up only one option, and this needs to be considered in context. The context is, the woman allowed herself to be in this position and she did not call out for help. The man showed no self-control—he just took her. In that society, this woman would not become married to another man. She was no longer a virgin. Her only chance at marriage was this guy, someone with whom she had consensual sex.

Translation: ...and she will become his wife... The man offers a significant present for his bride, which is silver. 50 one-ounce silver coins today is worth is around $20, so this is a $1000 gift.

Quite obviously, this law is given in a far different environment than we have today. Today, a woman can allow herself to be taken by dozens of men; she may even have a permanent sexually transmitted disease (I am not up on the stats, but my guess is, that is perhaps half the young people today?). Still, she will find a man who will marry her or will live with her. In the ancient world, this was not the case.

For all intents and purposes, what we have here is a shotgun wedding, something from our recent past, but perhaps a term which is not understood today. In the past, if a man got a woman pregnant, then that man was strongly encouraged (with a shotgun?) to marry this woman. It is a very similar social norm of perhaps 50 years (and more) ago which reflects the Biblical norms found here; but updated for a less moral society.

Obviously, in a shotgun wedding, it is usually the parents who choose to carry the shotguns. The hapless boy is not really consulted; and the girl generally is not. However, it is certain likely that both parents and the young woman, in this circumstance so described, would discuss the before hand. If the young man was a ner-do-well, the parents may not go along with a marriage.

Given the much more reserved society of that time and place, it is far more likely that a couple who are caught having sex have a strong closeness already.

It may be difficult to find a parallel for today’s over-sexualized, immoral society. I would suggest that today’s family might require the young man to pay for the abortion, but that is in poor taste and the woman might be on welfare already, so that is free.

In the almost no-fault society that we live in, it is difficult to even find a non-marriage situation to parallel. If Charley Brown runs into your car, then he is required to pay for the damages. However, even there, if no-fault insurance is involved, then there might not even be money out of Charley Brown’s pocket (except for the cost of the deductible).

Translation: ...because he has violated her. The violation which has occurred here does not refer to rape, in this context, but to deflowering a virgin. Again, we have to understand that society, where women and men remained virgins until married. A man who took a woman’s virginity before marriage has violated her.

Translation: He is [therefore] unable to send her away all his days. There is a further restriction—and perhaps this was directed to the aggressive young men—once you marry this woman that you have taken, even though she has gone along with the whole thing, that’s it. There is no second chance at marriage. There is no divorcing this woman for any reason.

There are anti-Bible people out there who say this is rape and that God is forcing a woman to marry her rapist. However, we have looked at all of the words here, as well as the implications. Therefore, despite a few translations which treat this as rape, the correct interpretation would mean consensual relations where the man is the aggressor. The CEB, not a strongly literal translation, but one which is easy to read, goes like this: If a man meets up with a young woman who is a virgin and not engaged, grabs her and has sex with her, and they are caught in the act, the man who had sex with her must give fifty silver shekels to the young woman's father. She will also become his wife because he has humiliated her. He is never allowed to divorce her.