What is the meaning of Deuteronomy 22:29? then the man who lay with her The sentence begins by fixing responsibility squarely on the man. Scripture does not minimize or shift blame (see Deuteronomy 22:28; Exodus 22:16). He is the actor, and the following commands are directed at him, underscoring personal accountability. must pay the young woman’s father fifty shekels of silver • Fifty shekels—about a year and a half of average wages—served as a substantial bride-price or dowry (compare Genesis 34:12; Exodus 22:17). • Payment to the father recognized that the family suffered loss of both honor and future dowry income. • The amount signaled that sexual sin carries tangible, costly consequences. and she must become his wife • Ancient Israel’s social structure left an unmarried, violated woman economically and socially vulnerable. Marriage provided legal protection, a home, and future provision (see Deuteronomy 21:10-14; Ruth 4:10). • The law pressures the offender to accept lifelong responsibility rather than exploit and abandon. • Modern readers may recoil, yet in its setting this statute elevated the woman’s security in a culture where few options existed. because he has violated her • Scripture calls the act a “violation,” a moral offense against the woman, her family, and God (Genesis 34:7; 1 Thessalonians 4:3-6). • The word highlights that sexuality is sacred, reserved for covenant marriage (Hebrews 13:4). • By naming the sin, the law insists that restitution and commitment follow wrongdoing; cheap grace is not offered here. He must not divorce her as long as he lives • No loophole remains for the offender. He may not discard her later through divorce (contrast Deuteronomy 24:1). • The lifelong clause mirrors God’s design for marriage: “What God has joined together, let no man separate” (Matthew 19:6; Malachi 2:16). • The enduring bond safeguards the woman from future neglect and holds the man to enduring covenant faithfulness. summary Deuteronomy 22:29 lays out a divine mandate of restitution, protection, and lifelong responsibility when a man violates an unbetrothed virgin. The offender must pay a significant bride-price, marry the woman, and remain faithfully bound to her. Far from trivializing the sin, the statute elevates the victim’s welfare, deters future exploitation, and upholds God’s holy standard for sexual conduct and marriage. |
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