Exodus 22:16-17

Exodus 22:16-17 says “If a man seduces a virgin who is not pledged to be married and sleeps with her, he must pay the bride-price, and she shall be his wife. If her father absolutely refuses to give her to him, he must still pay the bride-price for virgins.”

            These two verses explain that if a man were to sleep with a woman who was a virgin, he was to either marry her or, if the father refuses, he must provide for her financially with a dowry. While it is unfortunate that the woman herself does not have a choice because it is her father who can refuse, she is still protected by both her father and the law. We can also hope that a father, who loves the Lord and his daughter, would seek and listen to his daughter’s opinion as to what she would want to do. Then as the father/ “man of the house,” he would communicate her wishes. In a patriarchal society (which we must remember is not God’s original design and is an effect of sin according to Genesis 3:16), a woman’s worth was tied to her status of virginity. If a man had sex with her, even if she resisted, her reputation would be ruined, and she would be left with no money and no protection. However, God established this law to give protection to unmarried virgins to provide both economic security for them and to also hold the man responsible for his vile actions. In other patriarchal societies, and even in our own today, men are not always held responsible for their actions against women. God’s law shows that He cares about women because He holds men responsible for their actions because He recognizes that a woman’s reputation is unfortunately affected by a broken society. When sin entered the world, He did not abandon women, instead He created laws to protect them!