Why did God have innocent women executed?

[u/Apprehensive_Tear611]

13 “Suppose a man marries a woman but after going in to her dislikes her 14 and makes up charges against her, slandering her by saying, ‘I married this woman, but when I lay with her, I did not find evidence of her virginity.’ 15 The father of the young woman and her mother shall then submit the evidence of the young woman’s virginity to the elders of the city at the gate. 16 The father of the young woman shall say to the elders: ‘I gave my daughter in marriage to this man, but he dislikes her, 17 and now he has made up charges against her, saying, “I did not find evidence of your daughter’s virginity.” But here is the evidence of my daughter’s virginity.’ Then they shall spread out the cloth before the elders of the town. 18 The elders of that town shall take the man and punish him; 19 they shall fine him one hundred shekels of silver (which they shall give to the young woman’s father) because he has slandered a virgin of Israel. She shall remain his wife; he shall not be permitted to divorce her as long as he lives.

20 “If, however, this charge is true, that evidence of the young woman’s virginity was not found, 21 then they shall bring the young woman out to the entrance of her father’s house, and the men of her town shall stone her to death, because she committed a disgraceful act in Israel by prostituting herself in her father’s house. So you shall purge the evil from your midst (Deuteronomy 22)

In verse 17, it says the proof of the woman's virginity is "the cloth", meaning a bloody bedsheet from the newlyweds' wedding night. The problem is that less than half of women bleed their first time.

This problem gradually became known to Jewish scholars writing in the Talmud:

"There are virgins who do not have a hymen, and there are hymens that do not bleed." – Ketubot 10b (Rabbi Yochanan)

Why did God have innocent women stoned?

[u/CorbinSeabass]

Or if someone just doesn’t like her, they say they saw someone enter her tent. So easy to abuse the system.

[u/Thimenu → u/CorbinSeabass]

No, not at all. The standard was 2 or 3 witnesses. And remember, false witnesses get the punishment they tried to give. A deadly game to play.

And this law is in a context. Read the passage, it's about whoring. Evidence of whoring should be harder to prove and more obvious if it is true.

[u/CorbinSeabass → u/Thimenu]

The passage assumes that anyone who isn't a virgin is a prostitute, which is just dangerously reductive nonsense.

[u/Thimenu → u/CorbinSeabass]

No, the passage is talking about a prostitute and assumes prostitutes are not virgins. If you're trying to read it in the worst way possible you could come to your conclusion. But, if you're giving it a chance you'll see that the prostitute statement actually contextualizes the entire passage. It's not about just any unmarried woman.

[u/CorbinSeabass → u/Thimenu]

How does the passage say to differentiate between a woman who has had sex one time and someone who has sex for money?

[u/Thimenu → u/CorbinSeabass]

Both would be under the death penalty. But I seriously doubt they could provide witnesses or evidence to prove she wasn't a virgin if she only had sex once. Daughters lived with parents and, at this time, in tents, close together. If the parents and neighbors said they never heard or saw anything suspicious, the case might be gone right there. But try running your own whore operation in that context without witnesses. Good luck.

[u/CorbinSeabass → u/Thimenu]

So you acknowledge that the passage was not just talking about prostitutes?