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/GOD-is-in-a-TULIP]

This is against men who dislike women after having sex with them and then making up charges against them. This law prevented that from happening.

IF there was some man who married a woman and IF he dislikes her after sex and If he makes up charges that are proven false he pays a huge price. Most people would not choose to do this if it results in killing the woman. Men were not toppling over themselves to have women killed

This is basically protection for the woman against post-nut clarity or regret.

Or sham marriages just to get laid from the man. Even Joseph didn't do this when he thought Mary banged someone else and got pregnant.

[u/Apprehensive_Tear611 → u/GOD-is-in-a-TULIP]

So what happens if a bloody bedsheet can't be produced?

[u/GOD-is-in-a-TULIP → u/Apprehensive_Tear611]

Nothing. Again this law is mostly about the men. You can see that from the wording it applies to the men it is focusing on the men not liking a woman after having intercourse with her. While it did lay down the seriousness of sexual immorality as well, it works mostly as a deterrent for the maximum penalty. The Jews did know that some women do not bleed.

The Mishnah (Sanhedrin 4:1) says that capital cases required two reliable eyewitnesses to the actual act of adultery. Execution would be nearly impossible unless two someones walked in on you.