Deuteronomy 22:20

Old Testament Law (Torah) ASV (1901)

What does Deuteronomy 22:20 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “But if this thing be true, that the tokens of virginity were not found in the damsel;” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

But if this thing be true, that the tokens of virginity were not found in the damsel;
Deuteronomy 22:20 — American Standard Version

Context — Deuteronomy 22

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
20But if this thing be true, that the tokens of virginity were not found in the damsel;

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“And of Gad he said, etc.] The tribe of Gad, as the Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem: blessed [be] he that enlargeth Gad; that is, the Lord, to whom the praise and glory were to be given, who had appointed to Gad a large inheritance on the other side Jordan, and had settled him in it, and which became larger by the conquest of the Hagarites, and others, (<130518>1 Chronicles 5:18-22); he dwelleth as a lion; bold and courageous, secure, and without fear of any of his enemies, though near him, on his borders, as the Moabites and Ammonites were; of the same spirit and temper were the men of the tribe of Gad in the times of David, (<131208>1 Chronicles 12:8); and teareth the arm with the crown…”
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Keil & Delitzsch
C. F. Keil & F. Delitzsch · Commentary on the Old Testament · 19th-century historical commentary
“In the other case, however, if the man's words were true, and the girl had not been found to be a virgin, the elders were to bring her out before the door of her father's house, and the men of the town were to stone her to death, because she had committed a folly in Israel (cf. Gen 34:7), to commit fornication in her father's house. The punishment of death was to be inflicted upon her, not so much because she had committed fornication, as because notwithstanding this she had allowed a man to marry her as a spotless virgin, and possibly even after her betrothal had gone with another man (cf. Deu 22:23, Deu 22:24). There is no ground for thinking of unnatural wantonness, as Knobel does.…”
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Related study paths

Sources and verification