Deuteronomy 22:15

15 Then the woman's parents must bring proof that she was a virgin. They must give the proof to the elders at the gate of the town.

Deuteronomy 22:15 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 22:15

Then shall the father and the mother of the damsel take
Power from the court, according to the Targum of Jonathan; having leave and licence granted them to do what follows, these were to, and would, concern themselves in such an affair, partly for the credit and reputation of their child, and partly for their own honour, who were in danger, as Jarchi observes, of coming into contempt for their ill education of her:

and bring forth the tokens of the damsel's virginity;
the sheet she lay in when she first bedded with her husband, in her parents' possession, and kept by them as a witness of her purity, should there ever be any occasion for it: and which were to be brought

unto the elders of the city in the gate;
which sat in the gate of the city to try causes: the Targum of Jonathan calls it the gate of the sanhedrim, or court of judicature; and, according to Maimonides ^F17, this court was the court of twenty three judges; for this was a capital crime accused of, a cause relating to life and death, which could not be heard and tried in a lesser court.

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FOOTNOTES:

F17 Hilchot Naarah Betulah, c. 3. sect. 3.

Deuteronomy 22:15 In-Context

13 Suppose a man gets married to a woman and makes love to her. But then he doesn't like her.

14 So he tells lies about her and says she's a bad woman. He says, "I got married to this woman. But when I made love to her, I discovered she wasn't a virgin."

15 Then the woman's parents must bring proof that she was a virgin. They must give the proof to the elders at the gate of the town.

16 The woman's father will speak to the elders. He'll say, "I gave my daughter to this man to be his wife. But he doesn't like her.

17 So now he has told lies about her. He has said, 'I discovered that your daughter wasn't a virgin.' But here's the proof that my daughter was a virgin." Then her parents will show the elders of the town the cloth that has her blood on it.