Law Courts (Deuteronomy 17:8-13)

Evilbible.com labels the next section of their website "Murder in the Bible".  In that section, they give a list of verses in which the death penalty is the punishment for a crime committed, or instances in which God took the life of a person or people.

             
             The following quote is taken from evilbible.com:

           

            "The act of murder is rampant in the Bible.  In much of the Bible, especially the Old Testament, there are laws that command that people be killed for absurd reasons such as working on the Sabbath, being gay, cursing your parents, or not being a virgin on your wedding night.  In addition to these crazy and immoral laws, there are plenty of examples of God's irrationality by his direct killing of many people for reasons that defy any rational explanation such as killing children who make fun of bald people, and the killing of a man who tried to keep the ark of God from falling during transport.  There are also countless examples of mass murders commanded by God, including the murder of women, infants, and children.

            The following passages are a very small percentage of the total passages approving of murder in the Bible.  They are divided here into three parts: 1) Capital Punishment Crimes, 2) God's Murders for Stupid Reasons, 3) Murdering Children, and 4) Miscellaneous Murders.  This list is long, but it barely scratches the surface of all the murders approved of in the Bible."

            First, we need to define our terms here.  "Murder" is defined as "the premeditated, deliberate, unlawful taking of a life with malice aforethought".  This is known as first-degree murder.  Second-degree murder is defined as "taking a life intentionally, but without deliberation or premeditation".  To "kill" is to deprive of life or cause the death of someone.  We can find a distinction between the two acts in Exodus 22:2, where a person who kills another person in self-defense is not guilty of murder.

            In the case of God, can it be said that he is a murderer because he takes life?  The truth is that God is the originator of all life.  Without him, there would be nothing.  He is the creator of all things, and all living creatures (Genesis 1-2; Deuteronomy 32:6; Job 33:4, 38; Isaiah 40:28, 42:5; Nehemiah 9:6; John 1:3; Romans 1:18-20).

            Therefore, God is sovereign over all life.  Only God alone can give life, and God alone has the right to take it when he chooses.  This is why a human being murdering another human being is such a serious crime.  When a human being murders another human being, they take a life that they do not have the right to take. 

            Evilbible.com has listed a number of passages that describe instances of killing in the Bible.  I will address them in the order that the website has listed them, sometimes grouping similar verses together to avoid redundancy.

            The following quote is taken from evilbible.com:

"Kill People Who Don't Listen To Priests - "Anyone arrogant enough to reject the verdict of the judge or of the priest who represents the LORD your God must be put to death.  Such evil must be purged from Israel."  (Deuteronomy 17:12 NLT)

            What this chapter is describing is various laws concerning the rule and judgments of kings, judges and priests.  You can read Deuteronomy 17 here:

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=deut%2017&version=NIV

            For society to function, there must be laws to govern and keep people in check.  Otherwise, there would be anarchy and chaos.  Many of the law codes of ancient civilizations have survived, such as the Code of Hammurabi (written circa 1772 BCE).  The book of Deuteronomy contains the Law that God gave to Israel after rescuing them from slavery in Egypt.

            To uphold the Law, priests were anointed to serve God at the Tabernacle.  Judges were also appointed to settle disputes between people, as is the case today.  The issue being described here is concerning a blatant disregard of God's Law.  God had freed the Israelites from a lifetime of perpetual slavery in Egypt, where they had been enslaved for 400 years (Genesis 15:13).  In response to his covenant of love and protection, along with his promise to give them the land of Canaan as their own, the nation of Israel entered into a covenant with him, promising their allegiance and obedience to his Law.

            In light of these circumstances, every Israelite person was bound to keep the covenant and follow God and his Law.  To show contempt for God, his covenant, his appointed leaders and his Law was to break the covenant and act in an incredibly disrespectful and ungrateful manner to the one who had saved them from slavery and mistreatment. 

            What is being described here is a person who defied God's Law and showed contempt for those upholding it: " Go to the Levitical priests and to the judge who is in office at that time. Inquire of them and they will give you the verdict.  You must act according to the decisions they give you at the place the Lord will choose. Be careful to do everything they instruct you to do.  Act according to whatever they teach you and the decisions they give you. Do not turn aside from what they tell you, to the right or to the left.  Anyone who shows contempt for the judge or for the priest who stands ministering there to the Lord your God is to be put to death" (Deuteronomy 17:9-12, NIV).  This wasn't just about not listening to a priest.  It was about open rebellion against God, his Law and his representatives.  As such, it had to be dealt with quickly and decisively, so the entire nation would not be adversely affected by the rebellious actions of one person.  "All the people will hear and be afraid, and will not be contemptuous again" (Deuteronomy 17:13, NIV).

           

References

[1] "Murder", "Kill", Dictionary.com

A Prophecy About The Lord's Future Reign (Zechariah 14)

The following quote is taken from evilbible.com:

"God Assists Rape and Plunder - "Lo, a day shall come for the Lord when the spoils shall be divided in your midst.  And I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem for battle: the city shall be taken, houses plundered, women ravished; half of the city shall go into exile, but the rest of the people shall not be removed from the city."   (Zechariah 14:1-2 NAB)

           

            You can read Zechariah chapter 14 here:

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Zechariah+14&version=NIV

           

            The book of Zechariah is one of the books of prophecy in the Hebrew scriptures (Old Testament).  In chapter 14, the final chapter of the book, there is a prophecy concerning the great tribulation of Israel during the time near the end of the world.  During this tribulation, there will be great suffering.  The description is of a conquered Jerusalem, with houses plundered and women raped, and half of the people exiled.

            Keeping in mind that this is a description of future events, we must consider the question posed by evilbible.com: Is God assisting nations to attack Jerusalem, or is he allowing these things to happen?  The reality is that God has given human beings free will, and human beings use their free will to commit acts of evil (Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 3:23).  Sometimes God allows it, but he does not approve of it.

            This is evidenced in the verses that come directly after the passage that evilbible.com quoted above.  Shortly after the description of Jerusalem being conquered, God defeats those who conquered them: "Then the Lord will go out and fight against those nations, as he fights on a day of battle" (Zechariah 14:3, NIV).  The rest of the chapter goes on to describe the nations that plundered and raped being defeated, and stricken by plague.  The survivors of those nations will worship God, who will reign over the entire world, and Jerusalem will never be attacked or destroyed again (Zechariah 14:3-21).

            God does not ignore evil.  He responds to it, and a day will come when every person will have to give an account to him for the evil acts they have committed (Matthew 12:36; Romans 14:10-12; Hebrews 4:13; 1 Peter 4:5; Revelation 20:11-15).

Hebrew Servants (Exodus 21:1-11)

The following quote is taken from evilbible.com:

"Sex Slaves - "When a man sells his daughter as a slave, she will not be freed at the end of six years as the men are.  If she does not please the man who bought her, he may allow her to be bought back again.  But he is not allowed to sell her to foreigners, since he is the one who broke the contract with her.  And if the slave girl's owner arranges for her to marry his son, he may no longer treat her as a slave girl, but he must treat her as his daughter.  If he himself marries her and then takes another wife, he may not reduce her food or clothing or fail to sleep with her as his wife.  If he fails in any of these three ways, she may leave as a free woman without making any payment."   (Exodus 21:7-11 NLT)

           

            This quote is part of the larger chapter of Exodus 21, which deals with fair treatment of slaves and compensation for personal injuries.  You can read the whole chapter here:

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus+21&version=NIV

           

            In the Ancient Near East, the class system was very different from most cultures today.  Many people, when becoming poor, destitute, or overly in debt, would have to sell themselves and their children into slavery in order to survive [1][2][3].  With this in mind, part of the Law concerned the fair treatment of slaves.  For example, a Hebrew who sold himself into slavery to another Hebrew could not be enslaved for more than 6 years (Exodus 21:2).

            This passage concerns a very specific instance in which a Hebrew man purchased the daughter of another Hebrew man.  The Hebrew word used for her is 'amah, which refers to a female servant who would eventually become a concubine or wife.  The price at which she was purchased included the bride price.  "The arrangement recognized her honor as an Israelite woman, one who could be a wife, even though she entered the household in service. The marriage was not automatic, as the conditions show, but her treatment was safeguarded come what may. The law was a way, then, for a poor man to provide a better life for a daughter" [4].

            Far from making her a "sex slave", this law protected the woman.  The man who bought her could not use her sexually without marrying her, nor could he sell her to anyone else.  If he broke the contract, that is, did not marry her as stipulated, she could only be bought back by her father.  If the man gave her to his son, she would have to marry the son and he would have to treat her as his daughter-in-law, not a slave.  If he married her and then took another wife, he could not neglect her or fail to provide for her needs.  If he did, she was to be set free.  This law prevented women from being trapped in a bad situation, and protected them from being used and abused by those who had more wealth and power. 

           

References

[1] Life and Society in the West: Antiquity and the Middle Ages, Constance Brittain Bouchard, 1988.  Pg. 33.

[2] A History of the Ancient World (Fourth Edition), Chester G. Starr, 1991.  Pg. 43.
[3] Life In The Ancient Near East, Daniel C. Snell, 1997.  Pg. 35-36.

[4] Footnote on net.bible.org, for Exodus 21:7.

War Against The Canaanites (Judges 4-5)

The following quote is taken from evilbible.com:

"Rape and the Spoils of War - "They must be dividing the spoils they took: there must be a damsel or two for each man, Spoils of dyed cloth as Sisera's spoil, an ornate shawl or two for me in the spoil."   (Judges 5:30 NAB)

This quote is taken far out of context.  It is part of the larger story and song of Deborah, and of the nation of Israel's victory against the Canaanites, who had oppressed them for 20 years.  You can read the entire story here:

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Judges%204-5&version=NIV

           

            To summarize the story, the Israelites had been oppressed by King Jabin of Canaan for 20 years (Judges 4:1-3).  When they cried to the Lord for help, he commanded a man named Barak to lead the Israelite army to victory against Sisera, the commander of the Canaanite army.  God sent this command through Deborah, a prophet and the only female judge of Israel.  Barak agreed to lead the army, but only if Deborah would accompany him.  She agreed, but prophesied that the honor of killing Sisera would be given to a woman.  God gave the Israelites victory over the Canaanites, and as Deborah had predicted, a woman named Jael killed Sisera (Judges 4:4-24).

            The quote from Judges chapter 5 is part of the larger Song of Deborah, which describes the Israelite victory over Sisera and the Canaanites.  In this portion of the song, they describe Sisera's mother, waiting for her son to return and bring back plunder from the war.  “Through the window peered Sisera’s mother; behind the lattice she cried out, ‘Why is his chariot so long in coming?  Why is the clatter of his chariots delayed?’  The wisest of her ladies answer her; indeed, she keeps saying to herself, ‘Are they not finding and dividing the spoils: a woman or two for each man, colorful garments as plunder for Sisera, colorful garments embroidered, highly embroidered garments for my neck—all this as plunder?'" (Judges 5:28-30, NIV).  The Canaanites had cruelly oppressed the Israelites for 20 years.  Many ancient cultures did take women as plunder in times of war [1].  This is another example of an action that the Bible records, but God did not approve of.  As mentioned in previous articles, rape is a sin, and Israelite law forbid it (Deuteronomy 22:25-27).  Many other ancient cultures, however, did not have similar laws protecting women in times of war. 

            The writer of this passage (most likely Deborah) was envisioning Sisera's mother waiting for him to come home, and of one of her ladies assuming that he was bringing back gifts and women that he had overpowered.  The irony is that it was a woman who killed Sisera (Judges 5:24-27). 

            This passage does not promote rape.  It is describing a nation that treated others with oppression and cruelty, and was eventually defeated and overthrown.

[1] The Iliad, Homer, written circa 8th-7th century BCE, Book 1 v. 33-36, Book 6 v. 521-556, Book 9 v. 153-168

Marrying A Captive Woman (Deuteronomy 21:10-14)

The following quote is taken from evilbible.com:

"Rape of Female Captives - "When you go out to war against your enemies and the LORD, your God, delivers them into your hand, so that you take captives, if you see a comely woman among the captives and become so enamored of her that you wish to have her as wife, you may take her home to your house.  But before she may live there, she must shave her head and pare her nails and lay aside her captive's garb.  After she has mourned her father and mother for a full month, you may have relations with her, and you shall be her husband and she shall be your wife.  However, if later on you lose your liking for her, you shall give her her freedom, if she wishes it; but you shall not sell her or enslave her, since she was married to you under compulsion." (Deuteronomy 21:10-14, NAB)

Once again God approves of forcible rape."

Let's examine this passage in further detail.  You can read the entire chapter here:

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=deut%2021&version=NIV

            As mentioned in my previous article ("War Against Distant Cities"), slavery as a result of being taken prisoner in war was common in the Ancient Near East [1][2].  Another common practice was women marrying those whom had conquered their city or tribe.  In this instance, the Law set down the procedure for an Israelite man who decided to marry a woman from among those who had been captured as prisoners of war.

            Again, as in previous passages, this passage must be considered in a cultural and historical context.  We must consider the situation of the woman who was taken captive.  Her parents, or at least her father, were most likely dead as a result of being killed during the war.  It is likely that any brothers or other male family members that she had were also dead.  This left her in a desperate situation [3][4].  The only choice that she would have to survive would be slavery or prostitution.  However, there was another way that would slightly elevate her social status and give her a better future - marriage.

            There were clear regulations set down in this instance.  For example, the man could not have sex with the woman that he chose to take home as his wife immediately.  It is clear that this passage is not approving rape.  The situation was very specific - she was not a sex slave or a victim of rape; the man was to take her to his house with the intention of marrying her.  Before they could be married, she had to shave her head (an Eastern custom symbolizing the transfer from one nationality/religion to another, also used as a sign of purification and new status; see Leviticus 14:8 and Numbers 8:7), trim her fingernails, and put away the clothes she was wearing when she was captured, signifying the end of her old life and the beginning of her new life.  She was then to mourn for her parents for a month (verses 12-13), and then the man could marry her and they could have sex.  This gave the woman time to grieve her losses and adapt to her new situation.

            We must remember when reading this passage that people, especially women, who lived in the Ancient Near East had little to no choice who their spouse would be.  Parents arranged marriages for their children [5].  With this in mind, the woman taken captive would be in a similar situation, marrying a man that she had not chosen.  It may seem strange in our modern Western culture, but this was the situation in ancient times.

            Finally, there was a law in this passage that protected the woman.  If the man who had married her decided he no longer wanted her, he could not then enslave her or sell her as a slave to someone else.  He had to let her go free (verse 14).

            Far from being an approval of forcible rape, this passage set clear boundaries for men who wanted to take home captive women, detailing the proper procedures and providing protection for the woman involved.   

References

[1] Code of Hammurabi (written circa 1772 BCE), translated into English by L.W. King (1915) #27-29, 32, 133-135

[2] A History of the Ancient World (Fourth Edition), Chester G. Starr, 1991.  Pg. 43.

[3] Exploring the World of the Bible Lands, Roberta L. Harris, 1995.  Pg. 35.

[4] The Gospel of Ruth, Carolyn Custis James, 2008.  Pgs. 77-78.
[5] Life In The Ancient Near East, Daniel C. Snell, 1997.  Pgs. 52-54.

David and Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11-12, 16)

The following quote is taken from evilbible.com:

"David's Punishment - Polygamy, Rape, Baby Killing, and God's "Forgiveness" - Thus says the Lord: 'I will bring evil upon you out of your own house.  I will take your wives [plural] while you live to see it, and will give them to your neighbor.  He shall lie with your wives in broad daylight.  You have done this deed in secret, but I will bring it about in the presence of all Israel, and with the sun looking down.'

Then David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against the Lord."  Nathan answered David: "The Lord on his part has forgiven your sin: you shall not die.  But since you have utterly spurned the Lord by this deed, the child born to you must surely die."  [The child dies seven days later.] (2 Samuel 12:11-14, NAB)

This has got to be one of the sickest quotes of the Bible.  God himself brings the completely innocent rape victims to the rapist.  What kind of pathetic loser would do something so evil?  And then he kills a child!  This is sick, really sick!"

To understand these verses, it helps to look at the events that directly preceded this statement.  You can read the entire story here:

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Samuel%2011-12,%2016&version=NIV

           

            To summarize the story, King David was supposed to lead the Israelite army to war, but instead stayed at home in his palace in Jerusalem.  While there, he noticed Bathsheba, who was the wife of another man (Uriah the Hittite, one of David's officials), bathing on her roof.  He sent for her and slept with her, and she became pregnant as a result.  David then tried to cover up his sin by sending for Uriah and trying to get him to sleep with Bathsheba, but Uriah refused, saying that it wasn't right for him to go home to his wife when his fellow soldiers could not.  In response to this, David arranged for Uriah to be killed by sending orders for him to be sent where the fighting was most fierce.  Because of this, David not only killed Uriah, but other soldiers lost their lives with Uriah as well (2 Samuel 11:1-17). 

            What David did was a very serious sin, and God was displeased (2 Samuel 11:27).  David not only committed adultery with another man's wife; he then murdered the man.  Both sins went directly against God's commandments (Exodus 20:13-14).  The prophet Nathan confronted David with his sin, and he confessed and repented.  Unfortunately, even though God forgave David, justice demanded punishment and retribution (Numbers 35:33-34). By law, David's punishment should have been execution (Leviticus 20:10).  Had David been left unpunished, the entire kingdom of Israel may have been badly influenced to sin just as he did.

            There are a few issues here mentioned by the author of evilbible.com that need to be examined.  First, why did David have so many wives?  At the time of his sin with Bathsheba, David had at least 6 wives, and several concubines in addition to them (2 Samuel 3:2-5, 5:13).  Even though polygamy was allowed for a time, that doesn't mean that God approved of it.  God's original intention was for one man to marry one woman, not multiple wives (Genesis 2:20-24).  Furthermore, the Law stated that a king should only have one wife (Deuteronomy 17:17).  David disobeyed this commandment.

            God was predicting what would happen to David as a result of his sin with Bathsheba.  His children became rebellious and lost all respect for him.  Years later, David's son Absalom rebelled against him and attempted to take the throne for himself (2 Samuel chapters 15-18).  As part of his rebellion, he openly slept with the concubines that David foolishly left behind when he fled the city (2 Samuel 16:20-22).  In the Ancient Near East, to sleep with a king's concubine was to lay claim to the king's throne.  The text makes no mention of rape in this instance.  The Hebrew word used is shakab, meaning "to lie down with", used to refer to sexual intercourse (2 Samuel 12:11), and then bow, meaning "to go in" (2 Samuel 16:22).  These two terms are not the Hebrew words used for rape, as in other passages (Genesis 34:2; Judges 19:25, 20:25; 2 Samuel 13:14; Zechariah 14:2). [1]  The implication here is that David's concubines willingly slept with Absalom.

            We now come to the question of why God took the life of David and Bathsheba's infant son.  With a question such as this one, there are no easy answers.  “'For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,' declares the Lord.  'As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts'" (Isaiah 55:8-9, NIV).  The murder of Uriah and his fellow soldiers required a life to be taken as punishment.  God spared David and Bathsheba, but their son died.  Perhaps it was so David and Bathsheba would fully realize the grave sin that they had committed, and that they would be moved to never sin in such a way again.  It was also to set an example that the Israelites would see, so that they also would be convinced to not sin in such a way themselves.  Whatever the reason, David seemed confident that his son was in heaven with God, and that he would see him again (2 Samuel 12:15-23).  God also showed his forgiveness and grace to David and Bathsheba by giving them four more sons (1 Chronicles 3:5), one of whom was Solomon, who would become the next king of Israel.

References

[1] Gesenius's Lexicon, Heinrich Friedrich Wilhelm Gesenius (translated by Samuel P. Tregelles), 1847

Marriage Violations (Deuteronomy 22:13-30)

The following quote is taken from evilbible.com:

                 
            "Rape is one of the most heinous crimes imaginable.  Yet few people know that the Bible often condones and even approves of rape.  How anyone can get their moral guidance from a book that allows rape escapes me.  Perhaps they have been lied to about the Bible and carefully detoured around all the nasty stuff in the Bible.

            So grab your Bibles and follow along as I show you all the nasty rapes that your priests and preachers don't want to tell you about.  Note that in many places in the Bible there are references to "taking a wife".  Don't be fooled into thinking that these were voluntary marriages.  This first quote clearly shows that murder and force were used to "take" these wives." 

               

            Before we begin this section, there are two claims which need to be examined.  The first is the claim, "the Bible often condones and even approves of rape".  This is not the case.  The Law forbid rape, and God does not approve of it.  Rape is a sin.  In the time that the Law was written, rape was a crime that was punishable by death (Deuteronomy 22:25-27).

            The second claim is that marriages in the Bible usually involved rape, since they were not voluntary.  By that definition, all marriage in the Bible would be classified as rape, since marriages were almost never voluntary in the Ancient Near East.  In that culture and time period (as in some Eastern cultures today), marriages were always arranged by the parents of the bride and groom [1].  Men and women often did not even meet their spouse until the wedding day.  Marriage then was very different from today, where men and women choose their spouses and marry for love.  In the time period and culture where the Bible was written, people had little to no choice who their spouse would be.  Marriage was mostly for family alliances, protection and continuation of family property/assets, and procreation.

The following quotes are taken from evilbible.com:

"Death to the Rape Victim - "If within the city a man comes upon a maiden who is betrothed, and has relations with her, you shall bring them both out of the gate of the city and there stone them to death: the girl because she did not cry out for help though she was in the city, and the man because he violated his neighbors wife" (Deuteronomy 22:23-24, NAB)

It is clear that God doesn't give a d--- about the rape victim.  He is only concerned about the violation of another man's "property".

"Laws of Rape - "If a man is caught in the act of raping a young woman who is not engaged, he must pay fifty pieces of silver to her father.  Then he must marry the young woman because he violated her, and he will never be allowed to divorce her" (Deuteronomy 22:28-29, NLT).

What kind of lunatic would make a rape victim marry her attacker?  Answer: God."

Let's examine the laws found in Deuteronomy chapter 22.  You can read the full text here:

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=deuteronomy%2022&version=NIV

                

            The laws found in Deuteronomy 22:13-30 describe situations in which the marriage covenant has been violated, such as slander, cases of adultery, and instances of rape.  In the verses just preceding the above passage, the death penalty is given for a man who raped a woman in the country: "But if out in the country a man happens to meet a young woman pledged to be married and rapes her, only the man who has done this shall die.  Do nothing to the woman; she has committed no sin deserving death.  This case is like that of someone who attacks and murders a neighbor, for the man found the young woman out in the country, and though the betrothed woman screamed, there was no one to rescue her" (Deuteronomy 22:25-27, NIV).  Rape was a crime that was punishable by death.
            We find in this chapter three cases for three specific situations.  This passage, like the ones preceding it, must be considered in a cultural and historical context.  In the Ancient Near East, a woman was entirely subject to the men of her family [1].  She was first a virgin in her father's household, and then she was married and became a wife and mother in her husband's household.  In ancient Israelite culture, it was almost unheard of for a person to remain single their entire life.  People, especially women, were expected to marry and have children.  This was a cultural mandate [2][3].

            The first situation described here concerns a man who slept with a woman who was engaged to someone else, in a town (Deuteronomy 22:23-24).  The implication here is that the woman consented to sex and did not scream for help, since her cries would have been obvious in such close proximity to others living nearby.  People who were engaged were already considered to be married; a broken engagement was as serious as a divorce (Matthew 1:18-19).  In light of this, and of God's command against adultery (Exodus 20:14; Leviticus 20:10; Deuteronomy 5:18), this was a crime that both the man and woman committed, that warranted the death penalty.  If the woman was being raped and had screamed for help, only the man would be executed (verses 25-27), which was the second situation described.

            The third situation was unique, since it did not involve a woman who was already engaged, but a virgin woman who was not yet engaged to anyone.  The question that has been presented is this: Why would there be a law prescribing a marriage to occur in this instance?  The answer is cultural.  In the Ancient Near East, virginity was highly prized.  Widows and unmarried women who were not virgins and had no father, brother or son who was willing to provide for them were in a desperate situation [1][2].  Women in this situation often had to sell themselves into slavery or prostitution just to survive.  It was not like modern times, where women can provide for themselves and live on their own.

            One example of this situation can be found in the story of Amnon and Tamar (2 Samuel chapter 13).  In this story, Amnon, King David's oldest son and heir to his throne, fell in love with his half-sister, Tamar.  After tricking her into coming into his bedroom, he raped her.  Afterwards, he commanded her to leave, but her response might be considered puzzling to a modern reader: she wanted to stay, and to marry him.  “Sending me away would be a greater wrong than what you have already done to me" (2 Samuel 13:16, NIV).  Why would Tamar want to stay with Amnon after he raped her?  She knew of her situation: she was no longer a virgin, and in that culture would therefore be unmarriageable, except to the one who had taken her virginity.  She preferred marriage over the alternative of living single as "a desolate woman", which is what happened when Amnon sent her away (2 Samuel 13:17-20).  Amnon was eventually murdered by his half-brother Absalom, who was disgusted over the great evil that had been done to Tamar (2 Samuel 13:21-38).

            We must consider a few other things here.  Different Hebrew words are used in this passage to refer to the different sexual acts, which do not necessarily imply rape.  For example, the word used in verse 23 is shakab, meaning "to lie down with", used to refer to sexual intercourse.  This is not quite the same term as in verse 25, where in addition to shakab the word chazaq is added, meaning "to seize, overpower, take hold of, prevail".  In verse 28, the word taphas is used, but has a slightly different meaning than chazaq, though the two terms are similar.  So in verses 25 and 28 the description is that the man seized and had sex with a woman, but this does not explicitly refer to rape.  The differences in the words used in verses 25 and 28 could be interpreted as verse 25 referring to rape, while verse 28 refers to consensual sex.  These two terms are also not the same Hebrew words used for rape as in other passages (Genesis 34:2; Judges 19:25, 20:25; 2 Samuel 13:14; Zechariah 14:2). [4] [5].

            Lastly, in addition to marrying the woman, the man who had sex with her also had to pay a substantial fine of fifty shekels of silver.  This was no small sum; at that time it represented at least 6-8 months' wages for the average person [6].  The man was now responsible for the protection and care of the wife he had taken.  Though the Law permitted divorce (Deuteronomy 24:1-4), in this instance, the man who committed this crime was not ever permitted to divorce the woman.  This law protected her and provided her with a home, provisions and a future.  For a woman in the Ancient Near East, this situation was better than the alternative of being forced into slavery or prostitution to provide for herself. 
             There is one more thing to consider when reading this passage, and that is a parallel law from the book of Exodus: "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" (Exodus 22:16-17, NIV).  A marriage was not necessarily required to occur if an unbetrothed woman had been raped (or engaged in consensual pre-marital sex).  Since unmarried women in the Ancient Near East were under the authority of their fathers, it was up to the father to decide whether to give her in marriage to the man or not.  The father had the right to refuse, and if he did, the man involved had to pay the substantial bride price anyway.

            This passage is not saying that rape is acceptable.  In these passages, rape is treated as a serious crime.  So how should this passage be interpreted and applied today?  Does this mean that today, a rape victim is supposed to marry her rapist?  The answer is no.  In the first place, Deuteronomy 22:28-29 more likely seems to be describing an instance of consensual pre-marital sex, rather than rape (see the parallel law in Exodus 22:16-17).  Secondly, people tend to take the commandments in the Old Testament (Hebrew Bible) as laws that were supposed to apply to every person in every culture, throughout history. This is not the case. The commandments in the Law (Torah) were specifically given to the nation of the Israelites. They were not intended to be for people of all nations and all time periods. God gave the Law to the Israelites to reveal his character, make all of us aware of our sin and to reveal our need for a Savior (Romans 3:19-31, 5:20-21, 7, 10:4; Galatians 3). We must keep that in mind when reading passages such as this in the Old Testament. This does not mean that there is nothing to be learned from the Old Testament; but what it means is that there is a specific audience that this passage was written for, and we will not understand it unless we consider it in context.

UPDATE 11/23/14: It appears that those who created the NLT Bible translation have updated their translation in order to correctly interpret the language of the Hebrew in Deuteronomy 22:28 - in their 2013 translation, the act is considered pre-marital consensual intercourse, rather than rape: "Suppose a man has intercourse with a young woman who is a virgin but is not engaged to be married.  If they are discovered..." (Deuteronomy 22:28, NLT 2013).

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=deuteronomy+22%3A28-29&version=NLT

References

[1] Exploring the World of the Bible Lands, Roberta L. Harris, 1995.  Pg. 35.

[2] The Gospel of Ruth, Carolyn Custis James, 2008.  Pgs. 77-78.

[3] Life and Society in the West: Antiquity and the Middle Ages, Constance Brittain Bouchard, 1988.  Pg. 33.

[4] Gesenius's Lexicon, Heinrich Friedrich Wilhelm Gesenius (translated by Samuel P. Tregelles), 1847

[5]  http://www.mandm.org.nz/2009/07/sunday-study-does-the-bible-teach-that-a-rape-victim-has-to-marry-her-rapist.html
[6] http://ebible.org/web/weights.htm

See also: 
"Does Deuteronomy 22:28-29 command a rape victim to marry her rapist?": 
http://www.gotquestions.org/Deuteronomy-22-28-29-marry-rapist.html

"Rape victim forced to marry rapist according to the Bible?"
http://www.examiner.com/article/rape-victim-forced-to-marry-rapist-according-to-the-bible