The Bible is really a fascinating historical document. It has been the bestselling, most widely-translated book on the planet for hundreds of years. Statistically speaking, 31.5% of people on the planet attribute their sense of morality and ethics to this ancient book, making Christians the largest global religious group. It’s safe to say that the Bible is a pretty influential reference point for much of humanity.

Oh, and it’s also pretty clear on the matter of women being inferior to men.

Now, before you jump to angry conclusions about this feminist writer using the actual contents of the Bible to criticize the actual Bible, let me be clear: I know that the Bible isn’t meant to be taken literally in our modern day and age (unlike certain Biblical Literalists). But as a historical document whose influence has stretched into the present day, its relevance is undeniable. So I think we can all agree that a frank conversation about violent misogyny in the Bible is worthwhile.

This is why we have rounded up some passages from the Bible itself that advocate the killing of women for… reasons.

The Bible is a pretty bloody text in general. There are all kinds of reasons to kill anyone (being an atheist, following a different religion, hitting your dad, working on Sunday, etc.). Here we’ve focused only on the reasons why women in particular get singled out for murder in the Bible. We assume the fairer sex is also subject to all the other rules for justifiable murder as well.

We also omitted all the non-deadly punishments to keep this list to a manageable number (Which is why you won’t be seeing 1 Timothy 2:15, about how a woman who doesn’t bear children is probably going to hell).

  1. Adultery.If a man commits adultery with another man’s wife, both the man and the woman must be put to death”.  (Leviticus 20:10) So in other words: Women who commit adultery must die. But men who commit adultery with an unmarried woman are good to go.
  2. Having sex if your dad is a clergyman.A priest’s daughter who loses her honor by committing fornication and thereby dishonors her father also, shall be burned to death.”  (Leviticus 21:9) Yes, burned to death. Because preachers’ daughters need to serve as an example to the rest of us dirty sluts… or something?
  3. Lying about your virginity. “But if this thing be true, and the tokens of virginity be not found for the damsel: Then they shall bring out the damsel to the door of her father’s house, and the men of her city shall stone her with stones that she die.” (Deuteronomy 22:20-21) The real question is how the hell did ancient Israeli men determine if a girl was a virgin? Oh that’s right: by molesting her.
  4. Being a witch. “Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.” (Exodus 22:18) While the definition of “witch” in Biblical times is a bit murky, if the Salem Witch Trials are any indication, then this passage basically refers to any independent-minded woman who refuses to submit to a man.
  5. Being an enemy of Israel. “Samaria shall become desolate; for she hath rebelled against her God: they shall fall by the sword: their infants shall be dashed in pieces, and their women with child shall be ripped up.” (Hosea 13:16) There are tons of Bible passages that advocate mass genocide of the various enemies of Israel, and the women of those nations in particular. It was kind of hard to just pick one for this example.
  6. Having sex with your husband’s son. “If a man has sexual relations with his father’s wife, he has dishonored his father. Both the man and the woman are to be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.” (Leviticus 20:20) Since a man could marry multiple women at the same time, this is distinct from being put to death for having sex with your own son.
  7. Sharing a husband with your mother or daughter. “If a man marries both a woman and her mother, it is wicked. Both he and they must be burned in the fire, so that no wickedness will be among you.” (Leviticus 20:14) Leviticus is oddly specific about all the different forms of incest and polygamy that will get you burned or stoned to death.
  8. Incest. “And if a man lie with his daughter in law, both of them shall surely be put to death: they have wrought confusion; their blood shall be upon them.” (Leviticus 20:12) Just to round out Leviticus’s obsession with various familial sexual intercourse.
  9. Bestiality. “And if a woman approach unto any beast, and lie down thereto, thou shalt kill the woman, and the beast: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.” (Leviticus 20:16) Because the animal clearly had a choice in the matter.
  10. Being psychic. “A man or woman who is a medium or spiritist among you must be put to death. You are to stone them; their blood will be on their own heads.” (Leviticus 20:27) Whether or not you believe in psychics, I think we can all agree that fortunetellers and palm readers probably don’t deserve to die.
  11. Getting raped while engaged. “If a damsel that is a virgin be betrothed unto an husband, and a man find her in the city, and lie with her; Then ye shall bring them both out unto the gate of that city, and ye shall stone them with stones that they die.” (Deuteronomy 22:25) It’s cool though, because if you’re not engaged when you get raped, you just have to marry your rapist (Deuteronomy 22:28).
  12. Getting raped and not screaming loud enough. If a damsel that is a virgin be betrothed unto an husband, and a man find her in the city, and lie with her; Then ye shall bring them both out unto the gate of that city, and ye shall stone them with stones that they die; the damsel, because she cried not, being in the city; and the man, because he hath humbled his neighbour’s wife: so thou shalt put away evil from among you.” (Deuteronomy 22:23-24) Get it? Because if you get raped in a city all you have to do is scream really loud and someone will come rescue you. If you don’t scream loud enough, that’s on you. If you’re raped in the country though, don’t worry: there’s no one around to hear you scream, so you can’t be blamed.
  13. Not being a virgin on your wedding night. If any man take a wife, and go in unto her, and hate her … and say, I took this woman, and when I came to her, I found her not a maid: Then shall the father of the damsel, and her mother, take and bring forth the tokens of the damsel’s virginity unto the elders of the city in the gate…. But if this thing be true, and the tokens of virginity be not found for the damsel: Then they shall bring out the damsel to the door of her father’s house, and the men of her city shall stone her with stones that she die: because she hath wrought folly in Israel, to play the whore in her father’s house: so shalt thou put evil away from among you.” (Deuteronomy 22:13-22)
  14. Having your husband hate you. Same passage (Deuteronomy 22:13-22). If your husband decides he doesn’t like you, all he has to do is claim you weren’t a virgin on your wedding night. Then you’re dead and he’s free to pick somebody new to darn his Bronze Age socks.
  15. Having sex while menstruating. And if a man shall lie with a woman having her sickness, and shall uncover her nakedness; he hath discovered her fountain, and she hath uncovered the fountain of her blood: and both of them shall be cut off from among their people.” (Leviticus 20-18) Exile was basically a death sentence to the ancient Israelites, who depended on their cooperative desert communities for all aspects of food and shelter.

Did I miss any? Misinterpret a particular passage? Well shucks, nobody’s perfect (pretty sure that’s probably also against Biblical law). Tell us all about it in a comment below.

About The Author

Bombshell executive editor Jess d'Arbonne works in book publishing. In her non-existent spare time she writes about nerd culture, books, feminism, and zombies. She's a Libra, a Browncoat, a self-professed geek, and nobody's fool. You can follow her on Twitter @JessDarb

26 Responses

  1. S

    Women are people. She’s someone, not only someone’s mother, daughter. Women are not public or anyone’s properties. Stop hiding behind the bible..

    Reply
  2. Mariah

    I’m not Jewish or Christian but you should really read the rest of the verses and understand what they’re trying to say before you throw your uneducated opinions out there. Smh, people read a controversial paragraph but fail to read the one before and after. What is wrong with you people.

    Reply
    • Just Some Guy

      What’s the correct context that makes stoning a rape victim acceptable?

      Reply
      • tryingtolearn

        It doesn’t and the fact you dont know that shows that there isnt enough context. If a woman is raped, the man is stoned to death, not the woman.

  3. Daniel Issaks

    I agree with everything the Holy Bible teaches about punishing evil women. Most women Are Evil,We know this and deserve to be treated accordingly, no apologies. Shalom U,vracha

    Reply
  4. Dwiget Huth

    So by all Biblical righrs when Christians and Conservatives say that abortion is illegal and against the word of God based on God creating the rape and incest then ” (Deuteronomy 22:23-28),” (Leviticus 20:12) shall deem those supposing rape and incest if of God as being wicked shall be put to death.

    Reply
    • Just Some Guy

      Matthew 5:17-18New International Version (NIV)
      The Fulfillment of the Law
      17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.

      Reply
  5. Chris Deile

    Thank you–great reasons to mobilize against people being court ordered into religious based programs. AA is religious (see its AA Comes of Age pages 304-320 for at least 11 explicit references to AA being religious); and Celebrate Recovery is even more religiously explicit–young people with alcohol/drug issues are being court ordered into it (wherein bible verses are shown on a large screen in a mega church and attendees read out loud in unison–imagine these verses above having been selected, along with “a homosexual most certainly shall not live”, etc.) And the New Testament teaches Jesus came not to do away with the law but to fulfill it (thereby affirming these horrendous practices).

    Reply
  6. Tom Dowling

    Ms. d’Arbonne:

    You write, “I know that the Bible isn’t meant to be taken literally in our modern day and age…”

    How do you know that?

    How is anyone else to know that?

    The Bible is touted as the word of an infallible, omniscient, and ever present god. If this god wanted to change the Bible’s teachings, why hasn’t he done so or arranged to have done?

    If the Bible is open to interpretation which strays from the clear and ordinary meanings of the original words: why doesn’t the Bible so clearly state?

    And if interpreting is acceptable, whose interpretations are we to accept? The existing interpretations among churches and individuals are virtually endless.

    Reply
    • Cisco

      Why does anyone ASSUME it’s literal? That is what you are talking about, a huge assumption, and you know what they say about the word ‘assume’. Oh, and the “clear and ordinary meanings of the original words” are words that weren’t in English, so why aren’t people reading it in Hebrew?

      Reply
  7. Ihatewomen

    How about simply because they’re women and being bitchy isn’t a right?

    Reply
  8. Ok

    You were very haughty throughout this post. You clearly just took scriptures out of context and didn’t do enough reading and research. It’s evident in your explanations, and makes you look stupid.

    Reply
  9. Kent

    It’s quite funny that the author of this post doesn’t know the difference between the Old Testament and the New Testament. All her examples are from the O.T.. It says a lot about the level of functional illiteracy in America.

    Reply
  10. Ed Gein

    Women in the US are dishonest deceitful cunts. I have killed 73 of them so far. Each time I feel it is God’s work that has been done.

    Reply
  11. Halie

    This article is so ignorant. You can’t just pick a few verse and take them the way you think they seem on face value. You must read the Bible in light of the whole bible. Pay attention to when each book was written and why, etc

    Reply
  12. Nate

    Lots of Old Testament quotes here. Are you going to do a follow up with what Christ taught? Pray for your enemies, forgive everyone, put God and others before yourself and all that?

    For anyone else that comes across this page and happens to read this comment: I’d pay more attention to the guy who was murdered for telling everyone to be nice to each other and claimed to be God’s son…and then came back to life and appeared before hundreds of people.

    There is a reason that the Bible is the most popular book, most translated, and most accurate historical document in human history. Not a fact that should be flippantly dismissed.

    Reply
  13. Sio

    We live in a selfish society where everything now is about self. Selfie, self love, self worth, single mother/ father, I don’t need no man/woman I can raise this kid on my own, I can sleep with who ever I want, my body count is irrelevant & is almost like the religion of “self”. Where has this ideology lead us? Lonelyness & isolation & eventually for some, suicide.

    God has given us salvation in Jesus Christ who is like a friend that gives the best advice on life one can give

    John chapter 8 verse 3-11
    (In summary) Jesus says; you who is without sin cast the first stone (knowing every man on earth is a sinner) they all walked away 1 by 1 until only Jesus and the woman were left. Jesus says “woman where are they? Has none condemned you?” She said “no one lord” and Jesus says, and neither do i, go and sin no more.

    Jesus came to save us. Everyone wake up! we need to follow him and his teachings. it’s not too late to be saved for the day of judgement is near.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.