And it shall be, if thou have no delight in her, then thou shalt let her go whither she will; but thou shalt not sell her at all for money, thou shalt not make merchandise of her, because thou hast humbled her.
If you are no longer pleased with her, then you must let her go wherever she wants to go. But you must never sell her for money or treat her like property to be traded, because you have already taken advantage of her vulnerable position.
This verse is establishing that even in difficult circumstances, a woman's dignity must be protected—she cannot be sold or treated as merchandise.
📚 Historical Context
This verse is part of ancient Israeli laws about marriage to female captives taken during warfare, which was a common practice in the ancient Near East. The law was actually protective for its time, requiring that if a man divorced such a woman, he could not profit from selling her as a slave. This provided some measure of dignity and freedom in a culture where women, especially captives, had very few rights.
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