(KJV)Zechariah 14:2 For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
"women ravished" (NIV says "women raped") - This is clearly advocating rape, please tell me how it can be explained differently.
(KJV)Numbers 31:17 Now therefore kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman that hath known man by lying with him.
18 But all the women children, that have not known a man by lying with him, keep alive for yourselves.
This is clearly advocating the rape of children, please tell me how it can be explained differently.
2007-09-23 15:55:18 · 12 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
the second one "keep them for yourselves" this is not merely a collection of virgins to keep on the shelf, that is to rape them. Why else would they need to be virgins?
2007-09-23 16:12:49 · update #1
crazy_ivan1986: Ok, so the city shall also be taken by some other unnamed people? And who do the slaves go to? What about the second verse?
2007-09-23 16:24:37 · update #2
1: "For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle" definitely saying look this is what we are going to do, not some random prophecy of what some other people will do.
2: If the little girls were going to be "taken" as slaves or "taken in" as family, why only girls and why only virgins?
2007-09-23 16:30:15 · update #3
That's funny, when was the last time you were able to delete another person's answer? I certainly did not and have never deleted any answers other than my own.
2007-09-24 03:04:45 · update #4
Well if you think these are the actions of a loving God that should be worshiped, then you have definitely misinterpreted them.
Otherwise...
2007-09-23 16:09:34 · answer #1 · answered by Pangloss (Ancora Imparo) AFA 7 · 3⤊ 1⤋
(Numbers 31:17-18) And now kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman who has had intercourse with man by lying with a male. 18 And preserve alive for yourselves all the little ones among the women who have not known the act of lying with a male.
In verse 18, the proper translation is not 'women children' [ girls] but is simply 'women'
A vast difference.
The context is in relation to sexual maturity.
'Keeping alive for yourselves' indicates that they would be accepted into the Jewish system. which was very moral. so moral that any woman caught having sexual relations outside of marriage would be stoned to death, along with the male also involved. The law applied to both sexes.
Because of this moral law, rape was banned and punished severely if it did occur.
Numbers was when the Israelites were attacking ungodly cities.
Zech. 42 is a separate incident
Zechariah is when Jehovah God allowed other nations to attack and thus punish the Israelites themselves.
They were being warned that the Israelite women would be ravished by the invading troops [nations against Jerusalem]. The majority were carried off to slavery in Babylon but a few were left behind. It would be seventy years before the offspring of those captured could get release from Babylon [ through Cyrus] and make their way back to Jerusalem.
In the Bible, because it is not always written in chronological order, it is important to not
get different incidents confused.
Zechariah is about Jerusalem getting attacked.
And Numbers is about the Israelites doing the attacking. With God's approval.
Killing to us might seem barbaric, but God has the ability to undo anything like this.
These people were eliminated because they failed to worship Jehovah God..
2007-09-23 16:36:29 · answer #2 · answered by pugjw9896 7 · 1⤊ 2⤋
Zechariah is talking about what will happen to Jerusalem when the opposing army conquers it. He is not condoning rape but telling them that is what will happen. It is clearly talking about an enemy that will take the city because the Hebrews had turned away from God and broken the covenant and so are receiving their punishment.
The verse in Numbers is actually a contrast and it shows that God has mercy. The males will try to rise up against the Hebrews and fight while the mothers will try to keep the memory of the people group alive and cause trouble later through their children but the young girls who have done nothing will be taken in as family to the Hebrew people. Nowhere does it say rape them, ever, you just interpret that because that is what you want it to say.
2007-09-23 16:21:52 · answer #3 · answered by mrglass08 6 · 2⤊ 2⤋
In no instance is it advocating rape. Yes ravish would be rape, and yes the gathering of nations was upon the "chosen" set apart people of God. This would be the ultimate judgment prophecied many years before but would only last a short time. Following those verses God will destroy those nations going against Israel. The same theme is seen again and again in the Old Testament, Israel goes its own way, they are judged, they follow God, then go their own way again to find another judgment. He has set that nation apart and they are usually judged by the very sins they have been committing.
2007-09-23 16:34:31 · answer #4 · answered by musewriter1 1 · 1⤊ 2⤋
Zechariah 14
You are saying that the Bible is advocating rape. That's where you are wrong. It's telling about the armies that gather to make war against Jerusalem, they commit rape. Then Jesus comes and melts their faces off.
Numbers 31:17
This is not advocating child rape. There is nothing about rape in those passages. It's a whole lot better with what God told them to do than what others had done to tribes they conquered. God told them to collect the virgins of the people they conquered. He didn't say rape them.
So you clearly were wrong.
2007-09-23 16:09:14 · answer #5 · answered by Christian Sinner 7 · 3⤊ 3⤋
Zech. 14:2 does not advocate rape. It is simply a prophesy of what will take place.
Num. 31:17 could be referring to girls being taken for servants. Letting them live was a kindness and was allowed because they obviously had no part in the Midianites' sins against Israel and would not be a threat.
2007-09-23 16:22:34 · answer #6 · answered by Cee T 6 · 2⤊ 2⤋
i have already explained this to you.. but you deleted my answer in another question... silly of you. You cant take one or 2 verses and understand them.. reading the whole chapter tells the truth and story and how these things happen or why. Start reading
2007-09-24 02:58:54 · answer #7 · answered by pink9364 5 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Nope, God may get the people to fight Jerusalem, but it doesn't say that God said to go and rape the women and children, he's just saying what will happen, without he's aproval
2007-09-23 16:18:26 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 3⤋
Good question. I look forward to clear and concise answers to this.
2007-09-23 16:05:56 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
Yes, when you use a pentagram as your avatar,
you are automatically misrepresenting and mis-
undersanding the scriptures.
2007-09-23 17:01:15 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋