¹² Make the price for the bride^(A) and the gift I am to bring as great as you like, and I’ll pay whatever you ask me. Only give me the young woman as my wife.”

Social Responsibility

¹⁶ “If a man seduces a virgin^(A) who is not pledged to be married and sleeps with her, he must pay the bride-price,^(B) and she shall be his wife. ¹⁷ If her father absolutely refuses to give her to him, he must still pay the bride-price for virgins.

¹⁷ “We have here only five loaves^(A) of bread and two fish,” they answered.

¹⁴ Then David sent messengers to Ish-Bosheth son of Saul, demanding, “Give me my wife Michal,^(A) whom I betrothed to myself for the price of a hundred Philistine foreskins.”

²⁵ Saul replied, “Say to David, ‘The king wants no other price^(A) for the bride than a hundred Philistine foreskins, to take revenge^(B) on his enemies.’” Saul’s plan^(C) was to have David fall by the hands of the Philistines.

²⁶ When the attendants told David these things, he was pleased to become the king’s son-in-law. So before the allotted time elapsed, ²⁷ David took his men with him and went out and killed two hundred Philistines and brought back their foreskins. They counted out the full number to the king so that David might become the king’s son-in-law. Then Saul gave him his daughter Michal^(D) in marriage.

²⁸ If a man happens to meet a virgin who is not pledged to be married and rapes her and they are discovered,^{(A) 29} he shall pay her father fifty shekels^[a] of silver. He must marry the young woman, for he has violated her. He can never divorce her as long as he lives.

⁴¹ It was like this for the twenty years^(A) I was in your household. I worked for you fourteen years for your two daughters^(B) and six years for your flocks,^(C) and you changed my wages^(D) ten times.^(E)

¹⁸ Jacob was in love with Rachel^(A) and said, “I’ll work for you seven years in return for your younger daughter Rachel.”^(B)

⁵³ Then the servant brought out gold and silver jewelry and articles of clothing^(A) and gave them to Rebekah; he also gave costly gifts^(B) to her brother and to her mother.

² So I bought her for fifteen shekels^[a] of silver and about a homer and a lethek^[b] of barley.