Judges 19

CHAPTER 19

A Levite and His Concubine (19:1–30)

1 The final three chapters of the book of Judges are closely linked and describe one of the most disturbing episodes in Israel’s history. This episode occurred early in the period of the judges and started with a Levite taking a concubine⁷⁴ from Bethlehem in Judah.⁷⁵

2–4 The concubine was unhappy living with the Levite (for good reason, as we shall see) and returned to her father’s house; in doing this she was being unfaithful to her husband (verse 2). When the Levite went to bring her back, the girl’s father gladly welcomed him (verse 3); the girl’s unfaithfulness had brought shame on her father, and he was eager to see her reunited with her husband.

5–10 The father treated his son-in-law with warm hospitality, in accordance with the customs of the time. But the resulting delay in the Levite’s departure was to prove costly to his concubine.

11–15 The Levite’s servant wanted to spend the night in Jebus (later named Jerusalem), which at that time was inhabited by Jebusites—one of the Canaanite nations that Israel was supposed to drive out with the Lord’s help (Deuteronomy 7:1–2; Judges 1:21). But the Levite felt it was not safe to spend the night in an alien city—that is, one inhabited by Canaanites—and chose instead to go on to an Israelite city (verse 12). And so the Levite and his party went on to Gibeah,⁷⁶ a city belonging to the tribe of Benjamin (Joshua 18:28), and there they expected to spend the night in safety. However, no one took them into his home (verse 15).

16–21 Finally an old man came by; after inquiring what they were doing in Gibeah,⁷⁷ he himself took them in.

22–24 Then the trouble began: some of the men of the city demanded to have sex with the Levite (verse 22). The Benjamites of Gibeah—fellow Israelites—had adopted the morals of the Canaanites. Indeed, they had become like the men of Sodom (see Genesis 19:5). Homosexual acts were common among the Canaanites, but now they were being carried out by Israelites, and in direct violation of God’s law (Leviticus 18:22; 20:13). Such was the moral decay that characterized the nation of Israel during the period of the judges.

The old man took his responsibility as host very seriously. He called the demands of the men vile and disgraceful (verse 23), as all such perversions of what is right and natural must be called (Romans 1:26–27). The old man was determined to protect his guest, as the ancient laws of hospitality demanded. But he resorted to the same terrible stratagem that Lot had resorted to in Sodom (Genesis 19:8): he offered his virgin daughter and the Levite’s concubine to the townspeople instead.

The laws of the Old Testament gave ample protection to women; ancient society, however, did not. As Israelite society departed further and further from God’s standards, the treatment of women became worse and worse. Thus, even the old man’s sense of hospitality had become corrupted: to save his male guest, he was willing to throw two women to the wolves! He fulfilled the description given earlier by the writer of Judges: In those days . . . everyone did as he saw fit (Judges 17:6). When God’s people begin to do “whatever they see fit,” they become no better than Canaanites.

25–28 Meanwhile, the men outside expressed no interest in the women; they wanted the Levite. So the Levite, to save his skin, took his concubine and sent her outside to them. Now we can see why she wanted to leave him in the first place! (verse 2). The Levite’s cruel and craven selfishness put him on the same moral level with the men outside.

Perhaps the Levite hadn’t anticipated what the men would do to his concubine. But he certainly didn’t seem to care. When he discovered her lying in the doorway next morning, his first words to her were, “Get up” (verse 28). But she was dead. And that infamous night in Gibeah was never to be forgotten (Hosea 9:9; 10:9).

29–30 The Levite carried his dead concubine home, cut her body into twelve pieces and sent one piece each to the twelve tribes of Israel. His purpose was to shock Israel into taking action against the ungodly men of Gibeah. This Levite, himself an accomplice in the death of his concubine, was now self-righteous ly see king to get revenge on her killers. And as we shall see in the next chapter, the Levite’s shocking tactics worked.

There is a further sad irony in this story. The Levites were supposed to be teachers of the law, guardians of moral standards, examples for the people to follow. But when leaders themselves become callous and corrupt, as was this Levite, the rest of society will surely follow in their path.