Judges 19:24-30

24 Behold, here is my daughter, a maiden, and his concubine. Them I will bring out now, and humble ye them and do with them what seemeth good unto you; but unto this man do not so vile a thing!"

25 But the men would not hearken to him. So the man took his concubine and brought her forth unto them, and they knew her and abused her all the night until the morning; and when the day began to spring, they let her go.

26 Then came the woman in the dawning of the day, and fell down at the door of the man's house where her lord was, till it was light.

27 And her lord rose up in the morning, and opened the doors of the house, and went out to go his way; and behold, the woman, his concubine, had fallen down at the door of the house, and her hands were upon the threshold.

28 And he said unto her, "Up, and let us be going." But none answered. Then the man took her up upon an ass, and the man rose up and went unto his place.

29 And when he had come into his house, he took a knife and laid hold on his concubine and divided her, together with her bones, into twelve pieces, and sent her into all the regions of Israel.

30 And it was so, that all who saw it said, "There was no such deed done nor seen from the day that the children of Israel came up out of the land of Egypt until this day. Consider it, take counsel, and speak your minds."

Judges 19:24-30 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO JUDGES 19

This chapter gives an account of a sad affair of a Levite and his concubine, and of the bad consequence of it, how that she played the whore, and went away from him to her father's house, whither he followed her, and where he was kindly entertained by her father several days, Jud 19:1-9 and then set out on his journey to his own country; and passing by Jebus or Jerusalem, he came to Gibeah, and could get no lodging, Jud 19:10-15, but at length was taken in by an old man, an Ephraimite, Jud 19:16-21 when the house where he was beset by some wicked men in Gibeah, with the same intent as the men of Sodom beset the house of Lot, Jud 19:22-24 and after some expostulation of the old man with them, the concubine was brought out to them and abused by them even unto death, Jud 19:25-28 upon which the Levite her husband cut her into twelve pieces, and sent them into all the coasts of Israel, which was shocking and surprising, Jud 19:29,30 the consequence of which is related in the next chapter.