^19:1In those days Israel had no king. There was a Levite¹ living temporarily in the remote region of the Ephraimite hill country. He acquired a concubine² from Bethlehem³ in Judah. ^19:2However, she⁴ got angry at him⁵ and went home⁶ to her father’s house in Bethlehem in Judah. When she had been there four months, ^19:3her husband came⁷ after her, hoping he could convince her to return.⁸ He brought with him his servant⁹ and a pair of donkeys. When she brought him into her father’s house and the girl’s father saw him, he greeted him warmly.¹⁰^19:4His father-in-law, the girl’s father, persuaded him to stay with him for three days, and they ate and drank together, and spent the night there. ^19:5On the fourth day they woke up early and the Levite got ready to leave.¹¹ But the girl’s father said to his son-in-law, “Have a bite to eat for some energy,¹² then you can go.” ^19:6So the two of them sat down and had a meal together.¹³ Then the girl’s father said to the man, “Why not stay another night and have a good time!”¹⁴^19:7When the man got ready to leave,¹⁵ his father-in-law convinced him to stay another night.¹⁶^19:8He woke up early in the morning on the fifth day so he could leave, but the girl’s father said, “Get some energy.¹⁷ Wait until later in the day to leave!”¹⁸ So they ate a meal together. ^19:9When the man got ready to leave¹⁹ with his concubine and his servant,²⁰ his father-in-law, the girl’s father, said to him, “Look! The day is almost over!²¹ Stay another night! Since the day is over,²² stay another night here and have a good time. You can get up early tomorrow and start your trip home.”²³^19:10But the man did not want to stay another night. He left²⁴ and traveled as far as²⁵ Jebus (that is, Jerusalem).²⁶ He had with him a pair of saddled donkeys and his concubine.²⁷

^19:11When they got near Jebus, it was getting quite late²⁸ and the servant²⁹ said to his master, “Come on, let’s stop at³⁰ this Jebusite city and spend the night in it.” ^19:12But his master said to him, “We should not stop at a foreign city where non-Israelites live.³¹ We will travel on to Gibeah.” ^19:13He said to his servant,³² “Come on, we will go into one of the other towns³³ and spend the night in Gibeah or Ramah.” ^19:14So they traveled on,³⁴ and the sun went down when they were near Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin.³⁵^19:15They stopped there and decided to spend the night³⁶ in Gibeah. They came into the city and sat down in the town square, but no one invited them to spend the night.³⁷

^19:16But then an old man passed by, returning at the end of the day from his work in the field.³⁸ The man was from the Ephraimite hill country; he was living temporarily in Gibeah. (The residents of the town were Benjaminites.)³⁹^19:17When he looked up and saw the traveler⁴⁰ in the town square, the old man said, “Where are you heading? Where do you come from?” ^19:18The Levite⁴¹ said to him, “We are traveling from Bethlehem⁴² in Judah to the remote region of the Ephraimite hill country. That’s where I’m from. I had business in Bethlehem in Judah, but now I’m heading home.⁴³ But no one has invited me into their home. ^19:19We have enough straw and grain for our donkeys, and there is enough food and wine for me, your female servant,⁴⁴ and the young man who is with your servants.⁴⁵ We lack nothing.” ^19:20The old man said, “Everything is just fine!⁴⁶ I will take care of all your needs. But don’t spend the night in the town square.” ^19:21So he brought him to his house and fed the donkeys. They washed their feet and had a meal.⁴⁷

^19:22They were having a good time,⁴⁸ when suddenly⁴⁹ some men of the city, some good-for-nothings,⁵⁰ surrounded the house and kept beating⁵¹ on the door. They said to the old man who owned the house, “Send out the man who came to visit you so we can have sex with him.”⁵²^19:23The man who owned the house went outside and said to them, “No, my brothers! Don’t do this wicked thing! After all, this man is a guest in my house. Don’t do such a disgraceful thing! ^19:24Here are my virgin daughter and my guest’s⁵³ concubine. I will send them out and you can abuse them and do to them whatever you like.⁵⁴ But don’t do such a disgraceful thing to this man!” ^19:25The men refused to listen to him, so the Levite⁵⁵ grabbed his concubine and made her go outside.⁵⁶ They raped⁵⁷ her and abused her all night long until morning. They let her go at dawn. ^19:26The woman arrived back at daybreak and was sprawled out on the doorstep of the house where her master⁵⁸ was staying until it became light.⁵⁹^19:27When her master⁶⁰ got up in the morning, opened the doors of the house, and went outside to start on his journey, there was the woman, his concubine, sprawled out on the doorstep of the house with her hands on the threshold. ^19:28He said to her, “Get up, let’s leave!” But there was no response. He put her on the donkey and went home.⁶¹^19:29When he got home, he took a knife, grabbed his concubine, and carved her up into twelve pieces.⁶² Then he sent the pieces throughout Israel.⁶³^19:30Everyone who saw the sight⁶⁴ said, “Nothing like this has happened or been witnessed during the entire time since⁶⁵ the Israelites left the land of Egypt!⁶⁶ Take careful note of it! Discuss it and speak!”

Civil War Breaks Out

^20:1All the Israelites from Dan to Beer Sheba¹ and from the land of Gilead² left their homes³ and assembled together⁴ before the Lord at Mizpah. ^20:2The leaders⁵ of all the people from all the tribes of Israel took their places in the assembly of God’s people, which numbered⁶ four hundred thousand sword-wielding foot soldiers. ^20:3The Benjaminites heard that the Israelites had gone up to Mizpah. Then the Israelites said, “Explain how this wicked thing happened!” ^20:4The Levite,⁷ the husband of the murdered woman, spoke up, “I and my concubine stopped in⁸ Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin⁹ to spend the night. ^20:5The leaders of Gibeah attacked me and at night surrounded the house where I was staying.¹⁰ They wanted to kill me; instead they abused my concubine so badly that she died. ^20:6I grabbed hold of my concubine and carved her up and sent the pieces¹¹ throughout the territory occupied by Israel,¹² because they committed such an unthinkable atrocity¹³ in Israel. ^20:7All you Israelites,¹⁴ make a decision here!”¹⁵

^20:8All Israel rose up in unison¹⁶ and said, “Not one of us will go home!¹⁷ Not one of us will return¹⁸ to his house! ^20:9Now this is what we will do to Gibeah: We will attack the city as the lot dictates.¹⁹^20:10We will take ten of every group of a hundred men from all the tribes of Israel (and a hundred of every group of a thousand, and a thousand of every group of ten thousand) to get supplies for the army.²⁰ When they arrive in Gibeah of Benjamin they will punish them for the atrocity which they committed in Israel.”²¹^20:11So all the men of Israel gathered together at the city as allies.²²

^20:12The tribes of Israel sent men throughout the tribe²³ of Benjamin, saying, “How could such a wicked thing take place?²⁴^20:13Now, hand over the good-for-nothings²⁵ in Gibeah so we can execute them and purge Israel of wickedness.”²⁶ But the Benjaminites refused to listen to their Israelite brothers. ^20:14The Benjaminites came from their cities and assembled at Gibeah²⁷ to make war against the Israelites. ^20:15That day the Benjaminites mustered from their cities twenty-six thousand sword-wielding soldiers, besides seven hundred well-trained soldiers from Gibeah.²⁸^20:16Among this army²⁹ were seven hundred specially-trained left-handed soldiers.³⁰ Each one could sling a stone and hit even the smallest target.³¹^20:17The men of Israel (not counting Benjamin) had mustered four hundred thousand sword-wielding soldiers, every one an experienced warrior.³²

^20:18The Israelites went up to Bethel³³ and asked God,³⁴ “Who should lead the charge against the Benjaminites?”³⁵ The Lord said, “Judah should lead.” ^20:19The Israelites got up the next morning and moved³⁶ against Gibeah. ^20:20The men of Israel marched out to fight Benjamin; they³⁷ arranged their battle lines against Gibeah. ^20:21The Benjaminites attacked from Gibeah and struck down twenty-two thousand Israelites that day.³⁸

^20:22The Israelite army³⁹ took heart⁴⁰ and once more arranged their battle lines, in the same place where they had taken their positions the day before. ^20:23The Israelites went up and wept before the Lord until evening. They asked the Lord, “Should we⁴¹ again march out to fight⁴² the Benjaminites, our brothers?”⁴³ The Lord said, “Attack them!”⁴⁴^20:24So the Israelites marched toward⁴⁵ the Benjaminites the next day. ^20:25The Benjaminites again attacked them from Gibeah and struck down eighteen thousand sword-wielding Israelite soldiers.⁴⁶

^20:26So all the Israelites, the whole army,⁴⁷ went up to⁴⁸ Bethel.⁴⁹ They wept and sat there before the Lord; they did not eat anything⁵⁰ that day until evening. They offered up burnt sacrifices and tokens of peace⁵¹ to the Lord. ^20:27The Israelites asked the Lord (for the ark of God’s covenant was there in those days; ^20:28Phinehas son of Eleazar, son of Aaron, was serving the Lord⁵² in those days), “Should we⁵³ once more march out to fight the Benjaminites our brothers,⁵⁴ or should we⁵⁵ quit?” The Lord said, “Attack, for tomorrow I will hand them⁵⁶ over to you.”

^20:29So Israel hid men in ambush outside Gibeah. ^20:30The Israelites attacked the Benjaminites the next day;⁵⁷ they took their positions against Gibeah just as they had done before. ^20:31The Benjaminites attacked⁵⁸ the army, leaving the city unguarded.⁵⁹ They began to strike down their enemy⁶⁰ just as they had done before. On the main roads (one leads to Bethel,⁶¹ the other to Gibeah) and in the field, they struck down⁶² about thirty Israelites. ^20:32Then the Benjaminites said, “They are defeated just as before.” But the Israelites said, “Let’s retreat⁶³ and lure them⁶⁴ away from the city into the main roads.” ^20:33^…

Read in Logos

This passage has been shortened. Keep reading Judges 19–21 in Logos

Footnotes

1 Heb “a man, a Levite.”
2 See the note on the word “concubine” in .
3 For location see ; ; ; .
4 Heb “and his concubine.” The pronoun (“she”) has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons.
5 Or “was unfaithful to him.” Many have understood the Hebrew verb וַתִּזְנֶה (vattizneh) as being from זָנָה (zanah, “to be a prostitute”), but it may be derived from a root meaning “to be angry; to hate” attested in Akkadian (see II זנה).
6 Heb “went from him.”
7 Heb “arose and came.”
8 Heb “to speak to her heart to bring her back.”
9 Or “young man.”
10 Heb “he was happy to meet him.”
11 Heb “and he arose to go.”
12 Heb “Sustain your heart [with] a bit of food.”
13 Heb “And they sat and ate, the two of them together, and they drank.”
14 Heb “Be willing and spend the night so that your heart might be good.”
15 Heb “and the man arose to go.”
16 Heb “his father-in-law persuaded him and he again spent the night there.”
17 Heb “Sustain your heart.” He is once more inviting him to stay for a meal.
18 Heb “Wait until the declining of the day.”
19 Heb “the man arose to go.”
20 Or “young man.”
21 Heb “the day is sinking to become evening.”
22 Or “declining.”
23 Heb “for your way and go to your tent.”
24 Heb “and he arose and went.”
25 Heb “to the front of.”
26 For location see ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; .
27 Some ancient witnesses add “and his servant.”
28 Heb “and the day was descending greatly.”
29 Or “young man.”
30 Heb “turn aside” (also in the following verse).
31 Heb “who are not from the sons of Israel.”
32 Or “young man.”
33 Heb “we will enter one of the places.”
34 Heb “and they passed by and went.”
35 Heb “which belongs to Benjamin.”
36 Heb “they turned aside there to enter to spend the night.”
37 Heb “and he entered and sat down, and there was no one receiving them into the house to spend the night.”
38 Heb “And look, an old man was coming from his work, from the field in the evening.”
39 Heb “And the men of the place were Benjaminites.”
40 Heb “the man, the traveler.”
41 Heb “he”; the referent (the Levite) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
42 For location see ; ; ; .
43 Heb “I went to Bethlehem in Judah, but [to] the house of the LORD I am going.” The Hebrew text has “house of the LORD,” which might refer to the shrine at Shiloh. The reads “to my house.”
44 By calling his concubine the old man’s “female servant,” the Levite emphasizes their dependence on him for shelter.
45 Some Hebrew and ancient witnesses read the singular, “your servant,” which would refer to the Levite. If one retains the plural, then both the Levite and his wife are in view. In either case the pronominal suffix emphasizes their dependence on the old man for shelter.
46 Heb “Peace to you.”
47 Heb “ate and drank.”
48 Heb “they were making their heart good.”
49 Heb “and look.”
50 Heb “the men of the city, men, the sons of wickedness.” The phrases are in apposition; the last phrase specifies what type of men they were. It is not certain if all the men of the city are in view, or just a group of troublemakers. In 20:5 the town leaders are implicated in the crime, suggesting that all the men of the city were involved. If so, the implication is that the entire male population of the town were good-for-nothings.
51 The Hitpael verb form appears to have an iterative force here, indicating repeated action.
52 Heb “so we can know him.” On the surface one might think they simply wanted to meet the visitor and get to know him, but their hostile actions betray their double-talk. The old man, who has been living with them long enough to know what they are like, seems to have no doubts about the meaning of their words (see v. 23).
53 Heb “his”; the referent (the visiting Levite) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
54 Heb “what is good in your eyes.”
55 Heb “he”; the referent (the Levite) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
56 Heb “and he caused [her] to go outside to them.”
57 Heb “knew,” in the sexual sense.
58 The Hebrew term here translated “master,” is plural. The plural indicates degree here and emphasizes the Levite’s absolute sovereignty over the woman.
59 Heb “The woman came at the turning of the morning and fell at the door of the house of the man where her master was until the light.”
60 The Hebrew term here translated “master,” is plural. The plural indicates degree here and emphasizes the Levite’s absolute sovereignty over the woman.
61 Heb “And the man took her on the donkey and arose and went to his place.”
62 Heb “he carved her up by her bones into twelve pieces.”
63 Heb “and he sent her through all the territory of Israel.”
64 The words “the sight” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
65 Heb “from the day.”
66 Codex Alexandrinus (A) of the (original) has the following additional words: “And he instructed the men whom he sent out, ‘Thus you will say to every male Israelite: “There has never been anything like this from the day the Israelites left Egypt till the present day.” ’ ”
1 Dan was located in the far north of the country, while Beer Sheba was located in the far south. This encompassed all the territory of the land of Canaan occupied by the Israelites.
2 The land of Gilead was on the eastern side of the Jordan River.
3 Heb “went out.”
4 Heb “and the assembly was convened as one man.”
5 Heb “the cornerstones”; or “the supports.” The word is used of leaders in only three other texts—1 Sam 14:38; Isa 19:13; Zech 10:4.
6 The words “which numbered” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
7 Heb “The man, the Levite.”
8 Heb “came to.”
9 Heb “which belongs to Benjamin.”
10 Heb “arose against me and surrounded against me the house at night.”
11 Heb “her”; the referent is more naturally stated in English as “the pieces.”
12 Heb “throughout all the territory of the inheritance of Israel.”
13 Heb “a wicked and disgraceful [thing].”
14 Heb “Look, all of you sons of Israel.”
15 Heb “give for yourselves a word and advice here.”
16 Heb “as one man.”
17 Heb “to his tent.”
18 Or “turn aside.”
19 Heb “against her by lot.” The verb “we will go up” (נַעֲלֶה, na’aleh) has probably been accidentally omitted before “against her” (עָלֶיהָ, ’aleha). As the lot dictates. The Israelite soldiers intended to cast lots to determine which tribe would lead the battle charge (see v. 18).
20 Or “people.”
21 Heb “to do at their arrival in Geba of Benjamin according to all the disgraceful [thing] which he [collective = “Benjamin”] did in Israel.” Here “Geba” must be an error for “Gibeah.”
22 Heb “gathered at the city as one man, united.”
23 The reads the plural, but surely the singular (which is supported by the and ) is preferable here.
24 Heb “What is this wicked thing which happened among you?”
25 Heb “the men, sons of wickedness.”
26 Heb “and burn away wickedness from Israel.”
27 Heb “assembled from the cities at Gibeah.”
28 Heb “besides from the ones living in Gibeah they mustered seven hundred choice men.”
29 Heb “And from all this people.”
30 Heb “seven hundred choice men, bound/restricted in the right hand.” On the significance of the idiom, “bound/restricted in the right hand,” see the translator’s note on .
31 “at a single hair and not miss.”
32 Heb “a man of war.”
33 For location see ; ; ; ; .
34 Heb “They arose and went up to Bethel and asked God, and the Israelites said.”
35 Heb “Who should go up for us first for battle against the sons of Benjamin?”
36 Heb “encamped.”
37 Heb “the men of Israel.” The noun phrase has been replaced by the pronoun (“they”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
38 Heb “The sons of Benjamin came out of Gibeah and they struck down in Israel that day twenty-two thousand men to the ground.”
39 Heb “The people, the men of Israel.”
40 Or “encouraged one another.”
41 Heb “I” (collective singular).
42 Heb “approach for battle.”
43 Heb “my brother” (collective singular).
44 Heb “Go up against him” (collective singular).
45 Heb “drew near to.”
46 Heb “And Benjamin went out to meet them from Gibeah the second day, and they struck down among the sons of Israel eighteen thousand men to the ground, all of these were wielding the sword.”
47 Heb “and all the people.”
48 Heb “went up and came [to].”
49 For location see ; ; ; ; .
50 Traditionally, “fasted.”
51 Or “peace offerings.”
52 Heb “standing before him.”
53 Heb “I” (collective singular).
54 Heb “my brother” (collective singular).
55 Heb “I” (collective singular).
56 Heb “him” (collective singular).
57 Heb “the third day.”
58 Heb “went out to meet.”
59 Heb “and they were drawn away from the city.”
60 Heb “from the army wounded ones.”
61 For location see ; ; ; ; .
62 The words “they struck down” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
63 Or “run away.”
64 Heb “him” (collective singular).
… Verses 33–36a give a condensed account of the battle from this point on, while vv. 36b–48 offer a more detailed version of how the ambush contributed to Gibeah’s defeat.