Keraia
Judges 19

Judges 19:1

The Crime of the Benjamites · Judges 19:1–30
Read Judges 19

Translations

Modern
Now in those days, when there was no king in Israel, a Levite who lived in the remote hill country of Ephraim took for himself a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah.
Traditional
And it came to pass in those days, when there was no king in Israel, that there was a certain Levite sojourning on the side of mount Ephraim, who took to him a concubine out of Beth–lehem–judah.
Literal
And it came to pass in those days, when there was no king in Israel, that there was a certain Levite staying in the sides of the hill country of Ephraim, and He took for himself a woman, a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah.
Latin
Fuit quidam vir Levites habitans in latere montis Ephraim, qui accepit uxorem de Bethlehem Juda:

Original

Hebrew
English
Now in those days, when there was no king in Israel, a Levite who lived in the remote hill country of Ephraim took for himself a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah.

Notes

Judges 19:1

A concubine was a second-class wife. In societies where polygamy was common, people could buy a concubine, acquire one as debt repayment, or take one in war. Sometimes, a concubine was added to compensate for a deficiency in a legitimate wife (for example, Genesis 16:1–4; 30:3–13; 35:22). However, in the case of the Levite, there seems to have been no other wife.

Judges 19:1–21:25

  • This second epilogue (see study note on Judges 17:1–21:25) shifts the focus from individuals to entire tribes. It begins with the outrage in the Benjamite town of Gibeah (Judges 19), which led to a civil war (Judges 20) and the near destruction of Benjamin. It then moves to the attempt to save the tribe from disappearing (Judges 21). The book ends with the familiar refrain: In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes. This was what they did in the days of Gibea, perhaps the lowest point in Israel's history that Hosea, 400 years later, would compare to the depths Ephraim had reached (Hosea 9:9; 10:9).

  • The path was cleared for a shift from charismatic leadership to "covenant-charismatic kingship." This kingship combined living under the Lord’s covenant with the anointing of the spirit for ruling, as seen with Saul and David.

Judges 17:1–21:25

These two epilogues (Judges 17–18 and 19–21) show that inspired but unstructured leadership cannot last. As society moved toward chaos and civil war, the phrase, In those days there was no king in Israel appears four times. The phrase, everyone did what was right in his own eyes is added twice (Judges 17:6; 18:1; 19:1; 21:25). The era of inspired leadership declined and ended in disorder. Something important was missing.

Theme notes and profiles

Human Sexuality Social Chaos in Judges

Parallels

Genesis 19:1–11

People

Ephraim: Second son of Joseph, and a tribe of Israel Israel: Patriarch, son of Isaac, father of twelve tribes Judah: Israelite tribe, kingdom, and province Levi: Son of Jacob; progenitor of the Levites

Places

Bethlehem: City of David's birth and Jesus' birth

Glossary

Benjamin, Tribe of Concubinage, Concubines Ephraim, Mount Gibeah Jabesh, Jabesh-Gilead (Place) Judges, Book of King Priests and Levites

Topics

Adultery: Forgiveness of--Instances of Bethlehem: A City Southwest of Jerusalem: And Beth-Lehem-Judah Concubinage: Laws Concerning: A Levite Extraordinary Judges: Not Without Intermission Friends: False Friends: The Ephraimite's Wife Israel: Scandal of the Bethlehemite's Concubine Tribe of Benjamin: Census of did not avenge the crime of the Gibeonites against the Levite's concubine