Judges 19: The Levite and his concubine at Gibeah

In plain English: In those days, when there was no king in Israel, there was a Levite living (or: staying as a stranger) in the far part of the hill country of Ephraim. He took for himself a concubine (literally: a woman, a concubine) from Bethlehem in Judah.

The Hebrew word: "Concubine" is pilegesh, which the dictionary gives as "a concubine". This Bible says "concubine" or a longer form in 34 of the 35 verses that use it. In this chapter the Levite is called "her husband" (verse 3), and her father is his "father-in-law" (verse 4).

Good to know: "There was no king in Israel" is the narrator's comment again (see the note on 17:6).

In plain English: His concubine was unfaithful to him (this Bible: played the prostitute against him; or: became angry with him), and she left him and went to her father's house in Bethlehem in Judah. She was there four months.

The Hebrew word: "Played the prostitute" is zanah, which the dictionary gives as "to commit adultery (usually of the female, and less often of simple fornication, rarely of involuntary ravishment); figuratively, to commit idolatry". In Judges this Bible says "prostitute" or a longer form in all 6 verses that use it.

What changes: Read as this Bible reads it, she was unfaithful to him and then left. The old Greek (Brenton) says only "his concubine departed from him", and some readers take the Hebrew here as "she was angry with him" (the meaning shown on this page's Hebrew card). Read that way, she left him after a quarrel. Either way, the text goes on to say that he went after her "to speak kindly to her" (verse 3), and does not say what passed between them.

In plain English: Her husband got up and went after her, to speak kindly to her (literally: to speak to her heart) and bring her back. He had his servant with him and a pair of donkeys. She brought him into her father's house, and when the young woman's father saw him, he was glad to meet him.

In plain English: His father-in-law, the young woman's father, kept him there (literally: took hold of him), and he stayed with him three days. They ate and drank and spent the nights there.

In plain English: On the fourth day they got up early in the morning, and he got up to leave. But the young woman's father said to his son-in-law, "Strengthen yourself (literally: your heart) with a bite of bread, and after that you can go."

In plain English: So the two of them sat down and ate and drank together. Then the young woman's father said to the man, "Please agree to stay the night, and enjoy yourself (literally: let your heart be good)."

In plain English: The man got up to leave, but his father-in-law pressed him, so he stayed the night there again.

In plain English: On the fifth day he got up early in the morning to leave, and the young woman's father said, "Please strengthen yourself, and wait until the day is ending." So the two of them ate.

In plain English: When the man got up to leave, with his concubine and his servant, his father-in-law, the young woman's father, said to him, "Look, the day is turning toward evening. Please stay the night. The day is ending. Stay here and enjoy yourself, and tomorrow get up early for your journey and go home (literally: to your tent)."

In plain English: But the man was not willing to stay that night. He got up and left, and came opposite Jebus (that is, Jerusalem). He had a pair of saddled donkeys with him, and his concubine was with him.

Good to know: Jebus is the old name of Jerusalem, as the verse says. Judges 1:21 says the Benjamites had not driven out the Jebusites who lived in Jerusalem. In verse 12 the Levite will not stay there, because it is "the city of a foreigner".

In plain English: When they were near Jebus, the day was nearly gone. The servant said to his master, "Please come, let's turn aside into this city of the Jebusites and spend the night in it."

In plain English: His master said to him, "We will not turn aside into a foreign city (this Bible: the city of a foreigner), whose people are not Israelites. We will go on to Gibeah."

In plain English: He said to his servant, "Come, let's get near one of these places and spend the night in Gibeah or in Ramah."

In plain English: So they went on their way, and the sun went down on them near Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin.

In plain English: They turned aside there to go in and spend the night in Gibeah. He went in and sat down in the city square (this Bible: street), but no one took them into his house for the night.

In plain English: Then, that evening, an old man came in from his work in the field. He was from the hill country of Ephraim and was living (or: staying as a stranger) in Gibeah, but the men of the place were Benjamites.

In plain English: He looked up and saw the traveler in the city square. The old man asked, "Where are you going? Where have you come from?"

In plain English: He answered him, "We are on our way from Bethlehem in Judah to the far part of the hill country of Ephraim. I am from there. I went to Bethlehem in Judah, and I am going to Yahweh's house (or: going home). No one has taken me into his house.

Good to know: The Hebrew says "I am going to Yahweh's house". The old Greek (Brenton) says "I am going home". The text says nothing more about his going to Yahweh's house.

In plain English: We have both straw and feed for our donkeys, and bread and wine too for me, for your servant (literally: your maidservant), and for the young man who is with your servants. We lack nothing."

In plain English: The old man said, "Peace to you! Let me take care of everything you need. Only do not spend the night in the square."

In plain English: So he brought him into his house and gave the donkeys feed. They washed their feet, and ate and drank.

In plain English: While they were enjoying themselves, the men of the city, some worthless men (this Bible: wicked fellows; literally: sons of Belial), surrounded the house and kept beating on the door. They said to the old man, the master of the house, "Bring out the man who came into your house, so that we can have sex with him (literally: know him)!"

The Hebrew words: "Wicked fellows" is literally "sons of beliyya'al", which the dictionary gives as "without profit, worthlessness; by extension, destruction, wickedness". This Bible says "wicked" or a longer form in 16 of the 26 verses that use it, and "worthless" or a longer form in 7. "Have sex with him" is literally "know him", the word in Genesis 4:1, "The man knew Eve his wife."

Good to know: The scene is close to the story of Sodom in Genesis 19:4 to 8: the men of the city surround the house and say, "Bring them out to us, that we may have sex with them" (19:5), and the host offers his two virgin daughters instead (19:8).

In plain English: The man, the master of the house, went out to them and said, "No, my brothers, please do not do such an evil thing. Since this man has come into my house, do not do this disgraceful thing (this Bible: folly).

In plain English: Look, here are my virgin daughter and his concubine. Let me bring them out now. Humble them (or: rape them), and do with them whatever seems good to you. But to this man do not do such a disgraceful thing."

The Hebrew word: "Humble" is anah, which the dictionary gives as "to depress". It is the word the Levite uses in 20:5, where this Bible says "they raped my concubine". It is also the word for what Shechem did to Dinah (Genesis 34:2, "humbled her") and Amnon to Tamar (2 Samuel 13:14, "forced her").

In plain English: But the men would not listen to him. So the man took hold of his concubine and brought her out to them. They had sex with her (literally: knew her) and abused her all night until morning. As dawn came up, they let her go.

In plain English: At daybreak the woman came and fell down at the door of the man's house where her master (this Bible: her lord) was, until it was light.

In plain English: In the morning her master got up, opened the doors of the house, and went out to go on his way. And there was the woman, his concubine, fallen at the door of the house, with her hands on the threshold.

In plain English: He said to her, "Get up, let's go!" But there was no answer. Then he put her on the donkey, and the man got up and went home (this Bible: to his place).

Good to know: The Hebrew text says only that "no one answered". It does not say whether she was alive or dead at this point. The old Greek (Brenton) adds, "for she was dead". In 20:5 the Levite says, "she is dead".

In plain English: When he came to his house, he took a knife, took hold of his concubine, and cut her up limb by limb (literally: by her bones) into twelve pieces, and sent her throughout all the land (literally: the borders) of Israel.

Good to know: 1 Samuel 11:7 uses the same Hebrew word for "cut in pieces": Saul cuts a yoke of oxen in pieces and sends them "throughout all the borders of Israel", when Jabesh Gilead is attacked (11:1). Saul's home was Gibeah (1 Samuel 10:26).

In plain English: Everyone who saw it said, "Nothing like this has ever happened or been seen from the day the Israelites came up out of the land of Egypt until today! Think about it, take counsel, and speak."