Judges 19 

Judges 19:1 In those days, and without a king in Israel, a Levite happened to be staying in a remote part of the hill country of Ephraim. He acquired a woman from Bethlehem in Judah as his concubine.

Judges 19:2 But she was repulsed at him and left him for her father’s house in Bethlehem, Judah. She was there for four months.

Judges 19:3 Then her husband got up and followed her to persuade her to come back. He had his servant with him and a pair of donkeys. So she brought him to her father’s house, and when the girl’s father saw him, he gladly welcomed him.

Judges 19:4 His father-in-law, the girl’s father, detained him, and he stayed with him for three days. They ate, drank, and spent the nights there.

Judges 19:5 On the fourth day, they got up early in the morning and prepared to go, but the girl’s father said to his son-in-law, “Have something to eat to keep up your strength, and then you can go.”

Judges 19:6 So they sat down and the two of them ate and drank together. Then the girl’s father said to the man, “Please agree to stay overnight and enjoy yourself.”

Judges 19:7 The man got up to go, but his father-in-law persuaded him to stay and spend another night there.

Judges 19:8 He got up early in the morning of the fifth day to leave, but the girl’s father said to him, “Please keep up your strength.” So they waited until late afternoon, and the two of them ate.

Judges 19:9 The man got up to go with his concubine and his servant when his father-in-law, the girl’s father, said to him, “Notice, night is coming. Please spend the night. See, the day is almost over. Spend the night here, enjoy yourself, then you can get up early tomorrow for your journey and go home.”

Judges 19:10 But the man was unwilling to spend the night. He got up, departed, and arrived opposite Jebus (also known as Jerusalem). The man had his two saddled donkeys and his concubine with him.

Judges 19:11 When they were near Jebus and the day was almost gone, the servant said to his master, “Please, why not let us stop at this Jebusite city and spend the night here?”

Judges 19:12 But his master told him, “We should not stop at a foreign city where there are no Israelites. Let’s move on to Gibeah.”

Judges 19:13 “Come on,” he said, “let’s try to reach one of these places and spend the night in Gibeah or Ramah.”

Judges 19:14 So they continued on their journey, and the sun set as they neared Gibeah in Benjamin.

Judges 19:15 They stopped to spend the night in Gibeah. The Levites went in and sat down in the city square, but no one took them into their home to spend the night.

Judges 19:16 In the evening, notice an older man came in from his work in the field. He was from the hill country of Ephraim, but he was residing in Gibeah where the people were Benjaminites.

Judges 19:17 When he looked up and saw the traveler in the city square, the old man asked, “Where are you going, and where do you come from?”

Judges 19:18 He answered him, “We’re traveling from Bethlehem in Judah to the remote hill country of Ephraim, where I am from. I went to Bethlehem in Judah, and now I’m going to the house of Yahveh. No one has taken me into his home,

Judges 19:19 although there’s straw and feed for the donkeys, and I have bread and wine for me, my concubine, and the servant with us. There is nothing we lack.”

Judges 19:20 “Welcome!” said the old man. I’ll take care of everything you need. The only rule is that you don’t spend the night in the square.”

Judges 19:21 So he brought him to his house and fed the donkeys. Then they washed their feet and ate and drank.

Judges 19:22 While they were enjoying themselves, they noticed that worthless men of the city surrounded the house and beat on the door. They said to the old man who was the owner of the house, “Bring out the man who came to your house so we can have sex with him!”

Judges 19:23 The house owner went out and said to them, “Please don’t do this evil, my brothers. After all, this man has come into my house. Don’t commit this horrible outrage.

Judges 19:24 Here, let me bring out my virgin daughter and the man’s concubine now. Abuse them and do whatever you want to them. But don’t commit this outrageous thing against this man.”

Judges 19:25 But the men would not listen to him, so the man seized his concubine and took her outside to them. They raped her and abused her all night until morning. At daybreak they let her go.

Judges 19:26 Early that morning, the woman made her way back, and as it was getting light, she collapsed at the doorway of the man’s house where her master was.

Judges 19:27 When her master got up in the morning, opened the doors of the house, and went out to leave on his journey, he noticed the woman, his concubine, collapsed near the doorway of the house with her hands on the threshold.

Judges 19:28 “Get up,” he told her. Let’s go.” But there was no response, so the man put her on his donkey and set out for home.

Judges 19:29 When he entered his house, he picked up a knife, took hold of his concubine, cut her into twelve pieces, limb by limb, and then sent her throughout the territory of Israel.

Judges 19:30 Everyone who saw it said, “Nothing like this has ever happened or has been seen since the day the Israelites came out of the land of Egypt until now. Take note of this, discuss it, and speak up!”

Judges 19 quotes:

“As in Genesis 19, the aggressive and violent demands of the mob involve homosexual rape (Judg 19:22). As discussed in connection with Ehud, Samson, and the the death of Sisera in 5:27, the man who defeats his enemy has metaphorically raped his enemy; he is empowered, his enemy a “mere” woman (see Vermeule 1979: 101-2; Niditch 1989; and Yee 1995: 164). By the same token, the man who is actually raped is made into the woman, the quintessential defeated enemy. Issues of shame and honor are at play. The worthless men seek to assert their power over against the outsider, whom they seek to humiliate. Also at play is an abusive sexual ethic in which the rape of women in battle and other contexts (e.g., Gen 34) is applied to the subduing of men. This passage is perhaps less about views of homosexuality, which priestly writers do condemn (Lev 18:22), than about a larger theme in sexual ethics in which one partner subdues, owns, and holds unequal power over the other (see Trible 1978: 105-39). A most troubling feature of the Israelite version of the tale type is the apparent willingness of the men to hand over their women to violent miscreants, Implicit is a worldview in which women are regarded as disposable and replaceable. On the other hand, the narration that follows implies that the author does not condone the men’s behavior. They emerge as cowardly, and their complicity in the rape and murder of the woman is a clear and reprehensible violation of covenant. The tale as told also emphasizes the ways in which women, the mediating gender, provide doorways in and out of war.”

Niditch Susan. Judges: A Commentary. 1st ed. Westminster John Knox Press 2008. p. 193.

Judges 19 links:

a rape and murder
an eye-opener
don’t spend the night in the square

The JUDGES shelf in Jeff’s library

Judges 18 

Judges 18:1 In those days, there was no king in Israel, and the Danite tribe was looking for territory to occupy. Up to that time no territory had been captured by them among the tribes of Israel.

Judges 18:2 So the Danites sent out five capable men from all their clans, from Zorah and Eshtaol, to scout the land and explore it. They told them, “Go and explore the land.” They came to the hill country of Ephraim as far as Micah’s home and spent the night there.

Judges 18:3 While they were near Micah’s home, they recognized the accent of the young Levite. So they went over to him and asked, “Who brought you here? What are you doing in this place? What is your business here?”

Judges 18:4 He told them, “This is what Micah has done for me: He has hired me, and I became his priest.”

Judges 18:5 Then they said to him, “Please inquire of God for us to determine if we will have a successful journey.”

Judges 18:6 The priest told them, “Go in peace. Yahveh is watching over the journey you are going on.”

Judges 18:7 The five men left and came to Laish. They saw that the people there were living securely, just like the Sidonians, quiet and unsuspecting. Nothing was lacking in the land, and no oppressive ruler existed. They were far from the Sidonians, having no alliance with anyone.

Judges 18:8 When the men went back to their relatives at Zorah and Eshtaol, their relatives asked them, “What did you find out?”

Judges 18:9 They answered, “Get up, let’s attack them, because we have seen the land, and it is very good. Why wait? Don’t hesitate to invade and take possession of the land!”

Judges 18:10 When you get there, you will come to an unsuspecting people and spacious land because God has handed it over to you. It is a place where nothing on land is lacking.”

Judges 18:11 Six hundred Danites departed from Zorah and Eshtaol armed with weapons of war.

Judges 18:12 They went up and camped at Kiriath-jearim in Judah. This is why the place is still called the Camp of Dan today; notice it is west of Kiriath-jearim.

Judges 18:13 From there, they traveled to the hill country of Ephraim and arrived at Micah’s house.

Judges 18:14 The five men who had gone to scout out the land of Laish told their brothers, “Did you know that there are an ephod, household gods, and a carved image and a silver idol in these houses? Now think about what you should do.”

Judges 18:15 So they detoured there and went to the young Levite’s house at Micah’s house and greeted him.

Judges 18:16 The six hundred Danite men were standing by the entrance of the city gate, armed with their weapons of war.

Judges 18:17 Then the five men who had gone to scout out the land went in and took the carved image, the ephod, the household idols, and the silver idol, while the priest was standing by the entrance of the city gate with the six hundred men armed with weapons of war.

Judges 18:18 When they entered Micah’s house and took the carved image, the ephod, the household idols, and the silver idol, the priest said to them, “What are you doing?”

Judges 18:19 They told him, “Shut up. Keep your mouth quiet. Come with us and be a father and a priest to us. Is it better for you to be a priest for the house of one person or for you to be a priest for a tribe and family in Israel?”

Judges 18:20 So the priest was pleased and took his ephod, household idols, and carved image, and went with the people.

Judges 18:21 They prepared to leave, putting their dependents, livestock, and possessions in front of them.

Judges 18:22 After they were some distance from Micah’s house, the men who were in the houses near it were called together and caught up with the Danites.

Judges 18:23 They called to the Danites, who turned to face them and said to Micah, “What’s the matter with you that you called together the men?”

Judges 18:24 He said, “You took the gods I had made and the priest, and went away. What do I have left? How can you say to me, ‘What’s the matter with you? ‘”

Judges 18:25 The Danites said to him, “Don’t raise your voice against us, or angry men will attack your throat, and you will take away your throat and each throat from your house.”

Judges 18:26 The Danites went on their way, and Micah turned to go back home because he saw that they were stronger than he was.

Judges 18:27 After they had taken the gods Micah had made and the priest that belonged to him, they went to Laish, to a quiet and unsuspecting people. They struck them down with their swords and burned the city.

Judges 18:28 There was no one to rescue them because it was far from Sidon and they had no alliance with anyone. It was in a valley that belonged to Beth-rehob. They rebuilt the city and lived in it.

Judges 18:29 They named the city Dan after their ancestor Dan, who was born in Israel. The town was previously named Laish.

Judges 18:30 The Danites set up the carved image for themselves. Jonathan, son of Gershom, son of Moses, and his sons were priests for the Danite tribe until their exile from the land.

Judges 18:31 So they set up for themselves Micah’s carved image that he had made, and it was there as long as the house of God was in Shiloh.

Judges 18 quotes:

“As modern ethicists, we can condemn the unjust war of conquest. Even the biblical narrator, who offers no overt condemnation and seems to accept that conquest is the way of the world, repeatedly mentions the Laishians’ way of life in the most idyllic terms. The “bitter-souled” Danites are merciless, cutthroat, and self-serving. God does not condemn them, however, nor does the voice of the theologian. On one level, the story as narrated seems to say that foundation comes in violence; new nations are built on the ruins of the old. Yet a tone of wistful regret emerges in the contrast drawn by the narrator between the people “quiet and trusting” and the language of the ban. The reference to the banlike war here is not infused with the tone of self-righteous justification found in the conquest accounts of Deuteronomy and Joshua.”

Niditch Susan. Judges: A Commentary. 1st ed. Westminster John Knox Press 2008. p. 183.

Judges 18 links:

organized apostasy
praying with the wrong motive

The JUDGES shelf in Jeff’s library

Judges 17 

Judges 17:1 There was a man from the hill country of Ephraim named Micah.

Judges 17:2 He said to his mother, “The 1,100 pieces of silver taken from you, and that I heard you place a curse on – notice the silver. I took it.” Then his mother said, “My son, may you be empowered by Yahveh!”

Judges 17:3 He returned the 1,100 pieces of silver to his mother, who said, “I personally consecrate the silver to Yahveh for my son’s benefit to make a carved image and a silver idol. I will give it back to you.”

Judges 17:4 So he returned the silver to his mother, and she took five pounds of silver and gave it to a silversmith. He made it into a carved image and a silver idol, and it was in Micah’s house.

Judges 17:5 This man, Micah, had a shrine, and he made an ephod and household idols and installed one of his sons as his priest.

Judges 17:6 In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did whatever looked right to him.

Judges 17:7 There was a young man, a Levite from Bethlehem in Judah, who was staying within the clan of Judah.

Judges 17:8 The man left the town of Bethlehem in Judah to stay wherever he could find a place. On his way he came to Micah’s home in the hill country of Ephraim.

Judges 17:9 “Where do you come from?” Micah asked him. He answered him, “I am a Levite from Bethlehem in Judah, and I’m going to stay wherever I can find a place.”

Judges 17:10 Micah replied, “Stay with me and be my father and priest, and I will give you four ounces of silver a year, along with your clothing and provisions.” So the Levites went in

Judges 17:11 and agreed to stay with the man, and the young man became like one of his sons.

Judges 17:12 Micah dedicated the Levite, and the young man became his priest and lived in Micah’s house.

Judges 17:13 Then Micah said, “Now I know that Yahveh will be good to me because a Levite has become my priest.”

Judges 17 quotes:

“The wandering Levite from Judah finds employment at Micah’s house shrine. Having a genuine Levite serve in the shrine is deemed to be preferable to the ad hoc arrangement with Micah’s own son. The passage beautifully portrays relationships in terms of kin. The priest, not having a set hereditary homestead of his own in the style of the Levites, becomes a member of Micah’s family, a retainer attached to a home shrine. Micah’s declaration at v. 13 suggests that Levites are wandering holy men who bring good luck with them. They are quintessential mediators between God and humans, have divinatory abilities, and are quite a catch for the repentant son, con man, and cult founder.”

Niditch Susan. Judges: A Commentary. 1st ed. Westminster John Knox Press 2008. p. 182.

Judges 17 links:

blessed by grace
good luck
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Tuesday, July 11, 2023
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Tuesday, July 9, 2019
no king in Israel

The JUDGES shelf in Jeff’s library

Judges 16 

Judges 16:1 Samson went to Gaza, where he saw a prostitute and went to have sex with her.

Judges 16:2 When the Gazites heard that Samson was there, they surrounded the place and waited to ambush him all that night at the city gate. They kept quiet all night, saying, “Let’s wait until dawn; then we will murder him.”

Judges 16:3 But Samson stayed in bed only until midnight. Then he got up, took hold of the doors of the city gate along with the two gateposts, and pulled them out, bar and all. He put them on his shoulders and carried them to the top of the mountain overlooking Hebron.

Judges 16:4 Sometime later, he fell in love with a woman named Delilah, who lived in the Sorek Valley.

Judges 16:5 The Philistine princes went to her and said, “Convince him to tell you where his great strength comes from, so we can overpower him, tie him up, and make him helpless. Then each of us will give you 1,100 pieces of silver.”

Judges 16:6 So Delilah said to Samson, “Please tell me, where does your great strength come from? How could someone tie you up and make you helpless?”

Judges 16:7 Samson told her, “If they tie me up with seven fresh tent ropes that have not been dried, I will become weak and be like any other man.”

Judges 16:8 The Philistine leaders brought her seven fresh, undried tent ropes, and she tied him up with them.

Judges 16:9 While the men in the ambush were waiting in her room, she called out to him, “Samson, the Philistines are here!” But he snapped the tent ropes like a strand of yarn snaps when it touches fire. The secret of his strength stayed unknown.

Judges 16:10 Then Delilah said to Samson, “Notice, you have mocked me and told me lies! Won’t you please tell me how you can be tied up?”

Judges 16:11 He told her, “If they tie me up with new cords that have never been used, I will become weak and be like any other man.”

Judges 16:12 Delilah took new cords, tied him up with them, and shouted, “Samson, the Philistines are here!” But while the men in the ambush were waiting in her room, he snapped the cords off his arms like a thread.

Judges 16:13 Then Delilah said to Samson, “You have mocked me all along and told me lies! Tell me how you can be tied up.” He told her, “If you weave the seven braids on my head into the fabric on a loom– “

Judges 16:14 She fastened the braids with a pin and called to him, “Samson, the Philistines are here!” He woke up from his sleep and pulled out the pin with the loom and the web.

Judges 16:15 “How can you say, ‘I love you,'” she told him, “when your heart is not with me? This is the third time you have mocked me and not told me what makes your strength so great!”

Judges 16:16 Because she nagged him daily and pleaded with him until his throat was impatient enough to die,

Judges 16:17 he told her the whole truth and said to her, “My hair has never been cut because I am a Nazirite to God from birth. If I am shaved, my strength will leave me, and I will become weak and be like any other man.”

Judges 16:18 When Delilah realized that he had told her the whole truth, she sent this message to the Philistine leaders: “Come one more time, because he has told me the whole truth.” The Philistine leaders came to her and brought the silver with them.

Judges 16:19 Then she let him fall asleep on her lap and called a man to shave off the seven braids on his head. This is how she made him helpless, and his strength left him.

Judges 16:20 Then she cried, “Samson, the Philistines are here!” When he woke up from his sleep, he said, “I will escape like I did before and shake myself free.” But he did not know that Yahveh had left him.

Judges 16:21 The Philistines seized him and gouged out his eyes. They brought him down to Gaza and bound him with bronze shackles, and he was forced to grind grain in the prison.

Judges 16:22 But his hair began to grow back after it had been shaved.

Judges 16:23 Now the Philistine leaders gathered together to offer a great sacrifice to their god Dagon. They rejoiced and said: Our god has handed over our enemy Samson to us.

Judges 16:24 When the people saw him, they praised their god and said: Our god has handed over to us our enemy who destroyed our land and who multiplied our dead.

Judges 16:25 When they were in a  happy mood, they said, “Bring Samson here to entertain us.” So they brought Samson from prison, and he entertained them. They had him stand between the pillars.

Judges 16:26 Samson said to the young man who was leading him by the hand, “Lead me where I can feel the pillars supporting the temple, so I can lean against them.”

Judges 16:27 The temple was full of men and women; all the leaders of the Philistines were there, and about three thousand men and women were on the roof watching Samson entertain them.

Judges 16:28 He called out to Yahveh: “Lord Yahveh, please remember me. Strengthen me, God, just once more. With one act of vengeance, let me pay back the Philistines for my two eyes.”

Judges 16:29 Samson took hold of the two middle pillars supporting the temple and leaned against them, one on his right hand and the other on his left.

Judges 16:30 Samson said, “Let my throat die with the Philistines.” He pushed with all his might, and the temple fell on the leaders and all the people in it. And those he killed at his death were more than those he had killed in his life.

Judges 16:31 Then his brothers and all his father’s family came down, carried him back, and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of his father Manoah. So he had judged Israel for twenty years.

Judges 16 quotes:

“The Gazites, like vultures, are pictured circling around in preparation for an ambush at dawn. Samson, however, surprises them, escaping in the night. His violent seizure of the city gates and the way in which he carries them off evoke comparisons with Paul Bunyan and other folk heroes who perform acts requiring prodigious and superhuman strength (cf. Thompson Motif F614.2). Samson moves the gates from a Philistine to an Israelite locus (see 1:10 on Hebron), connoting a removal of power and status.”

Niditch Susan. Judges : A Commentary. 1st ed. Westminster John Knox Press 2008. p. 168.

Judges 16 links:

ending it all
let my soul live
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Sunday, April 28, 2024
one last prayer

The JUDGES shelf in Jeff’s library