Judges 19:22 says, Now as they were making their hearts merry, behold, the men of the city, certain sons of Belial, beset the house round about, and beat at the door, and spake to the master of the house, the old man, saying, Bring forth the man that came into thine house, that we may know him. Some men of the city, who it says were making merry with their hearts, which I believe means they were drunk, began to beat on the door of the old man demanding he send the Levite out so that they could have sex with him. It says also they followed Baal, even though they were Israelites. These were the people the Levite passed by a Gentile city to reach. We should never assume that just because people are born into a Christian family or nation that everyone is a Christian and ready to help us when we are in need. Verse twenty-three adds, And the man, the master of the house, went out unto them, and said unto them, Nay, my brethren, nay, I pray you, do not so wickedly; seeing that this man is come into mine house, do not this folly. The old man, who was the master of the house and therefore responsible for the welfare of the Levite while he was in his house, went to the men and begged them to not do this wicked thing. He still recognized that some things were totally outside God's will, but he was trying to reason with people who didn't. We need to know and stand for what God's law says, but we need to also realize that not all people we encounter will acknowledge His law. Verse twenty-four continues, 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. The old man then made an offer that was not what God would have wanted, but was the same as made concerning Lot in Sodom. He would send out his daughter and the Levite's wife for them to abuse instead. We cannot propose one sin to keep another from happening. Verse twenty-five states, 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. Though it was the old man who originally offered his daughter and the Levite's concubine, who is also referred to as his wife at times, to the men, it seems that the Levite was the one who gave her to them. He may have done this out of fear for his own safety, but we as followers of Christ should never allow someone else, especially someone that we should be protecting, to be abused simply so we can be safe. The woman was abused all night. Verse twenty-six adds, 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. The next morning, the woman returned to the house that her lord, the Levite, was in and fell down at the gate. She returned to what should have been her place of safety, but it had proven not to be. When we rely on the people of this world to keep us safe instead of putting our safety totally in God's hands, no matter what, we will find that we really have no place of safety. Veres twenty-seven continues, 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 was fallen down at the door of the house, and her hands were upon the threshold. When the Levite got ready to leave the next morning, evidently without his concubine, he found her fallen at the doorstep with her hand on the threshold. We have to assume that since he made it safely through the night that he was no longer concerned about her. Hopefully, we will never feel the same about people that we profess to love. Verse twenty-eight declares, 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 gat him unto his place. Instead of reaching down to help her out of compassion, concern, or even guilt, the Levite simply told her to get up so they could go, but she didn't answer because she had died. As followers of Christ, we should never be this calloused about those around us who are being beat down and abused by life because they may interfere with our plans. Verse twenty-nine adds, And when he was 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 coasts of Israel. After the Levite got the body his concubine or wife back to his house, he cut her body into twelve pieces, and sent one to each of the tribes of Israel. Even in death, the woman was not treated with any respect, even though what happens to our body after we die is really not important. Verse thirty continues, And it was so, that all that 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 unto this day: consider of it, take advice, and speak your minds. All that saw the pieces of her body said that there had never been so great an evil in Israel since they had been delivered from Egypt. Evidently they were also informed of what had happened to the woman, and were encouraged to talk freely about what should happen because of what had happened to her.
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