Judges 19:22 - Printer Friendly

ESV: As they were making their hearts merry, behold, the men of the city, worthless fellows, surrounded the house, beating on the door. And they said to the old man, the master of the house, “Bring out the man who came into your house, that we may know him.”

NIV: While they were enjoying themselves, some of the wicked men of the city surrounded the house. Pounding on the door, they shouted to the old man who owned the house, 'Bring out the man who came to your house so we can have sex with him.'

NASB: While they were celebrating, behold, the men of the city, certain worthless men, surrounded the house, pushing one another at the door; and they spoke to the owner of the house, the old man, saying, 'Bring out the man who entered your house that we may have relations with him.'

CSB: While they were enjoying themselves, all of a sudden, wicked 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! "

NLT: While they were enjoying themselves, a crowd of troublemakers from the town surrounded the house. They began beating at the door and shouting to the old man, 'Bring out the man who is staying with you so we can have sex with him.'

KJV: 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.

NKJV: As they were enjoying themselves, suddenly certain men of the city, perverted men, surrounded the house and beat on the door. They spoke to the master of the house, the old man, saying, “Bring out the man who came to your house, that we may know him carnally!”

The story of the Levite's night in the town of Gibeah (Judges 19:14–21) takes a dramatic and violent turn. This tragically echoes an earlier event in Scripture.

The Levite and his companions are reclining at the table of an old man who has offered them a place to stay for the night. They are eating and drinking, probably relaxed and may have been having wine. Suddenly, there is a pounding at the old man's door. The source of the interruption is described using the Hebrew phrase bēn beliya'al, which most literally means "sons of wickedness." The outlaws and hooligans associated with Abimelech (Judges 9:4) and Jephthah (Judges 11:3) were associated with the word reyq, implying moral emptiness. The men of Gibeah are depicted as something worse. These are not "empty" people, but those "filled" with deep depravity and evil.

Now, that crowd of degenerate men surround the old man's home, shouting demands to hand over the visiting Levite. They say this is so they can "know" him. This terminology is used in sexual situations—and the reaction of everyone involved proves this is exactly their intent. The throng wants the Levite traveler sent out so the men of Gibeah can rape him.

This terrible moment sounds familiar, because it is almost exactly what happened in the city of Sodom many years earlier. Two angels encountered Abraham's nephew, Lot. As did the old man in Gibeah, Lot insisted these visitors not spend the night in an unsecured location. That night, the men of Sodom had also gathered to demand Lot send out guests so they could "know" them (Genesis 19:2–7).

The nearly step-by-step repetition of what happened in Sodom shows how far into immorality and perversity Israel had fallen under the influence of the Canaanites, as predicted (Deuteronomy 12:29–32). Unfortunately, there are no angels present in this situation, so the outcome will be much different (Genesis 19:11).

Judges 19:22–30 finds a Levite traveler and his concubine spending the night in the home of an old man in the Israelite town of Gibeah. Suddenly, the house is surrounded by a mob of men demanding the Levite be handed over so they can rape him. In desperation, the Levite sends out his concubine to save himself. The mob violates and beats her until morning, after which she is found dead. The Levite carries her body home and sends a graphic message to all of Israel: cutting her into twelve pieces and sending them throughout the tribes. This sparks outrage against Gibeah leading to a civil war (Judges 20:8–10), and infamy (Hosea 9:9)

A Levite man travels to reconcile with his runaway concubine. On their way back home, they spend the night in the city of Gibeah, in the home of an old man. The wicked men of the town form a mob, demanding the Levite be handed over to be raped. Instead, the Levite forces his concubine outside; the mob rapes and beats her until sunrise. The Levite finds her body, carries it home, and cuts it into twelve pieces. He sends these pieces throughout Israel. This shocks the entire nation into demanding some action be taken against Gibeah.

This chapter's stomach-turning depravity provides another example of the great wickedness in Israel, in an era when everyone did whatever they wanted to without regard for law or God (Judges 21:25). A mob of rapists murders a Levite man's concubine. He sends pieces of her body throughout the nation. This shocks the people into demanding justice. In the following chapters, the tribe of Benjamin refuses to hand over their guilty members. Israel is plunged into civil war.

The Book of Judges describes Israel's history from the death of Joshua to shortly before Israel's first king, Saul. Israel fails to complete God's command to purge the wicked Canaanites from the land (Deuteronomy 7:1–5; 9:4). This results in a centuries-long cycle where Israel falls into sin and is oppressed by local enemies. After each oppression, God sends a civil-military leader, labeled using a Hebrew word loosely translated into English as "judge." These appointed rescuers would free Israel from enemy control and govern for a certain time. After each judge's death, the cycle of sin and oppression begins again. This continues until the people of Israel choose a king, during the ministry of the prophet-and-judge Samuel (1 Samuel 1—7).