A Tragic Story

Judges 19 holds a tragic story. A Levite had a concubine who ran away. He went to her father’s house to bring her home. On the way home, they stopped in Gibeah to spend the night because this town was of the tribe of Benjamin—relatives.  That night, perverse men came banging on the door of the home where they were staying, wanting sex with this Levite. Instead, he gave them his concubine.  She was raped all night by a group of men…and died.  

I’ve always hated this story and focused on the injustice and brutality of this woman. But today, I saw something else. In chapter 17, it says, “In those days, there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” Apparently, this Levite gave his concubine (instead of himself) to these men because it seemed right and fair in his eyes. 

And then I saw the most tragic part of this story: these perverse men were God’s people. They were from the tribe of Benjamin. This Levite was from the priestly tribe of Levi! They had all been a part of God’s deliverance! But from the time of Joshua until this Levite, worshiping and honoring God had been forgotten and “they did what was right in their own eyes.” They had all become perverse. 

Doesn’t it seem people today are “doing what is right in their own eyes?” God wants our story to end differently. He is our King! And he’s given us the right way to live. It’s our duty to read the Word of God and obey it—and then to train our children to honor God.  Otherwise, we’ll have our own tragic story.