Read Judges 19 here (text coming …) or at Bible Gateway.
The Hebrew paragraphs:
19:1-30 {p} The Levite and his concubine abused by the men of Gibeah
The Levite’s sojourn in Gibeah sounds nearly identical to the angels’ sojourn in Sodom (Gen 19). In both cases, the sojourners make the decision to remain in the open square of the city; a resident instead insists they lodge in his house; the men of the city come and demand the male guests or guest be given to them; the host offers his virgin daughter(s) instead. This is the Teaching Tool of Common Theme, but what is Scripture teaching?
I believe it is that, due to the lack of godly authority upholding the standard of righteousness commanded in the Law of Moses, that we saw in Judges 17, we see, not only every man doing what was right in his own eyes as in Judges 17, but the fruit of that increasing to such an extent that wickedness not only abounded but was considered the norm by a percentage of the population.
Because of its unrestrained wickedness, Sodom called forth judgment from God upon itself. We will have to keep reading to see what happens to Gibeah.
As far as throwing the virgin daughters to the wolves, that is something abhorrent to God and not commanded by Him. However, its repeat occurring hundreds of years apart shows that it was a cultural norm for Canaanite society. This is the same society, remember, that offered its children as human sacrifices to Molech. They devalued the lives of their offspring. Let this history be a warning to us to guard against that path! If your church pastor tells you abortion is compatible with Christianity or Scripture, run from that false teaching.
If there are questions, this is a good resource:
Gibeah – International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
Leave a Reply