The concubine from Bethlehem: Abused, butchered and divided into pieces

One of the inhumane stories in the Bible is recorded in Judges 19. Before we delve into the story, let’s look at some background information. A Levite (descendant of Levi, son of Jacob) had a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah. First, cohabitation is not a 20th century thing. From time immemorial till date, some people prefer to be in a cohabitation rather than marriage. For most people, it is just escaping from the commitment in marriage and for others, the financial burden of a marriage ceremony leads them to be in a cohabitation relationship. As there are no legal ties, each partner can do whatever they want including leaving the relationship when they want. Cohabitation is not God’s plan for raising godly families and children. It is humanity’s escape route to enjoying ‘freedom’ and the unstoppable access to do what they feel like even when they are with another person. Remember,  during the times of the judges,  Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit (Judges 21:25). In the 21st century, most nations have made alternate arrangements for partners engaged in cohabitation. However in ancient Israel, that must have been taken as a rebellious relationship as their laws permitted sex or consummation in the context of marriage. So the Levite, from a priestly family obviously knew better than engaging a woman from another tribe as a concubine. In those days Israel had no king. Now a Levite who lived in a remote area in the hill country of Ephraim took a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah. But the men would not listen to him. So the man took his concubine and sent her outside to them, and they raped her and abused her throughout the night, and at dawn they let her go. (Judges 19:1‭, ‬25) The story begins on this note: “In those days Israel had no king. Now a Levite who lived in a remote area in the hill country of Ephraim took a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah. But she was unfaithful to him. She left him and went back to her parents’ home in Bethlehem, Judah. After she had been there four months, her husband went to her to persuade her to return. He had with him his servant and two donkeys. She took him into her parents’ home, and when her father saw him, he gladly welcomed him.” (Judges 19:1‭-‬3). Just as the Levite was unfaithful to God’s commands, his concubine was also unfaithful to him and left him. The woman was free to leave as she was not legally bound to the Levite. The dissatisfied Levite travelled all the way to Bethlehem to bring back his concubine but after being detained on a few occasions by the woman’s father, the man refused to stay one more night. He left for his home country with his servant and concubine. Their journey did not go as they planned. While spending the night in Gibeah, some wicked men requested the host to “Bring out the man who came to your house so we can have sex with him.” (Judges 19:22c). Does this request ring a bell? Lot and his family were given similar demands by the Sodomites (Genesis 19). The host tried to intervene but it did not work. Instead of confronting the men of Gibeah, the Levite did this:  “So the man took his concubine and sent her outside to them, and they raped her and abused her throughout the night, and at dawn they let her go. (Judges 19:25b).  If you have not read this passage, I will request that you do. The concubine was given away by her partner to the group of men who wanted to sleep with him. The woman might have suffered emotional trauma of seeing her partner hand her over to a group of men to rape her. The Levite spared himself but gave his partner to this ravenous men who spent all night raping her. I can’t even imagine the number of times this woman was abused. It was a gang rape incident and her concubine went to sleep. Afterall, He was not committed to her. The woman was left alone to satisfy men who have forsaken God’s laws about showing kindness to strangers. As if that was not enough, these men knew that God forbade them against sodomy. The Levite might have known all these and yet, forsook his concubine in a brutal action that took her life. After the gang rape, at daybreak, the woman went back to the house  where her master was staying, fell down at the door and lay there until daylight. When her master got up in the morning and opened the door of the house and stepped out to continue on his way, there lay his concubine, fallen in the doorway of the house, with her hands on the threshold. He said to her, “Get up; let’s go.” But there was no answer. Then the man put her on his donkey and set out for home. (Judges 19:26‭-‬28). After the Levite arrived home, he did a barbaric act: “When he reached home, he took a knife and cut up his concubine, limb by limb, into twelve parts and sent them into all the areas of Israel”  (Judges 19:29). The same man who spared his life to end that of his concubine had the courage to demand for justice in the most barbaric way. In fact, “everyone who saw it was saying to one another, “Such a thing has never been seen or done, not since the day the Israelites came up out of Egypt. Just imagine! We must do something! So speak up!” (Judges 19:30). Judges 20 and 21 details the unfortunate battles that were fought and the lives that were lost because of this.  The story of this unfortunate concubine teaches us important lessons about love and relationship. The Levite man saved his life but led his partner into the hands of her killers. She was abused, killed, butchered and shared as a war signal across Israel. She left Judah in full but only her piece was sent back. Before you move in with him, know that if he is not committed to you the right way, he can hand you over to save his life, image, and self-esteem. Run away from what can take your life.  On the contrary, Jesus took our place as sinners and died for our sins. According to Jesus, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (John 15:13). Jesus wasn’t talking about laying down your life in marriage or in a relationship. Jesus was talking about the salvation He brought to humanity. 

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