Judges 19:25 · Bible study
Judges 19:25 Commentary: Study: Depravity Without
Hebrew · 7 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
An in-depth study of Judges 19:25. Why the Bible records this violence without immediate condemnation, and its literary and theological purpose.
Research Summary
- Meaning: The Levite hands over his concubine to a mob to save himself; she is raped and abused until dawn.
- Key words: ‘Laid hold on’ (H2388, seized by violence); ‘knew’ (H3045, carnal knowledge twisted into assault); ‘abused’ (H5953, to roll upon cruelly).
- Main debate: Whether the narrator condemns the Levite silently, or the text simply reports without judgment. Most argue the moral verdict is found in the larger story (civil war, Hosea's condemnation).
- Theological theme: The depravity of humanity without God. The corruption of an entire society, from host to Levite to mob.
- Best use: As part of a series on Judges or the need for a King; in a study on biblical lament and the reality of evil.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
But the men would not listen to him. So the Levite 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.
WEB World English Bible 2000
But the men wouldn’t listen to him; so the man grabbed his concubine, and brought her out to them; and they had sex with her, and abused her all night until the morning. When the day began to dawn, they let her go.
KJV King James Version 1769
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.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
But the men would not hearken to him: so the man laid hold on 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.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
And the men have not been willing to hearken to him, and the man taketh hold on his concubine, and bringeth her out unto them without, and they know her, and roll themselves upon her all the night, till the morning, and send her away in the ascending of the dawn;
Darby Darby Bible 1890
But the men would not hearken to him; and the man took his concubine, and brought her forth to them; and they knew her, and abused her all the night until the morning; and let her go when the morning-dawn arose.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
They would not be satisfied with his words; which the man seeing, brought out his concubine to them, and abandoned her to their wickedness: and when they had abused her all the night, they let her go in the morning.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Mas aquellos hombres no le quisieron oir; por lo que tomando aquel hombre su concubina, sacósela fuera: y ellos la conocieron, y abusaron de ella toda la noche hasta la mañana, y dejáronla cuando apuntaba el alba.
Mas aqueles homens não lhe quiseram ouvir; pelo que tomando aquele homem sua concubina, tirou-a fora: e eles a conheceram, e abusaram dela toda a noite até a manhã, e deixaram-na quando apontava a alva.
Ces gens ne voulurent point l’ écouter. Alors l’ homme prit sa concubine, et la leur amena dehors. Ils la connurent, et ils abusèrent d’ elle toute la nuit jusqu’ au matin; puis ils la renvoyèrent au lever de l’ aurore.
Aber die Leute wollten ihm nicht gehorchen. Da faßte der Mann sein Kebsweib und brachte sie zu ihnen hinaus. Die erkannten sie und trieben ihren Mutwillen an ihr die ganze Nacht bis an den Morgen; und da die Morgenröte anbrach, ließen sie sie gehen.
Maar de mannen wilden naar hem niet horen. Toen greep de man zijn bijwijf, en bracht haar uit tot hen daarbuiten; en zij bekenden haar, en waren met haar bezig den gansen nacht tot aan den morgen, en lieten haar gaan, als de dageraad oprees.
Ma quegli uomini non vollero dargli ascolto. Allora l’uomo prese la sua concubina e la menò fuori a loro; ed essi la conobbero, e abusarono di lei tutta la notte fino al mattino, poi, allo spuntar dell’alba, la lasciaron andare.
Ale nie chcieli oni mężowie słuchać głosu jego; przetoż wziąwszy on mąż założnicę swoję, wywiódł ją do nich na dwór; i poznali ją, a czynili jej gwałt przez całą noc aż do zaranku, a potem puścili ją, gdy wschodziła zorza.
Но они не хотели слушать его. Тогда муж взял свою наложницу и вывел к ним на улицу. Они познали ее, и ругались над нею всю ночь до утра. И отпустили ее при появлении зари.
那些人 卻 不 聽從 他的話。那人 就把 他的妾 拉 出去 交給他們，他們便與她 交合，終 夜 凌辱 她，直到 天 色快亮 才放她去。
But the men would not give ear to him: so the man took his woman and sent her out to them; and they took her by force, using her for their pleasure all night till the morning; and when dawn came they let her go.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Judges 19:25
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Scholars across traditions agree this verse depicts the absolute moral low point of the judges period. Adam Clarke highlights the Hebrew verb yachazek (he took hold), arguing the Levite forced his concubine out 'by violence' to save his own body. The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges states bluntly that he 'sacrifices his concubine-wife to save himself.' Gill notes the attackers 'knew her', the same verb used for marital intimacy in Genesis 4:1, here twisted into gang rape, and 'abused her' (H5953, to mock or roll upon cruelly) until dawn. The Young's Literal Translation renders the assault as 'they roll themselves upon her,' capturing the brutal, degrading nature of the act. The commentators agree the narrator does not pause to moralize. Instead, the rapid sequence of verbs, grabbed, brought out, raped, abused, let go, drives the reader forward toward the devastating national response in Judges 20. The horror is meant to be felt, not explained away.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: High
Main views:
- Silent Narratorial Condemnation: The narrative structure of Judges 19-21 builds to an open condemnation in 20:6-7 and Hosea 9:9. The flat tone forces the reader to supply the moral verdict.
- The Priority of Male Hospitality: The text reflects ancient Near Eastern codes where male guests were protected at any cost (cf. Gen 19). The lack of explicit condemnation reflects the culture, not divine approval.
- Moral Chaos as Divine Judgment: The absence of God and the evil of the characters together form a picture of God giving them over to their sin, consistent with the theological pattern of Romans 1.
What is clear: What is not in dispute is that this event is presented as a profound moral catastrophe against a vulnerable woman, contributing to the book's central argument that Israel without a king descends into chaos.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| The narrator’s moral judgment on the Levite | The Levite’s act is treated as a catastrophic moral failure within the overall argument of Judges 19-21. | Some commentators (Clarke, Cambridge Bible) see the text as explicitly condemning the Levite through the raw description of his callousness. Others note the narrator does not insert a direct moral verdict here, leaving the reader to reach that conclusion from the broader narrative. |
| The status of women in the passage | The account reflects a deeply patriarchal society where women (especially a concubine) lacked the social power to refuse. | Some interpreters (Cambridge Bible) argue the ancient Hebrew standard of womanhood was so low that the text does not condemn the Levite for his actions. Others argue the horror of the text is meant to indict that whole value system. |
| The presence of God in the chapter | God does not speak or act directly in this chapter. | Some see this as a narrative of divine abandonment (God giving them over to their sin). Others see God working indirectly through the ensuing civil war and covenant response. |
| The literary purpose of the chapter | It serves to show the depth of sin in Israel during the period of the judges. | Christians differ on whether the primary purpose is straightforward historical reporting or a moral/ideological polemic against the tribe of Benjamin and the town of Gibeah. |
Historical & Cultural Context
Judges 19 sits in the book's final appendix (chapters 17-21), framed by the refrain: 'In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes' (17:6; 21:25). The story of Gibeah directly mirrors the Sodom narrative (Genesis 19). In both accounts, male guests are threatened with homosexual assault, and the host offers his daughters instead. Poole's notes point to this parallel. Hospitality codes in the ancient Near East prized the safety of a male guest above all, often at the horrific expense of the women in the household. The old man's offer in verse 24 reflects this twisted scale of values.
The Levite himself was already a compromised figure; he had been unfaithful to his concubine (v.2). The narrator calls her a pilegesh, a secondary wife with fewer legal protections than a full wife, making her the most vulnerable person in the house. Gibeah belonged to the tribe of Benjamin. The phrase 'sons of Belial' (v.22) marks the attackers as morally worthless, yet the horror is not theirs alone. The Levite hands her over. The old man stands by. The town does nothing to stop it. God does not speak once in this chapter. The theological silence is deafening: Israel has abandoned Yahweh, and the text records the wreckage of a people living entirely on their own terms.
Textual Notes
The supplied sources note no significant textual variants for Judges 19:25. The manuscript tradition is stable across the major versions (Masoretic Text, Septuagint, Vulgate). The primary difficulty of the verse is not the transmission of its text but the interpretation of its content.
Reception History
This verse has rarely been the subject of public exposition due to its difficult content. Early and medieval interpreters sometimes read the passage allegorically, seeing the concubine as representing the nation of Israel and the mob as foreign oppressors. Reformation commentators like Matthew Henry focused squarely on the wickedness of the men of Gibeah, condemning the crime without allegorizing it away. Modern scholarship, particularly feminist biblical criticism of the late 20th century, brought renewed attention to the story as a text of terror. Phyllis Trible’s landmark treatment in Texts of Terror gave the passage a central place in discussions of the Bible’s portrayal of violence against women. Across all eras, the passage is universally understood as a demonstration of the need for a righteous king, and ultimately for Christ, who does not sacrifice the vulnerable to save himself.
Preaching This Verse
Preaching this chapter requires extreme pastoral sensitivity. It is a text of horror, not a moral example to imitate.
Three-Point Outline
- The Desperate Cost of Self-Preservation. The Levite seizes his concubine. Adam Clarke: the verb means to take ‘by violence.’ He chooses his own safety over her life. The text does not let the reader romanticize his motive.
- The Long Night of Unchecked Evil. The men ‘knew her’ and ‘abused her all the night until morning.’ The Hebrew yada (to know intimately) is twisted into brutal gang rape. The narrative notes the passage of time. Darkness hides their crimes, and the dawn exposes everything.
- The Dawn of Reckoning. The woman crawls to the door. Her hands on the threshold (v.27) is a silent testimony of shame and exhaustion. The Levite’s command, ‘Get up, let’s go!’ (v.28), shows his utter moral blindness. God’s silence in the chapter becomes the foundation for the loud judgment that follows in Judges 20.
Five-Point Outline
- The twisted hospitality of the host (v.24).
- The cowardly choice of the Levite (v.25).
- The mob’s brutal assault (v.25).
- The broken body at the door (v.26-27).
- The callousness of the morning (v.28).
Illustration Hooks
- Watching someone sacrifice a weaker person to protect themselves, and the sick feeling of betrayal it leaves.
- A space where the laws of decency have broken down completely, leaving the most vulnerable with no one to turn to.
- The feeling of walking through a place where God’s presence seems absent, and the dread of that silence.
Questions Your Congregation Is Asking
- Why is such a horrible story in the Bible?
- Does God blame the victim here? (The text does not. The blame falls on the Levite, the mob, and the silent town.)
- What do I do with the rage this story creates? (Take it to God. He recorded it, and he is the Judge.)
Leading a Discussion
This is a difficult passage for any small group. The goal is not to find neat resolutions but to sit honestly with what the biblical text reveals about human sin and the silence of God.
Discussion Questions
- Read Jeremiah 5:7-8 and Hosea 9:9. What do these prophets say about Gibeah? How does remembering this story shape their message?
- The narrator does not say “this is evil” at this moment. Why do you think the writer trusts the reader to recognize the horror?
- What does the Levite’s choice reveal about his character? Adam Clarke says he “could have but little love for her.” Do you agree, or is the situation more complex?
- How does the parallel to Sodom (Genesis 19) shape your understanding of the scene? What is the same? What is different?
- Where is God in this chapter? Why might the narrator leave God’s voice out?
- This passage is hard. What does it mean to say that Scripture is “useful for teaching” (2 Timothy 3:16) when it contains stories like this?
- How does the rest of the story (Judges 20-21) serve as God’s indirect response to the evil at Gibeah?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Genesis 4:1 | The man knew Eve his wife. She conceived, and gave birth to Cain, and said, “I have gotten a man with Yahweh’s help.” |
| Jeremiah 5:7 | “How can I pardon you? Your children have forsaken me, and sworn by what are no gods. When I had fed them to the full, they committed adultery, and assembled themselves in troops at the prostitutes’ houses. |
| Jeremiah 5:8 | They were as fed horses roaming at large. Everyone neighed after his neighbor’s wife. |
| Hosea 7:4 | They are all adulterers. They are burning like an oven that the baker stops stirring, from the kneading of the dough, until it is leavened. |
| Hosea 7:7 | They are all hot as an oven, and devour their judges. All their kings have fallen. There is no one among them who calls to me. |
| Hosea 9:9 | They have deeply corrupted themselves, as in the days of Gibeah. He will remember their iniquity. He will punish them for their sins. |
| Hosea 10:9 | “Israel, you have sinned from the days of Gibeah. There they remained. The battle against the children of iniquity doesn’t overtake them in Gibeah. |
| Ephesians 4:19 | They, having become callous, gave themselves up to lust, to work all uncleanness with greediness. |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
7 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke stresses that the Levite did not simply send his concubine out but seized her by force, valuing his own safety above her life. He condemns every character involved, and notes that the men dismissed the woman only at daybreak, since their wickedness could not endure the light.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The commentator frankly calls the Levite’s action despicable, but insists ancient Hebrew culture had no concept of chivalry or a high view of women. Our modern moral standards simply do not apply here, and the text attaches no condemnation to anyone involved.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
But the men woulde not hearken to him: therefore ye man tooke his concubine, and brought her out vnto them: and they knewe her and abused her all the night vnto the morning: and when the day began to spring, they let her goe.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill highlights the Levite's complex role: he first brought out his concubine with her consent to pacify the mob, but when that failed he seized her by force and thrust her out. Gill also notes that the young men had seen her earlier in the street and were captivated by her beauty, which explains their insistence.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange draws a pointed contrast between Gibeah and Sodom: the sin in Gibeah was individual depravity, but the Levite himself shares guilt by surrendering his concubine. The divided body called for action, not repentance, and the nation's self-righteous response shows it too needed heart conversion, not merely outrage.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry emphasizes the sheer scale of Gibeah's evil, calling the men "sons of Belial" who broke the sacred law of hospitality. He notes that the abuse and murder of the concubine was a crime without precedent in Israel since the Exodus. The people's stunned reaction confirms this was a horror unmatched in their history.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Wesley rejects Matthew Henry's claim that the goodness of God's promised land will intensify the punishment of those who perish. He argues that this reasoning fails under predestination: if some are not elected, they never had a genuine offer, and if all the elect are saved, the grant was never free to the others.