Judges 19:14

THE MESSAGE

So they kept going. As they pressed on, the sun finally left them in the vicinity of Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin. They left the road there to spend the night at Gibeah. The Levite went and sat down in the town square, but no one invited them in to spend the night. Then, late in the evening, an old man came in from his day's work in the fields. He was from the hill country of Ephraim and lived temporarily in Gibeah where all the local citizens were Benjaminites. When the old man looked up and saw the traveler in the town square, he said, "Where are you going? And where are you from?" The Levite said, "We're just passing through. We're coming from Bethlehem on our way to a remote spot in the hills of Ephraim. I come from there. I've just made a trip to Bethlehem in Judah and I'm on my way back home, but no one has invited us in for the night. We wouldn't be any trouble: We have food and straw for the donkeys, and bread and wine for the woman, the young man, and me—we don't need anything." The old man said, "It's going to be all right; I'll take care of you. You aren't going to spend the night in the town square." He took them home and fed the donkeys. They washed up and sat down to a good meal. They were relaxed and enjoying themselves when the men of the city, a gang of local hell-raisers all, surrounded the house and started pounding on the door. They yelled for the owner of the house, the old man, "Bring out the man who came to your house. We want to have sex with him." He went out and told them, "No, brothers! Don't be obscene—this man is my guest. Don't commit this outrage. Look, my virgin daughter and his concubine are here. I'll bring them out for you. Abuse them if you must, but don't do anything so senselessly vile to this man." But the men wouldn't listen to him. Finally, the Levite pushed his concubine out the door to them. They raped her repeatedly all night long. Just before dawn they let her go. The woman came back and fell at the door of the house where her master was sleeping. When the sun rose, there she was. It was morning. Her master got up and opened the door to continue his journey. There she was, his concubine, crumpled in a heap at the door, her hands on the threshold. "Get up," he said. "Let's get going." There was no answer. He lifted her onto his donkey and set out for home. When he got home he took a knife and dismembered his concubine—cut her into twelve pieces. He sent her, piece by piece, throughout the country of Israel. And he ordered the men he sent out, "Say to every man in Israel: ‘Has such a thing as this ever happened from the time the Israelites came up from the land of Egypt until now? Think about it! Talk it over. Do something!'"

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
So they continued on their journey, and the sun set as they neared Gibeah in Benjamin.

Hebrew Names Version
So they passed on and went their way; and the sun went down on them near to Gevah, which belongs to Binyamin.

King James Version
And they passed on and went their way; and the sun went down upon them when they were by Gibeah, which belongeth to Benjamin.

Lexham English Bible
So they crossed over and went their way, and the sun went down on them beside Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin.

English Standard Version
So they passed on and went their way. And the sun went down on them near Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin,

New Century Version
So they went on. The sun went down as they came near Gibeah, which belongs to the tribe of Benjamin.

New English Translation
So they traveled on, and the sun went down when they were near Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin.

Amplified Bible
So they passed by and went on their way, and the sun set on them near Gibeah, which belongs to [the tribe of] Benjamin,

New American Standard Bible
So they passed along and went their way, and the sun set on them near Gibeah which belongs to Benjamin.

Geneva Bible (1587)
So they went forward vpon their way, and the sunne went downe vpon them neere to Gibeah, which is in Beniamin.

Legacy Standard Bible
So het hulle dan verder verbygetrek; en die son het vir hulle ondergegaan by Gíbea wat aan Benjamin behoort.

Contemporary English Version
They walked on and reached Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin just after sunset.

Complete Jewish Bible
So they went on and kept traveling, until the sun set on them near Giv‘ah, which belongs to Binyamin.

Darby Translation
And they passed on and went their way; and the sun went down upon them [when they were] by Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin.

Easy-to-Read Version
So the Levite and those with him traveled on. The sun was going down just as they entered the city of Gibeah. Gibeah is in the area that belongs to the tribe of Benjamin.

George Lamsa Translation
So they passed on and went their way; and the sun went down upon them when they were near Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin.

Good News Translation
So they passed by Jebus and continued on their way. It was sunset when they came to Gibeah in the territory of the tribe of Benjamin.

Literal Translation
And they passed on and traveled on. And the sun went down on them near Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And they wente on and walked, and the Sonne wente downe vpon the harde by Gibea, which lyeth in the trybe of BenIamin:

American Standard Version
So they passed on and went their way; and the sun went down upon them near to Gibeah, which belongeth to Benjamin.

Bible in Basic English
So they went on their way; and the sun went down when they were near Gibeah in the land of Benjamin.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And they went forwarde vpon their way, and the sunne went downe vpon them when they were fast by Gibea, which belongeth to them of Beniamin.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
So they passed on and went their way; and the sun went down upon them near to Gibeah, which belongeth to Benjamin.

King James Version (1611)
And they passed on and went their way, and the sunne went downe vpon them when they were by Gibeah, which belongeth to Beniamin.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And they passed by and went on, and the sun went down upon them near to Gabaa, which is in Benjamin.

English Revised Version
So they passed on and went their way; and the sun went down upon them near to Gibeah, which belongeth to Benjamin.

Berean Standard Bible
So they continued on their journey, and the sun set as they neared Gibeah in Benjamin.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Therfor thei passiden Jebus, and token the weie bigunnun. And the sunne yede doun to hem bisidis Gabaa, which is in the lynage of Beniamyn;

Young's Literal Translation
And they pass over, and go on, and the sun goeth in upon them near Gibeah, which is to Benjamin;

Update Bible Version
So they passed on and went their way; and the sun went down on them near to Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin.

Webster's Bible Translation
And they passed on and went their way; and the sun went down upon them [when they were] by Gibeah, which [belongeth] to Benjamin.

World English Bible
So they passed on and went their way; and the sun went down on them near to Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin.

New King James Version
And they passed by and went their way; and the sun went down on them near Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin.

New Living Translation
So they went on. The sun was setting as they came to Gibeah, a town in the land of Benjamin,

New Life Bible
So they passed Jebus and went on their way. The sun went down when they were near Gibeah, a city of Benjamin.

New Revised Standard
So they passed on and went their way; and the sun went down on them near Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
So they passed on, and went their way, - and the sun went in upon them beside Gibeah, which belongeth to Benjamin.

Douay-Rheims Bible
So they passed by Jebus, and went on their journey, and the sun went down upon them when they were by Gabaa, which is in the tribe of Benjamin:

Revised Standard Version
So they passed on and went their way; and the sun went down on them near Gib'e-ah, which belongs to Benjamin,

New American Standard Bible (1995)
So they passed along and went their way, and the sun set on them near Gibeah which belongs to Benjamin.

Contextual Overview

¹It was an era when there was no king in Israel. A Levite, living as a stranger in the backwoods hill country of Ephraim, got himself a concubine, a woman from Bethlehem in Judah. But she quarreled with him and left, returning to her father's house in Bethlehem in Judah. She was there four months. Then her husband decided to go after her and try to win her back. He had a servant and a pair of donkeys with him. When he arrived at her father's house, the girl's father saw him, welcomed him, and made him feel at home. His father-in-law, the girl's father, pressed him to stay. He stayed with him three days; they feasted and drank and slept. ⁵On the fourth day, they got up at the crack of dawn and got ready to go. But the girl's father said to his son-in-law, "Strengthen yourself with a hearty breakfast and then you can go." So they sat down and ate breakfast together. The girl's father said to the man, "Come now, be my guest. Stay the night—make it a holiday." The man got up to go, but his father-in-law kept after him, so he ended up spending another night. On the fifth day, he was again up early, ready to go. The girl's father said, "You need some breakfast." They went back and forth, and the day slipped on as they ate and drank together. But the man and his concubine were finally ready to go. Then his father-in-law, the girl's father, said, "Look, the day's almost gone—why not stay the night? There's very little daylight left; stay another night and enjoy yourself. Tomorrow you can get an early start and set off for your own place." But this time the man wasn't willing to spend another night. He got things ready, left, and went as far as Jebus (Jerusalem) with his pair of saddled donkeys, his concubine, and his servant. At Jebus, though, the day was nearly gone. The servant said to his master, "It's late; let's go into this Jebusite city and spend the night." But his master said, "We're not going into any city of foreigners. We'll go on to Gibeah." He directed his servant, "Keep going. Let's go on ahead. We'll spend the night either at Gibeah or Ramah." So they kept going. As they pressed on, the sun finally left them in the vicinity of Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin. They left the road there to spend the night at Gibeah. The Levite went and sat down in the town square, but no one invited them in to spend the night. Then, late in the evening, an old man came in from his day's work in the fields. He was from the hill country of Ephraim and lived temporarily in Gibeah where all the local citizens were Benjaminites. When the old man looked up and saw the traveler in the town square, he said, "Where are you going? And where are you from?" The Levite said, "We're just passing through. We're coming from Bethlehem on our way to a remote spot in the hills of Ephraim. I come from there. I've just made a trip to Bethlehem in Judah and I'm on my way back home, but no one has invited us in for the night. We wouldn't be any trouble: We have food and straw for the donkeys, and bread and wine for the woman, the young man, and me—we don't need anything." The old man said, "It's going to be all right; I'll take care of you. You aren't going to spend the night in the town square." He took them home and fed the donkeys. They washed up and sat down to a good meal. They were relaxed and enjoying themselves when the men of the city, a gang of local hell-raisers all, surrounded the house and started pounding on the door. They yelled for the owner of the house, the old man, "Bring out the man who came to your house. We want to have sex with him." He went out and told them, "No, brothers! Don't be obscene—this man is my guest. Don't commit this outrage. Look, my virgin daughter and his concubine are here. I'll bring them out for you. Abuse them if you must, but don't do anything so senselessly vile to this man." But the men wouldn't listen to him. Finally, the Levite pushed his concubine out the door to them. They raped her repeatedly all night long. Just before dawn they let her go. The woman came back and fell at the door of the house where her master was sleeping. When the sun rose, there she was. It was morning. Her master got up and opened the door to continue his journey. There she was, his concubine, crumpled in a heap at the door, her hands on the threshold. "Get up," he said. "Let's get going." There was no answer. He lifted her onto his donkey and set out for home. When he got home he took a knife and dismembered his concubine—cut her into twelve pieces. He sent her, piece by piece, throughout the country of Israel. And he ordered the men he sent out, "Say to every man in Israel: ‘Has such a thing as this ever happened from the time the Israelites came up from the land of Egypt until now? Think about it! Talk it over. Do something!'" ⁷The Levite It was an era when there was no king in Israel. A Levite, living as a stranger in the backwoods hill country of Ephraim, got himself a concubine, a woman from Bethlehem in Judah. But she quarreled with him and left, returning to her father's house in Bethlehem in Judah. She was there four months. Then her husband decided to go after her and try to win her back. He had a servant and a pair of donkeys with him. When he arrived at her father's house, the girl's father saw him, welcomed him, and made him feel at home. His father-in-law, the girl's father, pressed him to stay. He stayed with him three days; they feasted and drank and slept. On the fourth day, they got up at the crack of dawn and got ready to go. But the girl's father said to his son-in-law, "Strengthen yourself with a hearty breakfast and then you can go." So they sat down and ate breakfast together. The girl's father said to the man, "Come now, be my guest. Stay the night—make it a holiday." The man got up to go, but his father-in-law kept after him, so he ended up spending another night. ⁸On the fifth day, he was again up early, ready to go. The girl's father said, "You need some breakfast." They went back and forth, and the day slipped on as they ate and drank together. But the man and his concubine were finally ready to go. Then his father-in-law, the girl's father, said, "Look, the day's almost gone—why not stay the night? There's very little daylight left; stay another night and enjoy yourself. Tomorrow you can get an early start and set off for your own place." ¹⁰But this time the man wasn't willing to spend another night. He got things ready, left, and went as far as Jebus (Jerusalem) with his pair of saddled donkeys, his concubine, and his servant. At Jebus, though, the day was nearly gone. The servant said to his master, "It's late; let's go into this Jebusite city and spend the night." ¹²But his master said, "We're not going into any city of foreigners. We'll go on to Gibeah." He directed his servant, "Keep going. Let's go on ahead. We'll spend the night either at Gibeah or Ramah." ¹⁴So they kept going. As they pressed on, the sun finally left them in the vicinity of Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin. They left the road there to spend the night at Gibeah. The Levite went and sat down in the town square, but no one invited them in to spend the night. Then, late in the evening, an old man came in from his day's work in the fields. He was from the hill country of Ephraim and lived temporarily in Gibeah where all the local citizens were Benjaminites. When the old man looked up and saw the traveler in the town square, he said, "Where are you going? And where are you from?" The Levite said, "We're just passing through. We're coming from Bethlehem on our way to a remote spot in the hills of Ephraim. I come from there. I've just made a trip to Bethlehem in Judah and I'm on my way back home, but no one has invited us in for the night. We wouldn't be any trouble: We have food and straw for the donkeys, and bread and wine for the woman, the young man, and me—we don't need anything." The old man said, "It's going to be all right; I'll take care of you. You aren't going to spend the night in the town square." He took them home and fed the donkeys. They washed up and sat down to a good meal. They were relaxed and enjoying themselves when the men of the city, a gang of local hell-raisers all, surrounded the house and started pounding on the door. They yelled for the owner of the house, the old man, "Bring out the man who came to your house. We want to have sex with him." He went out and told them, "No, brothers! Don't be obscene—this man is my guest. Don't commit this outrage. Look, my virgin daughter and his concubine are here. I'll bring them out for you. Abuse them if you must, but don't do anything so senselessly vile to this man." But the men wouldn't listen to him. Finally, the Levite pushed his concubine out the door to them. They raped her repeatedly all night long. Just before dawn they let her go. The woman came back and fell at the door of the house where her master was sleeping. When the sun rose, there she was. It was morning. Her master got up and opened the door to continue his journey. There she was, his concubine, crumpled in a heap at the door, her hands on the threshold. "Get up," he said. "Let's get going." There was no answer. He lifted her onto his donkey and set out for home. When he got home he took a knife and dismembered his concubine—cut her into twelve pieces. He sent her, piece by piece, throughout the country of Israel. And he ordered the men he sent out, "Say to every man in Israel: ‘Has such a thing as this ever happened from the time the Israelites came up from the land of Egypt until now? Think about it! Talk it over. Do something!'"

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Reciprocal: Judges 20:31 - the house of God 2 Chronicles 13:2 - Gibeah

Cross-References

Genesis 19:4
Before they went to bed men from all over the city of Sodom, young and old, descended on the house from all sides and boxed them in. They yelled to Lot, "Where are the men who are staying with you for the night? Bring them out so we can have our sport with them!"

Genesis 19:12
The two men said to Lot, "Do you have any other family here? Sons, daughters—anybody in the city? Get them out of here, and now! We're going to destroy this place. The outcries of victims here to God are deafening; we've been sent to blast this place into oblivion."

Genesis 19:14
Lot went out and warned the fiancés of his daughters, "Evacuate this place; God is about to destroy this city!" But his daughters' would-be husbands treated it as a joke.

Genesis 19:30
Lot left Zoar and went into the mountains to live with his two daughters; he was afraid to stay in Zoar. He lived in a cave with his daughters.

Exodus 12:31
Pharaoh called in Moses and Aaron that very night and said, "Get out of here and be done with you—you and your Israelites! Go worship God on your own terms. And yes, take your sheep and cattle as you've insisted, but go. And bless me."

2 Chronicles 30:10
So the couriers set out, going from city to city through the country of Ephraim and Manasseh, as far north as Zebulun. But the people poked fun at them, treated them as a joke. But not all; some from Asher, Manasseh, and Zebulun weren't too proud to accept the invitation and come to Jerusalem. It was better in Judah—God worked powerfully among them to make it unanimous, responding to the orders sent out by the king and his officials, orders backed up by the word of God .

Proverbs 29:1
For people who hate discipline and only get more stubborn, There'll come a day when life tumbles in and they break, but by then it'll be too late to help them.

Jeremiah 20:7
You pushed me into this, God , and I let you do it. You were too much for me. And now I'm a public joke. They all poke fun at me. Every time I open my mouth I'm shouting, "Murder!" or "Rape!" And all I get for my God -warnings are insults and contempt. But if I say, "Forget it! No more God -Messages from me!" The words are fire in my belly, a burning in my bones. I'm worn out trying to hold it in. I can't do it any longer! Then I hear whispering behind my back: "There goes old ‘Danger-Everywhere.' Shut him up! Report him!" Old friends watch, hoping I'll fall flat on my face: "One misstep and we'll have him. We'll get rid of him for good!"

Jeremiah 51:6
"Get out of Babylon as fast as you can. Run for your lives! Save your necks! Don't linger and lose your lives to my vengeance on her as I pay her back for her sins. Babylon was a fancy gold chalice held in my hand, Filled with the wine of my anger to make the whole world drunk. The nations drank the wine and they've all gone crazy. Babylon herself will stagger and crash, senseless in a drunken stupor—tragic! Get anointing balm for her wound. Maybe she can be cured."

Ezekiel 20:49
And I said, "O God , everyone is saying of me, ‘He just makes up stories.'"

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And they passed on, and went their way,.... Proceeded on in their journey from Jebus or Jerusalem, near to which they were:

and the sun went down upon them when they were by Gibeah, which belongeth to Benjamin; which is added, to distinguish it from another Gibeah in the tribe of Judah, Joshua 15:57 when they were come pretty near to this place, on the side of it, as it seems, the sun was just setting, which determined them to take up their lodging here, as follows.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Gibeah, which belongeth to Benjamin - See Joshua 18:24 note.