What is the meaning of Judges 20:6? Then I took my concubine • The Levite begins his testimony before the assembled tribes (Judges 20:4-5), stating plainly that the woman was his legitimate concubine—someone under his covenant care (Exodus 21:10-11). • By saying “I took,” he accepts responsibility to act. In Israelite culture, a husband or master had the duty to seek justice for wrongs done to his household (Genesis 34:25-31). • His words remind the hearers that God holds heads of households accountable for protecting the vulnerable (Deuteronomy 22:13-19; Ephesians 5:25-28). cut her into pieces • The act is shocking, but it is reported without sensationalism. Scripture records events accurately, even when they are horrific (Judges 19:29). • This gruesome action served as a visual indictment—much like Saul later cutting oxen into pieces to summon Israel to battle (1 Samuel 11:7). • The Levite does not diminish the atrocity committed against his concubine; instead, he makes the crime unmistakably visible, forcing the nation to face its sin (Isaiah 58:1; Ezekiel 16:2). and sent her throughout the land of Israel’s inheritance • Twelve portions went to the twelve tribes, uniting the whole nation in responsibility (Judges 20:1). • The phrase “land of Israel’s inheritance” recalls God’s covenant gift (Joshua 14:9). Sin was defiling that sacred inheritance (Leviticus 18:24-28). • Sending the pieces created an urgent call for communal justice, demonstrating that private sin has public consequences (Deuteronomy 13:12-15; 1 Corinthians 5:6). because they had committed a lewd and disgraceful act in Israel • “Lewd and disgraceful” (Hebrew idiom) is used for sexual violence or covenant violation (Genesis 34:7; 2 Samuel 13:12). • The Levite anchors his actions in moral clarity: the men of Gibeah perpetrated wickedness “in Israel,” within God’s covenant people, making it all the more heinous (Deuteronomy 17:12). • His statement demands national accountability, echoing the command to “purge the evil from among you” (Deuteronomy 22:22-24). summary Judges 20:6 records the Levite’s shocking but deliberate response to an unspeakable crime. By taking his concubine, dismembering her, and sending the pieces to the tribes, he forces Israel to confront the gravity of covenant-breaking violence within its borders. The grisly act was never commended as righteous, yet it successfully rallied the nation to seek justice, underlining timeless truths: God’s people must protect the vulnerable, expose evil, and guard the holiness of the inheritance entrusted to them. |
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