Judges 19- Sinful People, Living in Broken Families, Who Are Part of a Sinful Community

Nine individuals in this congregation have been working on a five year vision for the church. We’d like to see individuals, families, and our community restored. In our community there are many individuals who have not come to faith in the LORD Jesus Christ. These individuals are members of broken families that also need to hear the Gospel. Because of this, one of our goals is that over the next five years is to engage with 300 families so they can be rooted in Christ, growing in grace, and restored.

Judges 19 shines a spotlight on the need for this very ministry. In this text we see individual sinners, who live in broken families, who live in a faithless and sinful community that need hope. If the Gospel does not impact these individuals, families, and community their slide into sin will worsen.

There will be many similarities between Judges 19 and what we are experiencing in our culture. It can all be summed up by saying, “Sinful people are living in broken families and they are part of a sinful community.” Similar to Judges 19 we also live in a community that does not surrender to Lordship of Jesus Christ and who obeys His Word. Our community is inclined to do what is right in their eyes.

This story has three scenes and the first scene is in Judges 19. Warning: this chapter is very disturbing and we are a congregation that is made up of lots of young kids in the service. Therefore, I will not read this chapter. Instead, from this text I will emphasize the theme: ‘Sinful individuals, live in sinful families, who live in a sinful community’.

In the first verse we see all three of these things when we read, “In those days, when there was no king in Israel, a certain Levite was sojourning in the remote parts of the hill country of Ephraim, who took to himself a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah.” Do you see these three things?

You’ll notice that verse 1 begins by addressing the community, “In those days, when there was no king in Israel…”. (19:1) This statement is often connected to another statement, “Everyone did what was right in their own eyes.” The words ‘Israel’ and ‘Everyone’ emphasizes that the community is not submitted to the LORD or obeying His Word. That is a scary community to live in!

I will not read this story because of the graphic descriptions of the sin and depravity in this community, but there is a way to describe the context in an appropriate way for this context. Our text uses words to describe the sin that is done. It uses words like: ‘wicked’ (23), ‘vile’ (23), ‘outrageous’ (24), ‘an abomination’ (20:6, 10), and as ‘evil’ that is worthy of death. (20:12).

These words show us the ugly nature of the sin in Judges 19, but these words only paint half of this depraved picture. These words do not describe the sinful and cowardly responses of the men who were being sinned against by the men of Gibeah. The response of these men was just as vile and depraved! They were willing to sacrifice others to keep this evil, outrageous, vile, wicked, this abomination from being done to them. (19:23-24) Their words and actions were so shameful that when these events are retold information was left out that incriminated them.

Let’s consider the opening words that describe the culture of the community in Israel at this time, “In those days, when there was no king in Israel…”. In Judges 19 the abomination of the men of Benjamin is highlighted but these words remind us that this is a problem in all of Israel. Some are more sinful than others, but the nation is heading in the same direction. Is this true in our day?

Let me make five observations about these opening words. First, these words are part of the theme of this book, “In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in their own eyes.” (17:6,21:25) They’ve been repeated enough that we know this story is not going to be good. We just don’t know how bad it will be yet! Warning: If your life can be described by the words, ‘Christ is not his LORD’ or ‘That person is doing what is right in their own eyes’, you’re headed towards disaster! (Galatians 6:7-8)

Second, Judges 19-21 is book-ended with these words. (19:1,21:25) The Holy Spirit is doing two things. First, He is emphasizing what the problem is behind everything we see in this story. When ‘the LORD is not submitted to as King and everyone does what was right in their own eyes’ individuals, families, and the community will be increasing characterized by sin and depravity. Secondly, this structure shows what the prescription for these things: submit to the LORD and obey His Word.

Third, don’t assume that this is not a problem in the church. Judges 19-21 is showing what is happening among God’s chosen people. There are many people today who would say they are a Christian but they deny the Lordship of Jesus in their thoughts, words, and deeds. I am reading a book that is addressing the philosophy that is called the ‘Lordship Controversy’. This false teaching has crept into the church and teaches that people can be saved even if they do not make Jesus the LORD of their life. (Romans 10:9) Because of this, there are some who believe you can have eternal life even if their faith does not produces any righteous fruit. Their lives could be described with these words, “In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in their own eyes.”

Fourth, Judges 18:1 began with the same sentence, “In those days there was no king in Israel.”, but Judges 19:1 has these words as a phrase within a sentence, “In those days, when there was no king in Israel, a certain Levite was sojourning in the remote parts of the hill country of Ephraim, who took to himself a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah.”

The sentence in Judges 19:1 is another way of saying the theme of this book, “There was no King and everyone did what was right in their own eyes.” If you want an example of what it looks like when a person, a family, or a community does not submit to the Lordship of Christ and obey his Word then read Judges 19-21.

Fifth, we’re often tempted to think that if we do not submit to Jesus and obey His Word that the consequences of this will not be that bad. Individuals, families, and communities deceive themselves when they think this. Judges 19 teaches us that this always leads to bad things. (Galatians 6:7, I John 5:17, James 1:15-16) Because Israel was not submitting to their KING and obeying His Word we can’t even read this text or speak of the sin mentioned in this text! (Ephesians 5:12)

The rest of verse 1 introduces us to two individuals and their family, “In those days, when there was no king in Israel, a certain Levite was sojourning in the remote parts of the hill country of Ephraim, who took to himself a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah.”

The first person we are introduced to in verse 1 is a Levite who is a ‘sojourner’. There is a sense in which every Levite was a sojourner in Israel because they were not given an inheritance in the land; however, this is not how this word is used here. I say this because of the phrase, “was sojourning in the remote parts of the hill country of Ephraim”. There were four Levitical towns in this area (Shechem, Gezer, Kibzaim, Beth‑horon) but this Levite didn’t live in them. He lived in the ‘remote parts of the hill country of Ephraim’. This Levite is like the Prodigal son who sojourned to a far off land. (Lk. 15:13) He rejected God’s plan and he settled alone in a place of his own choosing.

Application: Christians are commanded to be part of the visible church but many professing Christians live isolated lives apart from God’s people. (Hebrews 10:25) A reason for the decline of individuals, families, and communities is because many believers do not honor the Sabbath. A church historian once said that the strongest communities throughout church history have been those who honored the Sabbath. When we do not do this individuals, families, and communities refuse God’s blessing and they begin to declining as Israel is in the Book of Judges.

This story, and the one in Judges 17-18, highlights two Levites who did what was right in their own eyes. As a result, these men, their families, and God’s community was sliding into apostasy. This Levite in Judges 19 makes the claim that he is engaged in Temple worship, however, he does not follow through on those words (18; Mt: 21:28-32). Instead, he goes home and does things that won’t be spoken of today. (28-29)

In Judges 19:1 there is another individual. This Levite had taken a woman to have her as a concubine. Many commentators say that at this time in Israel’s history this was ok, but I disagree because this Levite knew Genesis 2:18-25, “Then the Lord God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.’ Now out of the ground the Lord God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name. The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper fit for him. So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. Then the man said, ‘This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.’ Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.” (Notice the ‘therefore’ at the end which explicitly tells us what the application of these facts are for us to obey.)

Even though this relationship was not a ‘marriage’, they were in a legally binding relationship where they shared some responsibilities and benefits toward each other. God institutes marriage and He and regulates it. We do not get to regulate a marriage, unless we are forsaking the LORD and doing what is right in our own eyes. And that is what so many individuals, families, and communities are doing today.

Interestingly, the fact that she was his ‘concubine’ does not necessarily mean that this man was married to another woman. In the scriptures there are some men who have a wife and a concubine, but there are also times when a man has a concubine and does not have a wife. (1 Chron. 2:46-48) This appears to be the case here.

This text does not paint a good picture of this sort of relationship. In Judges 19:26 this Levite is not called her ‘helpmate’ as we saw in Genesis 2, but her ‘master’ in the worst sense of the word. In verse 25, when evil men were outside the door, this Levite seized her and put her in harms way. Afterwards, he showed no concern for her and he goes to sleep. In the morning when he is leaving he sees her laying at the front door and he says coldly, “Get up, let us be going.” (28) This is what it looks like when sinful people do what is right in their own eyes in their families.

We have seen that this Levite lacks godly character. He lives away from his inheritance, he refuses to marry this woman, he is cold towards her and does not lay his life down for her when called upon to do so. We also see in verse 1 that this woman is a sinner too. We read, “And his concubine was unfaithful to him…”. This woman sinned and committed adultery. Then we read, “...and she went away from him to her father's house at Bethlehem in Judah, and was there some four months.” When people do not submit to the LORD and obey His Word sin will destroy individuals, families, and communities. Isn’t this what we see in our community today?

As we continue to read, it appears that things seem to improve and there may be hope yet. We read in Judges 19:3, “Then her husband arose and went after her, to speak kindly to her and bring her back. He had with him his servant and a couple of donkeys. And she brought him into her father's house. And when the girl's father saw him, he came with joy to meet him.” This verse is full of hope: the husband rises up and goes after her, he speaks kindly to her, he intends to bring her back home, she brings him into her fathers house, and her father receives this man with joy!

Let’s read Judges 19:4-9 and see what happens, “And his father-in-law, the girl's father, made him stay, and he remained with him three days. So they ate and drank and spent the night there. And on the fourth day they arose early in the morning, and he prepared to go, but the girl's father said to his son-in-law, ‘Strengthen your heart with a morsel of bread, and after that you may go.’ So the two of them sat and ate and drank together. And the girl's father said to the man, ‘Be pleased to spend the night, and let your heart be merry.’ And when the man rose up to go, his father-in-law pressed him, till he spent the night there again. And on the fifth day he arose early in the morning to depart. And the girl's father said, ‘Strengthen your heart and wait until the day declines.’ So they ate, both of them. And when the man and his concubine and his servant rose up to depart, his father-in-law, the girl's father, said to him, ‘Behold, now the day has waned toward evening. Please, spend the night. Behold, the day draws to its close. Lodge here and let your heart be merry, and tomorrow you shall arise early in the morning for your journey, and go home.”

As good as this seems to be going, this story will not end well. The hope in verses 3-9 is only temporary because the prescriptions being given are worldly and lack any benefit for these spiritual ailments. Time does not heal sin. Alcohol and food only makes the heart merry for a brief time and then the pain and suffering continues.

Note that in these verses we do not read of any real spiritual remedy administered in these verses. Because of this, these good times won’t and last. When things get tough, and things will get very tough very soon in this story, sin will resurface and work its deadly influence upon individuals, families, and the community.

Aren’t we prone to turn, or return, to temporal things for healing and restoration? We think time will heal. Or substances will bring joy. Money would solve all my problems. We think escaping our problems will provide peace. The scriptures teach that what really needs to be done is the hearts turning away from sin and turning to God. Until individuals, families, and communities do this any improvement will be temporary.

In John 1 we are told that Jesus came into a dark and sinful world. While we were in a hopeless situation our Heavenly Father sent His Son to save us, redeem us, rescue us. To do this, unlike the men in this story, Jesus gave Himself willingly to great suffering and to death. This is what we celebrate as we take communion this morning. If you have never turned away from your sin and looked to Christ you are invited to do this today. Only Christ can save you, restore you, and give you hope. If you do this, your next act of obedience is baptism. For those who have believed and been baptized you are invited to take communion and reflect upon the goodness, kindness, and mercy of Christ.