42 – The Levite & His Concubine – Part 1

NOTE: THE TRANSCRIPT IS NOT EXACTLY LIKE THE RECORDING.

This account is true. Samuel did not make this up. It is such an unbelievable story that it might seem imaginary but he was not making it up nor creating an allegory or moral story. Samuel wrote about this incident to illustrate the corruption among the tribes, even in the Priesthood, and the rebellion of individuals and gangs that had formed in Israel in the days of Phinehas, the High Priest, but it turned out to have a very prophetic application from then all the way to the end of days.

This happened in the days of Phinehas (Joshua 20:27) who was High Priest after Eleazar who crossed over the Jordan river with Joshua. Eleazar and Joshua were both dead when this incident happened. This happened early in Israel’s history, probably after the Judgeship of Othniel, the first National Judge after Joshua (Judges 3:7-11), who judged Israel 40 years. It is likely this incident happened after those 40 years, after Othniel’s death and while Phinehas could still be living, because the Israelites returned to serving the Baals and the Asheroth then (Judges 3:7).

This incident teaches us how sin and rebellion collapses, and will collapse, Israel from within. Its prophecies reach all the way to the end of the ages.

Samuel begins and ends this account with the same words: “In those days, …there was no king in Israel” (Judges 19:1, Judges 21:25). This tells us that the Israelites of even those early days rejected YHVH as their King. This is what Samuel was alluding to. The Israelites had National Judges for about 400 years but they wanted a human King from the earliest generations of the Judges time period.

Judges 19:1  In those days, when there was no king in Israel, there was a certain Levite living on the farther side of the hill country of Ephraim [probably Shechem, the northernmost Levitical city within Ephraimite territory], who took for himself a concubine out of Bethlehem Judah.

As they were then – without a King to rule over us on earth, so are we now. And as they were then  – in their behaviors, their worship of Baal and Asherah, we are now.

Today, there is no King in Israel. Israel’s rightful King, Yeshua, is ignored by all of the religions that base themselves on YHVH’s covenant with Abram.

Judges 19:2  His concubine played the prostitute against him, and went away from him to her father’s house to Bethlehem Judah, and was there for four months.

“Playing the prostitute” means she had many lovers. YHVH often accused Israel of having many lovers. It was true then and it is true now. This concubine was from either the tribe of Judah or the tribe of Levi. Bethlehem Judah was a tribe of Judah city and many Levitical priests lived there.

This concubine describes the spiritual state of Israel and YHVH’s opinion of what she was. While Israel was His wife, she had reduced herself to the stature of a concubine, just a member of YHVH’s household, by reason of the curses due to her. Some people may object to the comparison of this concubine to Israel because Israel was YHVH’s wife. This is true, but spiritually, she had lowered her status before YHVH and now Samuel uses the term “concubine” to represent YHVH’s opinion of her. As we go through the first verses of chapter 19, it will become clearer but I will submit the following explanation, as well.

Wives had a legal status in the relationship that concubines did not have. The faithful have a legal status with YHVH that the unfaithful do not have. i.e. blessings rather than curses; the prospect of eternal life, rather than the prospect of eternal death.

Wives were married but concubines were household servants, The unfaithful are part of YHVH’s household to this day. After the divorce of the northern tribes and the widowhood of the southern tribes, the best definition of the relationship of the woman to YHVH is “concubine”. And an unfaithful one like this concubine. So, in the end of days, YHVH has a concubine who still belongs in His household and a betrothed who is not yet in His household, but will be. These represent unfaithful Israel – i.e. the Abrahamic religions who pick and choose from the Law of YHVH and who make up their own doctrines as opposed to YHVH’s faithful Israel who does exactly and only what please Him, which is found in the Law of Moses, both in letter and in Spirit.

Judges 19:3  Her husband arose, and went after her, to speak kindly to her, to bring her again, having his servant with him, and a couple of donkeys. She brought him into her father’s house; and when the father of the young lady saw him, he rejoiced to meet him.

This verse calls the Levite the concubine’s husband. Do you see the play on the spiritual status here? She was a non-married member of the Levite’s household but the Levite was called “husband” by Samuel. There is a spiritual reality here if you are able to see it. Israel was YHVH’s wife but she acted like this unfaithful concubine.

This is entire account is the 3500 year long prophecy of “physical” Israel who will be destroyed. Let’s continue studying with the understanding that “concubine” is what YHVH thought of this woman He was married to until He divorced 9 of her tribes in 2700 AD and widowed the other 4 around 30 AD – 33 AD. But then these 2 “women” continued proclaiming their covenant relationship with YHVH, didn’t they? Unfaithful Baal and Asherah worshiping people continue to proclaim YHVH as husband. The best that can be said of them is that their relationship to Him is as concubine, “household servant”.

I want to add this. The Levite was from Ephraimite territory which has its own spiritual issues but the concubine was from Judah. Does this not prophesy of the future relationship of the Jews to YHVH after their rejection of Yeshua as their rightful King?

Judges 19:4  His father-in-law, the young lady’s father, kept him there; and he stayed with him three days. So they ate and drank, and stayed there.

Again, Samuel uses a spiritually legal term for a situation in which there was no legal marriage – faither-in-law. This is a play on the spiritual relationship of this woman to the Levite. Samuel wants us to understand that Israel is, or will be, reduced in stature (YHVH’s opinion of Israel), but not yet status, necessarily. The comparison is not necessarily to the marital status at that time (as it is now), but to YHVH’s woman’s behavior prostituting herself with her lovers and then leaving His house. The words “concubine” and “husband” are euphemisms to mean other things spiritually.

Judges 19:5  On the fourth day, they got up early in the morning, and he rose up to depart. The young lady’s father said to his son-in-law, “Strengthen your heart with a morsel of bread, and afterward you shall go your way.”

Here we see the concubine’s status being simply that of “young lady” even while the father-in-law attributes the Levite as his son-in-law. This Levite is not his son-in-law. As a concubine, she is not married to him. She is simply part of his household but Samuel continues making his point with these terms.

Judges 19:6  So they sat down, ate, and drank, both of them together. Then the young lady’s father said to the man, “Please be pleased to stay all night, and let your heart be merry.”
Judges 19:7  The man rose up to depart; but his father-in-law urged him, and he stayed there again.
Judges 19:8  He arose early in the morning on the fifth day to depart; and the young lady’s father said, “Please strengthen your heart and stay until the day declines;” and they both ate.
Judges 19:9  When the man rose up to depart, he, and his concubine, and his servant, his father-in-law, the young lady’s father, said to him, “Behold, now the day draws toward evening, please stay all night. Behold, the day is ending. Stay here, that your heart may be merry; and tomorrow go on your way early, that you may go home.”
Judges 19:10  But the man wouldn’t stay that night, but he rose up and departed, and toward Jebus (also called Jerusalem). With him were a couple of saddled donkeys. His concubine also was with him.

Let me draw your attention to this historical fact. Samuel had to have written this story AFTER David took Jebus from the Jebusites because he mentions that the place was now called Jerusalem. It is a clue as to when Samuel wrote the Book of Judges. This town wasn’t “Jerusalem” until AFTER David had conquered it. This means Samuel wrote Judges toward the end of his life or at least after David conquered Jebus and changed its name to Jerusalem.

Judges 19:11  When they were by Jebus, the day was far spent; and the servant said to his master, “Please come and let’s enter into this city of the Jebusites, and stay in it.”

The Levite left too late to travel all the way back to Shechem. They made it only to Gibeah in Benjamin which was only about 10 kilometers.

Judges 19:12  His master said to him, “We won’t enter into the city of a foreigner that is not of the children of Israel; but we will pass over to Gibeah.”

Gibeah was in Benjamin’s territory and that territory abutted Judah’s on Temple Mount. The tribe of Benjamin actually owns part of Jerusalem to this day.

The Levite did not want to stay in Jebus/Jerusalem so they went to Gibeah which is only 6 kilometers or 1.5 hours. They would have been walking for 3.5 hours.

Judges 19:13  He said to his servant, “Come and let’s draw near to one of these places; and we will lodge in Gibeah, or in Ramah.”
Judges 19:14  So they passed on and went their way; and the sun went down on them near Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin.
Judges 19:15  They went over there, to go in to stay in Gibeah. He went in, and sat down in the street of the city; for there was no one who took them into his house to stay.

No one offered lodging or food hospitality to this Levite and his entourage. The tribe of Benjamin was about to fulfill Jacob’s prophecy for the first time in Israel’s history:

Genesis 49:27  “Benjamin is a ravenous wolf. In the morning he will devour the prey. At evening he will divide the plunder.”

Let’s take a look at how Benjamin is a prophetic tribe going back to the time of Joseph where Benjamin is prophetic of the end times remnant brethren who love the Father and are obedient to him. The “Benjamite” movement is the end times Hebrew Roots and Messianic Jewish movements. But just like Benjamin who was with Jacob and loved him and obeyed him, the end times Benjamites have now become corrupt and full of false doctrines, the doctrines of Baal and Asherah and ravenous wolves toward the brethren.

Judges 19:16  Behold, an old man came from his work out of the field at evening. Now the man was from the hill country of Ephraim, and he lived in Gibeah; but the men of the place were Benjamites.
Judges 19:17  He lifted up his eyes, and saw the wayfaring man in the street of the city; and the old man said, “Where are you going? Where did you come from?”Judges 19:18  He said to him, “We are passing from Bethlehem Judah to the farther side of the hill country of Ephraim. I am from there, and I went to Bethlehem Judah. I am going to Yahweh’s house; and there is no one who has taken me into his house.Judges 19:19  Yet there is both straw and feed for our donkeys; and there is bread and wine also for me, and for your servant, and for the young man who is with your servants. There is no lack of anything.”

To make sense of verse 19, we must understand that the Ephraimite had not been out working in the field alone. He was accompanied by a young man and other servants whom the Levite offered bread and wine to in exchange for safe lodging during the night.

Judges 19:20  The old man said, “Peace be to you; however let me supply all your needs. Just don’t sleep in the street.”
Judges 19:21  So he [the Ephraimite] brought him [the Levite and his entourage] into his house, and gave the donkeys fodder. Then they washed their feet, and ate and drank.

Thus the Ephraimite, who happened to be living in Gibeah of Benjamin’s territory, offered proper hospitality.

Judges 19:22  As they were making their hearts merry [meaning drinking the wine], behold, the men of the city, certain wicked fellows [not the entire population of men from this town; just certain ones], surrounded the house, beating at the door; and they spoke to the master of the house, the old man, saying, “Bring out the man who came into your house, that we can have sex with him!”

This should remind you of Lot and his family when YHVH’s messengers came to him to get him out of there before the destruction. But that was in Sodom which was destroyed. YHVH will now have another kind of destruction in mind because these are His covenant people who are in rebellion against Him. The Sodomites were not YHVH’s covenant people so YHVH did not need to go through a process of many years and reasoning with them, etc. No. He judged them and killed them. Kind of like the Great White Throne judgement which some will escape like Lot did. But with these Israelites, it will be different story. A longer process with constant calls from YHVH for them to come back to Him.

Judges 19:23  The man, the master of the house, went out to them, and said to them, “No, my brothers, please don’t act so wickedly; since this man has come into my house, don’t do this folly.
Judges 19:24  Behold, here is my virgin daughter and his concubine. I will bring them out now. Humble them, and do with them what seems good to you; but to this man don’t do any such folly.”

This Ephraimite has respect for the Levite but not so much for the sanctity of these two women. Who are these 2 women, prophetically? The Northern House of Israel and the Southern House of Judah and the end times Mystery Babylon woman who will still be telling the world she remains in covenant with YHVH through Abraham.

Judges 19:25  But the men wouldn’t listen to him: so the man [the Levite] laid hold of 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.

The Levite gave his concubine to these Benjamite rapacious wolves.

Judges 19:26  Then the woman came in the dawning of the day, and fell down at the door of the man’s house where her lord was, until it was light.

They literally raped her until they wore out her body. This is a prophecy about the betrayal and abuse that physical Israel will suffer by her lovers starting with the Assyrian and Babylonian captivities all the way to the end of days. Her lovers will use and abuse her and she will die in the end. Israel, yes, physical Israel, that first Israel that was comprised of the physical descendants of Abraham (along with those Gentiles who left Egypt with them), will die. These descendants still exist today and they claim to still be in the Abrahamic covenant with YHVH.

The “old” Israel is like this concubine who had many lovers.

Ezekiel 23:11  “Her sister Oholibah [the southern House of Judah, specifically Jerusalem] saw this [what Oholah her sister had done with the Assyrians], yet she was more corrupt in her lusting than she, and in her prostitution which was more depraved than the prostitution of her sister.

Ezekiel 23:22  “Therefore, Oholibah, thus says the Lord YHVH: ‘Behold, I will raise up your lovers against you, from whom your soul is alienated, and I will bring them against you on every side:

Does this not fit the concubine? Was she not a prostitute having many lovers? Thus, she became a prophecy for the exiles of Israel in the 2700 BC to 100 AD period, from the Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian, Greek and Roman captivities, and for the coming Tribulation when she will try to ride the beast to prove her supremacy.

Jeremiah 3:1 says, “But you have played the prostitute with many lovers; yet return again to me, says Yahweh.”

Isn’t this what the Levite’s concubine did? And did he not go to get her back just like YHVH does for His “woman”?

Jeremiah 4:30  You, when you are made desolate, what will you do? Though you clothe yourself with scarlet, though you deck yourself with ornaments of gold, though you enlarge your eyes with makeup, you make yourself beautiful in vain. Your lovers despise you. They seek your life.

Was this not the case with this woman’s Benjamite lovers? Yes, she was given over to them even as they already despised her. This concubine lusted after lovers, so the Levite gave her over to “lovers”.

Ezekiel 23:19  Yet she multiplied her prostitution, remembering the days of her youth, in which she had played the prostitute in the land of Egypt.
Ezekiel 23:20  She lusted after their lovers, whose flesh is as the flesh of donkeys, and whose issue is like the issue of horses.

YHVH’s “woman” lusts after lovers, so YHVH will one day turn her over to her lovers but she won’t know what the outcome will be. She won’t know that when this happens, it will mean her personal destruction.

Ezekiel 23:22  “Therefore, Oholibah, thus says the Lord Yahweh: ‘Behold, I will raise up your lovers against you, from whom your soul is alienated, and I will bring them against you on every side:
Ezekiel 23:23  the Babylonians and all the Chaldeans, Pekod, Shoa, Koa, and all the Assyrians with them; all of them desirable young men, governors and rulers, princes and men of renown, all of them riding on horses.
Ezekiel 23:24  They will come against you with weapons, chariots, and wagons, and with a company of peoples. They will set themselves against you with buckler, shield, and helmet all around. I will commit the judgment to them, and they will judge you according to their judgments.
Ezekiel 23:25  I will set my jealousy against you, and they will deal with you in fury. They will take away your nose and your ears. Your remnant will fall by the sword. They will take your sons and your daughters; and the rest of you will be devoured by the fire.
Ezekiel 23:26  They will also strip you of your clothes, and take away your beautiful jewels.
Ezekiel 23:27  Thus I will make your lewdness to cease from you, and remove your prostitution from the land of Egypt; so that you will not lift up your eyes to them, nor remember Egypt any more.’
Ezekiel 23:28  “For thus says the Lord Yahweh: ‘Behold, I will deliver you into the hand of them whom you hate, into the hand of them from whom your soul is alienated.
Ezekiel 23:29  They will deal with you in hatred, and will take away all your labor, and will leave you naked and bare. The nakedness of your prostitution will be uncovered, both your lewdness and your prostitution.
Ezekiel 23:30  These things will be done to you, because you have played the prostitute after the nations, and because you are polluted with their idols.

Back to verse 26. Notice that her death, prophesying of Israel’s national death, comes at the dawning of a day. Prophetically, this is the dawning of the 7^th Millennium. The Israel that is based on the physical descendants of Jacob and those grafted in at the Egyptian Exodus will be gone. All who reject Yeshua and His commandments will be gone. It’s both or nothing.

Judges 19:27  Her lord rose up in the morning, and opened the doors of the house, and went out to go his way; and behold, the woman his concubine had fallen down at the door of the house, with her hands on the threshold.

This is a begging position. She, reaching out to be saved just prior to her death, died on the threshold to safety. This is the way “first” Israel will die in the end of days under the auspices of Mystery Babylon: at the threshold but unable to enter into safety.

Judges 19:28  He said to her, “Get up, and let’s get going!” but no one answered. Then he took her up on the donkey; and the man rose up, and went to his place.
Judges 19:29  When he had come into his house, he took a knife, and cut up his concubine, and divided her, limb by limb, into twelve pieces, and sent her throughout all the borders of Israel.

The cutting up of the concubine into 12 pieces prophesies of the exiles of the tribes from 2700 BC forward with the final dismantling of physical Israel still yet to come in the end of days. This situation won’t, and cannot happen, to Yeshua’s 1 Peter 2:5’s spiritual house. The physical dismantling is only for “physical-only” descendants who call themselves believers but who reject either the Messiah, Yeshua, or His Law of Moses, or both.

Every tribal council leader got a piece of her. As the Benjamite rapists had gotten a piece of her, so did every tribal council leader.

This Levitical Priest did what was right in his own eyes when he cut her up like that. This is a clear violation of the Torah. He may have considered that without doing such a thing, his plea for justice from the tribes would go unheard. So he it took it upon himself to get what he thought he needed which was shock value! What he really needed was to repent for his own sins and corruption and then call Israel to repentance. But he wanted those tribal leaders to open each package to see one part of this concubine’s body for the shock value. And can you imagine the one that received her head?

Judges 19:30  It was so, that all who saw it said, “Such a deed has not been done or seen from the day that the children of Israel came up out of the land of Egypt to this day! Consider it, take counsel, and speak.”

We mustn’t think these body parts arrived with no explanation. The Levite must sent a note with each piece of the concubine to let them know why they were receiving it. They said nothing of this kind had been done in Israel since they were in Egypt. What did they mean? The brutal gang rape of the woman or the receipt of one of her body parts or both?

Furthermore, here is what Yeshua said about the coming Tribulation in which the concubine of YHVH, those who are still part of His household but are not betrothed to Him.

Matthew 24:21 … for then there will be great oppression, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, nor ever will be.

The ancient Israelites and Yeshua’s words express the same sentiment. The coming final raping and abusing of the concubine of YHVH will be just this brutal. Please understand that this is not the same situation as the martyrdom of Yeshua’s faithful people. The death of YHVH’s household concubine will be like just what the Israelites of that time said about this situation, “This has never happened before in Israel even from the time of the Egyptian exodus”. That was a paraphrase. In fact, Jeremiah said the end times deliverance of true and faithful Israel would be so great that no one will even think of the Egyptian Exodus again.

Jeremiah 16:14  “Therefore behold, the days come,” says Yahweh, “that it will no more be said, ‘As Yahweh lives, who brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt;’
Jeremiah 16:15  but, ‘As Yahweh lives, who brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the countries where he had driven them.’ I will bring them again into their land that I gave to their fathers.

What happened to the concubine will happen to physical Israel in the end of days. In fact, this concubine’s body prophesies of the process of physical Israel’s total exile beginning 2700 years ago and ending with the Tribulation period. She will have been raped from that time to now and she will die on YHVH’s threshold unable to enter His Kingdom as His wife.

God has been telling us for 3500 years what the process and outcome would be in resolving Israel’s unfaithfulness starting with the golden calf. According to the Torah, an adulterer must die, whether male or female, whether wife or concubine. YHVH’s woman, Israel, is no exception. Does anyone still think the original Israel will be allowed to live? He can’t allow that. Otherwise, YHVH would be an unjust God and King. This is why He cuts off, or cuts up, one woman, unfaithful Israel, and gets Himself another who truly loves Him and has proven herself to be faithful.

This is such a negative account, and it’s not over because the entire account has not been studied yet, that I don’t want to leave on such a negative note. True Israel is the Israel which is comprised of those who 1) keep YHVH’s commandments, His Law, His Torah and 2) has a personal relationship with Yeshua. True Israel is in individual covenant relationship with Him. If this is you, then learn from this account but don’t think it applies to you.