Journey to Gibeah – Post 13
Heading North along the road, the Levite must have been happy to have finally been making some progress in his journey home at last.
Verse 10 seems to emphasize the obvious point that ‘his concubine was with him’. Perhaps the record is reminding us that his mission had been a success – she was with him, and contentedly so. He had sought her out after 4 months separation and had spoken ‘tenderly’ to her. Her fathers hospitality and those happy days in Bethlehem had been reassuring. Whatever the nature of the wrongs between them, they had been forgiven. The future must have looked brighter to her than it had done so for many months.
The journey to Jebus was a distance of about 10 kilometers from Bethlehem and upon drawing near to Jebus, the Levite’s servant was inclined to call it a day.
11 When they were near Jebus, the day was nearly over, and the servant said to his master, “Come now, let us turn aside to this city of the Jebusites and spend the night in it.”
It was probably a very sensible suggestion all things considered, but no doubt frustrated by the repeated delays and wanting to get further along the road the Levite voices an additional reason for not stopping:
12 And his master said to him, “We will not turn aside into the city of foreigners, who do not belong to the people of Israel, but we will pass on to Gibeah.”
This decision of the Levite could be construed as quite an honorable one. The Jebusites were among the nations listed for destruction (Joshua 3:10) , and as early as Genesis 15 they had been listed as one of the nations destined to give way to the children of Israel (Genesis 15:21).
It seems that the Levite would either not seek hospitality from a nation God had marked out for destruction or he thought it unlikely he would receive a fitting welcome in such a place. It was a stance with immediate consequences. Not stopping at the city of Jebus meant that he was committed to another 6 kilometers of traveling near the end of the day in order to make it to Gibeah.
13 And he said to his young man, “Come and let us draw near to one of these places and spend the night at Gibeah or at Ramah.”
As it turned out, reaching Gibeah before sundown was challenge enough. A further 3 kilometers in order to reach Ramah was soon revealed to be clearly out of the question.
14 So they passed on and went their way. And the sun went down on them near Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin,
15 and they turned aside there, to go in and spend the night at Gibeah. And he went in and sat down in the open square of the city, for no one took them into his house to spend the night.
Making their way through the gates and into the city square, the Levite and company must have looked expectantly at passers by as they rushed to reach their respective abodes before sundown with thoughts of evening meals, family and the events of the day on their mind. The visitors would expect at any moment to hear a friendly greeting, an interested enquiry as to their origin and destination and perhaps an invitation of food and shelter for weary travelers. None came.
The first inkling that there would be trouble at Gibeah was manifested in the complete lack of hospitality shown to this traveling party. So much for insisting upon reaching an Israelite town! Ironically enough, it is highly probable that that the Levite would have received a better reception in Jebus than he did in this small town of Benjamin. In fact, by the end of the chapter we wonder if it could have been worse had the Jebusites tried to match it!
Why the lack of hospitality? Was it a case of Benjaminite parochialism? A knowledge of the spirit that ruled the town once night fell and the danger it represented to anyone who obstructed it? Or was it just plain dull, sullen inhospitality? No satisfactory answer as to why the locals failed to extend a warm reception to these travelers presents itself plainly. It is just as easy to note it is simply more evidence of every one ‘doing what was right in their own eyes’.
16 And behold, an old man was coming from his work in the field at evening. The man was from the hill country of Ephraim, and he was sojourning in Gibeah. The men of the place were Benjaminites.
We have already been told that Gibeah belongs to Benjamin and so we would expect it to be full of people from the tribe of Benjamin, and yet the record spells it out distinctly. ‘The men of the place were Benjaminites’. As well as making their tribal origin clear, it is perhaps calculated to tell us something of their character.
Jacob had spoken of Benjamin as a ‘ravenous wolf’ (Genesis 49:27) that would ‘devour the prey’ and ‘divide the spoil’. The Benjaminites could be fierce and brutal in disposition and quickly gained a reputation of being excellent warriors.
In short, you didn’t want to mess with these guys. You didn’t want to be on the streets of their city late at night when they came out to play.
And someone it seems, knew that. The ‘old man’ appears to be someone from the Levite’s ‘neck of the woods’. He’s living temporarily in Gibeah and just happens to be coming in from the day’s toil in the field:
17 And he lifted up his eyes and saw the traveler in the open square of the city. And the old man said, “Where are you going? And where do you come from?”
At last we hear the interested and friendly enquiry that the visitors have been holding out for.
In his response one can tell that the Levite is somewhat ‘put out’ by not having received hospitality.
18 And he said to him, “We are passing from Bethlehem in Judah to the remote parts of the hill country of Ephraim, from which I come. I went to Bethlehem in Judah, and I am going to the house of the Lord, but no one has taken me into his house.
These are obviously the days before the ‘Best Western’ motels and ‘Holiday Inns’. Travelers relied on carrying with them their own provisions and the spontaneous care and kindness of hospitable countrymen for shelter and warmth.
This is the first we hear of the Levite’s intention to go to the house of the Lord and one wonders if this was true or added merely for effect. It appears there may have been something about him that marked him as being a Levite, therefore adding to his surprise that he had not been showered with goodwill and invitation.
19 We have straw and feed for our donkeys, with bread and wine for me and your female servant and the young man with your servants. There is no lack of anything.”
The Levite explains that they are self sufficient and would therefore represent no burden to anyone offering them shelter for the night.
However, the old man needs no such assurance. He is more than happy to house and feed the visitors. Perhaps it takes an older man with the memory of the older values of a fading generation to show the kindness that Israel should have been renowned for.
20 And the old man said, “Peace be to you; I will care for all your wants. Only, do not spend the night in the square.”
There is an ominous shade to the phrase ‘do not spend the night in the square’. It appears the old man knew it wasn’t safe to do that.
The words are very reminiscent of the angel’s words in Genesis 19:2 when, upon entering Sodom they said to Lot: “we will spend the night in the town square” Lot was alarmed at such an idea and insisted that they do no such thing. The old man in Gibeah all but does the same.
The parallels between Gibeah and Sodom are just beginning.
21 So he brought him into his house and gave the donkeys feed. And they washed their feet, and ate and drank.
At last the travelers are experiencing hospitality in Gibeah. Weary limbs aching from the steep ascent to Gibeah are resting, feet caked with the dust of the highway have been cleansed and soothed and the perennial comfort of good food and drink is now before them. All seems well.
But night has now fallen in Gibeah. And a dark night it is.
Heading North along the road, the Levite must have been happy to have finally been making some progress in his journey home at last.
Verse 10 seems to emphasize the obvious point that ‘his concubine was with him’. Perhaps the record is reminding us that his mission had been a success – she was with him, and contentedly so. He had sought her out after 4 months separation and had spoken ‘tenderly’ to her. Her fathers hospitality and those happy days in Bethlehem had been reassuring. Whatever the nature of the wrongs between them, they had been forgiven. The future must have looked brighter to her than it had done so for many months.
The journey to Jebus was a distance of about 10 kilometers from Bethlehem and upon drawing near to Jebus, the Levite’s servant was inclined to call it a day.
11 When they were near Jebus, the day was nearly over, and the servant said to his master, “Come now, let us turn aside to this city of the Jebusites and spend the night in it.”
It was probably a very sensible suggestion all things considered, but no doubt frustrated by the repeated delays and wanting to get further along the road the Levite voices an additional reason for not stopping:
12 And his master said to him, “We will not turn aside into the city of foreigners, who do not belong to the people of Israel, but we will pass on to Gibeah.”
This decision of the Levite could be construed as quite an honorable one. The Jebusites were among the nations listed for destruction (Joshua 3:10) , and as early as Genesis 15 they had been listed as one of the nations destined to give way to the children of Israel (Genesis 15:21).
It seems that the Levite would either not seek hospitality from a nation God had marked out for destruction or he thought it unlikely he would receive a fitting welcome in such a place. It was a stance with immediate consequences. Not stopping at the city of Jebus meant that he was committed to another 6 kilometers of traveling near the end of the day in order to make it to Gibeah.
13 And he said to his young man, “Come and let us draw near to one of these places and spend the night at Gibeah or at Ramah.”
As it turned out, reaching Gibeah before sundown was challenge enough. A further 3 kilometers in order to reach Ramah was soon revealed to be clearly out of the question.
14 So they passed on and went their way. And the sun went down on them near Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin,
15 and they turned aside there, to go in and spend the night at Gibeah. And he went in and sat down in the open square of the city, for no one took them into his house to spend the night.
Making their way through the gates and into the city square, the Levite and company must have looked expectantly at passers by as they rushed to reach their respective abodes before sundown with thoughts of evening meals, family and the events of the day on their mind. The visitors would expect at any moment to hear a friendly greeting, an interested enquiry as to their origin and destination and perhaps an invitation of food and shelter for weary travelers. None came.
The first inkling that there would be trouble at Gibeah was manifested in the complete lack of hospitality shown to this traveling party. So much for insisting upon reaching an Israelite town! Ironically enough, it is highly probable that that the Levite would have received a better reception in Jebus than he did in this small town of Benjamin. In fact, by the end of the chapter we wonder if it could have been worse had the Jebusites tried to match it!
Why the lack of hospitality? Was it a case of Benjaminite parochialism? A knowledge of the spirit that ruled the town once night fell and the danger it represented to anyone who obstructed it? Or was it just plain dull, sullen inhospitality? No satisfactory answer as to why the locals failed to extend a warm reception to these travelers presents itself plainly. It is just as easy to note it is simply more evidence of every one ‘doing what was right in their own eyes’.
16 And behold, an old man was coming from his work in the field at evening. The man was from the hill country of Ephraim, and he was sojourning in Gibeah. The men of the place were Benjaminites.
We have already been told that Gibeah belongs to Benjamin and so we would expect it to be full of people from the tribe of Benjamin, and yet the record spells it out distinctly. ‘The men of the place were Benjaminites’. As well as making their tribal origin clear, it is perhaps calculated to tell us something of their character.
Jacob had spoken of Benjamin as a ‘ravenous wolf’ (Genesis 49:27) that would ‘devour the prey’ and ‘divide the spoil’. The Benjaminites could be fierce and brutal in disposition and quickly gained a reputation of being excellent warriors.
In short, you didn’t want to mess with these guys. You didn’t want to be on the streets of their city late at night when they came out to play.
And someone it seems, knew that. The ‘old man’ appears to be someone from the Levite’s ‘neck of the woods’. He’s living temporarily in Gibeah and just happens to be coming in from the day’s toil in the field:
17 And he lifted up his eyes and saw the traveler in the open square of the city. And the old man said, “Where are you going? And where do you come from?”
At last we hear the interested and friendly enquiry that the visitors have been holding out for.
In his response one can tell that the Levite is somewhat ‘put out’ by not having received hospitality.
18 And he said to him, “We are passing from Bethlehem in Judah to the remote parts of the hill country of Ephraim, from which I come. I went to Bethlehem in Judah, and I am going to the house of the Lord, but no one has taken me into his house.
These are obviously the days before the ‘Best Western’ motels and ‘Holiday Inns’. Travelers relied on carrying with them their own provisions and the spontaneous care and kindness of hospitable countrymen for shelter and warmth.
This is the first we hear of the Levite’s intention to go to the house of the Lord and one wonders if this was true or added merely for effect. It appears there may have been something about him that marked him as being a Levite, therefore adding to his surprise that he had not been showered with goodwill and invitation.
19 We have straw and feed for our donkeys, with bread and wine for me and your female servant and the young man with your servants. There is no lack of anything.”
The Levite explains that they are self sufficient and would therefore represent no burden to anyone offering them shelter for the night.
However, the old man needs no such assurance. He is more than happy to house and feed the visitors. Perhaps it takes an older man with the memory of the older values of a fading generation to show the kindness that Israel should have been renowned for.
20 And the old man said, “Peace be to you; I will care for all your wants. Only, do not spend the night in the square.”
There is an ominous shade to the phrase ‘do not spend the night in the square’. It appears the old man knew it wasn’t safe to do that.
The words are very reminiscent of the angel’s words in Genesis 19:2 when, upon entering Sodom they said to Lot: “we will spend the night in the town square” Lot was alarmed at such an idea and insisted that they do no such thing. The old man in Gibeah all but does the same.
The parallels between Gibeah and Sodom are just beginning.
21 So he brought him into his house and gave the donkeys feed. And they washed their feet, and ate and drank.
At last the travelers are experiencing hospitality in Gibeah. Weary limbs aching from the steep ascent to Gibeah are resting, feet caked with the dust of the highway have been cleansed and soothed and the perennial comfort of good food and drink is now before them. All seems well.
But night has now fallen in Gibeah. And a dark night it is.