Judges 19:23-30

19:23 The man who owned the house went outside and said to them, “No, my brothers! Don’t do this wicked thing! After all, this man is a guest in my house. Don’t do such a disgraceful thing! 19:24 Here are my virgin daughter and my guest’s ¹  concubine. I will send them out and you can abuse them and do to them whatever you like. ²  But don’t do such a disgraceful thing to this man!” 19:25 The men refused to listen to him, so the Levite ³  grabbed his concubine and made her go outside. ⁴  They raped ⁵  her and abused her all night long until morning. They let her go at dawn. 19:26 The woman arrived back at daybreak and was sprawled out on the doorstep of the house where her master ⁶  was staying until it became light. ⁷  19:27 When her master ⁸  got up in the morning, opened the doors of the house, and went outside to start on his journey, there was the woman, his concubine, sprawled out on the doorstep of the house with her hands on the threshold. 19:28 He said to her, “Get up, let’s leave!” But there was no response. He put her on the donkey and went home. ⁹  19:29 When he got home, he took a knife, grabbed his concubine, and carved her up into twelve pieces. ¹⁰  Then he sent the pieces throughout Israel. ¹¹  19:30 Everyone who saw the sight ¹²  said, “Nothing like this has happened or been witnessed during the entire time since ¹³  the Israelites left the land of Egypt! ¹⁴  Take careful note of it! Discuss it and speak!”

¹ tn Heb “his”; the referent (the visiting Levite) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

² tn Heb “what is good in your eyes.”

³ tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Levite) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁴ tn Heb “and he caused [her] to go outside to them.”

⁵ tn Heb “knew,” in the sexual sense.

⁶ tn The Hebrew term here translated “master,” is plural. The plural indicates degree here and emphasizes the Levite’s absolute sovereignty over the woman.

⁷ tn Heb “The woman came at the turning of the morning and fell at the door of the house of the man where her master was until the light.”

⁸ tn The Hebrew term here translated “master,” is plural. The plural indicates degree here and emphasizes the Levite’s absolute sovereignty over the woman.

⁹ tn Heb “And the man took her on the donkey and arose and went to his place.”

¹⁰ tn Heb “he carved her up by her bones into twelve pieces.”

¹¹ tn Heb “and he sent her through all the territory of Israel.”

¹² tn The words “the sight” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

¹³ tn Heb “from the day.”

¹⁴ tc Codex Alexandrinus (A) of the (original) LXX has the following additional words: “And he instructed the men whom he sent out, ‘Thus you will say to every male Israelite: “There has never been anything like this from the day the Israelites left Egypt till the present day.”’”