The Concubine And The Levite
1 And it cometh to pass, in those days, when there is no king in Israel, that there is a man a Levite, a sojourner in the sides of the hill-country of Ephraim, and he taketh to him a wife, a concubine, out of Beth-Lehem-Judah;
1 And it came to pass in those days, when there was no king in Israel, that there was a certain Levite sojourning on the side of mount Ephraim, who took to him a concubine out of Bethlehemjudah.
1 Now it came about in those days, when (A)there was no king in Israel, that there was a certain Levite (a)staying in the remote part of the hill country of Ephraim, who took a concubine for himself from Bethlehem in Judah.
1 In those days, when there was no king in Israel,(A) a Levite living in a remote part of the hill country of Ephraim acquired a woman from Bethlehem in Judah as his concubine.
1 Now it happened in those days, before there was a king in Israel, that a certain male descendant of Levi, who lived in a remote part of the mountainous region of Ephraim, took a mistress for himself from Bethlehem in the territory of Judah.
2 and commit whoredom against him doth his concubine, and she goeth from him unto the house of her father, unto Beth-Lehem-Judah, and is there days -- four months.
2 And his concubine played the whore against him, and went away from him unto her father's house to Bethlehemjudah, and was there four whole months.
2 But his concubine played the harlot against him, and she went away from him to her father’s house in Bethlehem in Judah, and was there for a period of four months.
2 But she was unfaithful to(a) him and left him for her father’s house in Bethlehem in Judah. She was there for a period of four months.
2 But his mistress was sexually unfaithful to him, and then she left him to live in her father's home in Bethlehem in the territory of Judah. She had been living there for a period of about four months
3 And her husband riseth and goeth after her, to speak unto her heart, to bring her back, and his young man is with him, and a couple of asses; and she bringeth him into the house of her father, and the father of the young woman seeth him, and rejoiceth to meet him.
3 And her husband arose, and went after her, to speak friendly unto her, and to bring her again, having his servant with him, and a couple of asses: and she brought him into her father's house: and when the father of the damsel saw him, he rejoiced to meet him.
3 Then her husband arose and went after her to (B)speak (b)tenderly to her in order to bring her back, (c)taking with him his servant and a pair of donkeys. So she brought him into her father’s house, and when the girl’s father saw him, he was glad to meet him.
3 Then her husband got up and went after her to speak kindly to her(b)(B) and bring her back. He had his servant with him and a pair of donkeys. So she brought him to her father’s house, and when the girl’s father saw him, he gladly welcomed him.
3 when her husband got up and went after her, intending to speak lovingly to her in order to win her back. He took with him his young man servant and a pair of donkeys. When she brought him into her father's house to see him, her father was happy to have met him.
4 And keep hold on him doth his father-in-law, father of the young woman, and he abideth with him three days, and they eat and drink, and lodge there.
4 And his father in law, the damsel's father, retained him; and he abode with him three days: so they did eat and drink, and lodged there.
4 His father-in-law, the girl’s father, detained him; and he remained with him three days. So they ate and drank and lodged there.
4 His father-in-law, the girl’s father, detained him, and he stayed with him for three days. They ate, drank, and spent the nights there.
4 The young woman's father (that is, his father-in-law) made him stay there for three days while they ate and drank during his visit there.
5 And it cometh to pass, on the fourth day, that they rise early in the morning, and he riseth to go, and the father of the young woman saith unto his son-in-law, 'Support thy heart with a morsel of bread, and afterward ye go on.'
5 And it came to pass on the fourth day, when they arose early in the morning, that he rose up to depart: and the damsel's father said unto his son in law, Comfort thine heart with a morsel of bread, and afterward go your way.
5 Now on the fourth day they got up early in the morning, and he (d)prepared to go; and the girl’s father said to his son-in-law, “(C)Sustain (e)yourself with a piece of bread, and afterward you may go.”
5 On the fourth day, they got up early in the morning and prepared to go, but the girl’s father said to his son-in-law, “Have something to eat to keep up your strength(C) and then you can go.”
5 On the fourth day, they got up early that morning, and the descendant of Levi got ready to leave. Then the young woman's father-in-law told him, "Fortify yourself by eating some food before you go."
6 And they sit and eat both of them together, and drink, and the father of the young woman saith unto the man, 'Be willing, I pray thee, and lodge all night, and let thy heart be glad.'
6 And they sat down, and did eat and drink both of them together: for the damsel's father had said unto the man, Be content, I pray thee, and tarry all night, and let thine heart be merry.
6 So both of them sat down and ate and drank together; and the girl’s father said to the man, “Please be willing to spend the night, and (D)let your heart be merry.”
6 So they sat down and the two of them ate and drank together. Then the girl’s father said to the man, “Please agree to stay overnight and enjoy yourself.”(D)
6 So both of them sat down for a bit, ate and drank together, and the young woman's father invited the man, "Please, enjoy yourself and spend another night."
7 And the man riseth to go, and his father-in-law presseth on him, and he turneth back and lodgeth there.
7 And when the man rose up to depart, his father in law urged him: therefore he lodged there again.
7 Then the man arose to go, but his father-in-law urged him so that he spent the night there again.
7 The man got up to go, but his father-in-law persuaded him, so he stayed and spent the night there again.
7 The man got up, intending to leave, but his father-in-law urged him to spend the night there again.
8 And he riseth early in the morning, on the fifth day, to go, and the father of the young woman saith, 'Support, I pray thee, thy heart;' and they have tarried till the turning of the day, and they eat, both of them.
8 And he arose early in the morning on the fifth day to depart: and the damsel's father said, Comfort thine heart, I pray thee. And they tarried until afternoon, and they did eat both of them.
8 On the fifth day he arose to go early in the morning, and the girl’s father said, “Please sustain (f)yourself, and wait until (g)afternoon”; so both of them ate.
8 He got up early in the morning of the fifth day to leave, but the girl’s father said to him, “Please keep up your strength.” So they waited until late afternoon and the two of them ate.
8 On the fifth day, he got up early in the morning, but the young woman's father-in-law told him, "Please, fortify yourself," so they delayed until later that afternoon while both of them ate together.
9 And the man riseth to go, he and his concubine, and his young man, and his father-in-law, father of the young woman, saith to him, 'Lo, I pray thee, the day hath fallen toward evening, lodge all night, I pray thee; lo, the declining of the day! lodge here, and let thine heart be glad -- and ye have risen early to-morrow for your journey, and thou hast gone to thy tent.'
9 And when the man rose up to depart, he, and his concubine, and his servant, his father in law, the damsel's father, said unto him, Behold, now the day draweth toward evening, I pray you tarry all night: behold, the day groweth to an end, lodge here, that thine heart may be merry; and to morrow get you early on your way, that thou mayest go home.
9 When the man arose to go along with his concubine and servant, his father-in-law, the girl’s father, said to him, “Behold now, the day has drawn (h)to a close; please spend the night. Lo, the day is (i)coming to an end; spend the night here that your heart may be merry. Then tomorrow you may arise early for your journey so that you may go (j)home.”
9 The man got up to go with his concubine and his servant, when his father-in-law, the girl’s father, said to him, “Look, night is coming. Please spend the night. See, the day is almost over. Spend the night here, enjoy yourself, then you can get up early tomorrow for your journey and go home.”
9 When the man got up to leave with his mistress and servant, his father-in-law, the young woman's father, told him, "Look now, evening is coming, so please spend another night. See how the daylight is fading, so spend the night here and enjoy yourself. Then tomorrow get up early and leave on your journey home."
10 And the man hath not been willing to lodge all night, and he riseth, and goeth, and cometh in till over-against Jebus (It is Jerusalem), and with him are a couple of asses saddled; and his concubine is with him.
10 But the man would not tarry that night, but he rose up and departed, and came over against Jebus, which is Jerusalem; and there were with him two asses saddled, his concubine also was with him.
10 But the man was not willing to spend the night, so he arose and departed and came to a place opposite (E)Jebus (that is, Jerusalem). And there were with him a pair of saddled donkeys; his concubine also was with him.
10 But the man was unwilling to spend the night. He got up, departed, and arrived opposite Jebus (that is, Jerusalem(E)). The man had his two saddled donkeys and his concubine with him.
10 Because the man was unwilling to spend the night, he got up, left, and arrived opposite Jebus (now known as Jerusalem). He had with him a pair of saddled donkeys, along with his mistress.
11 They are near Jebus, and the day hath gone greatly down, and the young man saith unto his lord, 'Come, I pray thee, and we turn aside unto this city of the Jebusite, and lodge in it.'
11 And when they were by Jebus, the day was far spent; and the servant said unto his master, Come, I pray thee, and let us turn in into this city of the Jebusites, and lodge in it.
11 When they were near Jebus, the day was almost gone; and (F)the servant said to his master, “Please come, and let us turn aside into this city of the Jebusites and spend the night in it.”
11 When they were near Jebus and the day was almost gone, the servant(F) said to his master, “Please, why not(c) let us stop at this Jebusite city and spend the night here?”
11 As they approached Jebus, the daylight was almost gone, so the servant suggested to his master, "Come on, let's spend the night in this Jebusite city."
12 And his lord saith unto him, 'Let us not turn aside unto the city of a stranger, that is not of the sons of Israel, thither, but we have passed over unto Gibeah.'
12 And his master said unto him, We will not turn aside hither into the city of a stranger, that is not of the children of Israel; we will pass over to Gibeah.
12 However, his master said to him, “We will not turn aside into the city of foreigners who are not of the sons of Israel; but we will go on as far as Gibeah.”
12 But his master replied to him, “We will not stop at a foreign city where there are no Israelites. Let’s move on to Gibeah.”(G)
12 But his master replied, "We're not going to turn aside into a city of foreigners who are not part of the Israelis. Instead, we'll go on to Gibeah."
13 And he saith to his young man, 'Come, and we draw near to one of the places, and have lodged in Gibeah, or in Ramah.'
13 And he said unto his servant, Come, and let us draw near to one of these places to lodge all night, in Gibeah, or in Ramah.
13 He said to his servant, “Come and let us approach one of these places; and we will spend the night in Gibeah or Ramah.”
13 “Come on,” he said,(d) “let’s try to reach one of these places and spend the night in Gibeah or Ramah.”
13 He also told his servant, "Come on, let's go to one of these places and spend the night in Gibeah or Ramah."
14 And they pass over, and go on, and the sun goeth in upon them near Gibeah, which is to Benjamin;
14 And they passed on and went their way; and the sun went down upon them when they were by Gibeah, which belongeth to Benjamin.
14 So they passed along and went their way, and the sun set on them near Gibeah which belongs to Benjamin.
14 So they continued on their journey, and the sun set as they neared Gibeah in Benjamin.
14 So they continued on their way, and the sun set on them near Gibeah, which is part of Benjamin's territorial allotment.
15 and they turn aside there to go in to lodge in Gibeah, and he goeth in and sitteth in a broad place of the city, and there is no man gathering them into the house to lodge.
15 And they turned aside thither, to go in and to lodge in Gibeah: and when he went in, he sat him down in a street of the city: for there was no man that took them into his house to lodging.
15 They turned aside there in order to enter and lodge in Gibeah. When (k)they entered, (l)they sat down in the open square of the city, for no one took them into his house to spend the night.
15 They stopped(e) to go in and spend the night in Gibeah. The Levite went in and sat down in the city square, but no one took them into their home to spend the night.
15 They turned aside there, intending to enter Gibeah and spend the night.
16 And lo, a man, an aged one, hath come from his work from the field in the evening, and the man is of the hill-country of Ephraim, and he is a sojourner in Gibeah, and the men of the place are Benjamites.
16 And, behold, there came an old man from his work out of the field at even, which was also of mount Ephraim; and he sojourned in Gibeah: but the men of the place were Benjamites.
16 Then behold, an old man was coming out of the field from his work at evening. Now the man was from (G)the hill country of Ephraim, and he was (m)staying in Gibeah, but the men of the place (H)were Benjamites.
16 In the evening, an old man came in from his work in the field. He was from the hill country of Ephraim(H) but was residing in Gibeah, and the men of that place were Benjaminites.
16 After they entered the city, they had to sit down in the public square because no one would take them into their home for the night. Just then, an old man was coming out of the fields that evening from work. The man was from the mountainous region of Ephraim and had been staying in Gibeah, even though the men of that place were descendants of Benjamin.
17 And he lifteth up his eyes, and seeth the man, the traveller, in a broad place of the city, and the aged man saith, 'Whither goest thou? and whence comest thou?'
17 And when he had lifted up his eyes, he saw a wayfaring man in the street of the city: and the old man said, Whither goest thou? and whence comest thou?
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?”
17 When he looked up and saw the traveler in the city square, the old man asked, “Where are you going, and where do you come from?”
17 As the old man looked up and saw the traveling man in the public square of the city, he asked, "Now then, where are you headed? And where are you from?"
18 And he saith unto him, 'We are passing over from Beth-Lehem-Judah unto the sides of the hill-country of Ephraim -- thence I am, and I go unto Beth-Lehem-Judah; and to the house of Jehovah I am going, and there is no man gathering me into the house,
18 And he said unto him, We are passing from Bethlehemjudah toward the side of mount Ephraim; from thence am I: and I went to Bethlehemjudah, but I am now going to the house of the LORD; and there is no man that receiveth me to house.
18 He said to him, “We are passing from Bethlehem in Judah to the remote part of the hill country of Ephraim, for I am from there, and I went to Bethlehem in Judah. But I am now going to (n)my house, and no man will take me into his house.
18 He answered him, “We’re traveling from Bethlehem in Judah to the remote hill country of Ephraim, where I am from. I went to Bethlehem in Judah, and now I’m going to the house of the Lord.(f) No one has taken me into his home,
18 He replied, "We're traveling from Bethlehem in Judah to the remote part of the mountainous region of Ephraim, because I'm from there, and I've been visiting Bethlehem in Judah. I'm going home now, but no one will take me into his home.
19 and both straw and provender are for our asses, and also bread and wine there are for me, and for thy handmaid, and for the young man with thy servants; there is no lack of anything.'
19 Yet there is both straw and provender for our asses; and there is bread and wine also for me, and for thy handmaid, and for the young man which is with thy servants: there is no want of any thing.
19 Yet there is both straw and fodder for our donkeys, and also bread and wine for me, (o)your maidservant, and (I)the young man who is with your servants; there is no lack of anything.”
19 although we have both straw and feed for our donkeys, and bread and wine for me, your female servant, and the young man with your servant.(g) There is nothing we lack.”
19 Meanwhile, we also have straw and fodder for our donkeys, and bread and wine for me, for this young woman servant, and for the young man who is with your servants. We don't need anything else."
20 And the old man saith, 'Peace to thee; only, all thy lack is on me, only in the broad place lodge not.'
20 And the old man said, Peace be with thee; howsoever let all thy wants lie upon me; only lodge not in the street.
20 The old man said, “(J)Peace to you. Only let me take care of all your needs; however, do not spend the night in the open square.”
20 “Peace to you,” said the old man. “I’ll take care of everything you need. Only don’t spend the night in the square.”
20 The old man replied, "Don't be alarmed. I'll take care of all your needs. Just don't spend the night in the public square."
21 And he bringeth him in to his house, and mixeth food for the asses, and they wash their feet, and eat and drink.
21 So he brought him into his house, and gave provender unto the asses: and they washed their feet, and did eat and drink.
21 (K)So he took him into his house and gave the donkeys fodder, and they washed their feet and ate and drank.
21 So he brought him to his house and fed the donkeys. Then they washed their feet and ate and drank.(I)
21 So he took him into his home and fed the donkeys while they refreshed themselves and had dinner.
Gibeah's Crime
22 They are making their heart glad, and lo, men of the city, men -- sons of worthlessness -- have gone round about the house, beating on the door, and they speak unto the old man, the master of the house, saying, 'Bring out the man who hath come unto thine house, and we know him.'
22 Now as they were making their hearts merry, behold, the men of the city, certain sons of Belial, beset the house round about, and beat at the door, and spake to the master of the house, the old man, saying, Bring forth the man that came into thine house, that we may know him.
22 While they were (p)celebrating, behold, (L)the men of the city, certain (q)(M)worthless fellows, surrounded the house, pounding the door; and they spoke to the owner of the house, the old man, saying, “Bring out the man who came into your house that we may have (r)relations with him.”
22 While they were enjoying themselves, all of a sudden, perverted men of the city(J) surrounded the house and beat on the door. They said to the old man who was the owner of the house, “Bring out the man who came to your house so we can have sex with him!”
22 While they were enjoying themselves, all of a sudden certain ungodly men who lived in the city surrounded the house, pounded on the door, and ordered the old man who owned the home, "Bring out the man who came to visit your home so we can have sex with him."
23 And the man, the master of the house, goeth out unto them, and saith unto them, 'Nay, my brethren, do not evil, I pray you, after that this man hath come in unto my house, do not this folly;
23 And the man, the master of the house, went out unto them, and said unto them, Nay, my brethren, nay, I pray you, do not so wickedly; seeing that this man is come into mine house, do not this folly.
23 Then the man, the owner of the house, went out to them and said to them, “No, my fellows, please do not act so wickedly; since this man has come into my house, (N)do not commit this act of folly.
23 The owner of the house went out and said to them, “No, don’t do this evil, my brothers. After all, this man has come into my house. Don’t do this horrible thing.(K)
23 The man who owned the house went out to talk to them and pleaded with them, "No, my brothers, please don't act so wickedly. This man is my guest! Don't try to do this stupid thing.
24 lo, my daughter, the virgin, and his concubine, let me bring them out, I pray you, and humble ye them, and do to them that which is good in your eyes, and to this man do not this foolish thing.'
24 Behold, here is my daughter a maiden, and his concubine; them I will bring out now, and humble ye them, and do with them what seemeth good unto you: but unto this man do not so vile a thing.
24 (O)Here is my virgin daughter and his concubine. Please let me bring them out that you may ravish them and do to them (s)whatever you wish. But do not commit such an act of folly against this man.”
24 Here, let me bring out my virgin daughter(L) and the man’s concubine now. Use them(M) and do whatever you want(h) to them. But don’t do this horrible thing to this man.”
24 Instead, here's my virgin daughter and my visitor's mistress. Please let me bring them out to you. Occupy yourselves with them, and do to them whatever you would like. But don't commit such a stupid thing against this man."
25 And the men have not been willing to hearken to him, and the man taketh hold on his concubine, and bringeth her out unto them without, and they know her, and roll themselves upon her all the night, till the morning, and send her away in the ascending of the dawn;
25 But the men would not hearken to him: so the man took his concubine, and brought her forth unto them; and they knew her, and abused her all the night until the morning: and when the day began to spring, they let her go.
25 But the men would not listen to him. So the man seized his concubine and brought her out to them; and they raped her and abused her all night until morning, then let her go at the approach of dawn.
25 But the men would not listen to him, so the man seized his concubine and took her outside to them. They raped(i) her and abused her all night until morning. At daybreak they let her go.
25 But the men were unwilling to listen to him. So the descendant of Levi grabbed his mistress, took her out to them, and they raped and tortured her all night until morning. Then they released her as the first daylight was beginning to appear.
26 and the woman cometh in at the turning of the morning, and falleth at the opening of the man's house, where her lord is, till the light.
26 Then came the woman in the dawning of the day, and fell down at the door of the man's house where her lord was, till it was light.
26 (t)As the day began to dawn, the woman came and fell down at the doorway of the man’s house where her master was, until full daylight.
26 Early that morning, the woman made her way back, and as it was getting light, she collapsed at the doorway of the man’s house where her master was.
26 As dawn was breaking, the woman approached the door of the man's home where her master was and collapsed. Eventually, full daylight came.
27 And her lord riseth in the morning, and openeth the doors of the house, and goeth out to go on his way, and lo, the woman, his concubine, is fallen at the opening of the house, and her hands are on the threshold,
27 And 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 was fallen down at the door of the house, and her hands were upon the threshold.
27 When her master arose in the morning and opened the doors of the house and went out to go on his way, then behold, his concubine was lying at the doorway of the house with her hands on the threshold.
27 When her master got up in the morning, opened the doors of the house, and went out to leave on his journey, there was the woman, his concubine, collapsed near the doorway of the house with her hands on the threshold.
27 When her master got up that morning and opened the doors of the house to leave on his way, there was his mistress, fallen dead at the door of the house with her hands grasping the threshold.
28 and he saith unto her, 'Rise, and we go;' and there is none answering, and he taketh her on the ass, and the man riseth and goeth to his place,
28 And he said unto her, Up, and let us be going. But none answered. Then the man took her up upon an ass, and the man rose up, and gat him unto his place.
28 He said to her, “Get up and let us go,” (P)but there was no answer. Then he placed her on the donkey; and the man arose and went to his (u)home.
28 “Get up,” he told her. “Let’s go.” But there was no response.(N) So the man put her on his donkey and set out for home.
28 He spoke to her, "Get up, and let's go."
29 and cometh in unto his house, and taketh the knife, and layeth hold on his concubine, and cutteth her in pieces to her bones -- into twelve pieces, and sendeth her into all the border of Israel.
29 And when he was come into his house, he took a knife, and laid hold on his concubine, and divided her, together with her bones, into twelve pieces, and sent her into all the coasts of Israel.
29 When he entered his house, he took a knife and laid hold of his concubine and (Q)cut her in twelve pieces, limb by limb, and sent her throughout the territory of Israel.
29 When he entered his house, he picked up a knife, took hold of his concubine, cut her into 12 pieces, limb by limb, and then sent her throughout the territory of Israel.
29 But there was no response. So he placed her on the donkey, mounted his own animal, and went home. When he arrived home, he grabbed a knife, took hold of his mistress, cut her apart limb by limb into twelve pieces, and sent her remains throughout the land of Israel.
30 And it hath come to pass, every one who seeth hath said, 'There hath not been -- yea, there hath not been seen like this, from the day of the coming up of the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt till this day; set your heart upon it, take counsel, and speak.'
30 And it was so, that all that saw it said, There was no such deed done nor seen from the day that the children of Israel came up out of the land of Egypt unto this day: consider of it, take advice, and speak your minds.
30 All who saw it said, “Nothing like this has ever happened or been seen from the day when the sons of Israel came up from the land of Egypt to this day. Consider it, (R)take counsel and speak up!”
30 Everyone who saw it said, “Nothing like this has ever happened or has been seen since the day the Israelites came out of the land of Egypt to this day.(j) Think it over, discuss it, and speak up!”
30 All the witnesses said, "Nothing has happened or has been seen like this from the day the Israelis came here from the land of Egypt to this day! Think about it, get some advice about it, and then speak up about it!"