Judges 19:16–21

Just then an old man came in from his work in the field at evening, who also was from the mountains of Ephraim; he was staying in Gibeah, whereas the men of the place were Benjamites. And when he raised his eyes, he 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?”

So he said to him, “We are passing from Bethlehem in Judah toward the remote mountains of Ephraim; I am from there. I went to Bethlehem in Judah; now I am going to the house of the LORD. But there is no one who will take me into his house, although we have both straw and fodder for our donkeys, and bread and wine for myself, for your female servant, and for the young man who is with your servant; there is no lack of anything.”

And the old man said, “Peace be with you! However, let all your needs be my responsibility; only do not spend the night in the open square.” So he brought him into his house, and gave fodder to the donkeys. And they washed their feet, and ate and drank.

Note carefully what is and isn’t said here. The passage notes that the old man is from Ephraim, whereas the men of the place were Benjamites. Then he doesn’t ask the Levite who he is, only where he’s from and where he’s going.

The Levite answers the questions literally. So, the old man doesn’t learn the Levite’s identity as a Levite. His identity is where he’s from. That fits with the passage identifying the old man by where he’s from.

Given the lack of names in this whole story, it’s obvious that this is a tale of tribes, not individuals. The Benjamites wouldn’t take the Levite in, but the Ephraimite would.

And the Ephraimite’s hospitality is notable. He insists on providing for his guests even though they brought their own provisions.

The contrast between these two tribes is the point of this passage.

Christians are ambassadors for Christ. Everything we do reflects on Him and His church.

And, of course, the things we do wrong are noticed and remembered much more than the things we do right.

This should weigh on us. We all make mistakes—embarrassing ones—and they don’t just embarrass us; they embarrass Christianity. So, what should we do when we mess up?

Of course, we should do everything we can to seek His will and His blessing on our efforts to be good ambassadors and not mess up. But there’s another key—admitting wrong and apologizing. If you’re thinking about your own reputation, you may not feel like doing this.

But if your focus is on the church and its reputation, apologizing is obvious—and easier. Make amends.

These Monday—Friday DEEPs are written by Mike Slay. The Weekend DEEPs are written by Matt Richardson. To subscribe to all the DEEPs click here:

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The weekly study guides, which include the Monday–Friday devotionals plus related questions for discussion or meditation, are available for download here:

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. ESV stands for the English Standard Version. © Copyright 2001 by Crossway. Used by permission. All rights reserved. NIV stands for The Holy Bible, New International Version®. © Copyright 1973 by International Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. KJV stands for the King James Version.