Judges 20:1–7

So all the children of Israel came out, from Dan to Beersheba, as well as from the land of Gilead, and the congregation gathered together as one man before the LORD at Mizpah. And the leaders of all the people, all the tribes of Israel, presented themselves in the assembly of the people of God, four hundred thousand foot soldiers who drew the sword. (Now the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel had gone up to Mizpah.)

Then the children of Israel said, “Tell us, how did this wicked deed happen?”

So the Levite, the husband of the woman who was murdered, answered and said, “My concubine and I went into Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin, to spend the night. And the men of Gibeah rose against me, and surrounded the house at night because of me. They intended to kill me, but instead they ravished my concubine so that she died. So I took hold of my concubine, cut her in pieces, and sent her throughout all the territory of the inheritance of Israel, because they committed lewdness and outrage in Israel. Look! All of you are children of Israel; give your advice and counsel here and now!”

Notice how the Levite spins the story. They intended to kill me, but instead they ravished my concubine so that she died.

He doesn’t know what they “intended,” plus he leaves out the part where he “took his concubine and brought her out to them.” He doesn’t want to talk about that.

And don’t forget the disgusting thing he did with her body. At least that part he can’t deny—even though he doesn’t mention it.

But on the positive side, he does stand up as the one to answer their question. Then he gives a pretty good rabble-rousing speech, even if it doesn’t rise to the level of Marc Antony’s, “I come to bury Caesar not to praise him.”

And the best part is that he ends by challenging his audience. “Look! All of you are children of Israel; give your advice and counsel here and now!”

“Yeah, but what are you going to do about it?” That’s the question Christians are often faced with.

We speak the truth. We stand for the truth. That’s obvious. But when it comes to action, we’re not so sure.

Some actions are obviously okay. Vote, or even run for office. Free speech is guaranteed in the first amendment. So is “the right to petition the government for a redress of grievances”. They’re in there to show that they’re okay.

But some things, such as suing someone, can be legal but not so obviously okay for a Christian.

The command to love our neighbors, even our enemies, weighs heavily on us.

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.