Divided into Twelve Pieces

Reading:   Judges 19

A kind of - no not kind of - a very, brutal event happens in this chapter.  Something hard to fathom and even harder to accept in the context of scripture.  A man seeks after one of his wives, a concubine, and after a successful sojourn to the house of the woman's father, and several nights of pleasant discussion and merriment, he gathers up the stray concubine and heads back home.  Along the way he is met by a kind man who offers his home as a refuge for the night and all seems well until a horde of men surround the house...

JUDGES 19:23-24

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. 

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. 

So, thank the heavens above, the men are not sufficed by the terms and the maiden daughter is not thrown out to them (who offers up their own daughter anyway - very disturbing) but the concubine does not fair as well and is tossed to the proverbial wolves.  The riotous men utterly abuse and destroy the poor woman then leave.  The brutalized concubine tremulously makes it to the door of the house and then drops dead - her hand on the threshold.  Brutal, I know, anyway the man comes out and places the ravished body on his donkey and returns home unmolested by the mob.  Safely home, the man goes a bit gangsta...

JUDGES 19:29-30

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. 

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. 

Okay, so, despite the seemingly carefree manner by which he tossed the woman to the mob in order to safe his own skin, it does seem as though he had some remorse - and a healthy does of anger towards the brutes that committed the a heinous crime.  The part I truly find precisely placed and extremely well said, is the end...

...consider of it, take advice, and speak your minds. 

It's a tough situation to swallow and definitely takes some intense consideration.  The advice portion is a good tool because there is quite a discussion that can be had in the understanding of this tale.  Finally, to speak your mind - express those concerns that bind the thoughts and allow the truth to sink in and speak to you.

I will follow this advice (especially for the given scriptures) and will use it as a template for other scriptural concerns; consider, listen, speak...accept the truth.  I will return to this blog when an understanding is reached as to the disturbing purpose of this chapter and will then comment.  Until then...

~Kipling