M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Certainly the “outrage” the Israelites are reacting to is the Levite’s brutal dismemberment of the woman. Why would someone slaughter a woman and send her parts across the country? What is the meaning behind this heinous crime?
Once they hear the Levite’s story of his attack by the Benjaminites, the community of Israel supports the Levite and holds Benjamin accountable for the Gibean men’s wicked actions. When all the tribes come to the aid of the Levite, we see an Israel that is united—against Benjamin. This story lays the groundwork for our understanding of relations between the tribes as Israel enters the monarchical period. Saul, the first king and a Benjaminite, will abandon the laws of his God and will be replaced by David from Judah, who has the support of the rest of Israel.
20 All the people of Israel from Dan to Beersheba, including the people who dwelt beyond the Jordan River in Gilead, gathered as one before the Eternal at Mizpah. 2 The leaders of every tribe, of all the tribes of Israel, presented themselves to the assembly, to the 400,000 soldiers armed for war. 3 (And the people of Benjamin heard that the other tribes had gathered at Mizpah.)
Israelites: Tell us, what happened to bring about this criminal act?
Levite (standing in front of the assembly): 4 I arrived in Gibeah in Benjamin with my mistress. We only wanted to spend the night, 5 but the leaders of the city came to the house where we were staying and surrounded it, wanting to attack me. They intended to kill me, but they raped my mistress until she died. 6 So I took her body and cut her into pieces and sent her throughout our land that is Israel’s inheritance so that everyone could know what an outrage the men of Gibeah have committed! 7 So now, you people of Israel, I am looking to you for counsel. What should we do?
Not only is this act an outrage against the custom of hospitality in that day, but it is a gross violation of the life of another human being.
Israelites (standing together): 8 We will not return to our tents, and we will not go home to our houses, 9 but this is what we will do to Gibeah: We will cast lots to choose who will go into battle against it. 10 We will also choose 10 men from every 100 throughout Israel, 100 of every 1,000, and 1,000 of every 10,000 to bring provisions for the troops who will go to repay the disgrace done by Gibeah of Benjamin against the rest of Israel.
11 So all the people of Israel gathered against Gibeah, united in their judgment, intent on action.
12 The tribes of Israel sent messengers throughout the land of Benjamin.
Messengers: Do you know what has happened? What about this crime that has been committed among you? 13 Turn over those perverted men from Gibeah so we can put them to death and cleanse this evil from Israel!
But the people of Benjamin would not listen to their kinsmen, the other tribes of Israel. 14 The Benjaminites gathered together, out of their towns, to Gibeah to go to battle against the rest of Israel. 15-16 They gathered a force of 26,000 armed men, in addition to the men of Gibeah, all of them worthy fighting men. Seven hundred of these were left-handed warriors who could sling a stone so accurately that they could hit any target, no matter how small.
17 Opposing them were the forces of Israel, 400,000 warriors strong.
18 The people of Israel went up to Bethel to ask of the True God who should press the first day’s attack.
Israelites: What tribe should lead us in battle against Benjamin?
God: Judah shall lead the attack.
19 The people of Israel rose up in the morning and encamped against Gibeah, 20 where they went into battle against the warriors of Benjamin. 21 That first day the warriors of Benjamin came out of Gibeah and won a great victory, striking down 22,000 warriors of Israel.
23 The people of Israel presented themselves before the Eternal and wept until evening came. They laid before Him the question:
Israelites: Should we go back into battle tomorrow against our kin, the Benjaminites?
Eternal One: Yes. Go back into battle.
22 The warriors of Israel took courage and drew up their battle lines where they had been at the beginning of the fight on the first day.[a] 24-25 In obedience to God, for a second day the Israelites advanced against the Benjaminites. But the warriors of Benjamin came out of Gibeah, struck down 18,000 warriors of Israel, and won another great victory.
26 So all the people of Israel, all the warriors, went back to Bethel to weep before the Eternal. They fasted until evening came, and then they offered sacrifices and burnt offerings before the Eternal. 27 Again the Israelites questioned the Eternal (for in those days, the covenant chest was still with them, 28 and the priest Phinehas, son of Eleazar, son of Aaron, ministered before it.)
Israelites: Should we go back again into battle against our kin, the Benjaminites, or should we give up?
Eternal One: Go up again. Tomorrow I will give you victory.
29 So the warriors of Israel changed their strategy and secretly stationed warriors around Gibeah, ready to ambush the Benjaminites. 30 The third day they lined up as before and went into battle against Gibeah. 31 When the warriors of Benjamin came out, they were drawn away from the city. As before, they began to draw blood, striking down their foes along the main roads (one of which goes to Bethel, the other back to Gibeah) as well as in the open country. About 30 men of Israel fell, 32 and the warriors of Benjamin thought they would succeed again.
Benjaminites: This is just like the first time! We’re going to destroy the Israelites today just as we did earlier.
But the Israelites were following a new plan: they began to retreat to draw the Benjaminites farther away from the city toward the roads. 33 So the majority of Israelite troops pulled back to a line at Baal-tamar, while the hidden group waiting in ambush rushed out of their hiding place on the plain in Maareh-geba. 34 Then 10,000 of the hardiest Israelite warriors rushed against Gibeah. The battle was a fierce one, and the warriors of Benjamin did not realize that their end was near. 35 For the Eternal defeated Benjamin that day before the people of Israel, who killed 25,100 of them, almost all their men at arms. 36-37 Then the people of Benjamin realized their crushing defeat.
The warriors of Israel had retreated before their foes, trusting the men lying in ambush who had rushed upon Gibeah and destroyed the entire city. 38 Their plan was that when the ambushers sent a cloud of smoke from the city, 39 the main force would turn on the pursuing warriors of Benjamin, thinking that since they had already slain 30 men and the warriors of Israel were retreating, they were going to be victorious over them again.
40 But the Benjaminites were surprised. The Israelite warriors who entered Gibeah sent up a towering column of smoke; and the warriors of Benjamin turned around to see their refuge, the entire city, burning! 41 The main force of Israel turned and began attacking fiercely, and the warriors of Benjamin lost heart, for their doom was upon them. 42-43 They ran from the warriors of Israel toward the wilderness, but they were caught, both from behind and by the victorious soldiers emerging from the ruined Gibeah.
The slaughter continued from Nohah to the east of Gibeah, 44 and 18,000 courageous warriors fell. 45 Of those who turned and fled in the direction of the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon, 5,000 of those were slain on the main road and another 2,000 were pursued as far as Gidom. 46 So in all, the people of Benjamin suffered the loss of 25,000 fighting men, all of them courageous warriors.
47 Six hundred of them survived; they had fled to the rock of Rimmon, where they remained for four months. 48 In the meantime, the warriors of Israel had done their best to destroy the people of Benjamin, killing them, destroying their livestock, and burning every city and town they encountered.
24 The high priest Ananias came north to Caesarea five days later, accompanied by some elders and an attorney named Tertullus. They explained their case to Felix without Paul present. 2 When Paul was brought in, Tertullus launched into an accusation.
Tertullus: Most Excellent Felix, through your esteemed leadership we have enjoyed a long and happy peace. Your foresight in governance has brought many reforms for the people I represent. 3 We always and everywhere welcome every thought of you with high and deep gratitude. 4 But knowing how busy you are and how limited your time must be, I beg you to hear us briefly present our case to you with the legendary graciousness for which you are known everywhere.
5 Here are the facts: this man is a disease to the body politic. He agitates trouble in Jewish communities throughout our empire as a ringleader of the heretical sect known as the Nazarenes. 6 He even tried to desecrate the temple, so we seized him. [Our aim was to try him by the Jewish law, 7 but Commandant Lysias interfered and removed this man from our control. 8 Because of his meddling, you are now forced to hear those making the accusation.][a] You will find, through your own examination, that everything we say of Paul is true.
9 The Jewish opponents present added their vigorous testimony in support of the lawyer’s opening statement. 10 The governor didn’t say anything, but he motioned for Paul to speak.
Paul: I am happy now to make my defense to you, sir, knowing that you have been a judge over this nation for many years. 11 Just 12 days ago, I went up to Jerusalem to worship, as you can easily verify. 12 I wasn’t arguing with anyone in the temple. I wasn’t stirring up a crowd in any of the synagogues. I wasn’t disturbing the peace of the city in any way. They did not find me doing these things in Jerusalem, 13 nor can they prove that I have done any of the things of which they have accused me. 14 But I can make this confession: I believe everything established by the Law and written in the Prophets, and I worship the God of our ancestors according to the Way, which they call a heretical sect.
15 Here is my crime: I have a hope in God that there will be a resurrection of both the just and unjust, which my opponents also share. 16 Because of this hope, I always do my best to live with a clear conscience toward God and all people. 17 I have been away for several years, so recently I brought gifts for the poor of my nation and offered sacrifices. 18 When they found me, I was not disturbing anyone, nor was I gathering a crowd. No, I was quietly completing the rite of purification. Some Jews from Asia are the ones who started the disturbance— 19 and if they have an accusation, they should be here to make it. 20 If these men here have some crime they have found me guilty of when I stood before their council, they should present it. 21 Perhaps my crime is that I spoke this one sentence in my testimony before them: “I am on trial here today because I have hope that the dead are raised.”
22 Felix was quite knowledgeable about the Way. He adjourned the preliminary hearing.
Felix: When Lysias the commandant comes to Caesarea, I will decide your case.
23 He then ordered the officer to keep Paul in custody, but to permit him some freedom and to allow any of his friends to take care of his needs.
24 A few days later, Felix sent for Paul and gave him an opportunity to speak about faith in the Anointed One. Felix was accompanied by his wife Drusilla, who was Jewish. 25 As Paul spoke of justice, self-control, and the coming judgment, Felix became fearful.
Felix: That’s enough for now. When I have time, I will send for you again.
26 They had a number of conversations of this sort; but Felix actually was hoping that, by having frequent contact with him, Paul might offer him a bribe. 27 As a favor to the Jews, he did nothing to resolve the case and left Paul in prison for two years. Then Felix completed his assignment as governor, and Porcius Festus succeeded him.
34 King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon led his army, and all the kingdoms and peoples of his empire, to begin the final assault against Jerusalem and all the towns and villages. One by one they fell. As this dreaded ruler and his vast army drew closer to Jerusalem, the word of the Eternal came to Jeremiah.
Eternal One: 2 The Eternal God of Israel has this to say: Go and deliver this message to Zedekiah, king of Judah: “I, the Eternal, am about to hand this city over to the king of Babylon, and he will burn it to the ground. 3 As for you, you will not escape from him. No, you will be captured and turned over to the king of Babylon. You will have to stand before him and look this powerful ruler in the eyes as you are sentenced to exile in Babylon.
4 “But hear this promise from the Eternal, O Zedekiah, king of Judah: ‘I declare that if you obey Me now, you will not die in battle, 5 but you will die in peace.’ People will burn spices at your funeral in your honor, just as they did for your ancestors, the kings who ruled before you. Mourners will weep for you saying, ‘O, our king is dead!’ I, the Eternal, promise you this can still happen.”
6 The prophet Jeremiah faithfully related all of this to Zedekiah, king of Judah, while both were still in Jerusalem. 7 This was when the Babylonian king’s siege of Jerusalem and the rest of Judah’s cities was under way, with Lachish and Azekah the only other fortified cities that had not been conquered.
8 Now as the siege continued and the conditions became more severe, another message came to Jeremiah from the Eternal after King Zedekiah had made a covenant with the citizens of Jerusalem to free the slaves in the city. 9 The king commanded all those who held Hebrew slaves to release them—both men and women—so that no Jew would hold a fellow Jew in slavery. 10 So all the leaders and people of the city entered this covenant and agreed with the king to free all of their Hebrew slaves.
11 Not long after the people had freed their slaves, they changed their minds and forced the men and women they released back into slavery. 12 It was then that a word from the Eternal came to Jeremiah regarding the people of Jerusalem:
Eternal One: 13 I, the Eternal God of Israel, am reminding you that I made a covenant with your ancestors when I rescued them from slavery in the land of Egypt. I told them: 14 After six years of service, a fellow Hebrew slave must be freed from slavery in the seventh year.[a] But your ancestors never took My directive seriously or obeyed Me. 15 Not long ago, you changed your mind and did what was right in My eyes: you set your kinsmen free from bondage. You even established a sacred covenant before Me in the house that bears My name. 16 But now you have reversed yourselves, turned around, and broken that covenant! You have defiled My name by forcing these men and women you freed back into slavery.
17 That is why I proclaim the following: Since you have disobeyed Me and not declared that your fellow countrymen are set free, I will now set you free from My protection. I declare that you will be “free” to die by war, disease, and famine. The destiny I set before You will terrify the watching world. 18 Those who violated this covenant with Me will now be treated like the calf they cut in two and walked between when this promise was made.
In Jeremiah’s time, the agreeing parties affirm the terms of a covenant by participating in an ancient ritual. They gather in a sacred place, cut an animal in half, and pass between the two parts. These ritual actions depict an implicit threat that if either covenant partner violates this agreement, he will become like the sacrifice and suffer the consequences of death and dismemberment. It is hard to imagine people taking such solemn ceremonies lightly, but they do. They always will.
Eternal One: 19 The leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the court servants, the priests, and all people in the land who walked between the halves of the calf will suffer a common fate. 20-21 I will hand them over to their enemies, to those who want them dead. Their corpses will not be buried; they will lie on the ground and become food for the birds and wild animals. I will also hand Zedekiah (king of Judah) and his officials over to their enemies, to those who want them dead. Although King Nebuchadnezzar and his army have pulled back from your city, that is only temporary. 22 I, the Eternal One, will give the order and call them back to Jerusalem. They will fight against this city, capture it, and burn it to the ground. I will use the army of Babylon to destroy the towns of Judah so no one can live there.
Psalm 5
For the worship leader. A song of David accompanied by flutes.[a]
The various psalms reflect nearly every human emotion: unbridled joy, deep-seated jealousy, seething anger, hope, and depression. These are only a few of the emotions behind the poetry we hear expressed in individual psalms. Feelings and emotions are central to what it means to be human. We cannot escape them nor should we. Psalms invites us to take the emotions we feel and bring them before God. This book models how to come before God in times of sadness, brokenness, and joy. Psalm 5 is a cry for help and a plea for guidance by a person who suffered at the hands of an enemy. It talks about the morning as the time to pray and listen for God to answer. Like many laments, it begins with a cry but ends in confidence.
1 Bend Your ear to me and listen to my words, O Eternal One;
hear the deep cry of my heart.
2 Listen to my call for help,
my King, my True God;
to You alone I pray.
3 In the morning, O Eternal One, listen for my voice;
in the day’s first light, I will offer my prayer to You and watch expectantly for Your answer.
4 You’re not a God who smiles at sin;
You cannot abide with evil.
5 The proud wither in Your presence;
You hate all who pervert and destroy what is good.
6 You destroy those with lying lips;
the Eternal detests those who murder and deceive.
7 Yet I, by Your loving grace,
am welcomed into Your house;
I will turn my face toward Your holy place
and fall on my knees in reverence before You.
8 O Eternal One, lead me in the path of Your righteousness
amidst those who wish me harm;
make Your way clear to me.
9 Their words cannot be trusted;
they are destructive to their cores.
What comes out of their mouths is as foul as a rotting corpse;
their words stink of flattery.
10 Find them guilty, O True God;
let their own devices bring them ruin.
Throw them out, and let them drown in the deluge of their sin,
for in revolt they brazenly spit in Your face.
11 But let those who run to You for safety be glad they did;
let them break out in joyful song.
May You keep them safe—
their love for You resounding in their hearts.
12 You, O Eternal, are the One who lays all good things in the laps of the right-hearted.
Your blessings surround them like a shield.
Psalm 6
For the worship leader. A song of David accompanied by the lyre.[b]
1 O Eternal One, don’t punish me in Your anger
or harshly correct me.
2 Show me grace, Eternal God. I am completely undone.
Bring me back together, Eternal One. Mend my shattered bones.
3 My soul is drowning in darkness.
How long can You, the Eternal, let things go on like this?
4 Come back, Eternal One, and lead me to Your saving light.
Rescue me because I know You are truly compassionate.
5 I’m alive for a reason—I can’t worship You if I’m dead.
If I’m six feet under, how can I thank You?
6 I’m exhausted. I cannot even speak, my voice fading as sighs.
Every day ends in the same place—lying in bed, covered in tears,
my pillow wet with sorrow.
7 My eyes burn, devoured with grief;
they grow weak as I constantly watch for my enemies.
8 All who are evil, stay away from me
because the Eternal hears my voice, listens as I cry.
9 The Eternal God hears my simple prayers;
He receives my request.
10 All who seek to destroy me will be humiliated;
they will turn away and suddenly crumble in shame.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.