Judg 19:14 | KingComments | STEP | After a short trip, it is time to find a place to spend the night. After all, the day was almost gone when they left. Jebus comes in sight. The servant suggests to go there. But that’s not what the Levite wants. What is his objection against Jebus? He calls it a “city of foreigners who are not of the sons of Israel”. This is what is called an example of Pharisaism. Pharisees are people to whom the Lord Jesus says: “Hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence” ( ). Apparently the Levite doesn’t want to have a connection with wrong from the outside, but he himself is full of impurity inside. This contains the warning that we must be careful that there is no balance between our personal sanctification and our public action, in other words, between doctrine and life. There should be no difference between them. What people see of us should be the result of our inner fellowship with God and what He has made clear to us through His Word. If our actions for people are meticulous, while our personal, inner sanctification for God is not so meticulous, there is no awareness of what sin really is. The remainder of this chapter clearly shows this. The Levite does not take God into account, only what people might say. He acts as if Israel were still living close to God, while the people have already deviated far from God. In the light of the spiritual state in Israel, what is written in – “and the sun set on them near Gibeah” – is more than the description of a natural phenomenon. The sun literally sets, that’s right, it’s going to be night, but it’s also the referral to the decay in Israel and especially here in Gibeah. It is a place where it will soon become clear in a terrible way how great the spiritual darkness in the hearts of the inhabitants is. It is obvious that the Levite does not know what kind of immoral place he enters. This also shows that he has no interest whatsoever in the honor of God among His people. Surely a Levite is someone appointed by God to teach His law to the people, isn’t he? So Moses said it in his blessing of Levi ( ). Apparently this Levite doesn’t care about that. What does the state of God’s people care to him? He thinks only of his own interest and not that of God and His people (cf. ).

‏ Judges 19:14

Where to Spend the Night: In Jebus or Gibeah

After a short trip, it is time to find a place to spend the night. After all, the day was almost gone when they left. Jebus comes in sight. The servant suggests to go there. But that’s not what the Levite wants. What is his objection against Jebus? He calls it a “city of foreigners who are not of the sons of Israel”. This is what is called an example of Pharisaism. Pharisees are people to whom the Lord Jesus says: “Hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence” (Mt 23:25). Apparently the Levite doesn’t want to have a connection with wrong from the outside, but he himself is full of impurity inside.

This contains the warning that we must be careful that there is no balance between our personal sanctification and our public action, in other words, between doctrine and life. There should be no difference between them. What people see of us should be the result of our inner fellowship with God and what He has made clear to us through His Word. If our actions for people are meticulous, while our personal, inner sanctification for God is not so meticulous, there is no awareness of what sin really is. The remainder of this chapter clearly shows this. The Levite does not take God into account, only what people might say. He acts as if Israel were still living close to God, while the people have already deviated far from God.

In the light of the spiritual state in Israel, what is written in Jdg 19:14 – “and the sun set on them near Gibeah” – is more than the description of a natural phenomenon. The sun literally sets, that’s right, it’s going to be night, but it’s also the referral to the decay in Israel and especially here in Gibeah. It is a place where it will soon become clear in a terrible way how great the spiritual darkness in the hearts of the inhabitants is.

It is obvious that the Levite does not know what kind of immoral place he enters. This also shows that he has no interest whatsoever in the honor of God among His people. Surely a Levite is someone appointed by God to teach His law to the people, isn’t he? So Moses said it in his blessing of Levi (Deu 33:10a). Apparently this Levite doesn’t care about that. What does the state of God’s people care to him? He thinks only of his own interest and not that of God and His people (cf. Phil 2:4).