The Rape in Judges 19

I hate the story of the gang rape of the Levite’s concubine in Judges 19.

With striking parallels to the story of Sodom in Genesis 19, the men of the city of Gibeah surround the home of a man who has offered hospitality to a traveling Levite and his concubine. They command the host to bring out his Levite guest so that they can “know” him. After the mob rejects the host’s counter offer of his virgin daughter (WTF!?), the Levite forces her outside where she is ravished to death (literally) all night long. Upon finding her body, the Levite takes her home, carves her corpse into 12 pieces, and sends the parts to the 12 tribes. The tragedy culminates in a national civil war.