Iudicum 19
1 fuit quidam vir Levites habitans in latere montis Ephraim qui accepit uxorem de Bethleem Iuda
In those days, when there was no king in Israel, there was a man, a Levite, living for a while in the most remote area of the hill country of Ephraim. He took for himself a woman, a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah.
2 quae reliquit eum et reversa est in domum patris sui Bethleem mansitque apud eum quattuor mensibus
But his concubine was unfaithful to him; she left him and went back to her father's house in Bethlehem of Judah. She stayed there for four months.
3 secutusque est eam vir suus volens ei reconciliari atque blandiri et secum reducere habens in comitatu puerum et duos asinos quae suscepit eum et introduxit in domum patris sui quod cum audisset socer eius eumque vidisset occurrit ei laetus
Then her husband got up and went after her in order to persuade her to come back. His servant was with him, and a pair of donkeys. She brought him into her father's house. When the girl's father saw him, he was glad.
4 et amplexatus est hominem mansitque gener in domo soceri tribus diebus comedens cum eo et bibens familiariter
His father-in-law, the girl's father, persuaded him to stay for three days. They ate and drank, and they spent the night there.
5 die autem quarto de nocte consurgens proficisci voluit quem tenuit socer et ait ad eum gusta prius pauxillum panis et conforta stomachum et sic proficisceris
On the fourth day they got up early and he prepared to go, but the girl's father said to his son-in-law, “Strengthen yourself with a bit of bread, then you may go.”
6 sederuntque simul et comederunt ac biberunt dixitque pater puellae ad generum suum quaeso te ut hodie hic maneas pariterque laetemur
So the two of them sat down to eat and drink together. Then the girl's father said, “Please be willing to spend the night and have a good time.”
7 at ille consurgens coepit velle proficisci et nihilominus obnixe eum socer tenuit et apud se fecit manere
When the Levite got up to leave, the father of the young woman urged him to stay, so he changed his plan and spent the night there again.
8 mane facto parabat Levites iter cui rursum socer oro te inquit ut paululum cibi capias et adsumptis viribus donec increscat dies postea proficiscaris comederunt ergo simul
On the fifth day he woke up early to leave, but the girl's father said, “Strengthen yourself, and wait until the afternoon.” So the two of them had a meal.
9 surrexitque adulescens ut pergeret cum uxore sua et puero cui rursum locutus est socer considera quod dies ad occasum declivior sit et propinquet ad vesperum mane apud me etiam hodie et duc laetum diem et cras proficisceris ut vadas in domum tuam
When the Levite and his concubine and his servant rose up to depart, his father-in-law, the girl's father said to him, “See, now the day is advancing toward evening. Please stay another night, and have a good time. You can get up early tomorrow and go back home.”
10 noluit gener adquiescere sermonibus eius sed statim perrexit et venit contra Iebus quae altero nomine vocabatur Hierusalem ducens secum duos asinos onustos et concubinam
But the Levite was not willing to spend the night. He got up and left. He went toward Jebus (that is Jerusalem). He had a pair of saddled donkeys—and his concubine was with him.
11 iamque aderant iuxta Iebus et dies mutabatur in noctem dixitque puer ad dominum suum veni obsecro declinemus ad urbem Iebuseorum et maneamus in ea
When they were near Jebus, the day was nearly over, and the servant said to his master, “Come, let us turn aside to the city of the Jebusites and spend the night in it.”
12 cui respondit dominus non ingrediar oppidum gentis alienae quae non est de filiis Israhel sed transibo usque Gabaa
His master said to him, “We will not turn aside into a city of foreigners who do not belong to the people of Israel. We will go on to Gibeah.”
13 et cum illuc pervenero manebimus in ea aut certe in urbe Rama
The Levite said to his young man, “Come, let us go to one of those other places, and spend the night in Gibeah or Ramah.”
14 transierunt igitur Iebus et coeptum carpebant iter occubuitque eis sol iuxta Gabaa quae est in tribu Beniamin
So they went on, and the sun set as they came near to Gibeah, in the territory of Benjamin.
15 deverteruntque ad eam ut manerent ibi quo cum intrassent sedebant in platea civitatis et nullus eos recipere volebat hospitio
They turned aside there to spend the night in Gibeah. They went and sat down in the city square, but no one took them into his house for the night.
16 et ecce apparuit homo senex revertens de agro et de opere suo vespere qui et ipse erat de monte Ephraim et peregrinus habitabat in Gabaa homines autem regionis illius erant filii Iemini
But then an old man was coming from his work in the field that evening. He was from the hill country of Ephraim, and he was staying for a while in Gibeah. But the men living in that place were Benjamites.
17 elevatisque oculis vidit senex sedentem hominem cum sarcinulis suis in platea civitatis et dixit ad eum unde venis et quo vadis
He raised his eyes and saw the traveler in the city square. The old man said, “Where are you going? Where are you coming from?”
18 qui respondit ei profecti sumus de Bethleem Iuda et pergimus ad locum nostrum qui est in latere montis Ephraim unde ieramus Bethleem et nunc vadimus ad domum Dei nullusque nos sub tectum suum vult recipere
The Levite said to him, “We are on our way from Bethlehem in Judah to the most remote part of the hill country of Ephraim, which is where I come from. I went to Bethlehem in Judah, and I am going to the house of Yahweh, but there is no one who will take me into his house.
19 habentes paleas et faenum in asinorum pabulum et panem ac vinum in meos et ancillae tuae usus et pueri qui mecum est nulla re indigemus nisi hospitio
We have straw and feed for our donkeys, and there is bread and wine for me and your female servant here, and for this young man with your servants. We lack nothing.”
20 cui respondit senex pax tecum sit ego praebebo omnia quae necessaria sunt tantum quaeso ne in platea maneas
The old man greeted them, “Peace be with you! I will take care of all your needs. Only do not spend the night in the square.”
21 introduxitque eum in domum suam et pabulum asinis praebuit ac postquam laverunt pedes suos recepit eos in convivium
So the man brought the Levite into his house and gave feed to the donkeys. They washed their feet and ate and drank.
22 illis epulantibus et post laborem itineris cibo ac potu reficientibus corpora venerunt viri civitatis illius filii Belial id est absque iugo et circumdantes domum senis fores pulsare coeperunt clamantes ad dominum domus atque dicentes educ virum qui ingressus est domum tuam ut abutamur eo
While they were making their hearts glad, some men of the city, worthless men, surrounded the house, beating on the door. They spoke to the old man, the master of the house, saying, “Bring out the man who came into your house, so we can have sex with him.”
23 egressusque est ad eos senex et ait nolite fratres nolite facere malum hoc quia ingressus est homo hospitium meum et cessate ab hac stultitia
The man, the master of the house, went out to them and said to them, “No, my brothers, please do not do this evil thing! Since this man is a guest in my house, do not do this wicked thing!
24 habeo filiam virginem et hic homo habet concubinam educam eas ad vos ut humilietis eas et vestram libidinem conpleatis tantum obsecro ne scelus hoc contra naturam operemini in virum
See, my virgin daughter and his concubine are here. Let me bring them out now. Violate them and do with them whatever you like. But do not do such a wicked thing to this man!”
25 nolebant adquiescere sermonibus eius quod cernens homo eduxit ad eos concubinam suam et eis tradidit inludendam qua cum tota nocte abusi essent dimiserunt eam mane
But the men would not listen to him, so the man seized his concubine and brought her out to them. They raped her and abused her all throughout the night, and at dawn they let her go.
26 at mulier recedentibus tenebris venit ad ostium domus ubi manebat dominus suus et ibi corruit
At dawn the woman came and she fell down at the door of the man's house where her master was, and she lay there until it was light.
27 mane facto surrexit homo et aperuit ostium ut coeptam expleret viam et ecce concubina eius iacebat ante ostium sparsis in limine manibus
Her master rose up in the morning and opened the doors of the house and went out to go on his way. He could see his concubine lying there at the door, with her hands on the threshold.
28 cui ille putans eam quiescere loquebatur surge ut ambulemus qua nihil respondente intellegens quod erat tulit eam et inposuit asino reversusque est in domum suam
The Levite said to her, “Get up. Let us go.” But there was no answer. He put her on the donkey, and the man set out for home.
29 quam cum esset ingressus arripuit gladium et cadaver uxoris cum ossibus suis in duodecim partes ac frusta concidens misit in omnes terminos Israhel
When the Levite came to his house, he took a knife, and he took hold of his concubine, and cut her up, limb by limb, into twelve pieces, and sent the pieces everywhere throughout Israel.
30 quod cum vidissent singuli conclamabant numquam res talis facta est in Israhel ex eo die quo ascenderunt patres nostri de Aegypto usque in praesens tempus ferte sententiam et in commune decernite quid facto opus sit
All who saw this said, “Such a thing has never been done or seen from the day the people of Israel came up out of the land of Egypt to this present day. Think about it! Give us advice! Tell us what to do!”
