And they turned aside thither, to go in and to lodge in Gibeah: and when he went in, he sat him down in a street of the city: for there was no man that took them into his house to lodging.
So they stopped there to spend the night in Gibeah. When the man arrived, he sat down in the town square, but no one invited them to stay in their home for the night.
The writer is showing how unwelcoming the people of Gibeah were to travelers who needed a place to stay for the night.
📚 Historical Context
In the book of Judges, this verse is part of a troubling story set during the period of the judges in ancient Israel, around 1200-1000 BC, when the nation lacked a central king and society often descended into moral chaos. The Levite traveler and his concubine were seeking lodging in Gibeah, a city in the tribe of Benjamin's territory, where cultural norms of hospitality were expected, as seen in other ancient Near Eastern societies. However, the lack of hospitality here highlights the broader theme of spiritual and ethical decline described throughout the book.
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