They were near Jebus, and the day was far spent; and the servant said to his master, “Come, please, and let us turn aside into this city of the Jebusites and lodge in it.” But his master said to him, “We will not turn aside here into a city of foreigners, who are not of the children of Israel; we will go on to Gibeah.” So he said to his servant, “Come, let us draw near to one of these places, and spend the night in Gibeah or in Ramah.” And they passed by and went their way; and the sun went down on them near Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin. They turned aside there to go in to lodge in Gibeah. And when he went in, he sat down in the open square of the city, for no one would take them into his house to spend the night. Judges 19:11–15
The stories recorded at the end of the book of Judges are among the most disturbing in the Bible, but they help to show the moral condition of Israel in the days when “there was no king in Israel” and “everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25). In the book’s final chapters we read about idolatry, theft, deception, fornication, and many other evils that had become common. In chapter 19, we read about a Levite who went to Bethlehem to retrieve his fugitive concubine. When he started back home with her, it was already late in the day when they reached Jebus (later Jerusalem), which was then occupied by Jebusites. When his servant suggested that they lodge here, the Levite refused, not wanting to subject himself to the treatment he might receive from these heathen people. When they reached Gibeah of Benjamin, they found a cold reception and would have spent all night in the street were it not for the kindness of an old man from Ephraim (vv 16–21). As they began to enjoy this man’s hospitality, the men of the city came and demanded that the man be brought to them for carnal purposes (vv 22–23; cf. Genesis 19:4–8). In a reckless act, the Ephraimite offered his daughter and the man’s concubine to the men, who took the latter, abused her, and mortally wounded her (vv 24–28). The incident ignited civil war between Benjamin and the other tribes, and led to the near annihilation of the former. As one reads this story with disgust, one cannot help but wonder if it would have been possible for this man to be treated worse by the Jebusites! In fact, too often it seems to be the case that we find God’s people behaving worse than those who never made a covenant with Him. Could the same be said of us?
Many examples can be given in which strangers behaved better than God’s people. When David defected to the Philistines after Saul made multiple attempts on his life, they treated David better than his own countrymen had (1 Samuel 22–29). Centuries later, when the Son of David was rejected in the cities and villages of Israel, He found a better reception among the despised Samaritans (Luke 17:15–19; John 4:39–42). There were even Gentiles among the heathen that were more righteous than the hypocrites among the Christians of the first century (Romans 2:13–15; 1 Corinthians 5:1–2). It is sad but true that our God has often received better things of strangers than He has from His own covenanted people.
Do we ever allow unbelievers to demonstrate greater dedication to God than we show? Do we allow them to worship our God with more enthusiasm than we bring? Do we let them show greater love, compassion, or hospitality? No one in this world should be able to match the dedication of those who have made a covenant with God. God should never receive better things of strangers than He does from His own children.