Judges 19:19
Yet there is both straw and provender for our asses; and there is bread and wine also for me, and for thy handmaid, and for the young man which is with thy servants: there is no want of any thing.
Original Language Analysis
Historical Context
Travelers in the ancient Near East carried provisions for multi-day journeys, including grain for pack animals and food for themselves. However, finding lodging was essential—sleeping outdoors risked robbery, wild animals, and exposure. The Levite's mention of "straw and provender" indicates preparation for animal care, while "bread and wine" suggests adequate human provisions. His emphasis on self-sufficiency shows awareness of hospitality customs—guests weren't meant to burden hosts excessively. Ancient texts like the Egyptian "Tale of Sinuhe" and Homeric epics emphasize hospitality as sacred duty, with gods sometimes testing mortals by appearing as travelers (compare Hebrews 13:2, "entertained angels unawares"). Gibeah's violation of these universal norms marked them as barbarous.
Questions for Reflection
- How does the Levite's self-sufficiency make Gibeah's rejection more inexcusable, and what does this teach about reluctance to help others who "don't really need it"?
- What does the emphasis on having "no want of any thing" reveal about God's character as provider and our responsibility to share even from sufficiency?
- How does Gibeah's hardness despite the Levite's humility and self-sufficiency illustrate the depth of human depravity apart from grace?
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Analysis & Commentary
Yet there is both straw and provender for our asses; and there is bread and wine also for me, and for thy handmaid, and for the young man which is with thy servants: there is no want of any thing. The Levite's protest reveals he doesn't seek charity—he has provisions. The detailed list emphasizes self-sufficiency: straw (teben, תֶּבֶן) and fodder (mispo, מִסְפּוֹא) for animals, bread (lechem, לֶחֶם) and wine (yayin, יַיִן) for people. Ancient hospitality culture recognized that travelers often carried supplies, but the host's honor required providing shelter and additional provisions regardless.
"There is no want of any thing" (ein machsor kol-davar, אֵין מַחְסוֹר כָּל־דָּבָר) uses emphatic negation—"absolutely no lack of anything." This makes Gibeah's rejection more damning. The Levite doesn't burden them; he seeks only shelter from night dangers. The refusal thus reveals not economic incapacity but moral bankruptcy. The phrase recalls God's provision in the wilderness where Israel "lacked nothing" (Deuteronomy 2:7, Nehemiah 9:21), and anticipates Psalm 23:1's confession "I shall not want."
The Levite's reference to "thy handmaid" (amatecha, אֲמָתֶךָ) and "thy servants" (avadecha, עֲבָדֶיךָ) employs deferential language, positioning himself humbly before potential hosts. Yet this very humility, combined with self-sufficiency, should have evoked compassion. Reformed theology recognizes that hardness of heart cannot be blamed on circumstances—Gibeah had no excuse. Their failure demonstrates Jesus's teaching that external circumstances don't create character, they reveal it (Luke 6:45).