Watts - a Comparison of Genesis 19 and Judges 19

Comparison of Genesis 19 and Judges 19 (NRSV)

Genesis 19:

1 The two angels came to Sodom in the evening,

and Lot was sitting in the gateway of Sodom.

When Lot saw them,

he rose to meet them, and bowed down with his face to the ground.
2 He said, “Please, my lords, turn aside to your servant’s house and spend the night, and wash your feet; then you can rise early and go on your way.”
Judges 19: 1 In those days, when there was no king in Israel, a certain Levite, residing in the remote parts of the hill country of Ephraim, took to himself a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah. . . 14 So they passed on and went their way; and the sun went down on them near Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin.
15 They turned aside there, to go in and spend the night at Gibeah. He went in and sat down in the open square of the city, but no one took them in to spend the night. 16 Then at evening there was an old man coming from his work in the field. The man was from the hill country of Ephraim, and he was residing in Gibeah. (The people of the place were Benjaminites). 17 When the old man looked up and saw the wayfarer in the open square of the city, he said, “Where are you going and where do you come from?”
Genesis 19:
2b They said,

“No; we will spend the night in the square.”

3 But he urged them strongly;

so they turned aside to him and entered his house; and he made them a feast, and baked unleavened bread, and they ate. 4 But before they lay down,

the men of the city, the men of Sodom, both young and old, all the people to the last man, surrounded the house; 5 and

they called to Lot,

“Where are the men who came to you tonight?
Bring them out to us,

so that we may

know them.”
Judges 19:
18 He answered him,
“We are passing from Bethlehem in Judah to the remote parts of the hill country of Ephraim, from which I come. I went to Bethlehem in Judah; and I am going to my home. Nobody has offered to take me in.
19 We your servants have straw and fodder for our donkeys, with bread and wine for me and the woman and the young man along with us. We need nothing more.” 20 The old man said, “Peace be to you. I will care for all your wants; only do not spend the night in the square.”
21 So he brought him into his house, and the donkeys; they washed their feet, and ate and drank. 22 While they were enjoying themselves, the men of the city,

a perverse lot, surrounded the house, and started pounding on the door.
They said to the old man, the master of the house,

“Bring out the man who came into your house, so that we may have intercourse with
(literally, know) him.”
Genesis 19:
6 Lot

went out of the door to the men, shut the door after him,
7 and said,
“I beg you, my brothers, do not act so wickedly.

8 Look, I have two daughters who have not known a man; let me bring them out to you,

and do to them as you please; only do nothing to these men,

for they have come under the shelter of my roof.” 9 But they replied, “Stand back!” And they said, “This fellow came here as an alien, and he would play the judge! Now we will deal worse with you than with them.” Then they pressed hard against the man Lot, and came near the door to break it down. 10 But the men inside reached out their hands and brought Lot into the house with them, and shut the door. 11 And they struck with blindness the men who were at the door of the house, both small and great, so that they were unable to find the door.
Judges 19: 23 And the man, the master of the house, went out to them

and said to them,
“No, my brothers, do not act so wickedly.
Since this man is my guest, do not do this vile thing.
24 Here are my virgin daughter and his concubine; let me bring them out now.
Ravish them and do whatever you want to them; but against this man do not do such a vile thing.”

25 But the men would not listen to him. So the man seized his concubine, and put her out to them. They wantonly raped her, and abused her all through the night until the morning. And as the dawn began to break, they let her go. 26 As morning appeared, the woman came and fell down at the door of the man’s house where her master was, until it was light. 27 In the morning her master got up, opened the doors of the house, and when he went out to go on his way, there was his concubine lying at the door of the house, with her hands on the threshold.