"In those days Israel had no king"
Judges 19-21 is a gong show. I remember reading it and thinking "I wish this would end because it is painful to read!" But beyond the painful story, there is more going on. It is not just sexual sin or any one event, the story articulates the degeneration of society. I believe this is a common practice in the Bible, to use sexuality to depict more than sexual acts. Think Sodom and Gomorrah (then tie it into Ezekiel 16:49). Or the slide into sexual depravity after the purge/flood, think Noah. Or 2 Samuel being a Chiasm centering on Amnon and Tamar in Chapter 13, a story that is not unexpected after one has watched the growing depravity to that point. So that is a thought I have mulled over for the past number of years. I think it has wide and diverse implications for Biblical interpretation and Christian consciousness.
As for genocide...I did not have any breakthrough moments this week about how to wrestle with the topic. I think we have said a lot about it. Therefore, instead of adding something new, I want to encourage you to read what we have already said. Maybe there is a post you did not read, maybe there is still some gold hidden in those caves waiting to be discovered.
Presidential Devo
Extremist Religion
Pulling a Jephthah
To Deny or Explain
Devastating
Redemption is Inadequate
Choosing our Language
Look to the Snake
To War or Not to War? That is the Question
Missing the Point
Obedience
Genocide is Difficult
Those are the blogs I think relate. They do not answer specifically to Judges 19, but I think many of the idea help me grapple with passages like the concluding section of Judges.
PS. I am sick of writing about genocide, maybe you are sick of reading about it (or watching me just re-post ideas already blogged). If there are any other passages you would like us to write on post the passage in the comments section. They will be added to the hat we pull from each week for CYOA.
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