A Levite and His Concubine
1In those days Israel had no king.
Now a Levite who lived in a remote area in the hill country of Ephraim took a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah. 2But she was unfaithful to him. She left him and went back to her parents’ home in Bethlehem, Judah. After she had been there four months, 3her husband went to her to persuade her to return. He had with him his servant and two donkeys. She took him into her parents’ home, and when her father saw him, he gladly welcomed him. 4His father-in-law, the woman’s father, prevailed on him to stay; so he remained with him three days, eating and drinking, and sleeping there.
5On the fourth day they got up early and he prepared to leave, but the woman’s father said to his son-in-law, “Refresh yourself with something to eat; then you can go.” 6So the two of them sat down to eat and drink together. Afterward the woman’s father said, “Please stay tonight and enjoy yourself.” 7And when the man got up to go, his father-in-law persuaded him, so he stayed there that night. 8On the morning of the fifth day, when he rose to go, the woman’s father said, “Refresh yourself. Wait till afternoon!” So the two of them ate together.
9Then when the man, with his concubine and his servant, got up to leave, his father-in-law, the woman’s father, said, “Now look, it’s almost evening. Spend the night here; the day is nearly over. Stay and enjoy yourself. Early tomorrow morning you can get up and be on your way home.” 10But, unwilling to stay another night, the man left and went toward Jebus (that is, Jerusalem), with his two saddled donkeys and his concubine.
11When they were near Jebus and the day was almost gone, the servant said to his master, “Come, let’s stop at this city of the Jebusites and spend the night.”
12His master replied, “No. We won’t go into any city whose people are not Israelites. We will go on to Gibeah.” 13He added, “Come, let’s try to reach Gibeah or Ramah and spend the night in one of those places.” 14So they went on, and the sun set as they neared Gibeah in Benjamin. 15There they stopped to spend the night. They went and sat in the city square, but no one took them in for the night.
16That evening an old man from the hill country of Ephraim, who was living in Gibeah (the inhabitants of the place were Benjamites), came in from his work in the fields. 17When he looked and saw the traveler in the city square, the old man asked, “Where are you going? Where did you come from?”
18He answered, “We are on our way from Bethlehem in Judah to a remote area in the hill country of Ephraim where I live. I have been to Bethlehem in Judah and now I am going to the house of the Lord.19:18 Hebrew, Vulgate, Syriac and Targum; Septuagint going home No one has taken me in for the night. 19We have both straw and fodder for our donkeys and bread and wine for ourselves your servants—me, the woman and the young man with us. We don’t need anything.”
20“You are welcome at my house,” the old man said. “Let me supply whatever you need. Only don’t spend the night in the square.” 21So he took him into his house and fed his donkeys. After they had washed their feet, they had something to eat and drink.
22While they were enjoying themselves, some of the wicked men of the city surrounded the house. Pounding on the door, they shouted to the old man who owned the house, “Bring out the man who came to your house so we can have sex with him.”
23The owner of the house went outside and said to them, “No, my friends, don’t be so vile. Since this man is my guest, don’t do this outrageous thing. 24Look, here is my virgin daughter, and his concubine. I will bring them out to you now, and you can use them and do to them whatever you wish. But as for this man, don’t do such an outrageous thing.”
25But the men would not listen to him. So the man took his concubine and sent her outside to them, and they raped her and abused her throughout the night, and at dawn they let her go. 26At daybreak the woman went back to the house where her master was staying, fell down at the door and lay there until daylight.
27When her master got up in the morning and opened the door of the house and stepped out to continue on his way, there lay his concubine, fallen in the doorway of the house, with her hands on the threshold. 28He said to her, “Get up; let’s go.” But there was no answer. Then the man put her on his donkey and set out for home.
29When he reached home, he took a knife and cut up his concubine, limb by limb, into twelve parts and sent them into all the areas of Israel. 30Everyone who saw it was saying to one another, “Such a thing has never been seen or done, not since the day the Israelites came up out of Egypt. Just imagine! We must do something! So speak up!”
Mlevi ndi Mzikazi Wake
1Pa nthawi imeneyo ku Israeli kunalibe mfumu.
Mlevi wina ankakhala kutali ku dziko lamapiri la Efereimu. Iyeyu anatenga mzikazi wa ku Betelehemu, mʼdziko la Yuda. 2Tsiku lina mzikazi uja anakwiyira mwamuna wake ndipo anamuchokera kupita kwa abambo ake ku Betelehemu mʼdziko la Yuda. Anakakhala kumeneko miyezi inayi. 3Mwamuna wake anamulondola kuti akayankhule naye mofatsa kumupempha kuti abwerere. Iye anali ndi antchito ake ndi abulu ake awiri. Anafika ku nyumba kwa mkazi uja ndipo iye anamulowetsa mʼnyumba ya abambo ake. Abambo aja atamuona mnyamata uja anamulandira mwachimwemwe. 4Mpongozi wake, yemwe anali abambo a mtsikanayo, anamupempha kuti aswere. Choncho anakhalako masiku atatu. Ankadya, kumwa ndi kugona komweko.
5Tsiku lachinayi anadzuka mʼmamawa kukonzekera kuti azipita kwawo, koma abambo ake a mtsikanayo anawuza mkamwini wawo uja kuti, “Yambani mwadya chakudya, ndipo kenaka mutha kupita.” 6Choncho onse awiri anakhala pansi ndi kudya ndi kumwa pamodzi. Atadya, abambo a mtsikanayo anati, “Chonde mugonenso konkuno musangalale.” 7Ndipo pamene mwamunayo anakonzeka kuti azipita, apongozi ake anamuwumirizanso kuti asapite. Choncho anagona komweko usiku umenewo. 8Mmawa wa tsiku lachisanu, atadzuka kuti azipita abambo ake a mtsikanayo anamuwuza kuti, “Yambani mwadya chakudya ndipo mutandale mpaka madzulo.” Choncho awiriwo anadya pamodzi.
9Pambuyo pake munthu uja pamodzi ndi mzikazi wake ndiponso mtumiki anakonzeka kuti azipita. Koma abambo a mtsikana uja anatinso kwa iye, “Onani tsopano kukuda. Gonani konkuno pakuti tsiku latha kale. Gonani ndipo musangalale. Mawa mudzuka mʼmamawa ndi kumapita kwanu.” 10Koma munthuyo sanafune kugonanso tsiku limenelo. Choncho ananyamuka kumapita, ndipo anakafika ku malo oyangʼanana ndi Yebusi (ndiye kuti Yerusalemu). Iyeyo anali atatenga abulu ake awiri okhala ndi zokhalira zake, ndipo mzikazi wake uja anali naye limodzi.
11Akuyandikira ku Yebusi nʼkuti kutada ndithu. Tsono mtumiki uja anawuza mbuye wake kuti, “Tiyeni, tipatukire ku mzinda wa Ayebusiwa ndipo tigone.”
12Mbuye wake anamuyankha kuti, “Ayi, tisapatukire ku mzinda wa alendo, anthu amene sali Aisraeli. Koma tipitirire mpaka ku Gibeya.” 13Tsono anamuwuza mtumiki wake uja kuti, “Tiye tipite ku amodzi a malo awa, ku Gibeya kapena ku Rama ndipo tikagone kumeneko.” 14Choncho nayenda ulendo wawo, ndipo dzuwa linawalowera akuyandikira ku Gibeya mʼdziko la Benjamini. 15Ndipo anapatukira kumeneko kuti alowe mu mzinda wa Gibeya kukagona usiku umenewo. Anakalowa mu mzindamo ndi kukakhala pabwalo popeza panalibe munthu amene anawalandira ku nyumba kwake kuti akagone.
16Pambuyo pake anangoona munthu wina wokalamba akuchokera ku ntchito ya ku munda kwake madzulo. Iyeyu anali wa ku dziko la mapiri ku Efereimu, koma ankakhala ku Gibeya. Koma anthu a kumeneko anali a fuko la Benjamini. 17Munthu wokalamba uja anakweza maso ndipo anaona munthu wa paulendo uja atakhala pabwalo la mzindawo, ndipo anamufunsa kuti, “Kodi mukupita kuti? Nanga mukuchokera kuti?”
18Iye anayankha kuti, “Tikuchokera ku Betelehemu ku dziko la Yuda ndipo tikupita kutali ku dziko lamapiri la Efereimu kumene ndimakhala. Ndinapita ku Betelehemu mʼdziko la Yuda ndipo tsopano ndikubwerera kwathu. Koma palibe aliyense amene wanditengera ku nyumba yake. 19Tili ndi udzu ndi chakudya cha abulu athu. Tilinso ndi buledi ndi vinyo wokwanira ifeyo: ine, mdzakazi wanuyu, ndi mtumiki amene ali nafeyu. Palibe chimene tikusowa.”
20Munthu wokalambayo anati, “Mtendere ukhale nanu. Ine ndikuthandizani pa zosowa zanu zonse, koma musagone pabwalo usiku uno.” 21Choncho anapita nawo ku nyumba yake, ndipo anawapatsa abulu ake chakudya. Alendo aja anasamba mapazi awo, nalandira chakudya ndi chakumwa.
22Pamene ankadya mosangalala, anangoona anthu ena achabechabe a mu mzindawo azungulira nyumba ija nʼkumamenya chitseko. Tsono anawuza mwini nyumbayo, munthu wokalamba uja kuti, “Mutulutse munthu amene wabwera mʼnyumba yakoyu kuti tigone naye.”
23Koma mwini nyumba uja anatuluka ku bwalo nawawuza kuti, “Ayi, abale anga musachite zoyipa zotere. Popeza munthu uyu walowa mʼnyumba mwanga muno, musachite chinthu chonyansa chotere. 24Onani, pano pali mwana wanga wamkazi wosadziwa mwamuna pamodzi ndi mzikazi wa mlendoyu. Ndikutulutsirani amenewa tsopano ndipo atengeni ndi kuchita nawo chomwe chikukomerani. Koma musachite chinthu chonyansa ndi munthuyu.”
25Koma anthuwo sanafune kumumvera. Choncho mlendo uja anagwira mzikazi wake namutulutsa kuja kumene kunali iwo. Tsono iwowo anagona naye ndi kuchita naye zonyansa usiku wonse mpaka mmawa. Mʼbandakucha anamulola kuti apite. 26Ndipo mmawa kukucha mzikazi uja anabwerera nakagwa pansi pa khomo pa nyumba imene mwamuna wake anali, ndipo anakhala pomwepo mpaka kunayera.
27Mwamuna wake anadzuka mʼmamawa, natsekula chitseko cha nyumba kuti atuluke ndi kumapita. Koma anangoona mzikazi wake uja ali thapsa pa khomo la nyumbayo, manja ake ali pa khonde. 28Iye anati kwa mkaziyo, “Dzuka tizipita.” Koma sanayankhe kanthu. Kenaka anamukweza pa bulu wake ndipo ananyamuka kumapita kwawo.
29Atafika ku nyumba yake, anatenga mpeni, nagwira mzikazi wake uja ndi kuduladula thupi lake nthuli khumi ndi ziwiri. Kenaka anazitumiza ku zigawo zonse za Israeli. 30Aliyense amene anaona zimenezi ankanena kuti, “Zoterezi sizinaonekepo kuyambira pamene Aisraeli anatuluka mʼdziko la Igupto mpaka lero lino. Ganizirani bwino chinthu chimenechi ndipo tiwuzeni zoyenera kuchita!”
