Saul The Levite and His Concubine: The "Allusive" Quality of Judges 19 Author(s) : Sara J. Milstein Source: Vetus Testamentum, Vol. 66, Fasc. 1 (2016), Pp. 95-116 Published By: Brill

Saul the Levite and His Concubine: The "Allusive" Quality of Judges 19
Author(s): Sara J. Milstein

Source: Vetus Testamentum, Vol. 66, Fasc. 1 (2016), pp. 95-116
Published by: Brill
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Saul the Levite and His Concubine: The "Allusive"
Quality of Judges 19
Sara J. Milstein
The University of British Columbia, Dept. of Classical, Near Eastern,
and Religious Studies, Vancouver, Canada
sara. milstein@ubc. ca
Abstract
It is without question that Judges 19 manifests an overt anti-Saul, pro-David bias, with
a number of references (e.g., Gibeah; Bethlehem; Jebus; the dismembered concubine)
that point clearly to each figure. At the same time, it features a handful of markers that
elude easy explanation. These include the Levitical identity of the protagonist, the adul-
terous concubine, the reference to Ramah, the destination of "the House of Yahweh,"
and the Ephraimite host. Rather than view these details as either secondary or unre-
lated to Saul, I propose that they also represent tools in service of the overarching anti-
Saul polemic. More specifically, these markers reflect awareness of a Saul-based version
of 1 Samuel 1-2. This proposal in turn sheds light on questions regarding the composi-
tion and transmission of a separate Saul complex.
Keywords
Judges 19-1 Samuel 1-2 - 1 Samuel 11 - Saul - allusions - Levite
It has long been recognized that Judges 17-21 have a separate literary history
from that of the rest of the Book of Judges. The block is comprised of two
once-independent narratives (Judges 17-18 and Judges 19-21) that have logically
* The arguments within this article have been greatly enhanced by the swift and detailed feed-
back that I received from Daniel E. Fleming, Jan Joosten, Steve McKenzie, Mark S. Smith, and
the anonymous reviewer at vt. I also wish to thank Carolina Franzen and Andrei Mihailiuk,
my fantastic research assistants at the University of British Columbia.
© KONINKLIJKE BRILL NV, LEIDEN, 2015 | DOI 10.1163/15685330-12301227
96 MILSTEIN
been labeled
features no
that situate
and deliver
("In those d
in his eyes")
and Judg 2
a Levite as
priest, and
rape of a L
by a massiv
Israelites to
In the case
ticular is m
1 It is thus n
egating them
p. 121, n. 29)
and R. Kratz,
pp. 196-97.
2 T. Veijola asserts that the refrain is obviously not an original component of Judges 17-21 and
reflects language in Deut 12:8-12 (Das Königtum in der Beurteilung der deuteronomistischen
Historiographie: eine redaktionsgeschichtliche Untersuchung [Suomalaisen Tiedeakatemian
toimituksia, Saija B; nide 198; Helsinki, 1977], pp. 15-16). Cf. H.-W Jüngling, who argues that
the refrain in Judg 19:1 and 21:25 originally framed the once-independent narrative of Judges
19 (Richter ig - Ein Plädoyer für das Königtum; eine stilistische Analyse der Tendenzerzählung
RI- 19, i~3oa; 21.25 [AnBib 84; Rome, 1981]), p. 140. H.-J. Stipp takes the phrase "In those days . .
"als typisches Beispiel redaktionellen Kitts, der ein älteres Stück Literatur in einen kompo-
sitionellen Rahmen einbettet" ("Richter 19: Schriftgestützte politische Propaganda im david-
ischen Israel", in Alttestamentliche Studien: Arbeiten zu Priesterschrift, Deuteronomistischem
Geschichtswerk undProphetie [bzaw 442; Berlin, 2013], p. 190).
3 Already in 1869, M. Güdemann identified the text as an anti-Saulide document (Tendenz und
Abfassungszeit der letzten Kapitel des Buches der Richter [mgwj 18; Berlin, 1869]). Jüngling
takes Judges 19 to be an anti-Saul episode composed in the monarchic period (Richter ig);
a similar argument on this front is maintained by Stipp ("Richter 19", pp. i97ff.). U- Becker
likewise recognizes the anti-Saulide, pro-Davidic bent of Judges 19 but proposes a terminus
post quem of the mid-monarchic period (Richterzeit und Königtum: redaktionsgeschichtliche
Studien zum Richterbuch [bzaw 192; Berlin, 1990], p. 297). Y. Amit highlights the "hidden" Saul
polemic in Judges 19-21 as a whole in a number of essays; see, e.g., "Literature in the Service of
Politics: Studies in Judges 19-21", in H.G. Reventlow, etal.} (ed.), Politics and Theopolitics in the
Bible and Postbiblical Literature (Sheffield, 1994), pp. 28-40.
VETUS TESTAMENTŮM 66 (2016) 95-116
SAUL THE LEVITE AND HIS CONCUBINE 97
details in Judges 19 align with kn

Levite who retrieves his runaway
his father-in-law's house in Bethl
way home to Ephraim, he refuses t
capital) and instead spends the n
Gibeah, no one but an elderly Ephr
has the couple settled into the Eph
round the house and demand that t
him. The host refuses to relinquish
woman out to the mob. When th
sexual assault, the Levite hoists h
then chops the woman up into tw
tribes of Israel. As will be discussed
parody of 1 Sam 11:1-11, where Saul
a yoke of oxen and distributing th
go out after Saul and Samuel, thus
These overt allusions, however, ar
less transparent referents. These in
as a Levite from Ephraim, the id
the reference to Ramah in Judg 19
Levite's statement in the mt that h
19:18). Given that Judges 19 is clea
account, it stands to reason that ea
until this point, however, these d
I propose that they can best be und
understood - in the context of the p
in its current form pertains to Sam
4 As Becker notes, "Der Leser soll - und

Personen verbinden" (Richterzeit und Kö
5 Cf. F. Yamada, who draws on Bedouin pr
is excessive and therefore "shameful" ( Co
Analysis of Three Rape Narratives [Stud
75-76). He nonetheless views the father-i
the sheer lack of hospitality in Gibeah (p
6 The fictional nature of the account is ind
anonymous characters in a small-scale "
folkloric repetition of the Levite's stay at
bent of the episode. For a nuanced take on
ter, however, see D.G. Lawrie, "Figuring
Work in and on Judges 19-21", Scriptum 96
VETUS TESTAMENTŮM 66 (2016) 95-
98 MILSTEIN
was once a
access to su
details. As
canonical te
an alternat
heightens
1 Sam 11:1-
Snatched a
Birth Narr
1 Samuel 1
two wives (
(= Ramah) i
to dedicate
son, Samue
ogy for th
him from
("to borrow
v. 20, the r
addresses E
the reque
now I have
7 This is in li
discussion in
27 (2007), pp.
damental dif
allusions, the
tion" (p. 332)
this specifica
"makes stran
enon of allus
40-66 (Contra
8 While IbW i
L. Koehler an
of the Old Tes
VETUS
loaned to (bwv) Yahweh."9 The last ins

participle identical to Saul's name.10 In
Hannah, saying, "May Yahweh put a se
of the request (rbmpņ) that she request
For some, while the root may have
is in origin a Samuel story. Others con
have been "acceptable to ancient Heb
share of imprecise etymologies, it wou
suitable one for Samuel, whose name t
or to "offspring [< name] of god/El."12
"El" or "Elohim" as opposed to Yahwe
have been easier on the ears ("El heard
ing the extraneous 'ayin. Together the
tive may have originally pertained to
Although multiple scholars have draw
have not been realized. If the narrat
would imply an old link between Sau
Ephraim. This link is somewhat unexp
temple figure and has no overt ties to
made for Samuel, who appears as a see
7:15-8:3), and "kingmaker" (1 Sam 11:14
9 With this last line I follow the lxx and Pes

to the MT ("All the days that he was"); the
similar-looking letters ¡1 and n.
10 P.K. McCarter, 1 Samueb A New Translat
(ab 8; Garden City, 1980), p. 63.
1 1 For the former stance, see Amit, "Who Is
Hebrew Bibie: Collected Essays in Retrospe
Studies in the Bible and Religion 4; She
W. Dietrich, The Early Monarchy in Israel: T
3; Leiden, 2007), p. 255.
12 As per S. Layton, who settles on the first
the Hebrew Bible [hsm 47; Atlanta, 1990], p
13 The suggestion was first proposed by I.
(/ Sam ï-75): Traditionsgeschichtlich unte
for the possibility that the story might ha
stage (/ and II Samuel [trans. J.S. Bowden
"the suspicion remains powerful" that Sam
("The Trouble with Benjamin," in R. Rezetko
in Biblical Historiography in Honour of A. G
100 MILSTEIN
figure outs
again associ
Donald Schl
between Sa
Ahijah in 1
He argues f
as such, Sa
his reign. T
rupts the f
to set up w
century bc
While it is
and Shiloh,
early tradit
echoes of a
Saul was rem
House of Y
1 Samuel 1-2
14 The term
Institution of
Testament Hi
D. Schley pre
63; Sheffield,
1 5 This prom
[!963]> PP- 39
and "Nazirite
pp. 63-66; D
Untersuchung
1 6 Schley, Sh
17 See I. Fink
Series of the
Forgotten Ki
2013). Finkels
chic Judah o
transmitted t
see D. Edelm
The Origins o
VETUS
A Reexamination of the Referents
Before examining how this backgroun

19, it is first necessary to address t
1 Sam ii:i-ii.18 1 Samuel 11 presents a
oppressed by the Ammonites. The peo
is seized by "the spirit of God" (v. 6). H
npn), cutting them up (innriri) into p
out the territory of Israel Var^m)
muster is enormously successful. The
three columns and they strike down t
The parallels with Judg 19:29 are str
concubine (nnnm) into multiple p
out the territory of Israel bux bl
together at Mizpah (Judg 20:1-2). Like
a yoke of animals (onon "TQin); as su
is all the more gruesome. The fact t
the limbs in the mt signals its derivati
accompanied by a provocative and logi
the fact that only Judges 19 alludes t
its late and derivative nature.20
18 The dependence of Judg 19:26-29 on 1

C.F. Burney, The Book of Judges with In
J. Blenkinsopp, "Benjamin Traditions Read i
and M. Oeming (ed ,),Judah and the Judea
pp. 640-41; Soggin , Judges, p. 282; W. Gro
zum Alten Testament; Freiburg im Breisgau,
Literature as Politics", jbl 108/3 (1989), pp. 4
positionsgeschichtliche Ort von Jde 19", in
biblischen Tradition. Festschrift für Matthi
19 lxxa fills this gap: xaì èvexeíXaxo xoîç àv
navra âvÔpa IopavjX el yéyovev xaxà xò ^Yjfxa
AlyÚ7rxou ëœç xrjç rj^épaç xaóxrjç; 0é<r0e 8y] éa
Levite] commanded the men whom he sen

man of Israel: 'Has anything happened lik
came up out of Egypt until this day? Take
out'").
20 Cf. Pfeiffer, who argues on grammatical grounds that the reference to "twelve" is a second-
ary addition ("Sodomie in Gibea", p. 272).
102 MILSTEIN
These para
Levite repre
ures in the
phy: the co
shares parall
The Levite
The notion t
trayed in su
in the next
nonetheless
from his fa
Third, in a p
opts for Gib
the hungry
coldly when
confirmed b
what transp
until she die
overtly pole
another atte
The questio
Judges 19 d
House of Ya
a Benjamini
21 Amit dete
Saul's Kingdom
Narrative [tra
22 Yamada si
(i Configuratio
as a "sympath
emotionale Re
23 At least in
vexpá ("becaus
tion to the te
Judges, vol. 8
24 S. Niditch n
(Judges: A Co
Rape, p. 94 an
World", JSOT
VETUS
by the men of Gibeah. It €'s thus no

the Levite designation to be secondar
for its omission.25 Generally the refe
with Judges 17-18, where Micah's Lev
token, the mt reference to "the Hous
as secondary. The general argument
a) The man in Judges 19 is only twic

while on all other occasions he is
given that such a label would have
the protagonist from the other an
b) The Levitical identity is central to
Judges 19.28
c) The two texts also share similar geographical reference points: the Lev-
ite of Judges 17-18 is from Ephraim and takes up residence in Bethlehem,
while the Levite of Judges 19-20 heads from Bethlehem back to Ephraim.29
This, along with other perceived links, suggests a more concerted effort to
assimilate the narratives to one another.
25 K. Budde, Das Buch der Richter (khc vii; Freiburg i; Br. /Leipzig/Tübingen, 1897), p. 127.
26 See, e.g., Amit Book of Judges , p. 353; Gross, Richter , p. 813; Stipp, "Richter 19", pp. 177-79;
Veijola, Das Königtum in der Beurteilung der deuteronomistischen Historiographie , p. 20.
Stipp states, ". . . doch das ist fraglos eine sekundäre Nachinterpretation" ("Richter 19"
p. 178). An exception to the rule is A.H.J. Gunneweg, who views the detail of the Levite
as essential and considers that the crime takes on particular weight because it pertains
to a Levite (Leviten und Priester; Hauptlinen der Traditionsbildung und Geschichte des
israelitisch-jüdischen Kultpersonals [Forschungen zur Religion und Literatur des Alten
und Neuen Testaments 89; Göttingen, 1965], pp. 23-26).
27 The lack of the Levitical epithet is especially pertinent to Judg 19:25, which states that
"the man seized his concubine" and sent her out to the mob, thus leaving the referent
ambiguous. Gross emphasizes the fact that the text does not refer to the man as a Levite,
which would have enabled the writer "die beiden namenlosen Männer auf elegante Weise
zu unterscheiden" (Richter, p. 813); Stipp makes a similar point ("Richter 19", p. 178). At the
same time, the host is consistently referred to in the narrative as "old" and/or "the owner
of the house," suggesting that the Levite is the agent in v. 25.
28 Soggin Judges, p. 284.
29 For discussion of the ostensible thematic links between Judges 17-18 and 19-21, see D.T.
Olson, "The Book of Judges: Introduction, Commentary, and Reflections", in L.E. Keck
(ed.) (nib 2; Nashville, 1998), pp. 863-66 and Yamada, Configurations of Rape, pp. 71-72.
Yamada contends that the reader is "set up" to expect a negative outcome in Judges 19
when confronted again with the combination of the Levite, Ephraim, and Bethlehem
(ibid., p. 72, n. 12).
104 MILSTEIN
d) Regardin
"into my h
One might
also marred
(nal) instea
I shall begin
first worth
is alternate
"the woman
or sensitivi
is worth ad
Levite but i
18:17; 18:18
tribal design
is further c
v. 10, he re
concentratio
suggests mu
identity in
the figure
(v. 4), not t
duced as a
"Utt (here, "
It is true th
the charact
differs from
his referen
30 See discuss
abbreviation for "the House of Yahweh."
31 E.g., in her father's house, the woman is exclusively called "the girl," as R. Jost notes
{Gender, Sexualität und Macht in der Anthropologie des Richterbuches [Stuttgart, 2006]),
p. 302).
32 The figure is called "the Levite" in Judg 17:7, 17:9, 17:10, 17:11, 17:12, 17:13, 18:3, and 18:15.
33 As such, the Levite is closer in form to Micah, not his Levite, if we are to make a compari-
son to any of the figures in Judges 17-18. It may be relevant, however, that the term ipj is
often associated with cultic contexts (M. Leuchter, "'Now There Was a [Certain] Man':
Compositional Chronology in Judges-i Samuel", cbq 69 [2007], pp. 436-37). Cf. S. Frolov,
who reads the servant as homage to Saul's servant in 1 Samuel 9-12 (Judges: The Forms of
the Old Testament Literature [Grand Rapids, 2013], pp. 314-16).
could argue that the site of Bethlehem

clearly serves the pro-David polemic,
role. In both cases, however, it is pos
lapping references, and that these
the narratives in the first place.34 As
to note that the Levite and the Hous
another, in that it would be logical f
as his destination. Thus, while one m
Yahweh" in Judg 19:18 is secondary,
lines of the missing preposition.35
A larger issue is at stake with regar
what would be retained of the openi
who sojourned in the outskirts of the
ning of a story with the phrase "Th
Bible: Judg 13:2, Judg 17:1, Judg 19:1,
residence is given, and in all but Judg
(Samson is a Danite; the anonymou
The elimination of the full descriptio
no parallel among the four: "And the
concubine as a wife
34 On the combination of the narratives, see Soggin: ". . . althoug

with different subjects, they have many things in common and th
together on purpose" (Judges , p. 263).
35 On the notion that "the House of Yahweh" was added in con
identification of the Levite, see Becker, Richterzeit und Königtum
"Sodomie in Gibea", p. 271.
36 On the phrase and its correlate, "And there was a certain man .
cludes that the formula/e is original to Judg 13:2 and was reused
later editors ("'Now There Was a [Certain] Man'", p. 439). R. Müller
openings of Judg 13:2, Judg 17:1, 1 Sam 1:1, and 1 Sam 9:1 suggest that J
1 Samuel 1, and 1 Samuel 9-10 once circulated together ("i Samuel
of the Deuterono mistie History?", in C. Edenburg and J. Pakkala
Deuteronomists? Current Views on the Place of Samuel in Deut
16; Atlanta, 2013], p. 215). Müller observes that the narratives are
provide introductions to the material that follows. Beyond the g
however, it is difficult to envision why Judges 13-16 and 17-18 w
the Samuel/Saul texts. I nonetheless share his sense that texts f
may have circulated together; for elaboration, see my conclusion
37 It is worth noting, however, that Judg 19:1 is unique among the fo
given a name, but in this context, it appears to allow for the juxta
Levite. Veijola also notes that the combination of VPl ("and there
106 MILSTEIN
Levite's desc
Levite who
living in oth
it is worth
but so does
19:1 would c
one omits t
scribe chose
Before we d
worth consi
of Judges 17
that the de
tion stems f
of Saul wit
a Levite fro
Ramathayim
Moreover, a
gests spendi
in 1 Samue
have repres
child in 1 S
the Levite
need not m
formulation
dar"; he ther
Beurteilung d
38 Stipp concl
auf eine ande
39 For Becker
realm and its
in the narrati
Ephraim to r
Judges 19 ("R
40 Amit point
the geographi
P- 33); for a si
41 Already R
the Art of Edi
VETUS
this remains a possibility.42 It is equ

Judges 19 simply associated the Shilo
17-18 alternates between the terms "L
This proposed link between Judges
for the major role that Shiloh plays in
massive war against the Benjaminit
The Israelites feel regretful but ca
account of an oath they made not to
curing efforts. In the second, they i
in the vineyards and to seize the gir
the annual grape harvest festival. It i
Judges 21 and 1 Samuel 1: Judges 21:1
every year at Shiloh (HDW OWE ni
reports that every year (now DWQ
to Shiloh to offer sacrifices to Yahwe
suit and rebuild their towns. The unit
the Benjaminites is tied directly to S
technically part-Shilonite. The clai
to take it as historical, it is worth co
42 For this view, see B. Halpern, "Shiloh

1992), pp. 1213-15. 1 Samuel 2:27 assumes
J. Wellhausen to deduce that Moses was
History of Ancient Israel: With a Reprin
Britannica [New York, 1957], cited in Halp
that Moses' rally of the Levites to kill 3,00
Shilonite circles ( Canaanite Myth and Heb
of Israel [Cambridge, 1973], pp. 198-206)
evident in Judg 18:30, which speaks of J
descendants presided at Dan. Deuterono
archetypical Levite. It is worth adding th
tive in 1 Samuel 1, is provided with a Leviti
43 As S. Ackerman points out, both 1 Sam
a grape harvest festival. Connections betw
that the "narrators" of Judg 21:15-25 and 1
in tandem (Warrior, Dancer, Seductress, Q
York, 1998], p. 258), though she does no
Benjaminites are instructed to seize wome
(w. 20-21). 1 Samuel 1 could point to a sim
of Hannah's intoxication in w. 12-14. Thes
the scribes responsible forjudges ig(-2i)
sion of 1 Samuel 1-2.
108 MILSTEIN
an assertion
procuring ef
Jabesh-Gilea
the same ve
have been us
horizon who
The Concub
The notion
the scribe se
and again de
of secondar
wife that ap
that of a 'ha
Hebrew Bibl
44 The Jabesh
to Saul. In addi
sons' bones wi
mark on the t
Zela. The cour
of theft; the
Beth-shan (2 S
and took (inp"
Jabesh and bu
tamarisk tree
then accept ru
erwise. The im
exemplified by
Saul story th
revision of th
in Judah and t
45 To my min
earlierphase o
discussion, se
46 P. Trible ob
secured by a m
Biblical Narra
Yamada, Conf
as sources of f
ated with the
VETUS
in Genesis or i Chronicles.47 One occ

The other 17 references are set with
of these (10 of 17) pertaining to the
the term is not limited to monarch
reference to kings - and to Saul and
Given both the anti-Saul context of
Levite and Saul, it is worth consid
the figure of Rizpah from Saul's bio
said to have concubines, Saul's conc
detail. In 2 Sam 21:1-14, David appeas
of Saul's children, including two of R
nal loyalty, Rizpah stays with the bod
birds and beasts. When David learn
these men, along with the bones of
had buried, and buries them in the t
is also notable that in 2 Sam 3:7-11, I
his father Saul's concubine. If the
Rizpah, that may explain why in Ju
have been "unfaithful" to her husban
with both lxxa: cbpyicrSv) ("she scor
away"). For some, the mt reflects
47 See Gen 36:12, 22:24, 25:6, 35:22; 1 Chr 1:

48 I include within these Judg 8:31, for
other references include 2 Sam 3:7 (2X), 5:13
1 Kgs 11:3; 1 Chr 3:9; 2 Chr 11:21 (2X); Es 2:
in Judg 8:31 as quasi-royal is common; s
the depiction of Gideon in Judges 6-7 ver
as a royal leader without the title {Richter
"concubine" is "hauptsächlich im Kontex
context of Judg 8:31 ( Gender, Sexualität u
49 The mt and lxxbamn are ambiguous
and another Greek ms. indicate that Abner
("went in to her"). McCarter reads these a
(2 Samuel: A New Translation with Introdu
p. 106). He concludes, however, that Abner
for Ishbaal (p. 113). Regarding the dispute
bility of the mt and asserts that the norm
concubines {Judges , p. 301).
110 MILSTEIN
("she was un
Akkadian co
Still others
most impor
of the Levit
is directed e
bias of this
The Ephra
This finally
widely reco
been recogn
informed th
The parallel
Both the an
and the host
texts, the m
50 See, e.g., D
1999), p. 523.
Biblical Comm
51 See, e.g.,
betrayed him
52 See, e.g., N
53 The reason
wife, though
cussion in Jos
54 The depen
Book of Judg
"Benjamin Tra
pp. 37-59; Am
Leiden, 1999),
that Judg 19:
have primacy
Disintegration
phrase "inter
19 in his/her
however, the
is inherent to
is focused on
synchronic le
(pp. 6-8).
out so that they can know them (Ge

two hosts tell the men not to comm
finally offer up two women to the
their care: Lot offers his daughters;
daughter. As Stuart Lasine points
Judges 19 on Genesis 19, for while t
along with the concubine, there is n
It appears, however, that the chara
the host. This suggestion may explai
not derived from Genesis 19. Both E
fellow resident of Ephraim, and are
are then several parallels between Ju
and 1 Sam 2:12, both the Gibeahites
tified as "wicked men" (Vy^n ^n), a
When Eli hears that they have been
Meeting, he expresses his outrage
for the rumor that I am hearing t
good!" (1 Sam 2:24). In Judg 19:22-25,
(tin *?n); please do not commit such
this plea also occurs in Genesis 19, it
1 Samuel 2 are the sexual infractions
the Ephraimite host who rebukes
also modeled on Eli.
This potential parallel may shed light on our understanding of 1 Sam 2:12-26.
The unit opens with reference to Eli's sons' improper behavior with regard to
sacrifices. The first violation (w. 12-17) pertains to their conduct with regard to
sacrificial meat. After a short, pun-laden interlude regarding Hannah's annual
pilgrimage to Shiloh to see her son, the narrator returns to Eli and the second
infraction. In both the mt and lxxl, Eli is distressed regarding "all that his
sons were doing to all Israel" and that his sons were "lying with the women
who were on duty at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting (tin riNl
iy'n br'x nna manan D^n)" (v. 22). The root ana ("to be on duty") is used
again with reference to women "performing duties at the entrance to the Tent
of Meeting" in Exod 38:8 ("rpiQ nna wna manan). In that case, the
raw material for the copper laver and its stand are said to come from the mir-
rors of these women. Various suggestions as to the role of these women have
55 Lasine, "Guest and Host in Judges 19" p. 39.

56 It is worth noting that Hannah, too, asks Eli not to take her as a "wicked woman" (nn
in 1 Sam 1:16.
112 MILSTEIN
been posed,
musicians to
cance of the
context of m
it appears lik
sanctuary its
It is further
lxxb nor 4QS
as a secondar
the language
and serves t
dent concern
brings Cozbi
entire comm
of Meeting
the couple is
follows the
men. The tw
in the vicini
ers that 1 S
the descend
Whether or
that at leas
misconduct
posed links b
the scribe re
57 See U. Win
Studien zum w
Göttingen, 198
58 Based on ar
to wealthy in
menial labor i
who were visit
59 See, e.g., Wi
!973)> P- 114;
E.C. Ulrich, Jr
60 McCarter,
pp. 201-203.
VETUS
also guilty of rape.61 Although other

acts of rape (e.g., my ;jrp), the root
reference to non-consensual intercourse.62 The notion that Eli's sons violated
these women would help account for the depth of their father's anger.
Conclusion
Each of the anonymous figures in Judges 19 can plausibly be identified with

a figure from Saul's biography: the Levite with Saul, the concubine with
Rizpah, and the host with Eli.63 The proposed links between Judges ig(-2i) and
1 Samuel 1-2 suggest that the former indicates knowledge of a Saul-based birth
story. This observation should be viewed in conjunction with the scribe's allu-
sions to 1 Sam 11:1-11, a text that represents one of the only positive depictions of
Saul that has been retained in the Hebrew Bible. It is now necessary to address
the possible contexts within which the scribe(s) responsible forjudges 19 may
have encountered such texts.
It is widely assumed that pro-Saul texts must have circulated at some point,
before they were either omitted from the canon or folded into the Saul-David
saga with polemical adjustment. Though the final form of 1-2 Samuel is shame-
lessly tendentious, a handful of texts (1 Samuel 9, 1 Samuel 11, and 1 Samuel 14-15)
61 I use the term "rape" so as to emphasize the non-consensual aspect of the act See,
however, the nuanced analysis proffered by Kawashima in "Could a Woman Say 'No' in
Ancient Israel? On the Genealogy of Legal Status in Biblical Law and Literature," ajsr
35:1 (2011), pp. 1-22. Kawashima concludes that there was no such concept of forcible rape
in the legal system of "biblical Israel," given that women were not understood to consti-
tute autonomous individuals who had the right to give sexual consent While ancient
Israelites certainly acknowledged the problem of forced sexual acts, they did not conceive
of the women as the victims in these encounters. Rather, the men who had authority
over them (principally, their fathers, husbands, or fiancés) were considered to be the true
"victims" of the crime and were thereby compensated (p. 2). Kawashima reads the laws
in Deut 22:23-39 as indicating that a woman could be "guilty" of a (sexual) crime without
being a victim of that crime (p. 16).
62 See especially the laws of sexual violation in Deut 22:23-29, though these cases are in con-
junction with seizure (ptn) or grabbing (fe?£3n). The roots ¡"UP and 1DW are used in com-
bination with regard to Shechem and Dinah in Gen 34:2 (rüJPl nriN MUH HflN n p^l).
63 Frolov likewise emphasizes the unusual nature of an all-anonymous cast, yet for him,
the anonymity is tied to an allegory in which the Levite and his concubine correspond to
Yahweh and Israel ( Judges , pp. 32sff).
114 MILSTEIN
are regularl
the ongoing
rative has n
account orig
home in an
to an altern
scribe had
Saul's birth
the scribe
heads: the
from Ephra
by dismem
In my curr
as an addit
Judges 20-2
have portra
proposal he
21:15-24, in
narrative at
have been t
would have
have served
64 Historicall
"Samuel-Saul
Israel: A Study
pp. 26-35. M
pre-deuteron
posals for an
tic editing, w
Beitrag zum E
65 This posit
through Intr
This is in op
19"), and Pfe
dent episode.
expectation t
critique, see G
66 Cf. Frolov
Judges 19-21
was never int
an anti-Saul co
VETUS
complex. Such would have enabled t

and to transform its reception.
This raises the question as to the datin
a late date for the composition of Jud
linguistic features and motifs and situ
postexilic Benjaminite-Judahite host
scholars to continue to advocate for
situating the text in the context of th
the text would have been directed at t
favor the Davidic monarchy over the
the efficacy of linguistic dating and t
Judahite hostility.68
It is theoretically possible to reconcil
episode originated in an early context
audiences, thus prompting subsequen
an either/or position, focusing not on
on the origins of composition. The arg
avenue. I propose that the anti-Saul te
foremost as a response to a Saul comp
modate either end of the dating sp
Tendenz would indeed make sense with
House of Saul" still had relevance. On
be explained solely in the context of t
plex. If a separate Saul complex indeed
took different trajectories. In some ci
into what would become the Book o
tinued to circulate as an independen
67 Regarding the notion that Judges 19-21

Persian period, see Amit, "Saul Polemic in
and Genre: The Sixth Century and the G
Blenkinsopp (ed.), Judah and the Judeans
2003), p. 146; A.G. Auld, Joshua, Judges an
Westminster, 1984], pp. 252-57; P. Guillaum
385; London, 2004), pp. 204-206; Blenkinso
Babylonian and Achaemenid Periods: A H
pp. 30-34, and idem., "Bethel in the Neo-Ba
the Neo-Babylonian Period , pp. 98-99. On d
complex see C. Edenburg, The Story of the
Sources, and Historical Context (Heb.; Ph.D.
68 Stipp, "Richter 19", pp. 220-24.
116 MILSTEIN
period. In e
had access t
pied with d
complex hav
Saul birth s
however, th
the House of
alternative t
VETUS

Saul The Levite and His Concubine: The "Allusive" Quality of Judges 19 Author(s) : Sara J. Milstein Source: Vetus Testamentum, Vol. 66, Fasc. 1 (2016), Pp. 95-116 Published By: Brill

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Saul The Levite and His Concubine: The "Allusive" Quality of Judges 19 Author(s) : Sara J. Milstein Source: Vetus Testamentum, Vol. 66, Fasc. 1 (2016), Pp. 95-116 Published By: Brill

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Saul the Levite and His Concubine: The "Allusive" Quality of Judges 19

Author(s): Sara J. Milstein

f VETUS TESTAMENTŮM 66 (2016) 95-116

Saul the Levite and His Concubine: The "Allusive"

Judges 19-1 Samuel 1-2 - 1 Samuel 11 - Saul - allusions - Levite

© KONINKLIJKE BRILL NV, LEIDEN, 2015 | DOI 10.1163/15685330-12301227

VETUS TESTAMENTŮM 66 (2016) 95-116

details in Judges 19 align with kn

4 As Becker notes, "Der Leser soll - und

VETUS TESTAMENTŮM 66 (2016) 95-

loaned to (bwv) Yahweh."9 The last ins

9 With this last line I follow the lxx and Pes

VETUS TESTAMENTŮM 66 (2016) 95-116

A Reexamination of the Referents

Before examining how this backgroun

18 The dependence of Judg 19:26-29 on 1

Levite] commanded the men whom he sen

VETUS TESTAMENTŮM 66 (2016) 95-116

by the men of Gibeah. It €'s thus no

a) The man in Judges 19 is only twic

VETUS TESTAMENTŮM 66 (2016) 95-116

VETUS TESTAMENTŮM 66 (2016) 95-116

could argue that the site of Bethlehem

34 On the combination of the narratives, see Soggin: ". . . althoug

VETUS TESTAMENTŮM 66 (2016) 95-116

this remains a possibility.42 It is equ

42 For this view, see B. Halpern, "Shiloh

VETUS TESTAMENTŮM 66 (2016) 95-11

in Genesis or i Chronicles.47 One occ

47 See Gen 36:12, 22:24, 25:6, 35:22; 1 Chr 1:

VETUS TESTAMENTŮM 66 (2016) 95-11

VETUS TESTAMENTŮM 66 (2016) 95-116

out so that they can know them (Ge

55 Lasine, "Guest and Host in Judges 19" p. 39.

VETUS TESTAMENTŮM 66 (2016) 95-116

also guilty of rape.61 Although other

Each of the anonymous figures in Judges 19 can plausibly be identified with

VETUS TESTAMENTŮM 66 (2016) 95-116

complex. Such would have enabled t

67 Regarding the notion that Judges 19-21

VETUS TESTAMENTŮM 66 (2016) 95-116

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