There's a question I've long wanted to ask, but the right thread never seems to come up. Perhaps this is it since the topic is pretty iffy to begin with.
The thread title is 'Scriptural Interpretation' and the OP and P3 attempt to set a "bible study" tone. It would thus seem appropriate to introduce another bible passage (albeit one not likely to make it into the Bible Study Hot Rotation down at the First Baptist Church) and request comments, in the manner introduced here by Phatboy. May I?
The story I want to discuss is from Judges, and it seems at first to be the same story we find in Genesis about Lot and the city of Sodom. The ending of this story is quite different, though.
From
Judges 19:
22Now as they were making their hearts merry, behold, the men of the city, certain sons of Belial, beset the house round about, and beat at the door, and spake to the master of the house, the old man, saying, Bring forth the man that came into thine house, that we may know him.
23And the man, the master of the house, went out unto them, and said unto them, Nay, my brethren, nay, I pray you, do not so wickedly; seeing that this man is come into mine house, do not this folly.
24Behold, here is my daughter a maiden, and his concubine; them I will bring out now, and humble ye them, and do with them what seemeth good unto you: but unto this man do not so vile a thing.
25But the men would not hearken to him: so the man took his concubine, and brought her forth unto them; and they knew her, and abused her all the night until the morning: and when the day began to spring, they let her go.
26Then came the woman in the dawning of the day, and fell down at the door of the man's house where her lord was, till it was light.
27And her lord rose up in the morning, and opened the doors of the house, and went out to go his way: and, behold, the woman his concubine was fallen down at the door of the house, and her hands were upon the threshold.
28And he said unto her, Up, and let us be going. But none answered. Then the man took her up upon an ass, and the man rose up, and gat him unto his place.
29And when he was come into his house, he took a knife, and laid hold on his concubine, and divided her, together with her bones, into twelve pieces, and sent her into all the coasts of Israel.
Can't you just feel the holy spirit?
The similar story of Sodom from
Genesis 19 is often used to condemn homosexuality. That story has been dealt with a number of times on this forum.
This one starts out the same way: the men of the city want to "know" the host's visitor, but the host cowardly pleads with the men to spare his male visitor and instead ravish his own virgin daughter in whatever manner the men may find pleasant. A similar offer is made of the visitor's concubine and the bargain is joined. The men rape the concubine to death and, instead of anyone being held to account, the host merely carves the lady's body into twelve pieces and sends one apiece to each of the tribes of Israel. Apparently this gruesome exercise was enough to assuage God's wrath and indignation because he doesn't rain fire and brimstone on the town.
Just what is the moral of this sick, disgusting story? Also, given the story's inclusion in the bible, how can fundies complain about sex and violence in the movies or on TV when copies of this filth are scattered all over the house?
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