Today, I am reading and commenting on  Judges 20-21.

So, the account of the Levite, his concubine, and war of Israel against Benjamin is the last account in the Book of Judges.  It immediately follows the account of Micah, his idol, and the Danites.  Both of these accounts contain some variation on the phrase, “In those days Israel had no king, everyone did as they saw fit.”  This clearly suggests that they were included where they were as justification for Israel selecting a king.  If you do not read the passage carefully, the placing of the account of the Israel-Benjamin war at the end of the Book of Judges might lead you to conclude that it happened after the other accounts in the book.  However, we are told in the account that it took place while Phinehas, Aaron’s grandson, was ministering before the ark of the covenant.  Along with that I want to mention that the story of Micah and his idol occurred before the Danites conquered their own territory.  Which leads me to conclude that that story also occurred early in the Israelite occupation of Canaan.  Yet both stories are presented as arguments for Israel to crown a king.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.