And he said to him: 'We are passing from Bethlehem in Judah to the remote parts of the hill country of Ephraim, where I am from; I went to Bethlehem, and I am now going to the house of the LORD; but there is no one who takes me into his house' (וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו אָנֹכִי עֹבֵר מִבֵּית־לֶחֶם יְהוּדָה אֶל־יַרְכְתֵי־הַר־אֶפְרַיִם וַיִּהְיוּ מִשָּׁם וָאֵלֵךְ אֶל־בֵּית יְהוָה וְאַיִּש אֵין־אֹסֵף אוֹתִי אֶל־הַבָּיִת) — the Levite explains his party's journey and expresses the critical complaint: ``there is no one who takes me into his house'' (וַיִּהְיוּ מִשָּׁם וָאֵלֵךְ אֶל־בֵּית יְהוָה וְאַיִּש אֵין־אֹסֵף אוֹתִי אֶל־הַבָּיִת). His statement reveals the violation of hospitality law: in an Israelite city, travelers should be automatically welcomed; yet no resident of Gibeah has offered shelter despite the late hour and the presence of a woman and servant. The Levite mentions he has provisions (bread and wine, suggesting a journey, yet the statement that ``there is no one who takes me'' indicates that the city's residents have rejected the custom of hospitality.

COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS

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