And his master said unto him, We will not turn aside hither into the city of a stranger, that [is] not of the children of Israel; we will pass over to Gibeah. And he said unto his servant, Come, and let us draw near to one of these places to lodge all night, in Gibeah, or in Ramah.

And they passed on and went their way; and the sun went down upon them [when they were] by Gibeah, which [belongeth] to Benjamin. And they turned aside thither, to go in [and] to lodge in Gibeah: and when he went in, he sat him down in a street of the city: for [there was] no man that took them into his house to lodging.

And, behold, there came an old man from his work out of the field at even, which [was] also of mount Ephraim; and he sojourned in Gibeah: but the men of the place [were] Benjamites. And when he had lifted up his eyes, he saw a wayfaring man in the street of the city: and the old man said, Whither goest thou? and whence comest thou? And he said unto him, We [are] passing from Bethlehemjudah toward the side of mount Ephraim; from thence [am] I: and I went to Bethlehemjudah, but I [am now] going to the house of the LORD; and there [is] no man that receiveth me to house.

Yet there is both straw and provender for our asses; and there is bread and wine also for me, and for thy handmaid, and for the young man [which is] with thy servants: [there is] no want of any thing. And the old man said, Peace [be] with thee; howsoever [let] all thy wants [lie] upon me; only lodge not in the street. So he brought him into his house, and gave provender unto the asses: and they washed their feet, and did eat and drink.

[Now] 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. And 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. [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.

But 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. Then 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. And 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. And 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. And 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. And it was so, that all that saw it said, There was no such deed done nor seen from the day that the children of Israel came up out of the land of Egypt unto this day: consider of it, take advice, and speak [your minds].

Many people do not think of this text when they look at Bible texts that mention that are about sexual activities between men. This text does not spring to mind, because the rapists did not have sex with men. They raped a woman.

Rape is no more a homosexual activity than it is a heterosexual activity. Rape is a crime of control, not a crime of sexual orientation. Were rape a crime of sexual orientation, heterosexuality would probably stand to be condemned far more than homosexuality. While Baruch Levine, in the Leviticus volume of the Jewish Publication Society’s Torah Commentary set, makes the mistake of indicating these attempted rapes are a homosexual activity, he states xenophobia is the context.

The men in this story acted out of fear, just as gay bashers act of fear when they attack gay people. Only the perfect love of God can cast out deep-seated fear, such as xenophobia or homophobia. Those who are driven to extreme acts of violence by intense fear do not know the love of God. They have yet to let the love that flowed from Calvary sink into their hearts.

Seen from the perspective of fear, Judges Chapter 19 and Genesis Chapter 19 speak out against those who physically, verbally or spiritually attack and abuse gay people. Unfortunately, the spirit of Sodom is alive and well in many churches, where gay people are rejected, persecuted and condemned.

Gay people can gain a lot of meaning from this passage. God does not want gay people to act in hatred toward themselves or other gay people. Hate and fear, directed out toward other people or directed in toward oneself is very distructive. Fortunately, destructive fear has a cure. That cure is perfect love. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear (1 John 4:18). God is the only source of the kind of love that casts out fear. God's love is powerful enough to cast out fear of oneself, fear of strangers, fear of homosexuals. John 3:16 - 17 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.