Judges 18-21

“Now it came about in those days, when there was no king in Israel …” (19:1).   A Levite and his concubine/wife were traveling through the land of Benjamin (20:4) and stayed the night with an old man.  The city’s “worthless men” raped and killed the Levite’s wife.  He sent pieces of her body throughout Israel, demanding justice.  This led to civil war, because the tribe of Benjamin would not hand over the criminals.

“Everyone did what was right in their own eyes” (21:25).  Being our own gods leads to disaster.  We need God’s law to teach us righteousness, and His mercy to cover our sin.