Judges 19:13 (KJV)

What does Judges 19:13 mean?

Judges 19:13 shows a traveler making a practical choice about where to spend the night. He names two towns, Gibeah and Ramah, as possible stopping places for himself and the people with him.

The speaker is a Levite, a man from the tribe of Levi, and he addresses his servant. After declining to stop at Jebus in the preceding verse, he looks farther along the route for a place to stay. “Lodge all night” pictures finding shelter until morning, rather than merely resting during the journey.

The Hebrew behind Judges 19:13

• “servant” — נַעַר (naʿar): This word can mean a young man or an attendant. Here it identifies the person accompanying and assisting the traveler, without giving his age.
• “lodge all night” — לוּן (lun): This word carries the sense of staying somewhere overnight. The aim is to find a place for the night, not necessarily a permanent lodging.

Why Judges 19:13 matters

• The choice of town becomes important to the story. The travelers reach Gibeah in verse 14, and the events that follow take place there.
• The two names give alternatives, not two stops already made. The Levite says “Gibeah, or … Ramah,” while the journey’s actual stopping point is named in the next verse.
• The earlier decision helps explain why the travelers continue. In verse 12, the Levite prefers not to stay in Jebus, a city he describes as belonging to foreigners rather than Israelites.