Father Mike Schmitz hosts day 95 of the Bible in a Year podcast, reading from Judges chapters 19-21 and Psalm 148. He uses the Revised Standard Version, 2nd Catholic Edition and follows The Great Adventure Bible timeline from Ascension Press to guide listeners through Scripture chronologically.

This episode covers the darkest content in the Book of Judges, featuring the horrific story of the Levite's concubine and the subsequent civil war that nearly destroyed the tribe of Benjamin. Father Mike warns listeners about the disturbing nature of these chapters while emphasizing their relevance to understanding moral relativism.

The reading concludes the Book of Judges with its famous summary: "In those days there was no king in Israel. Every man did what was right in his own eyes." Father Mike connects this ancient warning to modern cultural challenges, setting up the transition to 1 Samuel where God's redemptive plan continues to unfold.

The Levite's Concubine: A Horror Story in Scripture

A Levite priest takes a concubine from Bethlehem, violating God's design for marriage established in Genesis 2 - "whenever we see these breaks in God's law, breaks in what is clear that God has said, especially when it comes to family...what happens is catastrophe" - Father Mike

After the concubine flees to her father's house, the Levite retrieves her but they're forced to spend the night in Gibeah among the Benjaminites, thinking "these are our brethren, right? These are our family"

The men of Gibeah demand to sexually assault the Levite, but he throws out his concubine instead, leading to her death - "it's just the most tragic, tragic, tragic thing" - Father Mike

The Levite cuts his concubine's body into twelve pieces and sends them to all tribes of Israel, prompting Father Mike to call it "horror, right? I mean, this is like from a literally from a horror movie"

Civil War Nearly Destroys Benjamin

All Israel assembles 400,000 warriors at Mizpah to demand justice from Benjamin, while the Benjaminites muster 26,700 men including "700 picked men who were left-handed. Everyone could sling a stone at a hair and not miss"

Despite overwhelming numbers, Israel loses the first two battles with 22,000 and 18,000 casualties respectively, before finally defeating Benjamin on the third day

The Israelites kill 25,100 Benjaminite warriors and destroy all their cities, leaving only 600 survivors hiding at the Rock of Rimmon for four months

Having sworn not to give their daughters to Benjamin, the Israelites massacre Jabesh Gilead to obtain 400 virgin wives, then authorize kidnapping women at Shiloh to preserve the tribe

Relativism Then and Now: The Core Message

The Book of Judges concludes with its defining verse: "In those days there was no king in Israel. Every man did what was right in his own eyes" - which Father Mike calls the perfect summary of relativism

"One of the reasons why the book of Judges is so appropriate for us today is because it's so broken and we live in such a broken place" - Father Mike connects ancient Israel's moral chaos to contemporary culture

Father Mike explains the redemption cycle: "we call out to the Lord. We recognize what we've done. We call out to the Lord. He hears our prayers...And he comes to our aid"

The podcast follows The Great Adventure Bible timeline structure, with tomorrow beginning 1 Samuel chapters 1-8 before a seven-day journey through the Gospel of John