Judges 20
20
1All the Israelites from Dan to Beersheba, including the land of Gilead, went and gathered at Mizpah before the Lord. The assembly was united in purpose. 2The leaders of all the people of every Israelite tribe took their assigned positions in the assembled army of God's people, four hundred thousand soldiers armed with swords. 3The tribe of Benjamin found out that the Israelites had assembled at Mizpah. The Israelites asked, “Tell us, how could such an evil act have happened?”
4The Levite, the husband of the woman who had been murdered, explained, “I and my concubine came to spend the night at the town of Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin. 5The leaders of Gibeah came to attack me at night. They surrounded the house, intending to kill me.#20:5. It's interesting that the Levite glosses over the intended homosexual rape and instead states that this was a case of attempted murder. They raped my concubine and she died. 6I took my concubine and cut her into pieces, and I sent these pieces of her to every part of the country that had been given to Israel, because those men had done something shameful and disgusting in Israel. 7So all of you Israelites have to decide here and now what you're going to do about it!”
8Everyone stood up and unitedly declared, “None of us are going home to our tents! None of us are going home to our houses! 9This is what we're going to do to Gibeah: we will attack it with our forces chosen by lot. 10We'll take ten men from a hundred from all the Israelite tribes, then a hundred from a thousand, then a thousand from ten thousand, to arrange food for the army, so when the troops reach Gibeah in Benjamin, they can pay them back for all these disgusting things they've done in Israel.”
11All the men of Israel were in agreement and gathered to attack the town. 12The Israelite tribes also sent men throughout the territory of Benjamin, asking the people, “What are you doing about this terrible evil that has taken place among you? 13Hand over these wicked men so we can execute them and get rid of this evil from Israel!” But the Benjamites refused to listen to what their fellow Israelites had to say. 14They left their towns and assembled at Gibeah to go and fight the other Israelites. 15That day a total of twenty-six thousand men armed with swords were called up from the towns of Benjamin, in addition to the seven hundred seasoned warriors from Gibeah. 16Making up part of this army were seven hundred experienced soldiers who used their left hands. All of them could fire a slingshot and not miss by even a hair's breadth. 17The Israelite army (excluding Benjamin) numbered four hundred thousand seasoned warriors, all armed with swords.
18The Israelites went to Bethel and asked God, “Which ones of us should be the first to go and fight the Benjamites?”
“Judah is to go first,” the Lord replied. 19The next morning the Israelites left and set up their camp near Gibeah. 20Then they marched out for battle with the army of Benjamin, taking up their positions to attack Gibeah. 21But the Benjamites came out of Gibeah and slaughtered twenty-two thousand Israelites on the battlefield that day.
22But the Israelites encouraged one another to be confident, and they took up the same positions they had on the first day. 23The Israelites went and cried before the Lord until the evening and asked, “Should we go and attack the Benjamites again, our relatives?”
“Go and attack them,” the Lord replied.
24So the second day they advanced to attack the army of Benjamin. 25However, Benjamites came out of Gibeah once more and slaughtered eighteen thousand Israelites, all armed with swords.
26Then all the Israelites and all their army went to Bethel, and sat crying there before the Lord. That day they fasted until evening and gave burnt offerings and friendship offerings to the Lord. 27The Israelites asked the Lord what to do. At that time the Ark of God's Agreement was kept there. 28Phinehas, son of Eleazar and grandson of Aaron, was the priest. The Israelites asked the Lord, “Should we go and fight against our relatives from Benjamin again, or not?”
“Yes, go! Tomorrow I will hand them over to you,” the Lord replied.
29Then the Israelites set up an ambush around Gibeah. 30On the third day they took up the same positions they had as before. 31The Benjamites came out to attack them and were lured away from the town as they began to kill Israelites as they had before. Some thirty Israelites died on the battlefield and along the roads, the one that goes towards Bethel and the other that goes back towards Gibeah.
32“We're defeating them, just like before,” the Benjamites shouted.
But the Israelites said, “Let's run away from them and lure them away from the town towards the roads.”
33The main army of Israelites left where they were and took up positions at Baal-tamar, while those in the ambush west of Gibeah charged out to attack from where they had been hiding. 34Ten thousand seasoned Israelite warriors attacked Gibeah, and the fighting was so intense the Benjamites didn't realize they were on the brink of disaster. 35So the Lord defeated Benjamin before Israel. That day the Israelites killed twenty-five thousand one hundred Benjamites, all armed with swords. 36The Benjamites saw that they were defeated.
The Israelites had fallen back before the Benjamites because they were confident the ambush they had put in place near Gibeah would be successful. 37The men from the ambush raced to attack the town, and they killed everyone in it. 38The agreement was that they would send up a great cloud of smoke to show the town had fallen.#20:38. “Show the town had fallen”: supplied for clarity. 39The Israelite army turned to attack the Benjamites, who had already killed about thirty Israelites. The Benjamites were saying, “We're completely defeating them, just like the first battle!”
40However, when the Israelites saw the columns of smoke rising heavenwards to form a great cloud over the whole of the town, 41they turned on their enemies. The Benjamites were horrified when they saw it and realized they were doomed. 42They turned and ran from the Israelites towards the desert, but the battle caught up with them, and the Israelites also killed those who left the towns on the way. 43Chasing after the Benjamites, the Israelites surrounded them, easily overtaking them east of Gibeah. 44Eighteen thousand Benjamites were killed, all of them courageous warriors. 45Some of the Benjamites that were left ran towards Pomegranate Rock in the desert, and the Israelites killed another five thousand men on the way. They chased another group of Benjamites as far as Gidom and killed another thousand.
46So that day twenty-five thousand Benjamites were killed, all armed with swords and all courageous warriors. 47There were six hundred who ran away to Pomegranate Rock in the desert and they stayed there four months. 48The Israelites went back into the territory of the Benjamites, and going from town to town, they killed everything: people, animals, everything they found. Then they burned down every town on their way.
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Judges 20: FBV
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com
Judges 20
20
1Then all the children of Israel went out, and the congregation was assembled as one man, from Dan even to Beer-sheba, with the land of Gilead, unto Jehovah at Mizpah. 2And the chiefs of all the people, even of all the tribes of Israel, presented themselves in the assembly of the people of God, four hundred thousand footmen that drew sword. 3(Now the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel were gone up to Mizpah.) And the children of Israel said, Tell us, how was this wickedness brought to pass? 4And the Levite, the husband of the woman that was murdered, answered and said, I came into Gibeah that belongeth to Benjamin, I and my concubine, to lodge. 5And the men of Gibeah rose against me, and beset the house round about me by night; me they thought to have slain, and my concubine they forced, and she is dead. 6And I took my concubine, and cut her in pieces, and sent her throughout all the country of the inheritance of Israel; for they have committed lewdness and folly in Israel. 7Behold, ye children of Israel, all of you, give here your advice and counsel.
8And all the people arose as one man, saying, We will not any of us go to his tent, neither will we any of us turn unto his house. 9But now this is the thing which we will do to Gibeah: we will go up against it by lot; 10and we will take ten men of a hundred throughout all the tribes of Israel, and a hundred of a thousand, and a thousand out of ten thousand, to fetch victuals for the people, that they may do, when they come to Gibeah of Benjamin, according to all the folly that they have wrought in Israel. 11So all the men of Israel were gathered against the city, knit together as one man.
12And the tribes of Israel sent men through all the tribe of Benjamin, saying, What wickedness is this that is come to pass among you? 13Now therefore deliver up the men, the base fellows, that are in Gibeah, that we may put them to death, and put away evil from Israel. But Benjamin would not hearken to the voice of their brethren the children of Israel. 14And the children of Benjamin gathered themselves together out of the cities unto Gibeah, to go out to battle against the children of Israel. 15And the children of Benjamin were numbered on that day out of the cities twenty and six thousand men that drew sword, besides the inhabitants of Gibeah, who were numbered seven hundred chosen men. 16Among all this people there were seven hundred chosen men lefthanded; every one could sling stones at a hair-breadth, and not miss.
17And the men of Israel, besides Benjamin, were numbered four hundred thousand men that drew sword: all these were men of war. 18And the children of Israel arose, and went up to Beth-el, and asked counsel of God; and they said, Who shall go up for us first to battle against the children of Benjamin? And Jehovah said, Judah shall go up first.
19And the children of Israel rose up in the morning, and encamped against Gibeah. 20And the men of Israel went out to battle against Benjamin; and the men of Israel set the battle in array against them at Gibeah. 21And the children of Benjamin came forth out of Gibeah, and destroyed down to the ground of the Israelites on that day twenty and two thousand men. 22And the people, the men of Israel, encouraged themselves, and set the battle again in array in the place where they set themselves in array the first day. 23And the children of Israel went up and wept before Jehovah until even; and they asked of Jehovah, saying, Shall I again draw nigh to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother? And Jehovah said, Go up against him.
24And the children of Israel came near against the children of Benjamin the second day. 25And Benjamin went forth against them out of Gibeah the second day, and destroyed down to the ground of the children of Israel again eighteen thousand men; all these drew the sword. 26Then all the children of Israel, and all the people, went up, and came unto Beth-el, and wept, and sat there before Jehovah, and fasted that day until even; and they offered burnt-offerings and peace-offerings before Jehovah. 27And the children of Israel asked of Jehovah (for the ark of the covenant of God was there in those days, 28and Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, stood before it in those days), saying, Shall I yet again go out to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother, or shall I cease? And Jehovah said, Go up; for to-morrow I will deliver him into thy hand.
29And Israel set liers-in-wait against Gibeah round about. 30And the children of Israel went up against the children of Benjamin on the third day, and set themselves in array against Gibeah, as at other times. 31And the children of Benjamin went out against the people, and were drawn away from the city; and they began to smite and kill of the people, as at other times, in the highways, of which one goeth up to Beth-el, and the other to Gibeah, in the field, about thirty men of Israel. 32And the children of Benjamin said, They are smitten down before us, as at the first. But the children of Israel said, Let us flee, and draw them away from the city unto the highways. 33And all the men of Israel rose up out of their place, and set themselves in array at Baal-tamar: and the liers-in-wait of Israel brake forth out of their place, even out of Maareh-geba. 34And there came over against Gibeah ten thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and the battle was sore; but they knew not that evil was close upon them. 35And Jehovah smote Benjamin before Israel; and the children of Israel destroyed of Benjamin that day twenty and five thousand and a hundred men: all these drew the sword.
36So the children of Benjamin saw that they were smitten; for the men of Israel gave place to Benjamin, because they trusted unto the liers-in-wait whom they had set against Gibeah. 37And the liers-in-wait hasted, and rushed upon Gibeah; and the liers-in-wait drew themselves along, and smote all the city with the edge of the sword. 38Now the appointed sign between the men of Israel and the liers-in-wait was, that they should make a great cloud of smoke rise up out of the city. 39And the men of Israel turned in the battle, and Benjamin began to smite and kill of the men of Israel about thirty persons; for they said, Surely they are smitten down before us, as in the first battle. 40But when the cloud began to arise up out of the city in a pillar of smoke, the Benjamites looked behind them; and, behold, the whole of the city went up in smoke to heaven. 41And the men of Israel turned, and the men of Benjamin were dismayed; for they saw that evil was come upon them. 42Therefore they turned their backs before the men of Israel unto the way of the wilderness; but the battle followed hard after them; and they that came out of the cities destroyed them in the midst thereof. 43They inclosed the Benjamites round about, and chased them, and trod them down at their resting-place, as far as over against Gibeah toward the sunrising. 44And there fell of Benjamin eighteen thousand men; all these were men of valor. 45And they turned and fled toward the wilderness unto the rock of Rimmon: and they gleaned of them in the highways five thousand men, and followed hard after them unto Gidom, and smote of them two thousand men. 46So that all who fell that day of Benjamin were twenty and five thousand men that drew the sword; all these were men of valor. 47But six hundred men turned and fled toward the wilderness unto the rock of Rimmon, and abode in the rock of Rimmon four months. 48And the men of Israel turned again upon the children of Benjamin, and smote them with the edge of the sword, both the entire city, and the cattle, and all that they found: moreover all the cities which they found they set on fire.
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