Judges 20 Israel's war with the tribe of Benjamin Then all the people of Israel came out, from Dan to Bershiba, including the land of Gilead, and the congregation assembled as one man to the Lord at Misbah, and the chiefs of all the people of all the tribes of Israel presented themselves in the assembly of the people of God, 400,000 men on foot that drew the sword. Now the people of Benjamin heard that the people of Israel had gone up to Misbah, and the people of Israel said, Tell us, how did this evil happen? And the Levite, the husband of the woman who was murdered, answered and said, I came to Gibiah that belongs to Benjamin, I am my concubine to spend the night. And the leaders of Gibiah rose against me and surrounded the house against me by night. They meant to kill me, and they violated my concubine and she is dead. So I took hold of my concubine and cut her in pieces and sent her throughout all the country of the inheritance of Israel, for they have committed abomination and outrage in Israel. Behold, you people of Israel, all of you, give your advice and counsel here. And all the people arose as one man, saying, None of us will go to his tent, and none of us will return to his house. But now this is what we will do to Gibiah. We will go up against it by lot, and we will take ten men of a hundred throughout all the tribes of Israel, and a hundred of a thousand, and a thousand of ten thousand, to bring provisions for the people, that when they come, they may repay Gibiah of Benjamin for all the outrage that they have committed in Israel. So all the men of Israel gathered against the city, united as one man. And the tribes of Israel sent men through all the tribe of Benjamin saying, What evil is this that has taken place among you? Now therefore give up the men, the worthless fellows in Gibiah, that we may put them to death and purge evil from Israel. But the Benjaminites would not listen to the voice of their brothers and the people of Israel. Then the people of Benjamin came together out of the cities to Gibiah, to go out to battle against the people of Israel. And the people of Benjamin mustered out of their cities on that day twenty six thousand men who drew the sword, besides the inhabitants of Gibiah, who mustered seven hundred chosen men. Among all these were seven hundred chosen men who were left handed. Everyone could sling a stone at a hair and not miss. And the men of Israel apart from Benjamin mustered four hundred thousand men who drew the sword. All these were men of war. The people of Israel arose and went up to Bethel and inquired of God, Who shall go up first for us to fight against the people of Benjamin? And the Lord said, Judah shall go up first. Then the people of Israel rose in the morning and it camped against Gibiah. And the men of Israel went out to fight against Benjamin and the men of Israel drew up the battle line against them at Gibiah. The people of Benjamin came out of Gibiah and destroyed on that day twenty two thousand men of the Israelites. But the people of the men of Israel took courage and again formed the battle line in the same place where they had formed it on the first day. And the people of Israel went up and wept before the Lord until the evening. And they inquired of the Lord, Shall we again draw near to fight against our brothers, the people of Benjamin? And the Lord said, Go up against them. So the people of Israel came near against the people of Benjamin the second day. And Benjamin went against them out of Gibiah the second day and destroyed eighteen thousand men of the people of Israel. All these were men who drew the sword. Then all the people of Israel, the whole army, went up and came to Bethel and wept. They sat there before the Lord and fasted that day until evening and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the Lord. And the people of Israel inquired of the Lord for the Ark of the Covenant of God was there in those days. In Phineas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron, ministered before it in those days saying, Shall we go out once more to battle against our brothers, the people of Benjamin? Or shall we cease? And the Lord said, Go up for tomorrow I will give them into your hand. So Israel set men in ambush around Gibiah. And the people of Israel went up against the people of Benjamin on the third day and set themselves in an array against Gibiah, as at other times. And the people of Benjamin went out against the people and were drawn away from the city. And as at other times they began to strike and kill some of the people in the highways, one of which goes up to Bethel and the other to Gibiah and in the open country about thirty men of Israel. And that people of Benjamin said, They are routed before us, as at the first. But the people of Israel said, Let us flee and draw them away from the city to the highways. And all the men of Israel rose up out of their place and set themselves in an array at Thayel Tamar. And the men of Israel who were in ambush rushed out of their place from Me'e-e-Rekiba. And there came against Gibiah ten thousand chosen men out of all Israel. And the battle was hard, but the Benjaminites did not know that disaster was close upon them. And the Lord defeated Benjamin before Israel, and the people of Israel destroyed twenty-five thousand one hundred men of Benjamin that day. All these were men who drew the sword. So the people of Benjamin saw that they were defeated. The men of Israel gave ground to Benjamin because they trusted the men in ambush who they had set against Gibiah. Then the men in ambush hurried and rushed against Gibiah. The men in ambush moved out and struck all the city with the edge of the sword. Now the appointed signal between the men of Israel and the men in the main ambush was that when they made a great cloud of smoke rise up out of the city, the men of Israel should turn in battle. Now Benjamin had begun to strike and kill about thirty men of Israel. They said, surely they are defeated before us, as in the first battle. But when the signal began to rise out of the city in a column of smoke, the Benjaminites looked behind them and behold, the whole of the city went up in smoke to heaven. Then the men of Israel turned and the men of Benjamin were dismayed for they saw that disaster was close upon them. Therefore they turned their backs before the men of Israel in the direction of the wilderness, but the battle overtook them and those who came out of the cities were destroying them in their midst. Surrounding the Benjaminites, they pursued them and trod them down from Nohah as far as opposite Gibiah on the east. Eighteen thousand men of Benjamin fell, all of them men of Valor, and they turned and fled toward the wilderness to the Rock of Rimmem. Five thousand men of them were cut down in the highways and they were pursued hard to get them, and two thousand men of them were struck down, so all who fell that day of Benjamin were twenty five thousand men who drew the sword, all of them men of Valor. But six hundred men turned and fled toward the wilderness to the Rock of Rimmem and remained at the Rock of Rimmem four months, and the men of Israel turned back against the people of Benjamin and struck them with the edge of the sword, the city, men and beasts, and all that they found, and all the towns that they found they set on fire. Judges Chapter Twenty-One Wives Provided for the Tribe of Benjamin Now the men of Israel had sworn at Misbah, No one of us shall give his daughter in marriage to Benjamin, and the people came to Bethel and sat there till evening before God, and they lifted up their voices and wept bitterly, and they said, Oh Lord, the God of Israel, why has this happened in Israel, that today there should be one tribe lacking in Israel, and the next day the people rose early and built their an altar and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings, and the people of Israel said, Which of all the tribes of Israel did not come up in the assembly to the Lord? For they had taken a great oath concerning him who did not come up to the Lord to Misbah, He shall surely be put to death. And the people of Israel had compassion for Benjamin their brother and said, One tribe is cut off from Israel this day. What shall we do for wives for those who are left, since we have sworn by the Lord that we will not give them any of our daughters for wives? And they said, What one is there of the tribes of Israel that did not come up to the Lord to Misbah? And behold, no one had come to the camp from Jabesh Gilead to the assembly, for when the people were mustered, behold, not one of the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead was there. So the congregation sent 12,000 of their bravest men there and commanded them, Go and strike the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead with the edge of the sword, also the women and the little ones. This is what you shall do, every male and every woman that has lain with a male, you shall devote to destruction. And they found among the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead 400 young virgins who had not known a man by lying with him, and they brought them to the camp at Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan. Then the whole congregation sent word to the people of Benjamin who were at the Rock of Rimen and proclaimed peace to them. And Benjamin returned at that time, and they gave them the women whom they had saved alive, of the women of Jabesh Gilead, but they were not enough for them. And the people had compassion from Benjamin because the Lord had made a breach in the tribes of Israel. Then the elders of the congregation said, What shall we do for the wives for those who are left since the women are destroyed out of Benjamin? And they said, There must be an inheritance for the survivors of Benjamin that a tribe not be blotted out from Israel, yet we cannot give them wives from our daughters. For the people of Israel had sworn, Cursby he who gives a wife to Benjamin. So they said, Behold, there is the yearly feast of the Lord at Shiloh, which is north of Bethel, on the east of the highway that goes up from Bethel to Shechem, in south of Lebanon. And they commanded the people of Benjamin, saying, Go and lie in ambush and the vineyards and watch. If the daughters of Shiloh come out to dance in the dances, then come out of the vineyards and snatch each man his wife from the daughters of Shiloh and go to the land of Benjamin. And when their fathers or their brothers come out to complain to us, we will say to them, give them graciously to us, because we did not take for each man of them his wife in battle. Neither did you give them to them, else you would now be guilty. And the people of Benjamin did so and took their wives according to their number from the dancers whom they carried off. Then they went and returned to their inheritance and rebuilt the towns and lived in them. And the people of Israel departed from there at that time, every man to his tribe and family, and they went out from there every man to his inheritance. In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes. John chapter 8 verses 31 through 59, the truth will set you free. So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. They answered him, We are offspring of Abraham, and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say you will become free? Jesus answered them, Truly, Truly I say to you, Everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever. The son remains forever. So if the son sets you free, you will be free indeed. I know that you are offspring of Abraham, yet you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you. I speak of what I have seen with my father, and you do what you have heard from your father. You are of your father the devil. They answered him, Abraham is our father. Jesus said to them, If you were Abraham's children, you would be doing the works Abraham did, but now you seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. This is not what Abraham did. You are doing the works your father did. They said to him, We were not born of sexual immorality. We have one father, even God. Jesus said to them, If God were your father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me. Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word. You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me. Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me? Whoever is of God, hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God. Where Abraham was, I am. The Jews answered him, Are we not right in saying that you are a Samaritan and have a demon? Jesus answered, I do not have a demon, but I honor my father and you dishonor me. Yet I do not seek my own glory. There is one who seeks it, and he is the judge. Truly, truly I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death. The Jews said to him, Now we know that you have a demon. Abraham died, as did the prophets, yet you say, If anyone keeps my word, he will never taste death. Are you greater than our father Abraham who died? And the prophets died? Who do you make yourself out to be? Jesus answered, If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. It is my father who glorifies me, of whom you say, He is our God, but you have not known him. I know him. If I were to say that I do not know him, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him, and I keep his word. Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad. So the Jews said to him, You are not yet 50 years old and have you seen Abraham? Jesus said to them, Truly, truly I say to you, Before Abraham was, I am. So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple. Psalm 78 verses 56 through 72. Yet they tested and rebelled against the Most High God and did not keep his testimonies, but turned away and acted treacherously like their fathers. They twisted like a deceitful bow, for they provoked him to anger with their high places. They moved him to jealousy with their idols. When God heard, he was full of wrath, and he utterly rejected Israel. He forsook his dwelling at Shiloh, the tent where he dwelt among mankind, and delivered his power to captivity, his glory to the hand of the foe. He gave his people over to the sword, invented his wrath on his heritage. Fire devoured their young men, and their young women had no marriage song. Their priests fell by the sword, and their widows made no lamentation. Then the Lord awoke as from sleep, like a strong man shouting because of wine, and he put his adversaries to rout. He put them to everlasting shame. He rejected the tent of Joseph. He did not choose the tribe of Ephraim, but he chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion, which he loves. He built his sanctuary like the high heavens, like the earth which he has founded forever. He chose David, his servant, and took him from the sheepfolds. From following the nursing ewes, he brought him to shepherd Jacob, his people, Israel, his inheritance. With upright heart, he shepherded them, and guided them with his skillful hand.
