Judg 20
1
And all the children of Israel went out, and all the congregation was gathered as
one man, from Dan even to Bersabee, and in the land of Galaad, to the Lord at Massepha.
2
And all the tribes of Israel stood before the Lord in the assembly of the people of
God, four hundred thousand footmen that drew sword.
3
And the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel were gone up to Massepha:
and the children of Israel came and said, Tell us, where did this wickedness take
place?
4
And the Levite, the husband of the woman that was slain, answered and said, I and
my concubine went to Gabaa of Benjamin to lodge.
5
And the men of Gabaa rose up against me, and compassed the house by night against
me; they wished to slay me, and they have humbled my concubine, and she is dead.
6
And I laid hold of my concubine, and divided her in pieces, and sent the parts into
every coast of the inheritance of the children of Israel; for they have wrought lewdness
and abomination in Israel.
7
Behold, all you are children of Israel; and consider and take counsel here among yourselves.
8
And all the people rose up as one man, saying, No one of us shall return to his tent,
and no one of us shall return to his house.
9
And now this is the thing which shall be done in Gabaa; we will go up against it by
lot.
10
Moreover we will take ten men for a hundred for all the tribes of Israel, and a hundred
for a thousand, and a thousand for ten thousand, to take provision, to cause them
to come to Gabaa of Benjamin, to do to it according to all the abomination, which
Gr. it, sc. Gabas they wrought in Israel.
11
And all the men of Israel were gathered to the city as one man.
12
And the tribes of Israel sent men through the whole tribe of Benjamin, saying, What
is this wickedness that has been wrought among you?
13
Now then give up the men the Heb. sons of Belial sons of transgressors that are in Gabaa, and we will put them to death, and
purge
out wickedness from Israel: but the children of Benjamin consented not to hearken
to the voice of their brethren the children of Israel.
14
And the children of Benjamin were gathered from their cities to Gabaa, to go forth
to fight with the children of Israel.
15
And the children of Benjamin from their cities were numbered in that day, twenty-three
thousand, every man drawing a sword, besides the inhabitants of Gabaa, who were numbered
seven hundred chosen men of all the people, See Jud 3:15 able to use both hands alike;
16
All these could sling with stones at a hair, and not miss.
17
And the men of Israel, exclusive of Benjamin, were numbered four hundred thousand
men that drew sword; all these were men of war.
18
And they arose and went up to Baethel, and enquired of God: and the children of Israel
said, Who shall go up for us first to fight with the children of Benjamin? And the
Lord said, Juda shall go up first as leader.
19
And the children of Israel rose up in the morning, and encamped against Gabaa.
20
And they went out, all the men of Israel, to fight with Benjamin, and engaged with
them at Gabaa.
21
And the sons of Benjamin went forth from Gabaa, and they destroyed in Israel on that
day two and twenty thousand men down to the ground.
22
And the men of Israel Or, grew strong strengthened themselves, and again engaged in battle in the place where they had
engaged on the first day.
23
And the children of Israel went up, and wept before the Lord till evening, and enquired
of the Lord, saying, Shall we again draw nigh to battle with our brethren the children
of Benjamin? and the Lord said, Go up against them.
24
And the children of Israel advanced against the children of Benjamin on the second
day.
25
And the children of Benjamin went forth to meet them from Gabaa on the second day,
and destroyed of the children of Israel yet further eighteen thousand men down to
the ground: all these drew sword.
26
And the children of Israel and all the people went up, and came to Baethel; and they
wept, and sat there before the Lord; and they fasted on that day until evening, and
offered whole-burnt-offerings and Or, unblemished, according to the Hebrew, peace-offering perfect sacrifices, before the
Lord,
27
for the ark of the Lord God was there in those days,
28
and Phinees the son of Eleazar the son of Aaron stood before it in those days; and
the children of Israel enquired of the Lord, saying, Shall we yet again go forth to
fight with our brethren the sons of Benjamin? and the Lord said, Go up, to-morrow
I will give them into your hands.
29
And the children of Israel set an ambush against Gabaa round about it.
30
And the children of Israel went up against the children of Benjamin on the third day,
and arrayed themselves against Gabaa as before.
31
And the children of Benjamin went out to meet the people, and Gr. were emptied out of the city were all drawn out of the city,
and began to smite and slay the people as before
in the roads, Gr. which is one going up whereof one goes up to Baethel, and one to Gabaa in the field, about thirty men of
Israel.
32
And the children of Benjamin said, They fall before us as at the first: but the children
of Israel said, Let us flee, and draw them out from the city into the roads; and they
did so.
33
And all the men rose up out of their places, and engaged in Baal Thamar; and the liers
in wait of Israel advanced from their place from Heb. plain of the south Maraagabe.
34
And there came over against Gabaa ten thousand chosen men out of all Israel; and the
fight was severe; and they knew not that evil Gr. is coming upon them was coming upon them.
35
And the Lord smote Benjamin before the children of Israel; and the children of Israel
destroyed of Benjamin in that day a hundred and twenty-five thousand men: all these
drew sword.
36
And the children of Benjamin saw that they were smitten; and the men of Israel gave
place to Benjamin, because they trusted in the ambuscade which they had prepared against
Gabaa.
37
And when they retreated, then the liers in wait rose up, and they Gr. extended themselves moved toward Gabaa, and the whole
ambush came forth, and they smote the city with
the edge of the sword.
38
And the children of Israel had a signal of battle with the liers in wait, that they
should send up a Or, a concerted signal signal of smoke from the city.
39
And the children of Israel saw that the liers in wait had seized Gabaa, and they stood
in line of battle; and Benjamin began to smite down Or, slain ones; i. e., to smite and cause to fall wounded ones among the
men of Israel about thirty men; for they said, Surely they
fall again before us, Gr. as the first battle was as in the first battle.
40
And the signal went up increasingly over the city as a pillar of smoke; and Benjamin
looked behind him, and behold the destruction of the city went up to heaven.
41
And the men of Israel turned back, and the men of Benjamin hasted, because they saw
that evil had come upon them.
42
And they turned to the way of the wilderness from before the children of Israel, and
fled: but the battle overtook them, and they from the cities destroyed them in the
midst of them.
43
And they cut down Benjamin, and pursued him from Nua closely till they came opposite
Gabaa on the east.
44
And there fell of Benjamin eighteen thousand men: all these were men of might.
45
And the rest turned, and fled to the wilderness to the rock of Remmon; and the children
of Israel Or, cut off as stragglers; Gr. gleaned, or picked straws picked off of them five thousand men; and the children
of Israel went down after
them as far as Gedan, and they smote of them two thousand men.
46
And all that fell of Benjamin were twenty-five thousand men that drew sword in that
day: all these were men of might.
47
And the rest turned, and fled to the wilderness to the rock of Remmon, even six hundred
men; and they sojourned four months in the rock of Remmon.
48
And the children of Israel returned to the children of Benjamin, and smote them with
the edge of the sword from the city of Methla, even to the cattle, and every thing
that was found in all the cities: and they burnt with fire the cities they found.