Laitloekkung 21
1 Te dongah Israel hlang loh Mizpah ah ol a caeng uh tih, “Mamih khuiah pakhat long khaw a tanu te Benjamin yuu la pae boel saeh,” a ti uh.
When the Israeli men gathered at Mizpah [before the battle started], they vowed, “None of us will ever allow one of our daughters to marry any man from the tribe of Benjamin!”
2 Te phoeiah pilnam te Bethel la cet uh tih BOEIPA mikhmuh ah kholaeh duela ngol uh. Te vaengah a rhah ol a huel uh tih hluk hluk rhap uh.
But now the Israelis went to Bethel and they cried loudly to Yahweh all day, until the sun went down.
3 Te dongah “Israel Pathen BOEIPA aw, Israel koca pakhat khui lamloh hloep aka buel uh ham te tihnin ah balae tih Israel taengah a om,” a ti uh.
They kept saying, “Yahweh, God of us Israeli people, [it is as though] one of the tribes of us Israelis does not exist any more! (Why has this happened to us?/It is terrible that this has happened to us!)” [RHQ]
4 A vuen ah pilnam te thoo tih hmueihtuk a suem uh. Te phoeiah hmueihhlutnah neh rhoepnah te a nawn uh.
Early the next morning the people built an altar. Then they completely burned some sacrifices [on the altar], and also offered other sacrifices to maintain fellowship with God.
5 Tedae, “BOEIPA taengah Mizpah la aka cet pawt tah duek rhoela duek saeh,” a ti tih olhlo puei a om dongah Israel ca rhoek loh, “Israel koca boeih khuiah BOEIPA taengkah hlangping lakli la aka mop pawt te ulae,” a ti uh.
Then, because they had vowed that anyone who did not meet with them at Mizpah [to help fight the men of the tribe of Benjamin] would be killed, they asked among themselves, “Were there any of the tribes of Israel who did not come to Mizpah to meet with us in the presence of Yahweh?”
6 Te daengah Israel ca rhoek loh a manuca Benjamin soah damti uh tih, “Israel khuiah koca pakhat tah tihnin ah pat coeng.
The Israelis felt sorry for their fellow Israelis from the tribe of Benjamin. They said, “Today one of our Israeli tribes (has disappeared/no longer exists).
7 Mah tanu te amih yuu la paek pawt ham mamih loh BOEIPA taengah n'toemngam uh dongah aka sueng rhoek ham a yuu metlam m'vawt uh eh,” a ti uh.
Yahweh heard us solemnly declare that we would not allow any of our daughters to marry any man from the tribe of Benjamin. What can we do to make certain that the men of the tribe of Benjamin who were not killed will have wives?”
8 Te dongah, “Israel koca khuikah pakhat khaw BOEIPA taengah Mizpah la aka mop pawt te melae,” a ti uh daengah Jabesh Gilead rhaehhmuen lamkah te hlangping taengah hlang pakhat khaw tarha mop pawh.
Then [one of] them asked, “What group from any of the tribes of Israel did not send any men here to Mizpah?”
9 Te dongah pilnam te a boel uh hatah te Jabesh Gilead khosa rhoek khui lamkah pakhat khaw om tangloeng pawh.
[They realized that] when the soldiers were counted, there was no one from Jabesh-Gilead [city] who had come there.
10 Te dongah tatthai hlang khui lamkah rhaengpuei la hlang thawng hlai hnih te a tueih uh tih amih te a uen uh hatah, “Cet uh lamtah Jabesh Gilead kah huta camoe khosa rhoek te cunghang ha neh ngawn uh.
So all the Israelis decided to send 12,000 very good soldiers to Jabesh-Gilead to kill the people there with their swords, even to kill the married women and children.
11 Te phoeiah tongpa boeih hekah olka bangla saii uh lamtah thingkong dongah tongpa neh aka ming uh huta te khaw boeih thup uh,” a ti nah.
[They told this to those men]: “This is what you must do: You must kill every man in Jabesh-Gilead. You must also kill every married woman. [But do not kill the unmarried women].”
12 Te dongah Jabesh Gilead kah khosa rhoek khuiah tongpa kah thingkong neh tongpa aka ming pawh hula, oila ya li a hmuh uh te khaw Kanaan kho kah Shiloh rhaehhmuen la a khuen uh.
So those soldiers [went to Jabesh-Gilead and killed all the men, married women, and children. But they] found 400 unmarried young women there. So they brought them to their camp at Shiloh, in Canaan, [across the river from the Gilead area that belonged to the tribe of Benjamin].
13 Te phoeiah rhaengpuei pum te a tueih uh tih Rimmon thaelpang kah Benjamin ca rhoek te a voek uh. Te vaengah rhoepnah neh amih te a khue uh.
Then all the Israelis [who had gathered] sent a message to the 600 men who were at Rimmon Rock. They said that they would like to make peace with them.
14 Benjamin khaw te vaeng khohnin ah ha mael coeng. Te dongah Jabesh Gilead lamkah huta aka hing duen te amih yuu la a paek uh dae amih ham rhoeh tah dang uh pawh.
So the men came back from Rimmon Rock. The Israelis gave to them the women from Jabesh-Gilead whom they had not killed. But there were [only 400 women. But there were] not enough women [for those 600 men].
15 Tedae BOEIPA loh Israel koca khuiah a puut a saii coeng dongah Benjamin ham khaw pilnam khaw hal van.
The Israelis [still] felt sorry for the men of the tribe of Benjamin, because Yahweh had (decimated/almost wiped out) one of the Israeli tribes.
16 Te dongah hlangboel khuikah a hamca rhoek, “Benjamin nu he a mitmoeng coeng dongah aka sueng rhoek ham a yuu metlam m'vawt pa eh,” a ti uh.
The Israeli leaders said, “We have killed all the married women of the tribe of Benjamin. Where can we get women to be wives of the men who are still alive?
17 Te phoeiah, “Benjamin rhalyong rhoek kah rho he Israel koca lamkah long khaw hmata boel saeh.
These men must have wives to give birth to children, in order that their families will continue. If that does not happen, all the people of one of the tribes of Israel will die.
18 Te phoeiah, 'Benjamin taengah huta aka pae tah thaephoei thil saeh,’ a ti tih Israel ca rhoek loh a toemngam coeng dongah mamih nu khui lamkah he amih taengah a yuu la pae ham khaw coeng pawh,” a ti uh.
But we cannot allow our daughters to marry these men, because we vowed that Yahweh will curse anyone who gives one of his daughters to become a wife of any man of the tribe of Benjamin.”
19 Te phoeiah, “A kum kum kah BOEIPA khotue te Shiloh ah om oem ta te. Shiloh he Bethel tlangpuei, Bethel, Shekhem lamloh Lebonah tuithim duela aka luei longpuei kah khocuk ah om ta,” a ti uh.
Then [one of] them (had an idea/thought of something that they could do). He said, “Every year there is a festival to honor Yahweh at Shiloh, which is north of Bethel and east of the road that extends from Bethel to Shechem, and it is south of Lebonah [city].”
20 Te dongah Benjamin ca rhoek te a uen a uen uh tih, “Cet uh lamtah misur kung ah rhongngol uh.
So the Israeli leaders told the men of the tribe of Benjamin, “[When it is the time for that festival], go to Shiloh and hide in the vineyards.
21 Te vaengah so uh lamtah lam dongah thum ham Shiloh nu rhoek pawk ha thoeng uh ni. Te vaengah misur kung lamloh cuk thil uh lamtah namamih ham tu uh. Hlang boeih loh Shiloh nu te Benjamin kho ah na yuu la caeh puei uh.
Keep watching for the young women to come out of the city to dance. [When they come out], all of you should run out of the vineyards. Each of you can seize one of the young women of Shiloh. Then you can all return to your homes [with those women].
22 Te vaengah a napa rhoek khaw, a nganpa rhoek khaw halo vetih mamih taengah aka ho khaw om ni. Tedae amih te, 'Kaimih he ng'rhen uh mai, caemtloek vaengah a yuu la hlang ka dang pa uh oeh pawh. Amih te a tuetang vaengah nangmih loh na pae uh pawt koinih na lolh uh ni,’ ka ti na uh bitni,” a ti na uh.
If their fathers or brothers come to us and complain [about what you have done], we will say to them, ‘Be kind to the men of the tribe of Benjamin. When we fought them, we did not leave any women alive to become their wives, and you did not give those young women to the men from the tribe of Benjamin. [They stole them]. So you will not be guilty, [even though you said that you would not allow any of your daughters to marry one of them].’”
23 Te dongah Benjamin ca rhoek loh a saii uh tih amamih tarhing ah huta a khuen uh. Aka lam rhoek khui lamkah te a tuuk uh daengah cet uh tih a rho te a paan uh. Te phoeiah khopuei te a khoeng uh tih a khuiah kho a sak uh.
So that is what the men of the tribe of Benjamin did. [They went to Shiloh at the time of the festival]. And when the young women were dancing, each man caught one of them and took her away and married her. Then they took their wives back to the land that God had given to them. They rebuilt their cities [that had been burned down], and they lived there.
24 Israel ca rhoek khaw tekah khohnin daengah te lamkah te amah koca rhoek neh a huiko taengla nong uh tih amah rho te rhip a paan uh.
The other Israelis went to their homes in the areas where their tribes and clans lived, the areas that God had allotted to them.
25 Te vaeng tue ah khaw Israel khuiah manghai tal tih hlang boeih loh a mik dongkah a thuem sak bangla a saii uh.
At that time, the Israeli people did not have a king. Everyone did what they themselves thought was right.
