Dommer 21
1 Og Israels Mænd havde svoret i Mizpa og sagt: Der skal ingen af os give Benjamin sin Datter til Hustru.
Now the men of Israel had made a promise at Mizpah, “None of us will give his daughter to marry a Benjamite.”
2 Og Folket kom til Guds Hus, og de bleve der indtil Aftenen for Guds Ansigt; og de opløftede deres Røst og græd med en stor Graad.
Then the people went to Bethel and sat there before God until the evening, and with loud voices they wept bitterly.
3 Og de sagde: Herre, Israels Gud! hvorfor er dette sket i Israel, at i Dag een Stamme savnes af Israel?
They called out, “Why, Yahweh, God of Israel, has this happened to Israel, that one of our tribes should be missing today?”
4 Og det skete den anden Dag, da stod Folket aarle op, og de byggede der et Alter, og de ofrede Brændofre og Takofre.
The next day the people got up early and built an altar there and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings.
5 Og Israels Børn sagde: Hvo er den, som ikke er kommen med op til Forsamlingen af alle Israels Stammer til Herren? Thi der var svoret en høj Ed imod den, som ikke kom op til Herren i Mizpa, saa der sagdes: Han skal visseligen dødes.
The people of Israel said, “Which of all the tribes of Israel did not come up in the assembly to Yahweh?” For they had made an important promise concerning anyone who did not come up to Yahweh at Mizpah. They said, “He would certainly be put to death.”
6 Og det gjorde Israels Børn ondt for deres Broder Benjamin, og de sagde: I Dag er een Stamme afhuggen af Israel.
The people of Israel had compassion for their brother Benjamin. They said, “Today one tribe has been cut off from Israel.
7 Hvad ville vi gøre dem, som ere overblevne, at de kunne faa Hustruer? thi vi have svoret ved Herren, at vi ikke ville give dem af vore Døtre til Hustruer.
Who will provide wives for those who are left, since we have made a promise to Yahweh that we will not let any of them marry our daughters?”
8 Og de sagde: Hvad er det for en af Israels Stammer, som ikke er kommen op til Herren i Mizpa? Og se, der var ingen Mand kommen til Lejren fra Jabes i Gilead til Forsamlingen.
They said, “Which of the tribes of Israel did not come up to Yahweh at Mizpah?” It was found that no one had come to the assembly from Jabesh Gilead.
9 Thi Folket blev talt; og se, da var der ingen af Indbyggerne fra Jabes i Gilead.
For when the people were set out in an orderly manner, behold, none of the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead were there.
10 Da sendte de derhen af Menigheden tolv Tusinde Mand af Stridsfolkene; og de bøde dem og sagde: Gaar hen og slaar Indbyggerne i Jabes i Gilead med skarpe Sværd, samt Hustruerne og de smaa Børn.
The assembly sent twelve thousand of their bravest men with instructions to go and strike the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead with the edge of the sword, including the women and children.
11 Og denne er den Gerning, som I skulle gøre: Alt Mandkøn og alle Kvinder, som have haft Samkvem med nogen Mand, skulle I ødelægge.
“Do this: You must kill every male and every woman who has slept with a man.”
12 Og de fandt af Indbyggerne i Jabes i Gilead fire Hundrede unge Piger, Jomfruer, som ikke havde kendt nogen Mand og ikke haft Samkvem med nogen Mand, og de førte dem til Lejren i Silo, som er i Landet Kanaan.
The men found among those living in Jabesh Gilead four hundred young women who had never slept with a man, and they took them to the camp at Shiloh, in Canaan.
13 Da sendte den ganske Menighed hen, og de lode tale med Benjamins Børn, som vare paa Klippen Bimmon; og de tilbøde dem Fred.
The entire assembly sent a message and told the people of Benjamin who were at the rock of Rimmon that they were offering them peace.
14 Saa kom Benjamin tilbage paa samme Tid, og de gave dem de Hustruer, som de havde ladet leve af Kvinderne fra Jabes i Gilead; og de fandt ikke saaledes nok til dem.
The Benjamites returned at that time and they were given the women of Jabesh Gilead, but there were not enough women for all of them.
15 Da gjorde det Folket ondt for Benjamin, fordi Herren havde gjort et Skaar i Israels Stammer.
The people were sorry for what happened to Benjamin, because Yahweh made a division between the tribes of Israel.
16 Og Menighedens Ældste sagde: Hvad skulle vi gøre ved de overblevne, at de kunne faa Hustruer? thi Kvinderne af Benjamin ere udryddede.
Then the leaders of the assembly said, “How will we arrange wives for the Benjamites who are left, since the women of Benjamin have been killed?”
17 Og de sagde: De undkomnes Ejendom skal høre Benjamin til, at ikke een Stamme skal blive udslettet af Israel.
They said, “There must be an inheritance for the survivors of Benjamin, so that a tribe is not destroyed from Israel.
18 Men vi kunne ikke give dem Hustruer af vore Døtre; thi Israels Børn have svoret og sagt: Forbandet være den, som giver Benjamin en Hustru!
We cannot give them wives from our daughters, for the people of Israel had made a promise, 'Cursed be anyone who gives a wife to Benjamin.'”
19 Og de sagde: Se, der er Aar for Aar Herrens Højtid i Silo, som ligger Nord for Bethel, mod Solens Opgang, paa den alfare Vej, som gaar op fra Bethel til Sikem, og Syd for Lebona.
So they said, “You know there is a feast for Yahweh every year at Shiloh (which is north of Bethel, east of the road that goes up from Bethel to Shechem, and south of Lebonah).”
20 Og de befalede Benjamins Børn og sagde: Gaar hen og lurer i Vingaardene!
They instructed the men of Benjamin, saying, “Go and hide in secret and wait in the vineyards.
21 Og I skulle se til, og se, dersom Silos Døtre gaa ud at danse, da maa I gaa ud af Vingaardene og gribe eder hver sin Hustru af Silos Døtre, og I skulle gaa til Benjamins Land.
Watch for the time when the girls from Shiloh come out to dance, then rush out of the vineyards and each one of you should grab a wife from the girls of Shiloh, then go back to the land of Benjamin.
22 Og det skal ske, naar deres Fædre eller deres Brødre komme at gaa i Rette med os, da ville vi sige til dem: Værer dem naadige for vor Skyld, fordi vi ikke have skaffet dem hver sin Hustru i Krigen; thi I have heller ikke givet dem Hustruer; eller skulle I nu have været skyldige.
When their fathers or their brothers come to protest to us, we will say to them, 'Show us favor! Let them remain because we did not get wives for each man during the war. You are innocent, since you did not give your daughters to them.'”
23 Og Benjamins Børn gjorde saaledes og toge Hustruer efter deres Tal af dem, som dansede, hvilke de røvede; og de gik og kom tilbage til deres Arv og byggede Stæderne og boede i dem.
The people of Benjamin did so. They took the number of wives that they needed from the girls who were dancing and they carried them off to be their wives. They went and returned to the place of their inheritance. They rebuilt the towns and lived in them.
24 Saa vandrede Israels Børn derfra paa samme Tid, hver til sin Stamme og til sin Slægt; og de udgik derfra, hver til sin Arv.
Then the people of Israel left that place and went home, each one to his own tribe and clan, and each one to his own inheritance.
25 I disse Dage var ingen Konge i Israel; hver gjorde det, som var ret for hans Øjne.
In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
