Dommer 21
1 Men Israels Mænd havde i Mizpa aflagt den Ed: »Ingen af os vil give en Benjaminit sin Datter til Ægte!«
Now the children of Israel swore in Massephath, saying, No man of us shall give his daughter to Benjamin for a wife.
2 Da nu Folket var kommet til Betel, sad de der lige til Aften for Guds Aasyn og opløftede deres Røst, græd heftigt
And the people came to Baethel, and sat there until evening before God: and they lifted up their voice and wept with a great weeping;
3 og sagde: »Hvorfor, HERRE, Israels Gud, er dog dette hændet i Israel, saa at vi i Dag maa savne en Stamme af Israel?«
and said, Therefore, O Lord God of Israel, has this come to pass, that today one tribe should be counted [as missing] from Israel?
4 Tidligt næste Morgen byggede Folket et Alter der og ofrede Brændofre og Takofre.
And it came to pass on the morrow that the people rose up early, and built there an altar, and offered up whole burnt offerings and peace offerings.
5 Derpaa sagde Israeliterne: »Hvem blandt alle Israels Stammer undlod at drage op med Forsamlingen til HERREN?« Der var nemlig svoret en dyr Ed paa, at enhver, der undlod at drage op til HERREN i Mizpa, skulde dø.
And the children of Israel said, Who of all the tribes of Israel, went not up in the congregation to the Lord? for there was a great oath concerning those who went not up to the Lord to Massephath, saying, He shall surely be put to death.
6 Men nu gjorde det Israeliterne ondt for deres Broder Benjamin, og de sagde: »I Dag er en Stamme hugget af Israel!
And the children of Israel relented towards Benjamin their brother, and said, To-day one tribe is cut off from Israel.
7 Hvad skal vi gøre for dem, der er tilbage, for at skaffe dem Hustruer, eftersom vi har svoret ved HERREN, at vi ikke vil give dem nogen af vore Døtre til Ægte?«
What shall we do for wives for the rest that remain? whereas we have sworn by the Lord, not to give them of our daughters for wives.
8 Saa spurgte de: »Er der maaske en af Israels Stammer, der undlod at drage op til HERREN i Mizpa?« Og se, der var ingen kommet til Lejren, til Forsamlingen, fra Jabesj i Gilead.
And they said, What one [man is there] of the tribes of Israel, who went not up to the Lord to Massephath? and, behold, no man came to the camp from Jabis Galaad to the assembly.
9 Saa blev Folket mønstret, og se, der var ingen af Indbyggerne fra Jabesj i Gilead.
And the people were numbered, and there was not there a man from the inhabitants of Jabis Galaad.
10 Da sendte Menigheden 12 000 Mand af de tapreste Folk derhen med den Befaling: »Drag hen og hug Indbyggerne i Jabesj i Gilead ned med Sværdet tillige med deres Kvinder og Børn.
And the congregation sent there twelve thousand men of the strongest, and they charged them, saying, Go you and strike the inhabitants of Jabis Galaad with the edge of the sword.
11 Saaledes skal I bære eder ad: Alle af Mandkøn og alle Kvinder, der har haft Omgang med Mænd, skal I lægge Band paa!«
And this shall you do: every male and every woman that has known the lying with man you shall devote [to destruction], but the virgins you shall save alive: and they did so.
12 De fandt saa hos Indbyggerne i Jabesj i Gilead 400 unge Piger, der var Jomfruer og ikke havde haft Omgang med nogen Mand, og dem førte de til Lejren i Silo i Kana'ans Land.
And they found amongst the inhabitants of Jabis Galaad four hundred young virgins, who had not known man by lying with him; and they brought them to Selom in the land of Chanaan.
13 Derpaa sendte hele Menigheden Sendebud hen for at underhandle med Benjaminiterne, der befandt sig paa Rimmons Klippe, og tilbyde dem Fred.
And all the congregation sent and spoke to the children of Benjamin in the rock Remmon, and invited them to [make] peace.
14 Paa det Tidspunkt vendte Benjaminiterne saa tilbage, og de gav dem de Kvinder fra Jabesj i Gilead, som man havde ladet i Live. Men de var ikke nok til dem.
And Benjamin returned to the children of Israel at that time, and the children of Israel gave them the women whom they [had] save alive of the daughters of Jabis Galaad; and they were content.
15 Da gjorde det Folket ondt for Benjamin, fordi HERREN havde gjort et Skaar i Israels Stammer.
And the people relented for Benjamin, because the Lord had made a breach in the tribes of Israel.
16 Og Menighedens Ældste sagde: »Hvad skal vi gøre for dem, der er tilbage, for at skaffe dem Hustruer, eftersom alle Kvinder i Benjamin er udryddet?«
And the elders of the congregation said, What shall we do for wives for them that remain? for the women have been destroyed out of Benjamin.
17 Og de sagde: »Hvorledes kan der reddes en Rest af Benjamin, saa at ikke en Stamme i Israel gaar til Grunde?
And they said, [There must be] an inheritance of them that are escaped of Benjamin; and [so] a tribe shall not be destroyed out of Israel.
18 Vi kan jo ikke give dem nogen af vore Døtre til Ægte!« Israeliterne havde nemlig svoret og sagt: »Forbandet være den, som giver Benjaminiterne en Hustru!«
For we shall not be able to give them wives of our daughters, because we swore amongst the children of Israel, saying, Cursed [is] he that gives a wife to Benjamin.
19 Da sagde de: »Se, HERRENS Højtid fejres jo hvert Aar i Silo!« Det ligger norden for Betel, østen for Vejen, der fører op fra Betel til Sikem, og sønden for Lebona.
And they said, Behold! now [there is] a feast of the Lord from year to year in Selom, which is on the north of Baethel, eastward on the way that goes up from Baethel to Sychem, and from the south of Lebona.
20 Og de bød Benjaminiterne: »Gaa hen og læg eder paa Lur i Vingaardene!
And they charged the children of Benjamin, saying, Go and lie in wait in the vineyards;
21 Se saa nøje til, og naar de unge Kvinder fra Silo kommer ud for at opføre deres Danse, skal I komme frem af Vingaardene og røve hver sin Hustru af de unge Kvinder fra Silo og saa drage hjem til Benjamins Land!
and you shall see; and behold! if there come out the daughters of the inhabitants of Selom to dance in dances, then shall you go out of the vineyards and seize for yourselves every man a wife of the daughters of Selom, and go you into the land of Benjamin.
22 Naar saa deres Fædre eller Brødre kommer for at gaa i Rette med eder, skal I sige til dem: Skaan os, thi vi fik os ikke alle en Hustru i Krigen! Det er jo ikke eder, der har givet os dem; i saa Fald vilde I have forbrudt eder!«
And it shall come to pass, when their fathers or their brethren come to dispute with us, that we will say to them, Grant them freely to us, for we have not taken every man his wife in the battle: because you did not give to them according to the occasion, you transgressed.
23 Det gjorde Benjaminiterne da, og de tog sig Hustruer af de dansende Kvinder, som de røvede, een til hver; derpaa vendte de tilbage til deres Arvelod, opbyggede deres Byer og boede i dem.
And the children of Benjamin did so; and they took wives according to their number from the dancers whom they seized: and they went and returned to their inheritance, and built the cities, and lived in them.
24 Og samtidig drog Israeliterne derfra, hver til sin Stamme og Slægt, og de gik derfra hver til sin Arvelod,
And the children of Israel went thence at that time every man to his tribe and his kindred; and they went thence every man to his inheritance.
25 I de Dage var der ingen Konge i Israel; enhver gjorde, hvad han fandt for godt.
And in those days there was no king in Israel; every man did that which was right in his own sight.
