Judges 20

1 Then all the Israelites from Dan to Beersheba and from the land of Gilead came out, and the congregation assembled as one man before the LORD at Mizpah.

Then all the children of Israel went out and gathered together as one man from Dan to Bersabee, with the land of Galaad, to the Lord in Maspha:

2 The leaders of all the people and all the tribes of Israel presented themselves in the assembly of God’s people: 400,000 men on foot, armed with swords.

And all the chiefs of the people, and all the tribes of Israel met together in the assembly of the people of God, four hundred thousand footmen fit for war.

3 (Meanwhile the Benjamites heard that the Israelites had gone up to Mizpah.) And the Israelites asked, “Tell us, how did this wicked thing happen?”

(Nor were the children of Benjamin ignorant that the children of Israel were come up to Maspha.) And the Levite the husband of the woman that was killed, being asked, how so great a wickedness had been committed,

4 So the Levite, the husband of the murdered woman, answered: “I and my concubine came to Gibeah in Benjamin to spend the night.

Answered: I came into Gabaa of Benjamin with my wife, and there I lodged:

5 And during the night, the men of Gibeah rose up against me and surrounded the house. They intended to kill me, but they abused my concubine, and she died.

And behold the men of that city in the night beset the house wherein I was, intending to kill me, and abused my wife with an incredible fury of lust, so that at last she died.

6 Then I took my concubine, cut her into pieces, and sent her throughout the land of Israel’s inheritance, because they had committed a lewd and disgraceful act in Israel.

And I took her and cut her in pieces, and sent the, parts into all the borders of your possession: because there never was so heinous a crime, and so great an abomination committed in Israel.

7 Behold, all you Israelites, give your advice and verdict here and now.”

You are all here, O children of Israel, determine what you ought to do.

8 Then all the people stood as one man and said, “Not one of us will return to his tent or to his house.

And all the people standing, answered as by the voice of one man: We will not return to our tents, neither shall any one of us go into his own house:

9 Now this is what we will do to Gibeah: We will go against it as the lot dictates.

But this we will do in common against Gabaa:

10 We will take ten men out of every hundred from all the tribes of Israel, and a hundred out of every thousand, and a thousand out of every ten thousand, to supply provisions for the army when they go to Gibeah in Benjamin to punish them for the atrocity they have committed in Israel.”

We will take ten men of a hundred out of all the tribes of Israel, and a hundred out of a thousand, and a thousand out of ten thousand, to bring victuals for the army, that we might fight against Gabaa of Benjamin, and render to it for its wickedness, what it deserveth.

11 So all the men of Israel gathered as one man, united against the city.

And all Israel were gathered together against the city, as one man, with one mind, and one counsel:

12 And the tribes of Israel sent men throughout the tribe of Benjamin, saying, “What is this wickedness that has occurred among you?

And they sent messengers to all the tribe of Benjamin to say to them: Why hath so great an abomination been found among you?

13 Hand over the wicked men of Gibeah so we can put them to death and purge Israel of this evil.” But the Benjamites refused to heed the voice of their fellow Israelites.

Deliver up the men of Gabaa, that have committed this heinous crime, that they may die, and the evil may be taken away out of Israel. But they would not hearken to the proposition of their brethren the children of Israel:

14 And from their cities they came together at Gibeah to go out and fight against the Israelites.

But out of all the cities which were of their lot, they gathered themselves together into Gabaa, to aid them, and to fight against the whole people of Israel.

15 On that day the Benjamites mobilized 26,000 swordsmen from their cities, in addition to the 700 select men of Gibeah.

And there were found of Benjamin five and twenty thousand men that drew the sword, besides the inhabitants of Gabaa,

16 Among all these soldiers there were 700 select left-handers, each of whom could sling a stone at a hair without missing.

Who were seven hundred most valiant men, fighting with the left hand as well as with the right: and slinging stones so sure that they could hit even a hair, and not miss by the stone’s going on either side.

17 The Israelites, apart from Benjamin, mobilized 400,000 swordsmen, each one an experienced warrior.

Of the men of Israel also, beside the children of Benjamin, were found four hundred thousand that drew swords, and were prepared to fight.

18 The Israelites set out, went up to Bethel, and inquired of God, “Who of us shall go up first to fight against the Benjamites?” “Judah will be first,” the LORD replied.

And they arose and came to the house of God, that is, to Silo: and they consulted God, and said: Who shall be in our army the first to go to the battle against the children of Benjamin? And the Lord answered them: Let Juda be your leader.

19 The next morning the Israelites set out and camped near Gibeah.

And forthwith the children of Israel rising in the morning, camped by Gabaa:

20 And the men of Israel went out to fight against Benjamin and took up their battle positions at Gibeah.

And going out from thence to fight against Benjamin, began to assault the city.

21 And the Benjamites came out of Gibeah and cut down 22,000 Israelites on the battlefield that day.

And the children of Benjamin coming out of Gabaa, slew of the children of Israel that day two and twenty thousand men.

22 But the Israelite army took courage and again took their battle positions in the same place where they had arrayed themselves on the first day.

Again Israel trusting in their strength and their number, set their army in array in the same place, where they had fought before:

23 They went up and wept before the LORD until evening, inquiring of Him, “Should we again draw near for battle against our brothers the Benjamites?” And the LORD answered, “Go up against them.”

Yet so that they first went up and wept before the Lord until night: and consulted him, and said: Shall I go out any more to fight against the children of Benjamin my brethren, or not? And he answered them: Go up against them, and join battle.

24 On the second day the Israelites advanced against the Benjamites.

And when the children of Israel went out the next day to fight against the children of Benjamin,

25 That same day the Benjamites came out against them from Gibeah and cut down another 18,000 Israelites, all of them armed with swords.

The children of Benjamin sallied forth out of the gates of Gabaa: and meeting them made so great a slaughter of them, as to kill eighteen thousand men that drew the sword.

26 Then the Israelites, all the people, went up to Bethel, where they sat weeping before the LORD. That day they fasted until evening and presented burnt offerings and peace offerings to the LORD.

Wherefore all the children of Israel came to the house of God, and sat and wept before the Lord: and they fasted that day till the evening, and offered to him holocausts, and victims of peace offerings,

27 And the Israelites inquired of the LORD. (In those days the ark of the covenant of God was there,

And inquired of him concerning their state. At that time the ark of the covenant of the Lord was there,

28 and Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, served before it.) The Israelites asked, “Should we again go out to battle against our brothers the Benjamites, or should we stop?” The LORD answered, “Fight, for tomorrow I will deliver them into your hand.”

And Phinees the son of Eleazar the son of Aaron was over the house. So they consulted the Lord and said: Shall we go out any more to fight against the children of Benjamin our brethren, or shall we cease? And the Lord said to them: Go up, for tomorrow I will deliver them into your hands.

29 So Israel set up an ambush around Gibeah.

And the children of Israel set ambushes round about the city of Gabaa:

30 On the third day the Israelites went up against the Benjamites and arrayed themselves against Gibeah as they had done before.

And they drew up their army against Benjamin the third time, as they had done the first and second.

31 The Benjamites came out against them and were drawn away from the city. They began to attack the people as before, killing about thirty men of Israel in the fields and on the roads, one of which led up to Bethel and the other to Gibeah.

And the children of Benjamin boldly issued out of the city, and seeing their enemies flee, pursued them a long way, so as to wound and kill some of them, as they had done the first and second day, whilst they fled by two highways, whereof one goeth up to Bethel, and the other to Gabaa, and they slew about thirty men:

32 “We are defeating them as before,” said the Benjamites. But the Israelites said, “Let us retreat and draw them away from the city onto the roads.”

For they thought to cut them off, as they did before. But they artfully feigning a flight, designed to draw them away from the city, and by their seeming to flee to bring them to the highways aforesaid.

33 So all the men of Israel got up from their places and arrayed themselves at Baal-tamar, and the Israelites in ambush charged from their positions west of Gibeah.

Then all the children of Israel rising up out of the places where they were, set their army in battle array, in the place which is called Baalthamar. The ambushes also which were about the city, began by little and little to come forth,

34 Then 10,000 select men from all Israel made a frontal assault against Gibeah, and the battle was fierce. But the Benjamites did not realize that disaster was upon them.

And to march from the west side of the city. And other ten thousand men chosen out of all Israel attacked the inhabitants of the city. And the battle grew hot against the children of Benjamin: and they understood not that present death threatened them on every side.

35 The LORD defeated Benjamin in the presence of Israel, and on that day the Israelites slaughtered 25,100 Benjamites, all armed with swords.

And the Lord defeated them before the children of Israel, and they slew of them in that day five and twenty thousand, and one hundred, all fighting men and that drew the sword.

36 Then the Benjamites realized they had been defeated. Now the men of Israel had retreated before Benjamin because they were relying on the ambush they had set against Gibeah.

But the children of Benjamin when they saw themselves to be too weak, began to flee. Which the children of Israel seeing, gave them place to flee, that they might come to the ambushes that were prepared, which they had set near the city.

37 The men in ambush rushed suddenly against Gibeah; they advanced and put the whole city to the sword.

And they that were in ambush arose on a sudden out of their coverts, and whilst Benjamin turned their backs to the slayers, went into the city, and smote it with the edge of the sword.

38 The men of Israel had arranged a signal with the men in ambush: When they sent up a great cloud of smoke from the city,

Now the children of Israel had given a sign to them, whom they had laid in ambushes, that after they had taken the city, they should make a fire: that by the smoke rising on high, they might shew that the city was taken.

39 the men of Israel would turn in the battle. When the Benjamites had begun to strike them down, killing about thirty men of Israel, they said, “They are defeated before us as in the first battle.”

And when the children of Israel saw this in the battle (for the children of Benjamin thought they fled and pursued them vigorously, killing thirty men of their army)

40 But when the column of smoke began to go up from the city, the Benjamites looked behind them and saw the whole city going up in smoke.

And perceived as it were a pillar of smoke rise up from the city; and Benjamin looking back, saw that the city was taken, and that the flames ascended on high:

41 Then the men of Israel turned back on them, and the men of Benjamin were terrified when they realized that disaster had come upon them.

They that before had made as if they fled, turning their faces stood bravely against them; which the children of Benjamin seeing, turned their backs,

42 So they fled before the men of Israel toward the wilderness, but the battle overtook them, and the men coming out of the cities struck them down there.

And began to go towards the way of the desert, the enemy pursuing them thither also. And they that fired the city came also out to meet them.

43 They surrounded the Benjamites, pursued them, and easily overtook them in the vicinity of Gibeah on the east.

And so it was, that they were slain on both sides by the enemies, and there was no rest of their men dying. They fell and were beaten down on the east side of the city Gabaa.

44 And 18,000 Benjamites fell, all men of valor.

And they that were slain in the same place were eighteen thousand men, all most valiant soldiers.

45 Then the Benjamites turned and fled toward the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon, and Israel cut down 5,000 men on the roads. And they overtook them at Gidom and struck down 2,000 more.

And when they that remained of Benjamin saw this, they fled into the wilderness and made towards the rock that is called Remmon. In that flight, also as they were straggling and going different ways, they slew of them five thousand men. And as they went farther, they still pursued them, and slew also other two thousand.

46 That day 25,000 Benjamite swordsmen fell, all men of valor.

And so it came to pass, that all that were slain of Benjamin in divers places, were five and twenty thousand fighting men, most valiant for war.

47 But 600 men turned and fled into the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon, where they stayed four months.

And there remained of all the number of Benjamin only six hundred men that were able to escape, and flee to the wilderness: and they abode in the rock Remmon four months.

48 And the men of Israel turned back against the other Benjamites and put to the sword all the cities, including the animals and everything else they found. And they burned down all the cities in their path.

But the children of Israel returning, put all the remains of the city to the sword, both men and beasts, and all the cities and villages of Benjamin were consumed with devouring flames.