Judges 21
1 Now the children of Israel swore in Massephath, saying, No man of us shall give his daughter to Benjamin for a wife.
Now the children of Israel had also sworn in Maspha, saying: None of us shall give of his daughters to the children of Benjamin to wife.
2 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;
And they all came to the house of God in Silo, and abiding before him till the evening, lifted up their voices, and began to lament and weep, saying:
3 and said, Therefore, O Lord God of Israel, has this come to pass, that today one tribe should be counted [as missing] from Israel?
O Lord God of Israel, why is so great an evil come to pass in thy people, that this day one tribe should be taken away from among us?
4 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.
And rising early the next day, they built an altar: and offered there holocausts, and victims of peace, and they said:
5 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.
Who is there among all the tribes of Israel that came not up with the army of the Lord? for they had bound themselves with a great oath, when they were in Maspha, that whosoever were wanting should be slain.
6 And the children of Israel relented towards Benjamin their brother, and said, To-day one tribe is cut off from Israel.
And the children of Israel being moved with repentance for their brother Benjamin, began to say: One tribe is taken away from Israel.
7 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.
Whence shall they take wives? For we have all in general sworn, not to give our daughters to them.
8 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.
Therefore they said: Who is thereof all the tribes of Israel, that came not up to the Lord to Maspha. And behold the inhabitants of Jabes Galaad were found not to have been in that army.
9 And the people were numbered, and there was not there a man from the inhabitants of Jabis Galaad.
(At that time also when they were in Silo, no one of them was found there.)
10 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.
So they sent ten thousand of the most valiant men, and commanded them, saying: Go and put the inhabitants of Jabes Galaad to the sword, with their wives and their children.
11 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.
And this is what you shall observe: Every male, and all women that have known men, you shall kill, but the virgins you shall save.
12 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.
And there were found of Jabes Galaad four hundred virgins, that had not known the bed of a man, and they brought them to the camp Silo, into the land of Chanaan.
13 And all the congregation sent and spoke to the children of Benjamin in the rock Remmon, and invited them to [make] peace.
And they sent messengers to the children of Benjamin, that were in the rock Remmon, and commanded them to receive them in peace.
14 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.
And the children of Benjamin came at that time, and wives were given them of the daughters of Jabes Galaad: but they found no others, whom they might give in like manner.
15 And the people relented for Benjamin, because the Lord had made a breach in the tribes of Israel.
And all Israel was very sorry, and repented for the destroying of one tribe out of Israel.
16 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.
And the ancients said: What shall we do with the rest, that have not received wives? for all the women in Benjamin are dead.
17 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.
And we must use all care, and provide with great diligence, that one tribe be not destroyed out of Israel.
18 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.
For as to our own daughters we cannot give them, being bound with an oath and a curse, whereby we said: Cursed be he that shall give Benjamin any of his daughters to wife.
19 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.
So they took counsel, and said: Behold there is a yearly solemnity of the Lord in Silo, which is situate on the north of the city of Bethel, and on the east side of the way, that goeth from Bethel to Sichem, and on the south of the town of Lebona.
20 And they charged the children of Benjamin, saying, Go and lie in wait in the vineyards;
And they commanded the children of Benjamin, and said: Go, and lie hid in the vineyards,
21 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.
And when you shall see the daughters of Silo come out, as the custom is, to dance, come ye on a sudden out of the vineyards, and catch you every man his wife among them, and go into the land of Benjamin.
22 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.
And when their fathers and their brethren shall come, and shall begin to complain against you, and to chide, we will say to them: Have pity on them for they took them not away as by the right of war or conquest, but when they asked to have them, you gave them not, and the fault was committed on your part.
23 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.
And the children of Benjamin did, as they had been commanded: and according to their number, they carried off for themselves every man his wife of them that were dancing: and they went into their possession and built up their cities, and dwelt in them.
24 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.
The children of Israel also returned by their tribes, and families, to their dwellings.
25 And in those days there was no king in Israel; every man did that which was right in his own sight.
In those days there was no king in Israel: but every one did that which seemed right to himself.
