Judges 21
1 And the men of Israel have sworn in Mizpeh, saying, “None of us gives his daughter to Benjamin for a wife.”
Now the children of Israel swore in Massephath, saying, No man of us shall give his daughter to Benjamin for a wife.
2 And the people come to Beth-El, and sit there until the evening before God, and lift up their voice, and weep [with] a great weeping,
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 and say, “Why, O YHWH, God of Israel, has this been in Israel—to be lacking one tribe from Israel today?”
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 And it comes to pass on the next day, that the people rise early, and build an altar there, and cause burnt-offerings and peace-offerings to ascend.
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 And the sons of Israel say, “Who [is] he that has not come up in the assembly to YHWH out of all the tribes of Israel?” For the great oath has been concerning him who has not come up to YHWH to Mizpeh, saying, “He is surely put to death.”
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 And the sons of Israel sigh concerning their brother Benjamin, and say, “Today there has been one tribe cut off from Israel,
And the children of Israel relented toward Benjamin their brother, and said, To-day one tribe is cut off from Israel.
7 what do we do for them—for those who are left—for wives, since we have sworn by YHWH not to give to them from our daughters for wives?”
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 And they say, “Who is [that] one out of the tribes of Israel who has not come up to YHWH to Mizpeh?” And behold, none has come to the camp from Jabesh-Gilead—to the assembly.
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 And the people numbered themselves, and behold, there is no man from the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead.
And the people were numbered, and there was not there a man from the inhabitants of Jabis Galaad.
10 And the congregation sends twelve thousand men of the sons of valor there, and commands them, saying, “Go—and you have struck the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead by the mouth of the sword, even the women and the infants.
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 And this [is] the thing which you do; every male, and every woman knowing the lying of a male, you devote.”
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 And they find four hundred young women, virgins, out of the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead, who have not known man by the lying of a male, and they bring them to the camp at Shiloh, which [is] in the land of Canaan.
And they found among 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 And all the congregation sends [word] and speaks to the sons of Benjamin who [are] in the rock of Rimmon, and proclaims peace to them;
And all the congregation sent and spoke to the children of Benjamin in the rock Remmon, and invited them to [make] peace.
14 and Benjamin turns back at that time, and they give to them the women whom they have kept alive of the women of Jabesh-Gilead, and they have not found for [all of] them so.
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 And the people sighed concerning Benjamin, for YHWH had made a breach among the tribes of Israel.
And the people relented for Benjamin, because the Lord had made a breach in the tribes of Israel.
16 And [the] elderly of the congregation say, “What do we do to the remnant for wives—for the women have been destroyed out of Benjamin?”
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 And they say, “A possession of an escaped party [is] to Benjamin, and a tribe is not blotted out from Israel;
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 and we are not able to give wives to them out of our daughters, for the sons of Israel have sworn, saying, Cursed [is] he who is giving a wife to Benjamin.”
For we shall not be able to give them wives of our daughters, because we swore among the children of Israel, saying, Cursed [is] he that gives a wife to Benjamin.
19 And they say, “Behold, a festival of YHWH [is] in Shiloh, from time to time, which [is] on the north of Beth-El, at the rising of the sun, by the highway which is going up from Beth-El to Shechem, and on the south of Lebonah.”
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 And they command the sons of Benjamin, saying, “Go—and you have laid wait in the vineyards,
And they charged the children of Benjamin, saying, Go and lie in wait in the vineyards;
21 and have seen, and behold, if the daughters of Shiloh come out to dance in dances—then you have gone out from the vineyards, and each caught his wife out of the daughters of Shiloh for yourselves, and have gone to the land of Benjamin;
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 and it has been, when their fathers or their brothers come in to plead to us, that we have said to them, Favor us [by] them, for we have not each taken his wife in battle, for you have not given [wives] to them at this time, [so] you are [not] guilty.”
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 And the sons of Benjamin do so, and take women according to their number, out of the dancers whom they have seized; and they go, and return to their inheritance, and build the cities, and dwell in them.
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 And the sons of Israel go up and down there at that time, each to his tribe, and to his family; and they each go out there to his inheritance.
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 In those days there is no king in Israel; each does that which is right in his own eyes.
And in those days there was no king in Israel; every man did that which was right in his own sight.
