Judges 21
1 And [the] man of Israel he had sworn at Mizpah saying anyone of us not he will give daughter his to Benjamin to a wife.
When the Israeli men gathered at Mizpah [before the battle started], they vowed, “None of us will ever allow one of our daughters to marry any man from the tribe of Benjamin!”
2 And it came the people Beth-el and they sat there until the evening before God and they lifted up voice their and they wept weeping great.
But now the Israelis went to Bethel and they cried loudly to Yahweh all day, until the sun went down.
3 And they said why? O Yahweh [the] God of Israel has it happened (this [thing] *LA(bh)*) in Israel to be missing this day from Israel a tribe one.
They kept saying, “Yahweh, God of us Israeli people, [it is as though] one of the tribes of us Israelis does not exist any more! (Why has this happened to us?/It is terrible that this has happened to us!)” [RHQ]
4 And it was from [the] next day and they rose early the people and they built there an altar and they offered up burnt offerings and peace offerings.
Early the next morning the people built an altar. Then they completely burned some sacrifices [on the altar], and also offered other sacrifices to maintain fellowship with God.
5 And they said [the] people of Israel who? [is [the] one] who not he went up in the assembly from all [the] tribes of Israel to Yahweh for the oath great it was to [the one] who not he went up to Yahweh Mizpah saying certainly he will be put to death.
Then, because they had vowed that anyone who did not meet with them at Mizpah [to help fight the men of the tribe of Benjamin] would be killed, they asked among themselves, “Were there any of the tribes of Israel who did not come to Mizpah to meet with us in the presence of Yahweh?”
6 And they had compassion [the] people of Israel to Benjamin brother its and they said it has been cut off this day a tribe one from Israel.
The Israelis felt sorry for their fellow Israelis from the tribe of Benjamin. They said, “Today one of our Israeli tribes (has disappeared/no longer exists).
7 What? will we do for them for [those who] remain for wives and we we have sworn by Yahweh to not to give to them any of daughters our to wives.
Yahweh heard us solemnly declare that we would not allow any of our daughters to marry any man from the tribe of Benjamin. What can we do to make certain that the men of the tribe of Benjamin who were not killed will have wives?”
8 And they said who? [is the] one from [the] tribes of Israel which not it went up to Yahweh Mizpah and there! not he had come anyone to the camp from Jabesh Gilead to the assembly.
Then [one of] them asked, “What group from any of the tribes of Israel did not send any men here to Mizpah?”
9 And it was mustered the people and there! there not there [was] anyone from [the] inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead.
[They realized that] when the soldiers were counted, there was no one from Jabesh-Gilead [city] who had come there.
10 And they sent there the congregation two [plus] ten thousand man from [the] sons of strength and they commanded them saying go and you will strike [the] inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead to [the] mouth of [the] sword and the women and the little one[s].
So all the Israelis decided to send 12,000 very good soldiers to Jabesh-Gilead to kill the people there with their swords, even to kill the married women and children.
11 And this [is] the thing which you will do every male and every woman [who] has known lying of a male you will totally destroy.
[They told this to those men]: “This is what you must do: You must kill every man in Jabesh-Gilead. You must also kill every married woman. [But do not kill the unmarried women].”
12 And they found of [the] inhabitants of - Jabesh Gilead four hundred young woman virgin[s] who not she had known a man to lying of a male and they brought them to the camp Shiloh which [is] in [the] land of Canaan.
So those soldiers [went to Jabesh-Gilead and killed all the men, married women, and children. But they] found 400 unmarried young women there. So they brought them to their camp at Shiloh, in Canaan, [across the river from the Gilead area that belonged to the tribe of Benjamin].
13 And they sent all the congregation and they spoke to [the] descendants of Benjamin who [were] at [the] rock of Rimmon and they proclaimed to them peace.
Then all the Israelis [who had gathered] sent a message to the 600 men who were at Rimmon Rock. They said that they would like to make peace with them.
14 And it returned Benjamin at the time that and they gave to them the women whom they had preserved alive from [the] women of Jabesh Gilead and not they found for them so.
So the men came back from Rimmon Rock. The Israelis gave to them the women from Jabesh-Gilead whom they had not killed. But there were [only 400 women. But there were] not enough women [for those 600 men].
15 And the people it had compassion to Benjamin for he had made Yahweh a breach in [the] tribes of Israel.
The Israelis [still] felt sorry for the men of the tribe of Benjamin, because Yahweh had (decimated/almost wiped out) one of the Israeli tribes.
16 And they said [the] elders of the congregation what? will we do for [those who] remain for wives for she is destroyed from Benjamin woman.
The Israeli leaders said, “We have killed all the married women of the tribe of Benjamin. Where can we get women to be wives of the men who are still alive?
17 And they said a possession of [the] escaped remnant [belongs] to Benjamin and not it will be wiped out a tribe from Israel.
These men must have wives to give birth to children, in order that their families will continue. If that does not happen, all the people of one of the tribes of Israel will die.
18 And we not we are able to give to them wives any of daughters our for they had sworn [the] people of Israel saying [be] cursed [one who] gives a wife to Benjamin.
But we cannot allow our daughters to marry these men, because we vowed that Yahweh will curse anyone who gives one of his daughters to become a wife of any man of the tribe of Benjamin.”
19 And they said here! [the] festival of Yahweh [is] in Shiloh from days - days towards which [is] from north-ward of Beth-el [the] rising of towards the sun of [the] highway which goes up from Beth-el Shechem towards and from [the] south to Lebonah.
Then [one of] them (had an idea/thought of something that they could do). He said, “Every year there is a festival to honor Yahweh at Shiloh, which is north of Bethel and east of the road that extends from Bethel to Shechem, and it is south of Lebonah [city].”
20 (And they commanded *Q(K)*) [the] descendants of Benjamin saying go and you will lie in wait in the vineyards.
So the Israeli leaders told the men of the tribe of Benjamin, “[When it is the time for that festival], go to Shiloh and hide in the vineyards.
21 And you will see and there! if they will come out [the] daughters of Shiloh to dance in dances and you will go out from the vineyards and you will seize for yourselves each man wife his from [the] daughters of Shiloh and you will go [the] land of Benjamin.
Keep watching for the young women to come out of the city to dance. [When they come out], all of you should run out of the vineyards. Each of you can seize one of the young women of Shiloh. Then you can all return to your homes [with those women].
22 And it will be that they will come fathers their or brothers their (to make a complaint *Q(k)*) to us and we will say to them show favor for to us them for not we took each man wife his in the battle for not you you gave [them] to them about this time you will be guilty.
If their fathers or brothers come to us and complain [about what you have done], we will say to them, ‘Be kind to the men of the tribe of Benjamin. When we fought them, we did not leave any women alive to become their wives, and you did not give those young women to the men from the tribe of Benjamin. [They stole them]. So you will not be guilty, [even though you said that you would not allow any of your daughters to marry one of them].’”
23 And they did thus [the] descendants of Benjamin and they carried off wives to number their from the dancers whom they seized and they went and they returned to inheritance their and they rebuilt the cities and they dwelt in them.
So that is what the men of the tribe of Benjamin did. [They went to Shiloh at the time of the festival]. And when the young women were dancing, each man caught one of them and took her away and married her. Then they took their wives back to the land that God had given to them. They rebuilt their cities [that had been burned down], and they lived there.
24 And they dispersed from there [the] people of Israel at the time that each man to tribe his and to clan his and they went out from there each man to inheritance his.
The other Israelis went to their homes in the areas where their tribes and clans lived, the areas that God had allotted to them.
25 In the days those there not [was] a king in Israel each man the right in own eyes his he will do.
At that time, the Israeli people did not have a king. Everyone did what they themselves thought was right.
