Judges 20

1 and to come out: come all son: descendant/people Israel and to gather [the] congregation like/as man one to/for from Dan and till Beersheba Beersheba and land: country/planet [the] Gilead to(wards) LORD [the] Mizpah

All the Israelis, from Dan [city in the north] to Beersheba [city in the south], and even from [the] Gilead [region on the east side of the Jordan River, heard what had happened. So they] they gathered together at Mizpah, [at the place where they worshiped] Yahweh.

2 and to stand corner all [the] people all tribe Israel in/on/with assembly people [the] God four hundred thousand man on foot to draw sword

The leaders of [eleven of] the tribes of Israel stood in front of the people who gathered there. There were 400,000 men with swords who were there.

3 and to hear: hear son: descendant/people Benjamin for to ascend: rise son: descendant/people Israel [the] Mizpah and to say son: descendant/people Israel to speak: speak how? to be [the] distress: evil [the] this

The people of the tribe of Benjamin heard that the other Israelis had gone up to Mizpah, [but none of the men from their tribe went to the meeting there]. The Israelis who had come to Mizpah asked about the evil thing that had happened.

4 and to answer [the] man [the] Levi man: husband [the] woman [the] to murder and to say [the] Gibeah [to] which to/for Benjamin to come (in): come I and concubine my to/for to lodge

So the husband of the woman who had been killed replied, “My slave wife and I came to Gibeah [city], wanting to stay there that night.

5 and to arise: rise upon me master [the] Gibeah and to turn: surround upon me [obj] [the] house: home night [obj] me to resemble to/for to kill and [obj] concubine my to afflict and to die

That evening, the men of Gibeah came to attack me. They surrounded the house [where I was staying] and wanted to [have sex with me and then] kill me. They [raped and] abused my slave wife [all night], and she died.

6 and to grasp in/on/with concubine my and to cut her and to send: depart her in/on/with all land: country inheritance Israel for to make: do wickedness and folly in/on/with Israel

I took her body home and cut it into pieces. Then I sent one piece to each area of Israel, [because I wanted you all to know about] this wicked and disgraceful/shameful thing [that] has been done here in Israel.

7 behold all your son: descendant/people Israel to give to/for you word and counsel here

So now, all you Israeli people, speak, and tell me what you think should be done!”

8 and to arise: rise all [the] people like/as man one to/for to say not to go: went man: anyone to/for tent his and not to turn aside: depart man: anyone to/for house: home his

All the people stood up, and in unison said, “None of us will go home! Not one of us will return to his house!

9 and now this [the] word: thing which to make: do to/for Gibeah upon her in/on/with allotted

This is what we must do to [the people of] Gibeah. First, we will (cast lots/throw marked stones) [to determine which group should attack them].

10 and to take: take ten human to/for hundred to/for all tribe Israel and hundred to/for thousand and thousand to/for myriad to/for to take: bring provision to/for people: soldiers to/for to make: do to/for to come (in): come them to/for Gibeah Benjamin like/as all [the] folly which to make: do in/on/with Israel

We will choose (one tenth/one from every ten) of the men from all the Israeli tribes. Those men will go and find food for the men who will go to attack the people of Gibeah. Then the other men will go to Gibeah to (pay the people back/punish them) for this terrible thing that they have done [here] in Israel.”

11 and to gather all man Israel to(wards) [the] city like/as man one companion

And all the Israeli people agreed [that the people of Gibeah should be punished].

12 and to send: depart tribe Israel human in/on/with all tribe Benjamin to/for to say what? [the] distress: evil [the] this which to be in/on/with you

Then the Israeli men sent messengers throughout the tribe of Benjamin. They demanded, “Do you realize that some of your men have done a very evil thing?

13 and now to give: give [obj] [the] human son: type of Belial which in/on/with Gibeah and to die them and to burn: purge distress: evil from Israel and not (be willing son: descendant/people *Q(K)*) Benjamin to/for to hear: hear in/on/with voice brother: compatriot their son: descendant/people Israel

Bring those wicked men to us, in order that we can execute them. [By doing that], we will be doing what should be done because of this evil thing that has happened in Israel.” But the [people of the] tribe of Benjamin did not pay attention to their fellow Israelis.

14 and to gather son: descendant/people Benjamin from [the] city [the] Gibeah [to] to/for to come out: come to/for battle with son: descendant/people Israel

The men of the tribe of Benjamin left their cities and gathered at Gibeah to fight the [other] Israelis.

15 and to reckon: list son: descendant/people Benjamin in/on/with day [the] he/she/it from [the] city twenty and six thousand man to draw sword to/for alone: besides from to dwell [the] Gibeah to reckon: list seven hundred man to choose

In that one day the men of the tribe of Benjamin recruited 26,000 soldiers who knew how to fight using swords. They also chose/recruited 700 men from Gibeah.

16 from all [the] people: soldiers [the] this seven hundred man to choose lefthanded hand right his all this to sling in/on/with stone to(wards) [the] hair and not to sin

From all those soldiers there were 700 men who were left-handed, and each of them could sling a stone at [a target that was very small and as narrow as] a hair, and the stone always hit the target!

17 and man Israel to reckon: list to/for alone: besides from Benjamin four hundred thousand man to draw sword all this man battle

There were 400,000 men from the other Israeli tribes who had swords.

18 and to arise: rise and to ascend: rise Bethel Bethel and to ask in/on/with God and to say son: descendant/people Israel who? to ascend: rise to/for us in/on/with beginning to/for battle with son: descendant/people Benjamin and to say LORD Judah in/on/with beginning

Those other Israelis went up to Bethel and asked God, “Which tribe should be the first to attack the men from the tribe of Benjamin?” Yahweh answered, “[The men from the tribe of] Judah should go first.”

19 and to arise: rise son: descendant/people Israel in/on/with morning and to camp upon [the] Gibeah

The next morning, the Israeli men went and set up their tents near Gibeah.

20 and to come out: come man Israel to/for battle with Benjamin and to arrange with them man Israel battle to(wards) [the] Gibeah

Then they went to fight against [the men from the tribe of] Benjamin, and stood in their positions for fighting a battle, [facing Gibeah].

21 and to come out: come son: descendant/people Benjamin from [the] Gibeah and to ruin in/on/with Israel in/on/with day [the] he/she/it two and twenty thousand man land: soil [to]

The men of the tribe of Benjamin came out of Gibeah and fought against them, and they killed 22,000 Israeli men on that day.

22 and to strengthen: strengthen [the] people: soldiers man Israel and to add: again to/for to arrange battle in/on/with place which to arrange there in/on/with day [the] first

[Late that afternoon], the [remaining] Israeli men went to the place of worship and cried until the sun set. Then they asked Yahweh, “Should we attack the men of the tribe of Benjamin again, even though they are our fellow Israelis?” Yahweh replied, “Yes, attack them again.” So the Israeli men encouraged each other.

23 and to ascend: rise son: descendant/people Israel and to weep to/for face: before LORD till [the] evening and to ask in/on/with LORD to/for to say to add: again to/for to approach: approach to/for battle with son: descendant/people Benjamin brother: compatriot my and to say LORD to ascend: rise to(wards) him

24 and to present: come son: descendant/people Israel to(wards) son: descendant/people Benjamin in/on/with day [the] second

The next day they again stood in their positions for fighting, just like they had done on the previous day.

25 and to come out: come Benjamin to/for to encounter: toward them from [the] Gibeah in/on/with day [the] second and to ruin in/on/with son: descendant/people Israel still eight ten thousand man land: soil [to] all these to draw sword

The men of the tribe of Benjamin came out of Gibeah and attacked the Israelis, and killed 18,000 more of their men.

26 and to ascend: rise all son: descendant/people Israel and all [the] people: soldiers and to come (in): come Bethel Bethel and to weep and to dwell there to/for face: before LORD and to fast in/on/with day [the] he/she/it till [the] evening and to ascend: offer up burnt offering and peace offering to/for face: before LORD

[In the afternoon], all the people of Israel [who had not been killed] again went to Bethel. There they sat down and cried to Yahweh, and they (fasted/abstained from eating food) until it was evening. They brought some offerings which they burned completely [on the altar], and they also brought some offerings to maintain fellowship with Yahweh.

27 and to ask son: descendant/people Israel in/on/with LORD and there ark covenant [the] God in/on/with day [the] they(masc.)

At that time, the Sacred Chest that contained the stone tablets on which were written the Ten Commandments was there at Bethel. A priest named Phinehas, the son of Eleazar and grandson of Aaron, often stood in front of that chest [and talked with Yahweh]. While he stood there on that day, he asked Yahweh, “Shall we go again to fight against our fellow Israelis from the tribe of Benjamin, or shall we stop fighting against them?” Yahweh answered, “Go again tomorrow, because tomorrow I will enable you to defeat them.”

28 and Phinehas son: child Eleazar son: child Aaron to stand: appoint to/for face: before his in/on/with day [the] they(masc.) to/for to say to add: again still to/for to come out: come to/for battle with son: descendant/people Benjamin brother: compatriot my if to cease and to say LORD to ascend: rise for tomorrow to give: give him in/on/with hand: power your

29 and to set: make Israel to ambush to(wards) [the] Gibeah around

So [the next day, 10,000 of] the Israeli men (set up ambushes/went to hide) [in the fields] around Gibeah.

30 and to ascend: rise son: descendant/people Israel to(wards) son: descendant/people Benjamin in/on/with day [the] third and to arrange to(wards) [the] Gibeah like/as beat in/on/with beat

The [other] Israeli men went and stood in their positions for fighting a battle just like they had done on the previous days.

31 and to come out: come son: descendant/people Benjamin to/for to encounter: toward [the] people: soldiers to tear from [the] city and to profane/begin: begin to/for to smite from [the] people: soldiers slain: killed like/as beat in/on/with beat in/on/with highway which one to ascend: rise Bethel Bethel and one Gibeah [to] in/on/with land: country like/as thirty man in/on/with Israel

When the men of the tribe of Benjamin came out of the city to fight against them, the Israeli men retreated away from the city, and the men of the tribe of Benjamin pursued them. The men of the tribe of Benjamin killed many Israelis, like they had done before. They killed about 30 Israelis. They killed some in the fields, and they killed some on the road that went to Bethel and on the road that went to Gibeah.

32 and to say son: descendant/people Benjamin to strike they(masc.) to/for face: before our like/as in/on/with first and son: descendant/people Israel to say to flee and to tear him from [the] city to(wards) [the] highway

The men of the tribe of Benjamin said, “We are defeating them like we did before!” But then Israeli men did what they had planned. The main group of Israeli men retreated a short distance from the city, to [trick] the men of Gibeah and cause them to pursue the Israeli men along the roads outside the city.

33 and all man Israel to arise: rise from place his and to arrange in/on/with Baal-tamar Baal-tamar and to ambush Israel to burst/come out from place his from Maareh (Maareh)-geba

The main group of Israeli men left their positions and retreated, and then they stood in their battle positions again at a place named Baal-Tamar.

34 and to come (in): come from before to/for Gibeah ten thousand man to choose from all Israel and [the] battle to honor: heavy and they(masc.) not to know for to touch upon them [the] distress: harm

Then [while the men of Gibeah were running out of the city toward them], the other 10,000 Israelis came out from the places where they had been hiding, west of Gibeah. They were men who had come from all parts of Israel. There was a very big battle. But the men of the tribe of Benjamin did not know that they were about to suffer a disastrous defeat.

35 and to strike LORD [obj] Benjamin to/for face: before Israel and to ruin son: descendant/people Israel in/on/with Benjamin in/on/with day [the] he/she/it twenty and five thousand and hundred man all these to draw sword

Yahweh enabled the Israeli men to defeat the men of the tribe of Benjamin. They killed 25,000 of them, even though they all were using swords. [This is what happened]:

36 and to see: see son: descendant/people Benjamin for to strike and to give: give man Israel place to/for Benjamin for to trust to(wards) [the] to ambush which to set: make to(wards) [the] Gibeah

The main group of Israeli men arranged with the men who would be hiding that they should send up a smoke signal to enable the main group of soldiers to know when they should attack. Then the main group of Israeli men retreated for a short distance, because they knew that the other Israeli men who had been hiding on the other side of Gibeah would attack the people of the tribe of Benjamin by surprise. So [after the main group of Israeli men retreated a little distance], the men who had been hiding rushed out and ran into Gibeah and used their swords to kill everyone in the city. [Then they started to burn the buildings].

37 and [the] to ambush to hasten and to strip to(wards) [the] Gibeah and to draw [the] to ambush and to smite [obj] all [the] city to/for lip: edge sword

38 and [the] meeting: signal appointed to be to/for man Israel with [the] to ambush to multiply to/for to ascend: rise them tribute [the] smoke from [the] city

39 and to overturn man Israel in/on/with battle and Benjamin to profane/begin: begin to/for to smite slain: killed in/on/with man Israel like/as thirty man for to say surely to strike to strike he/she/it to/for face: before our like/as battle [the] first

By that time, the men of the tribe of Benjamin said, “We are winning the battle, as we did before!”

40 and [the] tribute to profane/begin: begin to/for to ascend: rise from [the] city pillar smoke and to turn Benjamin after him and behold to ascend: rise entire [the] city [the] heaven [to]

But then smoke [from the burning buildings] began to rise up from the city. The men of the tribe of Benjamin turned around and saw that the whole city was burning.

41 and man Israel to overturn and to dismay man Benjamin for to see: see for to touch upon him [the] distress: harm

Then the main group of Israeli men [also saw the smoke, and they knew that the smoke signaled that they should] turn around and begin to attack. The men of the tribe of Benjamin were very afraid, because they realized that they were about to suffer a disastrous defeat.

42 and to turn to/for face: before man Israel to(wards) way: direction [the] wilderness and [the] battle to cleave him and which from [the] city to ruin [obj] him in/on/with midst his

So the men of the tribe of Benjamin tried to run away toward the desert to escape from the Israeli men, but they were not able to escape, because the Israeli men who had burned the two cities came out of those cities and killed many of them.

43 to surround [obj] Benjamin to pursue him Nohah to tread him till before [the] Gibeah from east sun

They surrounded [some of] the men of the tribe of Benjamin, and pursued the others to the area east of Gibeah.

44 and to fall: kill from Benjamin eight ten thousand man [obj] all these human strength

They killed 18,000 strong soldiers of the tribe of Benjamin.

45 and to turn and to flee [the] wilderness [to] to(wards) crag [the] (Rock of) Rimmon and to glean him in/on/with highway five thousand man and to cleave after him till Gidom and to smite from him thousand man

Then the rest of the men of the tribe of Benjamin realized that they had been defeated. They ran toward the desert to Rimmon Rock, but the Israeli men killed 5,000 more men of the tribe of Benjamin along the roads. They pursued the rest of them to Gidom, and they killed 2,000 more men of the tribe of Benjamin there.

46 and to be all [the] to fall: kill from Benjamin twenty and five thousand man to draw sword in/on/with day [the] he/she/it [obj] all these human strength

Altogether, there were 25,000 men of the tribe of Benjamin who were killed, all of whom had swords.

47 and to turn and to flee [the] wilderness [to] to(wards) crag [the] (Rock of) Rimmon six hundred man and to dwell in/on/with crag (Rock of) Rimmon four month

But 600 men of the tribe of Benjamin ran to Rimmon Rock in the desert. They stayed there for four months.

48 and man Israel to return: turn back to(wards) son: descendant/people Benjamin and to smite them to/for lip: edge sword from city soundness till animal till all [the] to find also all [the] city [the] to find to send: burn in/on/with fire

Then the Israeli men went back to the land belonging to the tribe of Benjamin, and killed the people in every city. They also killed all the animals, and destroyed everything else that they found there. And they burned all the cities that they came to.