Judges 21
1 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!”
以色列人曾在米茲帕起誓說：「我們中誰也不可把自己的女兒嫁給本雅明人為妻。」
2 But now the Israelis went to Bethel and they cried loudly to Yahweh all day, until the sun went down.
民眾來到貝特耳，在天主面前，坐在那裏，放聲大哭，直到晚上；
3 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]
然後說：「上主以色列的天主! 為什麼在以色列中間發生了這事，今日竟使以色列中少了一支派﹖」
4 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.
次日，百姓一早起來，在那裏築了一座祭壇，獻了全燔祭與和平祭。
5 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?”
以後，以色列子民問說：「以色列眾支派中，有誰沒有上到上主面前，參加集會呢﹖」因為他們先前對於那些凡不上米茲帕到上主面前來的人，曾發過嚴誓說：「死無赦! 」
6 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).
以色列子民對他們的弟兄本雅明起了憐憫之心說：「今天以色列絕了一支派。
7 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?”
我們曾指著上主起過誓，決不將我們的女兒給他們為妻，那麼，我們怎樣給所剩下的人娶妻呢﹖」
8 Then [one of] them asked, “What group from any of the tribes of Israel did not send any men here to Mizpah?”
他們又問說：「以色列眾支派中，有那一支派沒有上米茲帕來到上主面前呢﹖」看，由基肋阿得雅貝士中沒有一人入營，參加集會。
9 [They realized that] when the soldiers were counted, there was no one from Jabesh-Gilead [city] who had come there.
的確，檢閱百姓的時候，沒有一個基肋阿得雅貝士的居民在場。
10 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.
因此會眾打發一萬二千勇士到那裏去，吩咐他們說：「你們去用刀屠殺基肋阿得雅貝士的居民，連婦女孩子都在內。
11 [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].”
你們要這樣作；所以男子和與男子同過房的婦女，盡行殺掉，但要保留處女。」他們就這樣作了。
12 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].
他們在基肋阿得雅貝士居民中，尋得了四百個未曾認識過男子，也未曾與男子同過房的少年處女，就把她們帶到客納罕地史羅營裏。
13 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.
全會眾又打發人往黎孟岩石去，與住在那裏的本雅明子孫談判，與他們講和。
14 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].
本雅明子孫當時就回來了，會眾就把基肋阿得雅貝士女子中所保留的少女，給他們為妻，但是數目不足。史羅搶妻
15 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.
民眾仍為本雅明人傷心難過，因為上主使以色列支派中有了缺陷。
16 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?
會中的長老說：「本雅明的婦女既然都消滅了，我們怎樣給所剩下的人娶妻呢﹖」
17 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.
又說：「本雅民的遺民該有承嗣，免得以色列中泯沒一支。
18 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.”
但是，我們不能將自己的女兒給他們為妻，因為以色列曾起誓說：誰把女兒給本雅明人是可詛咒的! 」
19 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].”
有人說：「看，年年在史羅舉行上主的慶節。」─使羅位於貝特耳之北，貝特耳至舍根大路之東，肋波納之南。
20 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.
於是他們給本雅明子孫出主意說：「你們往葡萄園去，藏在那裏。
21 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].
等到你們看見史羅的童女出來列隊跳舞，你們就從葡萄園中出來，從史羅的女兒中，各搶一個為妻，然後回本雅明地方去。
22 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].’”
她們的父親或兄弟若是出來與我們爭論，我們就說：求你們看我們的情面，恩待這些人，因為他們戰場上沒有得到女子為妻；況且又不是你們將女兒交給他們；若是你們給的，那就有罪了。」
23 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.
本雅明子孫就這樣作了：按數目搶跳舞的女子，各娶一個為妻；以後他們就走了，回到自己的地業，重建城邑，住在那裏。
24 The other Israelis went to their homes in the areas where their tribes and clans lived, the areas that God had allotted to them.
以後以色列子民從那裏各回自己的支派和家族，從那裏各回自己的家鄉。
25 At that time, the Israeli people did not have a king. Everyone did what they themselves thought was right.
那時，在以色列沒有君王，各人任意行事。
