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!”
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 But now the Israelis went to Bethel and they cried loudly to Yahweh all day, until the sun went down.
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 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]
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 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.
And rising early the next day, they built an altar: and offered there holocausts, and victims of peace, and they said:
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?”
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 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).
And the children of Israel being moved with repentance for their brother Benjamin, began to say: One tribe is taken away from Israel.
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?”
Whence shall they take wives? For we have all in general sworn, not to give our daughters to them.
8 Then [one of] them asked, “What group from any of the tribes of Israel did not send any men here to Mizpah?”
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 [They realized that] when the soldiers were counted, there was no one from Jabesh-Gilead [city] who had come there.
(At that time also when they were in Silo, no one of them was found there.)
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.
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 [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].”
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 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].
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 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.
And they sent messengers to the children of Benjamin, that were in the rock Remmon, and commanded them to receive them in peace.
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].
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 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.
And all Israel was very sorry, and repented for the destroying of one tribe out of Israel.
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?
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 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.
And we must use all care, and provide with great diligence, that one tribe be not destroyed out of Israel.
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.”
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 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].”
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 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.
And they commanded the children of Benjamin, and said: Go, and lie hid in the vineyards,
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].
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 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].’”
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 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.
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 The other Israelis went to their homes in the areas where their tribes and clans lived, the areas that God had allotted to them.
The children of Israel also returned by their tribes, and families, to their dwellings.
25 At that time, the Israeli people did not have a king. Everyone did what they themselves thought was right.
In those days there was no king in Israel: but every one did that which seemed right to himself.
