The Decree of the Assembly 1 UDB All the soldiers of Israel came out united as one man, from the city of Dan in the north to Beersheba in the south and from the region of Gilead to the east of the Jordan River; all of them heard what had happened. So they gathered together before Yahweh at Mizpah. BSB BSB: Then all the Israelites from Dan to Beersheba and from the land of Gilead came out, and the congregation assembled as one man before the LORD at Mizpah.
2 UDB The leaders of eleven of the tribes of Israel stood in front of the people who gathered there. There were 400,000 men on foot, fighting men who were there. BSB BSB: The leaders of all the people and all the tribes of Israel presented themselves in the assembly of God’s people: 400,000 men on foot, armed with swords.
3 UDB The people of the tribe of Benjamin heard that the other Israelites had gone up to Mizpah, but none of the men from the tribe of Benjamin had gone to the meeting there. The people of Israel asked about the evil thing that had happened. BSB BSB: (Meanwhile the Benjamites heard that the Israelites had gone up to Mizpah.) And the Israelites asked, “Tell us, how did this wicked thing happen?”
4 UDB So the Levite who was the husband of the woman who had been killed replied, "My slave wife and I came to Gibeah, wanting to stay there that night. BSB BSB: So the Levite, the husband of the murdered woman, answered: “I and my concubine came to Gibeah in Benjamin to spend the night.
5 UDB 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 abused my slave wife and raped her all night, and she died. BSB BSB: And during the night, the men of Gibeah rose up against me and surrounded the house. They intended to kill me, but they abused my concubine, and she died.
6 UDB 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 thing that has been done here in Israel. BSB BSB: Then I took my concubine, cut her into pieces, and sent her throughout the land of Israel’s inheritance, because they had committed a lewd and disgraceful act in Israel.
7 UDB So now, all you Israelite people, speak, and tell me what you think should be done!" BSB BSB: Behold, all you Israelites, give your advice and verdict here and now.”
8 UDB All the people stood up and unitedly said, "None of us will go home! Not one of us will return to his house! BSB BSB: Then all the people stood as one man and said, “Not one of us will return to his tent or to his house.
9 UDB This is what we must do to the people of Gibeah. First, we will cast lots to determine which group should attack them. BSB BSB: Now this is what we will do to Gibeah: We will go against it as the lot dictates.
10 UDB We will choose one tenth of our number to get supplies we will need to punish Gibeah for the terrible thing that they have done here in Israel." BSB BSB: We will take ten men out of every hundred from all the tribes of Israel, and a hundred out of every thousand, and a thousand out of every ten thousand, to supply provisions for the army when they go to Gibeah in Benjamin to punish them for the atrocity they have committed in Israel.”
11 UDB And all the Israelite people agreed that the people of Gibeah should be punished. BSB BSB: So all the men of Israel gathered as one man, united against the city.
12 UDB Then the Israelite men sent messengers throughout the tribe of Benjamin. They demanded, "Do you realize that some of your men have done a very evil thing? BSB BSB: And the tribes of Israel sent men throughout the tribe of Benjamin, saying, “What is this wickedness that has occurred among you?
13 UDB Bring those wicked men to us, in order that we can execute them. By doing that, we will get rid of this evil thing that has happened in Israel." But the people of the tribe of Benjamin paid no attention to their fellow Israelites. BSB BSB: Hand over the wicked men of Gibeah so we can put them to death and purge Israel of this evil.” But the Benjamites refused to heed the voice of their fellow Israelites.
14 UDB The men of the tribe of Benjamin left their cities and gathered at Gibeah to fight the other Israelites. BSB BSB: And from their cities they came together at Gibeah to go out and fight against the Israelites.
15 UDB In that one day the men of the tribe of Benjamin recruited twenty-six thousand fighting men. They also chose seven hundred men from Gibeah. BSB BSB: On that day the Benjamites mobilized 26,000 swordsmen from their cities, in addition to the 700 select men of Gibeah.
16 UDB From all those soldiers there were seven hundred men who were left-handed, and each of them could sling a stone without missing a target that was very small and as narrow as a hair. BSB BSB: Among all these soldiers there were 700 select left-handers, each of whom could sling a stone at a hair without missing.
17 UDB The soldiers of Israel, not including the soldiers from Benjamin, numbered 400,000 men. All of these were trained to fight with the sword, men experienced at fighting in war. BSB BSB: The Israelites, apart from Benjamin, mobilized 400,000 swordsmen, each one an experienced warrior.
Civil War against Benjamin 18 UDB Those other Israelites went up to Bethel and asked advice from 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." BSB BSB: The Israelites set out, went up to Bethel, and inquired of God, “Who of us shall go up first to fight against the Benjamites?” “Judah will be first,” the LORD replied.
19 UDB The next morning, the Israelite men went and set up their tents near Gibeah. BSB BSB: The next morning the Israelites set out and camped near Gibeah.
20 UDB Then they went to fight against the men from the tribe of Benjamin and stood in their positions for fighting a battle, facing Gibeah. BSB BSB: And the men of Israel went out to fight against Benjamin and took up their battle positions at Gibeah.
21 UDB The men of the tribe of Benjamin came out of Gibeah and fought against them, and they killed twenty-two thousand soldiers from Israel on that day. BSB BSB: And the Benjamites came out of Gibeah and cut down 22,000 Israelites on the battlefield that day.
22 UDB But the soldiers of Israel encouraged themselves. Then they got ready to fight the next day in the same battle lines as on the first day. BSB BSB: But the Israelite army took courage and again took their battle positions in the same place where they had arrayed themselves on the first day.
23 UDB Then they came together and begged Yahweh for help; they prayed until evening. They asked advice from Yahweh about what they should do: "Should we go again to fight against our brothers, the people of Benjamin?" Yahweh answered, "Attack them!" BSB BSB: They went up and wept before the LORD until evening, inquiring of Him, “Should we again draw near for battle against our brothers the Benjamites?” And the LORD answered, “Go up against them.”
24 UDB The next day they again stood in their positions for fighting, just as they had done on the previous day. BSB BSB: On the second day the Israelites advanced against the Benjamites.
25 UDB The men of the tribe of Benjamin came out of Gibeah and attacked the Israelites and killed eighteen thousand more of their men. BSB BSB: That same day the Benjamites came out against them from Gibeah and cut down another 18,000 Israelites, all of them armed with swords.
26 UDB 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 until it was evening. They brought some offerings that they burned completely on the altar, and they also brought some offerings to restore fellowship with Yahweh. BSB BSB: Then the Israelites, all the people, went up to Bethel, where they sat weeping before the LORD. That day they fasted until evening and presented burnt offerings and peace offerings to the LORD.
27 UDB The people of Israel asked Yahweh—for the ark of the covenant of God was there in those days, BSB BSB: And the Israelites inquired of the LORD. (In those days the ark of the covenant of God was there,
28 UDB and Phinehas son of Eleazar and grandson of Aaron was serving before the ark in those days: "Should we go out to battle once more against the people of Benjamin, who are out brothers, or should we stop?" Yahweh said, "Attack! For tomorrow I will help you defeat them." BSB BSB: and Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, served before it.) The Israelites asked, “Should we again go out to battle against our brothers the Benjamites, or should we stop?” The LORD answered, “Fight, for tomorrow I will deliver them into your hand.”
29 UDB Israelite men set up an ambush in the fields around Gibeah. BSB BSB: So Israel set up an ambush around Gibeah.
30 UDB The other Israelite men went and stood in their positions for fighting a battle, just as they had done on the previous days. BSB BSB: On the third day the Israelites went up against the Benjamites and arrayed themselves against Gibeah as they had done before.
31 UDB When the men of the tribe of Benjamin came out of the city to fight against them, the Israelite 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 Israelites, like they had done before. They killed about thirty Israelites, who died in the fields and on the roads—one of the roads went to Bethel and another road went to Gibeah. BSB BSB: The Benjamites came out against them and were drawn away from the city. They began to attack the people as before, killing about thirty men of Israel in the fields and on the roads, one of which led up to Bethel and the other to Gibeah.
32 UDB The men of the tribe of Benjamin said, "We are defeating them like we did before!" But then Israelite men did what they had planned. The main group of Israelite men retreated a short distance from the city to trick the men of Gibeah and cause them to pursue the Israelite men along the roads outside the city. BSB BSB: “We are defeating them as before,” said the Benjamites. But the Israelites said, “Let us retreat and draw them away from the city onto the roads.”
33 UDB The main group of Israelite men left their positions and retreated, and then they stood in their battle positions again at a place named Baal Tamar. Then the soldiers of Israel who had been hiding in secret places ran out from their places in Maareh Gibeah. BSB BSB: So all the men of Israel got up from their places and arrayed themselves at Baal-tamar, and the Israelites in ambush charged from their positions west of Gibeah.
34 UDB Then the other ten thousand Israelites came out from the places where they had been hiding, west of Gibeah, and attacked the city. 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 have a disastrous defeat. BSB BSB: Then 10,000 select men from all Israel made a frontal assault against Gibeah, and the battle was fierce. But the Benjamites did not realize that disaster was upon them.
35 UDB Yahweh enabled the Israelite men to defeat the men of the tribe of Benjamin. They killed 25,100 of them; all of them were fighting men. BSB BSB: The LORD defeated Benjamin in the presence of Israel, and on that day the Israelites slaughtered 25,100 Benjamites, all armed with swords.
36 UDB So the soldiers of Benjamin saw they were defeated. The men of Israel had given ground to Benjamin because they were counting on the men they had placed in hidden positions outside Gibeah to go out and shift the battle in their favor. BSB BSB: Then the Benjamites realized they had been defeated. Now the men of Israel had retreated before Benjamin because they were relying on the ambush they had set against Gibeah.
37 UDB Then the men who were hiding got up and hurried and rushed into Gibeah, and with their swords they killed everyone who lived in the city. BSB BSB: The men in ambush rushed suddenly against Gibeah; they advanced and put the whole city to the sword.
38 UDB Now the arranged signal between the soldiers of Israel and the men hiding in secret would be that a great cloud of smoke would rise up out of the city. BSB BSB: The men of Israel had arranged a signal with the men in ambush: When they sent up a great cloud of smoke from the city,
39 UDB By that time, Israelite men had turned away from attacking, so the men of the tribe of Benjamin said, "We are winning the battle, as we did before!" BSB BSB: the men of Israel would turn in the battle. When the Benjamites had begun to strike them down, killing about thirty men of Israel, they said, “They are defeated before us as in the first battle.”
40 UDB 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. BSB BSB: But when the column of smoke began to go up from the city, the Benjamites looked behind them and saw the whole city going up in smoke.
41 UDB Then the main group of Israelite 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 have a disastrous defeat. BSB BSB: Then the men of Israel turned back on them, and the men of Benjamin were terrified when they realized that disaster had come upon them.
42 UDB So the men of the tribe of Benjamin tried to run away toward the wilderness to escape from the Israelite men, but they were not able to escape, because the Israelite men who had burned the two cities came out of those cities and killed many of them. BSB BSB: So they fled before the men of Israel toward the wilderness, but the battle overtook them, and the men coming out of the cities struck them down there.
43 UDB They surrounded some of the men of the tribe of Benjamin and pursued the others to the area east of Gibeah. BSB BSB: They surrounded the Benjamites, pursued them, and easily overtook them in the vicinity of Gibeah on the east.
44 UDB They killed eighteen thousand strong soldiers of the tribe of Benjamin. BSB BSB: And 18,000 Benjamites fell, all men of valor.
45 UDB Then the rest of the men of the tribe of Benjamin realized that they had been defeated. They ran toward the rock of Rimmon, but the Israelite men killed five thousand more men of the tribe of Benjamin who fell behind along the roads. They pursued the rest of them to Gidom, and they killed two thousand more. BSB BSB: Then the Benjamites turned and fled toward the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon, and Israel cut down 5,000 men on the roads. And they overtook them at Gidom and struck down 2,000 more.
46 UDB Altogether, there were twenty-five thousand men of the tribe of Benjamin who were killed; all of them were experienced fighting men. BSB BSB: That day 25,000 Benjamite swordsmen fell, all men of valor.
47 UDB But six hundred men of the tribe of Benjamin ran to the rock of Rimmon in the wilderness. They stayed there for four months. BSB BSB: But 600 men turned and fled into the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon, where they stayed four months.
48 UDB Then the Israelite 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. BSB BSB: And the men of Israel turned back against the other Benjamites and put to the sword all the cities, including the animals and everything else they found. And they burned down all the cities in their path.
Select verses for actions: Enter goes to them and Escape comes back.