The Decree of the Assembly 1 UST Then many people from throughout Israel traveled to Mizpah so they could meet together there and talk about what to do. They came from as far north as the city of Dan and from as far south as the city of Beersheba. They also came from the region of Gilead east of the Jordan River. They asked Yahweh to be present with them and guide their discussion. 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 UST The leaders who had come from various tribes of Israel met together with all the other Israelite people. There were 400, 000 men there who had learned how to fight well on foot with a sword. 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 UST The people of the tribe of Benjamin heard that the other Israelites were meeting in Mizpah. But no one from the tribe of Benjamin joined them there. The other Israelites who had gathered asked to hear how this horrible crime 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 UST The Levite whose wife the men of Gibeah had murdered spoke up. He said,“My wife and I were traveling, and we needed a place to stay for the night. We went to the city whose name is Gibeah that is in the territory of the tribe of Benjamin. 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 UST That evening, a gang of men who seem to be able to do whatever they want in that city surrounded the house where we were staying. They wanted to rape me, and they would have killed me afterwards.{ I know that because} they raped my wife all night so that 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 UST I took her body home and cut it into pieces. Then I sent one piece into the territory of each of the tribes of Israel. I did that because I wanted you all to know about this terrible, wicked thing that those men did right 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 UST So now, all you Israelites, talk together here and decide what you should do about this!” BSB BSB: Behold, all you Israelites, give your advice and verdict here and now.”
8 UST Then all the people stood up together{ to show how resolved they were} and said,“None of us will go back to where we live{ until we make sure that those men will be punished}! 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 UST This is what we must do to the people of Gibeah. First, we will cast lots to choose an army of soldiers to attack them. BSB BSB: Now this is what we will do to Gibeah: We will go against it as the lot dictates.
10 UST Then, we will have one tenth of our people get supplies for those soldiers. That way they will have what they need to go to Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin and punish the people who are responsible for doing this terrible thing in the land of 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 UST And all the Israelite people agreed that they had to punish the people of Gibeah. They would all work together to do that. BSB BSB: So all the men of Israel gathered as one man, united against the city.
12 UST The assembly of Israelites also agreed to send messengers throughout the tribe of Benjamin. They told these messengers to say,“Some of your men have done a very wicked thing in your territory! 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 UST Those wicked men live in the city of Gibeah. Surrender them to us so that we can execute them. That way we can get rid of the influence that the wicked thing they did is having on the people of Israel.” But the people of the tribe of Benjamin refused to surrender the men as the other Israelites had demanded. 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 UST The men who lived in other cities in the territory of Benjamin gathered at Gibeah to defend it against the other Israelites when they attacked. BSB BSB: And from their cities they came together at Gibeah to go out and fight against the Israelites.
15 UST When they did that, a total of 26, 000 fighting men came from those cities to fight. Another 700 skilled warriors who lived in Gibeah joined them. BSB BSB: On that day the Benjamites mobilized 26,000 swordsmen from their cities, in addition to the 700 select men of Gibeah.
16 UST Among those soldiers there were 700 skilled warriors who were left- handed. They could all sling stones and hit targets with great accuracy. 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 UST The people of all the tribes of Israel except Benjamin formed an army of 400, 000 men. Those men had learned how to fight with a sword. They were all experienced soldiers. BSB BSB: The Israelites, apart from Benjamin, mobilized 400,000 swordsmen, each one an experienced warrior.
Civil War against Benjamin 18 UST Those other Israelites wanted to ask God for advice. So they went to Bethel{ where the sacred chest was at that time}. They asked,“Which tribe’ s soldiers should lead the attack when we go and fight against the tribe of Benjamin?” Yahweh answered,“The soldiers from the tribe of Judah should lead the attack.” 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 UST So the next morning the Israelite soldiers went and set up a military camp near Gibeah. BSB BSB: The next morning the Israelites set out and camped near Gibeah.
20 UST After that, the Israelite soldiers went to fight against the men from the tribe of Benjamin. They got into positions near Gibeah where they could fight a battle. BSB BSB: And the men of Israel went out to fight against Benjamin and took up their battle positions at Gibeah.
21 UST The soldiers from the tribe of Benjamin came out of Gibeah and fought against them. They killed 22, 000 soldiers from Israel in that battle. BSB BSB: And the Benjamites came out of Gibeah and cut down 22,000 Israelites on the battlefield that day.
22 UST But the soldiers of Israel did not give up. 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 UST Some of them had gone{ to Bethel} and mourned in Yahweh’ s presence until the end of that day. They had asked Yahweh what they should do. They had said,“Should we fight another battle with the soldiers from the tribe of Benjamin, even though they are Israelites just as we are?” Yahweh had answered,“Yes, 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 UST So the next day the Israelite soldiers once again advanced against the Benjaminite army. BSB BSB: On the second day the Israelites advanced against the Benjamites.
25 UST The soldiers from the tribe of Benjamin came out from Gibeah to fight another battle. They attacked them, and they killed 18, 000 more Israelite soldiers who had all learned how to fight well with a sword. 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 UST That afternoon, the soldiers who had survived went to Bethel. All the other Israelites who had come to support the army went with them. They sat there in Yahweh’ s presence and mourned. They ate nothing that day until the sun set. At the sacred tent the priests made sacrifices for them that they burned completely on the altar, and they also made fellowship sacrifices. 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 UST The people of Israel asked Yahweh to guide them. The sacred chest of God was in Bethel at that time. BSB BSB: And the Israelites inquired of the LORD. (In those days the ark of the covenant of God was there,
28 UST Phinehas son of Eleazar, the grandson of Aaron, was serving as the high priest at the sacred tent at that time. The Israelites asked,“Should we fight another battle with the soldiers from the tribe of Benjamin, even though they are Israelites just as we are? Or should we not fight any more battles?” Yahweh said,“Attack them, because tomorrow I will enable you to 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 UST The Israelites had many of their soldiers hide in the fields around Gibeah. BSB BSB: So Israel set up an ambush around Gibeah.
30 UST The other Israelite soldiers advanced against Gibeah for a third time. They stood in their positions for fighting a battle against the Benjaminite army 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 UST Then the soldiers from the tribe of Benjamin came out of the city to fight against them. The Israelite soldiers retreated so that they would chase them and go away from the city. The Benjaminite soldiers were able to kill some of them as they had done before. They killed them on the roads{ that they were using to retreat}.(One of those roads went to Bethel, and the other road went through the countryside to Gibeah.) They killed about 30 Israelite soldiers. 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 UST The men of the tribe of Benjamin thought,“We are defeating them as we did before!” But the Israelite soldiers had only retreated in order to trick the soldiers from Benjamin into leaving the city and going down the roads. 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 UST All at once, the soldiers in the main Israelite army stopped running away and came together into battle positions at a place that people call Baal Tamar. The other Israelite soldiers ran out from where they had been hiding 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 UST There were 10, 000 of those soldiers, and the Israelites had selected them for this mission from throughout their army. They advanced against the Benjaminite soldiers from the direction of the city. There was a very big battle. The soldiers from the tribe of Benjamin did not yet realize that the Israelites were going to defeat them badly. 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 UST Yahweh enabled the Israelite soldiers to defeat the soldiers from the tribe of Benjamin. That day the Israelites killed 25, 100 Benjaminites who had all learned how to fight well with a sword. 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 UST Finally the soldiers from the tribe of Benjamin recognized that they were going to lose the battle.{ They realized that} the Israelite soldiers had only retreated because they knew they had other soldiers hiding around Gibeah{ who would come and attack them from behind}. 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 UST Those soldiers who had been hiding came out and rushed quickly into Gibeah. 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 UST The main group of Israelite soldiers{ knew when to stop fleeing and turn around and attack because they} had arranged for the soldiers who were hiding to give them a signal. They told them to{ set the city on fire once they had entered it so that} a great cloud of smoke would rise from it into the sky. 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 UST That was why the main group of Israelite soldiers had fled from the battle. They wanted the soldiers from the tribe of Benjamin to think that they were winning the battle, just as they had before. The soldiers from Benjamin were able to kill about 30 Israelite soldiers. 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 UST But then a cloud of smoke began to rise up from the city because the Israelite soldiers who had been hiding were setting fires as a signal. The soldiers from the tribe of Benjamin turned around and saw a great cloud of smoke going up into the sky because fires were burning throughout the city. 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 UST The main group of Israelite men also saw the smoke, and so they turned around{ and began to attack the Benjaminites}. The soldiers from the tribe of Benjamin became very afraid, because they realized that they were going to be badly defeated. 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 UST So the soldiers from the tribe of Benjamin tried to run away toward the desolate area outside the city to escape from the Israelite soldiers. But they were not able to escape, because the rest of the Israelite soldiers were coming at them from the other direction. They were caught between the two groups. 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 UST The Israelite soldiers surrounded many of the soldiers from the tribe of Benjamin, chasing them into an area east of Gibeah. The Israelite soldiers easily killed many of them there. BSB BSB: They surrounded the Benjamites, pursued them, and easily overtook them in the vicinity of Gibeah on the east.
44 UST The Israelites killed 18, 000 soldiers from the tribe of Benjamin who were all great warriors. BSB BSB: And 18,000 Benjamites fell, all men of valor.
45 UST Those who were still alive tried to run to the rock of Rimmon in a desolate area{ where they could protect themselves}. But the Israelite soldiers killed 5, 000 more soldiers from the tribe of Benjamin on the roads as they were trying to run away. The Israelites chased other soldiers from the tribe of Benjamin who were fleeing towards the city of Gidom. The Israelites killed 2, 000 of them. 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 UST Altogether 25, 000 soldiers from the tribe of Benjamin who had learned how to fight well with a sword died that day. They were all great warriors. BSB BSB: That day 25,000 Benjamite swordsmen fell, all men of valor.
47 UST But 600 soldiers from the tribe of Benjamin escaped into a desolate area. They got safely to the rock of Rimmon, and 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 UST Then the Israelite soldiers went throughout the territory that belonged to the tribe of Benjamin and slaughtered everyone. They killed all the people in each city. They also killed all the animals and destroyed everything else that was in those cities. They also burned all of the cities in that territory to the ground. 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.