Judges 20

¹ Then all the childrenchildren of IsraelIsrael went out, and the congregationcongregation was assembled as oneone manman, from DanDan even to Beersheba, with the landland of GileadGilead, to YahwehYahweh at MizpahMizpah.

² The chiefs of all the peoplepeople, even of all the tribestribes of IsraelIsrael, presented themselves in the assemblyassembly of the peoplepeople of GodGod, four hundredfour hundred thousandthousand footmen who drew swordsword.

³ (Now the childrenchildren of BenjaminBenjamin heardheard that the childrenchildren of IsraelIsrael had gone up to MizpahMizpah.) The childrenchildren of IsraelIsrael saidsaid, "TellTell usus, how did this wickednesswickedness happen?"

⁴ The Levite, the husbandhusband of the womanwoman who was murdered, answeredanswered, "I camecame into GibeahGibeah that belongs to BenjaminBenjamin, I and my concubineconcubine, to lodge.

⁵ The men of GibeahGibeah roserose against me, and surroundedsurrounded the househouse by nightnight. They thought to have slainslain me, and they forced my concubineconcubine, and she is deaddead.

⁶ I took my concubineconcubine, and cut her in pieces, and sentsent her throughout all the country of the inheritanceinheritance of IsraelIsrael; for they have committed lewdness and follyfolly in IsraelIsrael.

⁷ Behold, you childrenchildren of IsraelIsrael, all of you, give here your advice and counsel."

⁸ All the peoplepeople arose as oneone manman, saying, "We will not any of usus gogo to his tenttent, neither will we any of usus turnturn to his househouse.

⁹ But now this is the thing which we will do to GibeahGibeah: [we will go up] against it by lotlot;

¹⁰ and we will take tenten men of one hundredone hundred throughout all the tribestribes of IsraelIsrael, and one hundredone hundred of one thousandthousand, and a thousandthousand out of tenten thousandthousand, to get food for the people, that they may do, when they comecome to Gibeah of BenjaminBenjamin, according to all the follyfolly that they have worked in IsraelIsrael."

¹¹ So all the menmen of IsraelIsrael were gatheredgathered against the citycity, knit together as oneone manman.

¹² The tribestribes of IsraelIsrael sentsent men through all the tribe of BenjaminBenjamin, saying, "What wickednesswickedness is this that is happen among you?

¹³ Now therefore deliver up the men, the base fellows, who are in GibeahGibeah, that we may putput them to death, and putput away evilevil from IsraelIsrael." But BenjaminBenjamin would not listenlisten to the voicevoice of their brothersbrothers the childrenchildren of IsraelIsrael.

¹⁴ The childrenchildren of BenjaminBenjamin gatheredgathered themselves together out of the citiescities to GibeahGibeah, to go outgo out to battlebattle against the childrenchildren of IsraelIsrael.

¹⁵ The childrenchildren of BenjaminBenjamin were numbered on that dayday out of the citiescities twentytwenty-six thousandthousand menmen who drew the swordsword, besides the inhabitantsthe inhabitants of GibeahGibeah, who were numbered sevenseven hundredhundred chosen menmen.

¹⁶ Among all this peoplepeople there were sevenseven hundredhundred chosen menmen left-handed; everyone could sling stonesstones at a hair-breadth, and not miss.

¹⁷ The menmen of IsraelIsrael, besides BenjaminBenjamin, were numbered four hundredfour hundred thousandthousand menmen who drew swordsword: all these were menmen of warwar.

¹⁸ The childrenchildren of IsraelIsrael arose, and went up to BethelBethel, and asked counsel of GodGod; and they saidsaid, "Who shall go upgo up for usus first to battlebattle against the childrenchildren of BenjaminBenjamin?" YahwehYahweh saidsaid, "JudahJudah [shall go upgo up] first."

¹⁹ The childrenchildren of IsraelIsrael rose uprose up in the morningmorning, and encampedencamped against GibeahGibeah.

²⁰ The menmen of IsraelIsrael went out to battlebattle against BenjaminBenjamin; and the menmen of IsraelIsrael set the battlebattle in array against them at GibeahGibeah.

²¹ The childrenchildren of BenjaminBenjamin came forth out of GibeahGibeah, and destroyed down to the groundground of the IsraelitesIsraelites on that dayday TwentyTwenty-twotwo thousandthousand menmen.

²² The peoplepeople, the menmen of IsraelIsrael, encouraged themselves, and set the battlebattle again in array in the placeplace where they set themselves in array the firstthe first dayday.

²³ The childrenchildren of IsraelIsrael went up and weptwept beforebefore YahwehYahweh until eveningevening; and they asked of YahwehYahweh, saying, "Shall I again draw nearnear to battlebattle against the childrenchildren of BenjaminBenjamin my brotherbrother?" YahwehYahweh saidsaid, "Go upGo up against him."

²⁴ The childrenchildren of IsraelIsrael came nearnear against the childrenchildren of BenjaminBenjamin the second dayday.

²⁵ BenjaminBenjamin went forth against them out of GibeahGibeah the second dayday, and destroyed down to the groundground of the childrenchildren of IsraelIsrael again eighteen thousandthousand menmen; all these drew the swordsword.

²⁶ Then all the childrenchildren of IsraelIsrael, and all the people, went up, and camecame to BethelBethel, and weptwept, and satsat there beforebefore YahwehYahweh, and fasted that dayday until eveningevening; and they offered burnt offeringsofferings and peacepeace offeringsofferings beforebefore YahwehYahweh.

²⁷ The childrenchildren of IsraelIsrael asked of YahwehYahweh (for the arkark of the covenant of GodGod was there in those daysdays,

²⁸ and Phinehas, the sonson of Eleazar, the sonson of AaronAaron, stoodstood beforebefore it in those daysdays), saying, "Shall I yet again go outgo out to battlebattle against the childrenchildren of BenjaminBenjamin my brotherbrother, or shall I cease?" YahwehYahweh saidsaid, "Go upGo up; for tomorrowtomorrow I will deliver him into your handhand."

²⁹ IsraelIsrael set ambushes all around GibeahGibeah.

³⁰ The childrenchildren of IsraelIsrael went up against the childrenchildren of BenjaminBenjamin on the third daythird day, and set themselves in array against GibeahGibeah, as at other times.

³¹ The childrenchildren of BenjaminBenjamin went out against the peoplepeople, and were drawn away from the citycity; and they began to strikestrike and kill of the peoplepeople, as at other times, in the highways, of which oneone goesgoes up to BethelBethel, and the other to GibeahGibeah, in the fieldfield, about thirtythirty menmen of IsraelIsrael.

³² The childrenchildren of BenjaminBenjamin saidsaid, "They are struckstruck down beforebefore usus, as at the firstthe first." But the childrenchildren of IsraelIsrael saidsaid, "Let usus fleeflee, and draw them away from the citycity to the highways."

³³ All the menmen of IsraelIsrael rose uprose up out of their placeplace, and set themselves in array at Baal Tamar: and the ambushers of IsraelIsrael broke forth out of their placeplace, even out of Maareh Geba.

³⁴ There camecame over against GibeahGibeah tenten thousandthousand chosen menmen out of all IsraelIsrael, and the battlebattle was severe; but they didn't knowknow that evilevil was close on them.

³⁵ YahwehYahweh struckstruck BenjaminBenjamin beforebefore IsraelIsrael; and the childrenchildren of IsraelIsrael destroyed of BenjaminBenjamin that dayday twentytwenty-fivefive thousandthousand one hundredone hundred menmen: all these drew the swordsword.

³⁶ So the childrenchildren of BenjaminBenjamin sawsaw that they were struckstruck; for the menmen of IsraelIsrael gave placeplace to BenjaminBenjamin, because they trusted the ambushers whom they had set against GibeahGibeah.

³⁷ The ambushers hurried, and rushed on GibeahGibeah; and the ambushers drew themselves along, and struckstruck all the citycity with the edge of the swordedge of the sword.

³⁸ Now the appointed sign between the menmen of IsraelIsrael and the ambushers was that they should make a great cloud of smokesmoke rise uprise up out of the citycity.

³⁹ The menmen of IsraelIsrael turnedturned in the battlebattle, and Benjaminand Benjamin began to strikestrike and kill of the menmen of IsraelIsrael about thirtythirty persons; for they saidsaid, "Surely they are struckstruck down beforebefore usus, as in the firstthe first battlebattle."

⁴⁰ But when the cloud began to arisearise up out of the citycity in a pillarpillar of smokesmoke, the BenjamitesBenjamites looked behindbehind them; and behold, the whole of the citycity went up in smokesmoke to the skysky.

⁴¹ The menmen of IsraelIsrael turnedturned, and the menmen of BenjaminBenjamin were dismayed; for they sawsaw that evilevil had come on them.

⁴² Therefore they turnedturned their backs beforebefore the menmen of IsraelIsrael to the wayway of the wildernesswilderness; but the battlebattle followed hard after them; and those who came out of the citiescities destroyed them in its midstmidst.

⁴³ They surroundedsurrounded the BenjamitesBenjamites, chased them, [and] trod them down at [their] resting place, as far as over against GibeahGibeah toward the sunrisesunrise.

⁴⁴ There fellfell of BenjaminBenjamin eighteen thousandthousand menmen; all these [were] menmen of valor.

⁴⁵ They turnedturned and fledfled toward the wildernesswilderness to the rockrock of Rimmon: and they gleaned of them in the highways five thousand menfive thousand men, and followed hard afterafter them to Gidom, and struckstruck of them two thousandthousand menmen.

⁴⁶ So that all who fellfell that day ofday of BenjaminBenjamin were twentytwenty-five thousand menfive thousand men who drew the swordsword; all these [were] menmen of valor.

⁴⁷ But sixsix hundredhundred menmen turnedturned and fledfled toward the wildernesswilderness to the rockrock of Rimmon, and stayed in the rockrock of Rimmon fourfour monthsmonths.

⁴⁸ The menmen of IsraelIsrael turnedturned again on the childrenchildren of BenjaminBenjamin, and struckstruck them with the edge of the swordedge of the sword, both the entire citycity, and the livestock, and all that they foundfound: moreover all the citiescities which they foundfound they set on firefire.