Bible in one year 5/20/ 2022 Judges 15-21 Samson’s vengeance on the Philistines and the reason of Benjamite War
By Rev.Katherine Liu Bruce
Christian
Arts Ministries: Biblical precepts & Gospel music; Pastoral ministry &
Counseling
Judges Chapter 15 Samson’s
vengeance on the Philistines
The time of wheat harvest. I.e.,
May. Viciously (v.8) Lit., leg on
thing, a wrestling figure indicating a slaughter using brute force. Samson
asked that the Israelites not attack him, so that he would not be obliged to
retaliate and shed Jewish blood. Kill me
(v.12) Lit., fall upon me yourselves. Ramath
Lehi (v.17) means “the height (hill) of the jawbone”. Samson struck down a thousand Philistines men. The place was
called Ramath Lehi. He was thirsty and cried out to God, “You have given your
servant this great victory. Must I now die of thirst and fall into the hands of
the uncircumcised?” then God opened up the hollow place in Lehi, and water came
out of it. the spring was called “ En
Hakkore” (v.19) means “ the spring of the caller.” It is still there in
Lehi.
Judges Chapter 16 the fall of Samson
because of Delilah
One day Samson went to Gaza where he
saw a prostitute. Gaze (v.1) was the southernmost of the five principal
Philistine cities. Samson went in to spend the night with her, He fell in love with
a woman in the Valley of Sorek whose name was Delilah. The
rulers of the Philistines went to her and said, “ see if you can lure him into showing you the secret of his great
strength and how we can over power him. So we may tie him up and subdue him.
She will receive eleven hundred shekels of silver.” (vv.4-5).Eleven hundred shekels of silver(v.5)
About thirty-four pounds of silver. Delilah was promised this amount from each
of the five lords of the Philistines. String.(v.9) Raw flax fibers used for wicks. Since Samson was lying
with his head in her lap, Delilah could easily begin to weave his hair into the
material.(vv.13-14).
Samson, finally told Delilah what was the secret of his great
strength. “Because I have been a Nazirite
set apart to God since birth. If his
head were shaved, his strength would leave him. And he would become as weak as
any other man.” (v.17) while Samson was sleeping, she called a man
to shave off the seven braids of his hair and began to subdue him, Samson’s
strength left him.(v.19).The Philistines seized him, gouged out his eyes and
took him down to Gaza.(v.21). Samson was reduced to humiliating slave labor,
doing a woman’s work.(v.21). But Samson’s head began to grow again after it had
been shaved. Dagon(v.23). A
vegetation god of the Philistines. While the Philistines assembled to offer a
great sacrifice to Dagon their god. They called Samson out of the prison.
Samson said, “ Put me where I can feel
the pillars that support the temple, so that I may lean against them.” (v.26).
The flat roof (v.26) supported by
wooden pillars set on stone bases, was made of logs laid from wall to wall. On
the roof were about three thousand men and women watching Samson perform. Samson
prayed to the Lord, “remember me, O God, please strengthen me just once mreo and let
me with one blow get revenge on the Philistines for my two eyes.” (v.28).Samson killed many more when he died than while he lived. Samson,
a study in contrasts, exemplifies those who, though greatly endowed by God fail
to use His gifts to His greatest glory.
Judges
Chapter 17 Micah and the Migration of the Danites
Micah and his private priest
The remaining chapters of
the book are appendices, not in chronological order, that give insights into
Israelite life during the period of the judges. (v.1). Micah, fearing the curse
his mother had placed on the thief who stole her eleven hundred shekels of
silver (16:5), confessed to the crime. Then, hoping to neutralize the curse,
his mother dedicated the money to the Lord and ordered that a carved image(wood
overlaid with silver) and a cast idol (of solid silver) be made.(vv.2-3). Ephod
(Hos.3:4 some idols; Gen.31:19). Micah now had all the external features of
syncretistic religion, along with self-sufficient superstitious
belief.(vv.12-13).
Judges
Chapter 18 Danite Migration
In
those days Israel had no king. The Amorites had forced the Danites into the
mountain areas of their allotted territory(1:34).Laish(v.7).The Leshem of Josh.19:47, a town N. of Israel which
later became known as Dan. It had no internal government and was isolated from
other tribes. Micah and some friends chased the Danites in order to try and
recover his objects of worship and his priest. But when the Danites threatened
their lives, they returned home. Note Micah’s bankrupt spiritual condition,as
he complained that in taking away the gods he had made, the Danites had taken
away everthing (vv.22-26). Son of Moses (v.30), the Danite priests traced their
lineage to Moses. Until the time of the captivity of the land. Either a
reference to the deportation by Tiglath –Pileser III of Assyria in
733-732(2Kings 15:29) or to the time of the exile of the Ark from Shilon in the
eleventh century B.C. (1 Sam.4:11) Verse 31 seems to favor the latter view.
Judges Chapter 19 The
Benjamite War ; The Reason for the War
Jerusalem is called Jebus
here and in 1 Chron.11:4-5, since it was occupied by the Jebusites (Judg.1:21).
Now a Levite who lived in a remote area in the hill country of Ephraim took a
concubine from Bethlehem in Judah. Though they waited in the city square, none
of the people of Gibeah offered them hospitality, as they should have done. Finally, an Ephraimite
sojourning in Gibeah took them in.(vv.15-21). Wicked men (v.22) Lit., sons of
Belial; better, worthless men. An O.T. phrase used of those involved in
idolatry(Deut.13:13), drunkenness (1Sam.1:16), rebellion(1Sam.2:12), and sodomy
(as in this case). Pounding on the door, shouted to the old man who owned the
house, “ bring out the man who came to
your house so we can have sex with him” (v.22). the old man said, “No, since this man is my guest, look, here
is my virgin daughter, and his concubine, I will bring them out to you now, and
can use them and do to them whatever you wish.” (v.23-24). So
the man took his concubine and sent her outside to them, and they raped her and
abused her throughout the night, and at dawn they let her go.(v.25). A day
break the woman went back to the house where her master was staying, fell down
at the door and lay there until daylight. She was dead. When he reached home,
he took a knife and cut up his concubine, limb by limb, into twelve parts and
sent them into all the areas of Israel. Everyone who saw it said, “such a thing
has never been seen or done, not since the day the Israelites came up of Egypt.
Think about it, consider it! tell us what to do!” (vv.29-30) .The dismemberment
and distribution of the body served as a call to action (1Sam.11:7)
Judges
Chapter 20 The Execution of the Benjamite War
Then all the Israelites
from Dan to Beersheba and from the land of Gilead came out as one man and
assembled before the Lord in Mizpah (v.1) With one exception (21:8-9). Mizpah
Not the one E. of the Jordan (10:17), but the one about eight miles N. of
Jerusalem and about three miles from Gibeah. Israelites inquired of the
Lord, shall they go up again to battle against the Bejamites their brothers?
The Lord answered “ go up against them.” (v.23) they sat weeping before the Lord. they fasted that day until evening
and presented burnt offerings and fellowship offerings to the Lord. they
inquired of the Lord “ shall we go up again to battle with Benjamin our brother
or not?” The Lord responded, “go, for tomorrow I will give them into your
hands.”(v.26-28). The presence of the arkat Bethel (before its
more permanent location at Shiloh) and the mention of Phinehas (Josh22:13)
indicate that these events happened early in the period of the judges. As
Joshua had done at Ai (Josh.8:4-29), the
Israelites here set an ambush. Gibeah was taken when its army, pursuing
them main body of the Israelites as they feigned retreat, left the city
undefended. Upon seeking the city ablaze, the main Israelite army knew that the
ambush had been a success. The Lord defeated Benjamin before Israel, and on
that day the Israelites struck down 25,100 Benjamites, all armed with
swords.(v.35). The men of Israel went back to Benjamin and put all the towns to
the sword, including the animals and everything else they found. All the towns
they came across they set on fire.(v.48).
Judges
21 the results of the Benjamite War
Israelites grieved for
their brothers, the Benjamites. They cried, “ why has this happened to Israel?
Why should one tribe be missing from Israel today?” (v.3). Since almost all the
men of Benjamin had been killed (20:47), and since the other tribes had sworn
not to let any of their girls marry a Benjamite, this tribe faced the challenge
of preserving themselves from total extinction. Jabesh Gilead.(v.8) Since this town, on the E. side of the Jordan,
had sent no troops (20:1), all its inhabitants were destroyed except four
hundred virgins, who were given to the Benjamite men who remained(v.12). The
two hundred male Benjamites still left without wives were told to “take” wives
from among the maidens of Shiloh who danced a the annual festival. So that a
tribe of Israel will not be wiped out. This action allowed the men of Shilon to
keep their oath not to “give” their girls to the Benjamites.(vv.21-22). In
those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.(v.25).The verse
appropriately summarizes the events of
this book.
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Old Testament (NIV) Judges Chapter
Chapter 15 Samson’s
Vengeance on the Philistines
15:1 Later on, at the
time of wheat harvest, Samson took a young goat and went to visit his wife. He
said, "I'm going to my wife's room." But her father would not let him
go in.
15:2 "I was so
sure you thoroughly hated her," he said, "that I gave her to your
friend. Isn't her younger sister more attractive? Take her instead."
15:3 Samson said to
them, "This time I have a right to get even with the Philistines; I will
really harm them."
15:4 So he went out
and caught three hundred foxes and tied them tail to tail in pairs. He then
fastened a torch to every pair of tails,
15:5 lit the torches
and let the foxes loose in the standing grain of the Philistines. He burned up
the shocks and standing grain, together with the vineyards and olive groves.
15:6 When the
Philistines asked, "Who did this?" they were told, "Samson, the
Timnite's son-in-law, because his wife was given to his friend." So the
Philistines went up and burned her and her father to death.
15:7 Samson said to
them, "Since you've acted like this, I won't stop until I get my revenge
on you."
15:8 He attacked them
viciously and slaughtered many of them. Then he went down and stayed in a cave
in the rock of Etam.
15:9 The Philistines
went up and camped in Judah, spreading out near Lehi.
15:10 The men of Judah
asked, "Why have you come to fight us?" "We have come to take
Samson prisoner," they answered, "to do to him as he did to us."
15:11 Then three
thousand men from Judah went down to the cave in the rock of Etam and said to
Samson, "Don't you realize that the Philistines are rulers over us? What
have you done to us?" He answered, "I merely did to them what they
did to me."
15:12 They said to
him, "We've come to tie you up and hand you over to the Philistines."
Samson said, "Swear to me that you won't kill me yourselves."
15:13
"Agreed," they answered. "We will only tie you up and hand you over
to them. We will not kill you." So they bound him with two new ropes and
led him up from the rock.
15:14 As he approached
Lehi, the Philistines came toward him shouting. The Spirit of the LORD came
upon him in power. The ropes on his arms became like charred flax, and the
bindings dropped from his hands.
15:15 Finding a fresh
jawbone of a donkey, he grabbed it and struck down a thousand men.
15:16 Then Samson
said, "With a donkey's jawbone I have made donkeys of them. With a
donkey's jawbone I have killed a thousand men."
15:17 When he finished
speaking, he threw away the jawbone; and the place was called Ramath Lehi.
15:18 Because he was
very thirsty, he cried out to the LORD, "You have given your servant this
great victory. Must I now die of thirst and fall into the hands of the
uncircumcised?"
15:19 Then God opened
up the hollow place in Lehi, and water came out of it. When Samson drank, his
strength returned and he revived. So the spring was called En Hakkore, and it
is still there in Lehi.
15:20 Samson led
Israel for twenty years in the days of the Philistines.
Chapter 16 Fall of Samson because of Delilah
16:1 One day Samson
went to Gaza, where he saw a prostitute. He went in to spend the night with
her.
16:2 The people of
Gaza were told, "Samson is here!" So they surrounded the place and
lay in wait for him all night at the city gate. They made no move during the
night, saying, "At dawn we'll kill him."
16:3 But Samson lay
there only until the middle of the night. Then he got up and took hold of the
doors of the city gate, together with the two posts, and tore them loose, bar
and all. He lifted them to his shoulders and carried them to the top of the
hill that faces Hebron.
16:4 Some time later,
he fell in love with a woman in the Valley of Sorek whose name was Delilah.
16:5 The rulers of the
Philistines went to her and said, "See if you can lure him into showing
you the secret of his great strength and how we can overpower him so we may tie
him up and subdue him. Each one of us will give you eleven hundred shekels of
silver."
16:6 So Delilah said
to Samson, "Tell me the secret of your great strength and how you can be
tied up and subdued."
16:7 Samson answered
her, "If anyone ties me with seven fresh thongs that have not been dried,
I'll become as weak as any other man."
16:8 Then the rulers
of the Philistines brought her seven fresh thongs that had not been dried, and
she tied him with them.
16:9 With men hidden
in the room, she called to him, "Samson, the Philistines are upon
you!" But he snapped the thongs as easily as a piece of string snaps when
it comes close to a flame. So the secret of his strength was not discovered.
16:10 Then Delilah
said to Samson, "You have made a fool of me; you lied to me. Come now,
tell me how you can be tied."
16:11 He said,
"If anyone ties me securely with new ropes that have never been used, I'll
become as weak as any other man."
16:12 So Delilah took
new ropes and tied him with them. Then, with men hidden in the room, she called
to him, "Samson, the Philistines are upon you!" But he snapped the
ropes off his arms as if they were threads.
16:13 Delilah then
said to Samson, "Until now, you have been making a fool of me and lying to
me. Tell me how you can be tied." He replied, "If you weave the seven
braids of my head into the fabric on the loom and tighten it with the pin, I'll
become as weak as any other man." So while he was sleeping, Delilah took
the seven braids of his head, wove them into the fabric
16:14 and tightened it
with the pin. Again she called to him, "Samson, the Philistines are upon
you!" He awoke from his sleep and pulled up the pin and the loom, with the
fabric.
16:15 Then she said to
him, "How can you say, 'I love you,' when you won't confide in me? This is
the third time you have made a fool of me and haven't told me the secret of
your great strength."
16:16 With such nagging
she prodded him day after day until he was tired to death.
16:17 So he told her
everything. "No razor has ever been used on my head," he said,
"because I have been a Nazirite set apart to God since birth. If my head
were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become as weak as any
other man."
16:18 When Delilah saw
that he had told her everything, she sent word to the rulers of the
Philistines, "Come back once more; he has told me everything." So the
rulers of the Philistines returned with the silver in their hands.
16:19 Having put him
to sleep on her lap, she called a man to shave off the seven braids of his
hair, and so began to subdue him. And his strength left him.
16:20 Then she called,
"Samson, the Philistines are upon you!" He awoke from his sleep and
thought, "I'll go out as before and shake myself free." But he did
not know that the LORD had left him.
16:21 Then the
Philistines seized him, gouged out his eyes and took him down to Gaza. Binding
him with bronze shackles, they set him to grinding in the prison.
16:22 But the hair on
his head began to grow again after it had been shaved.
The Death of Samson
16:23 Now the rulers
of the Philistines assembled to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and
to celebrate, saying, "Our god has delivered Samson, our enemy, into our
hands."
16:24 When the people
saw him, they praised their god, saying, "Our god has delivered our enemy
into our hands, the one who laid waste our land and multiplied our slain."
16:25 While they were
in high spirits, they shouted, "Bring out Samson to entertain us." So
they called Samson out of the prison, and he performed for them. When they
stood him among the pillars,
16:26 Samson said to the
servant who held his hand, "Put me where I can feel the pillars that
support the temple, so that I may lean against them."
16:27 Now the temple was
crowded with men and women; all the rulers of the Philistines were there, and
on the roof were about three thousand men and women watching Samson perform.
16:28 Then Samson prayed
to the LORD, "O Sovereign LORD, remember me. O God, please strengthen me
just once more, and let me with one blow get revenge on the Philistines for my
two eyes."
16:29 Then Samson reached
toward the two central pillars on which the temple stood. Bracing himself
against them, his right hand on the one and his left hand on the other,
16:30 Samson said,
"Let me die with the Philistines!" Then he pushed with all his might,
and down came the temple on the rulers and all the people in it. Thus he killed
many more when he died than while he lived.
16:31 Then his brothers
and his father's whole family went down to get him. They brought him back and
buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of Manoah his father. He had
led Israel twenty years.
Chapter 17 Micah’s
Idols
17:1 Now a man named
Micah from the hill country of Ephraim
17:2 said to his
mother, "The eleven hundred shekels of silver that were taken from you and
about which I heard you utter a curse--I have that silver with me; I took
it." Then his mother said, "The LORD bless you, my son!"
17:3 When he returned
the eleven hundred shekels of silver to his mother, she said, "I solemnly
consecrate my silver to the LORD for my son to make a carved image and a cast
idol. I will give it back to you."
17:4 So he returned
the silver to his mother, and she took two hundred shekels of silver and gave
them to a silversmith, who made them into the image and the idol. And they were
put in Micah's house.
17:5 Now this man
Micah had a shrine, and he made an ephod and some idols and installed one of
his sons as his priest.
17:6 In those days
Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.
17:7 A young Levite
from Bethlehem in Judah, who had been living within the clan of Judah,
17:8 left that town in
search of some other place to stay. On his way he came to Micah's house in the
hill country of Ephraim.
17:9 Micah asked him,
"Where are you from?" "I'm a Levite from Bethlehem in
Judah," he said, "and I'm looking for a place to stay."
17:10 Then Micah said
to him, "Live with me and be my father and priest, and I'll give you ten
shekels of silver a year, your clothes and your food."
17:11 So the Levite
agreed to live with him, and the young man was to him like one of his sons.
17:12 Then Micah
installed the Levite, and the young man became his priest and lived in his
house.
17:13 And Micah said,
"Now I know that the LORD will be good to me, since this Levite has become
my priest."
Chapter 18 The
Danites Settle in Laish
18:1 In those days
Israel had no king. And in those days the tribe of the Danites was seeking a
place of their own where they might settle, because they had not yet come into
an inheritance among the tribes of Israel.
18:2 So the Danites
sent five warriors from Zorah and Eshtaol to spy out the land and explore it.
These men represented all their clans. They told them, "Go, explore the
land." The men entered the hill country of Ephraim and came to the house
of Micah, where they spent the night.
18:3 When they were
near Micah's house, they recognized the voice of the young Levite; so they
turned in there and asked him, "Who brought you here? What are you doing
in this place? Why are you here?"
18:4 He told them what
Micah had done for him, and said, "He has hired me and I am his
priest."
18:5 Then they said to
him, "Please inquire of God to learn whether our journey will be
successful."
18:6 The priest
answered them, "Go in peace. Your journey has the LORD'S approval."
18:7 So the five men
left and came to Laish, where they saw that the people were living in safety,
like the Sidonians, unsuspecting and secure. And since their land lacked
nothing, they were prosperous. Also, they lived a long way from the Sidonians
and had no relationship with anyone else.
18:8 When they
returned to Zorah and Eshtaol, their brothers asked them, "How did you
find things?"
18:9 They answered,
"Come on, let's attack them! We have seen that the land is very good.
Aren't you going to do something? Don't hesitate to go there and take it over.
18:10 When you get
there, you will find an unsuspecting people and a spacious land that God has
put into your hands, a land that lacks nothing whatever."
18:11 Then six hundred
men from the clan of the Danites, armed for battle, set out from Zorah and Eshtaol.
18:12 On their way
they set up camp near Kiriath Jearim in Judah. This is why the place west of
Kiriath Jearim is called Mahaneh Dan to this day.
18:13 From there they
went on to the hill country of Ephraim and came to Micah's house.
18:14 Then the five
men who had spied out the land of Laish said to their brothers, "Do you
know that one of these houses has an ephod, other household gods, a carved
image and a cast idol? Now you know what to do."
18:15 So they turned
in there and went to the house of the young Levite at Micah's place and greeted
him.
18:16 The six hundred
Danites, armed for battle, stood at the entrance to the gate.
18:17 The five men who
had spied out the land went inside and took the carved image, the ephod, the
other household gods and the cast idol while the priest and the six hundred
armed men stood at the entrance to the gate.
18:18 When these men
went into Micah's house and took the carved image, the ephod, the other
household gods and the cast idol, the priest said to them, "What are you
doing?"
18:19 They answered
him, "Be quiet! Don't say a word. Come with us, and be our father and
priest. Isn't it better that you serve a tribe and clan in Israel as priest
rather than just one man's household?"
18:20 Then the priest
was glad. He took the ephod, the other household gods and the carved image and
went along with the people.
18:21 Putting their
little children, their livestock and their possessions in front of them, they
turned away and left.
18:22 When they had
gone some distance from Micah's house, the men who lived near Micah were called
together and overtook the Danites.
18:23 As they shouted
after them, the Danites turned and said to Micah, "What's the matter with
you that you called out your men to fight?"
18:24 He replied,
"You took the gods I made, and my priest, and went away. What else do I
have? How can you ask, 'What's the matter with you?'"
18:25 The Danites
answered, "Don't argue with us, or some hot-tempered men will attack you,
and you and your family will lose your lives."
18:26 So the Danites
went their way, and Micah, seeing that they were too strong for him, turned
around and went back home.
18:27 Then they took
what Micah had made, and his priest, and went on to Laish, against a peaceful
and unsuspecting people. They attacked them with the sword and burned down
their city.
18:28 There was no one
to rescue them because they lived a long way from Sidon and had no relationship
with anyone else. The city was in a valley near Beth Rehob. The Danites rebuilt
the city and settled there.
18:29 They named it
Dan after their forefather Dan, who was born to Israel--though the city used to
be called Laish.
18:30 There the
Danites set up for themselves the idols, and Jonathan son of Gershom, the son
of Moses, and his sons were priests for the tribe of Dan until the time of the
captivity of the land.
18:31 They continued
to use the idols Micah had made, all the time the house of God was in Shiloh.
Chapter 19 The Benjamite war; the
reason for the war: a Levite and his concubine
19:1 In those days
Israel had no king. Now a Levite who lived in a remote area in the hill country
of Ephraim took a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah.
19:2 But she was
unfaithful to him. She left him and went back to her father's house in
Bethlehem, Judah. After she had been there four months,
19:3 her husband went
to her to persuade her to return. He had with him his servant and two donkeys.
She took him into her father's house, and when her father saw him, he gladly
welcomed him.
19:4 His
father-in-law, the girl's father, prevailed upon him to stay; so he remained
with him three days, eating and drinking, and sleeping there.
19:5 On the fourth day
they got up early and he prepared to leave, but the girl's father said to his
son-in-law, "Refresh yourself with something to eat; then you can
go."
19:6 So the two of
them sat down to eat and drink together. Afterward the girl's father said,
"Please stay tonight and enjoy yourself."
19:7 And when the man
got up to go, his father-in-law persuaded him, so he stayed there that night.
19:8 On the morning of
the fifth day, when he rose to go, the girl's father said, "Refresh
yourself. Wait till afternoon!" So the two of them ate together.
19:9 Then when the
man, with his concubine and his servant, got up to leave, his father-in-law,
the girl's father, said, "Now look, it's almost evening. Spend the night
here; the day is nearly over. Stay and enjoy yourself. Early tomorrow morning
you can get up and be on your way home."
19:10 But, unwilling
to stay another night, the man left and went toward Jebus (that is, Jerusalem),
with his two saddled donkeys and his concubine.
19:11 When they were
near Jebus and the day was almost gone, the servant said to his master,
"Come, let's stop at this city of the Jebusites and spend the night."
19:12 His master
replied, "No. We won't go into an alien city, whose people are not
Israelites. We will go on to Gibeah."
19:13 He added,
"Come, let's try to reach Gibeah or Ramah and spend the night in one of
those places."
19:14 So they went on,
and the sun set as they neared Gibeah in Benjamin.
19:15 There they
stopped to spend the night. They went and sat in the city square, but no one
took them into his home for the night.
19:16 That evening an
old man from the hill country of Ephraim, who was living in Gibeah (the men of
the place were Benjamites), came in from his work in the fields.
19:17 When he looked
and saw the traveler in the city square, the old man asked, "Where are you
going? Where did you come from?"
19:18 He answered, "We are on our way from Bethlehem in Judah to
a remote area in the hill country of Ephraim where I live. I have been to
Bethlehem in Judah and now I am going to the house of the LORD. No one has
taken me into his house.
19:19 We have both
straw and fodder for our donkeys and bread and wine for ourselves your
servants--me, your maidservant, and the young man with us. We don't need
anything."
19:20 "You are
welcome at my house," the old man said. "Let me supply whatever you
need. Only don't spend the night in the square."
19:21 So he took him
into his house and fed his donkeys. After they had washed their feet, they had
something to eat and drink.
19:22 While they were
enjoying themselves, some of the wicked men of the city surrounded the house.
Pounding on the door, they shouted to the old man who owned the house,
"Bring out the man who came to your house so we can have sex with
him."
19:23 The owner of the
house went outside and said to them, "No, my friends, don't be so vile.
Since this man is my guest, don't do this disgraceful thing.
19:24 Look, here is my
virgin daughter, and his concubine. I will bring them out to you now, and you
can use them and do to them whatever you wish. But to this man, don't do such a
disgraceful thing."
19:25 But the men would
not listen to him. So the man took his concubine and sent her outside to them,
and they raped her and abused her throughout the night, and at dawn they let
her go.
19:26 At daybreak the
woman went back to the house where her master was staying, fell down at the
door and lay there until daylight.
19:27 When her master got
up in the morning and opened the door of the house and stepped out to continue
on his way, there lay his concubine, fallen in the doorway of the house, with
her hands on the threshold.
19:28 He said to her,
"Get up; let's go." But there was no answer. Then the man put her on
his donkey and set out for home.
19:29 When he reached
home, he took a knife and cut up his concubine, limb by limb, into twelve parts
and sent them into all the areas of Israel.
19:30 Everyone who saw it
said, "Such a thing has never been seen or done, not since the day the
Israelites came up out of Egypt. Think about it! Consider it! Tell us what to
do!"
Chapter 20 The
Israelites Punish the Benjamites
20:1 Then all the
Israelites from Dan to Beersheba and from the land of Gilead came out as one
man and assembled before the LORD in Mizpah.
20:2 The leaders of
all the people of the tribes of Israel took their places in the assembly of the
people of God, four hundred thousand soldiers armed with swords.
20:3 (The Benjamites
heard that the Israelites had gone up to Mizpah.) Then the Israelites said,
"Tell us how this awful thing happened."
20:4 So the Levite,
the husband of the murdered woman, said, "I and my concubine came to
Gibeah in Benjamin to spend the night.
20:5 During the night
the men of Gibeah came after me and surrounded the house, intending to kill me.
They raped my concubine, and she died.
20:6 I took my
concubine, cut her into pieces and sent one piece to each region of Israel's inheritance,
because they committed this lewd and disgraceful act in Israel.
20:7 Now, all you
Israelites, speak up and give your verdict."
20:8 All the people
rose as one man, saying, "None of us will go home. No, not one of us will
return to his house.
20:9 But now this is
what we'll do to Gibeah: We'll go up against it as the lot directs.
20:10 We'll take ten
men out of every hundred from all the tribes of Israel, and a hundred from a
thousand, and a thousand from ten thousand, to get provisions for the army.
Then, when the army arrives at Gibeah in Benjamin, it can give them what they
deserve for all this vileness done in Israel."
20:11 So all the men
of Israel got together and united as one man against the city.
20:12 The tribes of
Israel sent men throughout the tribe of Benjamin, saying, "What about this
awful crime that was committed among you?
20:13 Now surrender
those wicked men of Gibeah so that we may put them to death and purge the evil
from Israel." But the Benjamites would not listen to their fellow
Israelites.
20:14 From their towns
they came together at Gibeah to fight against the Israelites.
20:15 At once the
Benjamites mobilized twenty-six thousand swordsmen from their towns, in
addition to seven hundred chosen men from those living in Gibeah.
20:16 Among all these
soldiers there were seven hundred chosen men who were left-handed, each of whom
could sling a stone at a hair and not miss.
20:17 Israel, apart
from Benjamin, mustered four hundred thousand swordsmen, all of them fighting
men.
20:18 The Israelites
went up to Bethel and inquired of God. They said, "Who of us shall go
first to fight against the Benjamites?" The LORD replied, "Judah
shall go first."
20:19 The next morning
the Israelites got up and pitched camp near Gibeah.
20:20 The men of
Israel went out to fight the Benjamites and took up battle positions against
them at Gibeah.
20:21 The Benjamites
came out of Gibeah and cut down twenty-two thousand Israelites on the
battlefield that day.
20:22 But the men of
Israel encouraged one another and again took up their positions where they had
stationed themselves the first day.
20:23 The Israelites
went up and wept before the LORD until evening, and they inquired of the LORD.
They said, "Shall we go up again to battle against the Benjamites, our
brothers?" The LORD answered, "Go up against them."
20:24 Then the
Israelites drew near to Benjamin the second day.
20:25 This time, when
the Benjamites came out from Gibeah to oppose them, they cut down another
eighteen thousand Israelites, all of them armed with swords.
20:26 Then the Israelites,
all the people, went up to Bethel, and there they sat weeping before the LORD.
They fasted that day until evening and presented burnt offerings and fellowship
offerings to the LORD.
20:27 And the Israelites inquired
of the LORD. (In those days the ark of the covenant of God was there,
20:28 with Phinehas son of
Eleazar, the son of Aaron, ministering before it.) They asked, "Shall we
go up again to battle with Benjamin our brother, or not?" The LORD
responded, "Go, for tomorrow I will give them into your hands."
20:29 Then Israel set
an ambush around Gibeah.
20:30 They went up
against the Benjamites on the third day and took up positions against Gibeah as
they had done before.
20:31 The Benjamites
came out to meet them and were drawn away from the city. They began to inflict
casualties on the Israelites as before, so that about thirty men fell in the
open field and on the roads--the one leading to Bethel and the other to Gibeah.
20:32 While the
Benjamites were saying, "We are defeating them as before," the
Israelites were saying, "Let's retreat and draw them away from the city to
the roads."
20:33 All the men of
Israel moved from their places and took up positions at Baal Tamar, and the
Israelite ambush charged out of its place on the west of Gibeah.
20:34 Then ten
thousand of Israel's finest men made a frontal attack on Gibeah. The fighting
was so heavy that the Benjamites did not realize how near disaster was.
20:35 The LORD defeated
Benjamin before Israel, and on that day the Israelites struck down 25,100
Benjamites, all armed with swords.
20:36 Then the
Benjamites saw that they were beaten. Now the men of Israel had given way
before Benjamin, because they relied on the ambush they had set near Gibeah.
20:37 The men who had
been in ambush made a sudden dash into Gibeah, spread out and put the whole
city to the sword.
20:38 The men of
Israel had arranged with the ambush that they should send up a great cloud of
smoke from the city,
20:39 and then the men
of Israel would turn in the battle. The Benjamites had begun to inflict
casualties on the men of Israel (about thirty), and they said, "We are
defeating them as in the first battle."
20:40 But when the
column of smoke began to rise from the city, the Benjamites turned and saw the
smoke of the whole city going up into the sky.
20:41 Then the men of
Israel turned on them, and the men of Benjamin were terrified, because they
realized that disaster had come upon them.
20:42 So they fled
before the Israelites in the direction of the desert, but they could not escape
the battle. And the men of Israel who came out of the towns cut them down
there.
20:43 They surrounded the
Benjamites, chased them and easily overran them in the vicinity of Gibeah on
the east.
20:44 Eighteen thousand
Benjamites fell, all of them valiant fighters.
20:45 As they turned and
fled toward the desert to the rock of Rimmon, the Israelites cut down five
thousand men along the roads. They kept pressing after the Benjamites as far as
Gidom and struck down two thousand more.
20:46 On that day
twenty-five thousand Benjamite swordsmen fell, all of them valiant fighters.
20:47 But six hundred men
turned and fled into the desert to the rock of Rimmon, where they stayed four
months.
20:48 The men of
Israel went back to Benjamin and put all the towns to the sword, including the
animals and everything else they found. All the towns they came across they set
on fire.
Judges Chapter 21 the results of the
war
21:1 The men of Israel
had taken an oath at Mizpah: "Not one of us will give his daughter in
marriage to a Benjamite."
21:2 The people went
to Bethel, where they sat before God until evening, raising their voices and
weeping bitterly.
21:3 "O LORD, the God
of Israel," they cried, "why has this happened to Israel? Why should
one tribe be missing from Israel today?"
21:4 Early the next
day the people built an altar and presented burnt offerings and fellowship
offerings.
21:5 Then the
Israelites asked, "Who from all the tribes of Israel has failed to
assemble before the LORD?" For they had taken a solemn oath that anyone
who failed to assemble before the LORD at Mizpah should certainly be put to
death.
21:6 Now the
Israelites grieved for their brothers, the Benjamites. "Today one tribe is cut off from
Israel," they said.
21:7 "How can we
provide wives for those who are left, since we have taken an oath by the LORD
not to give them any of our daughters in marriage?"
21:8 Then they asked,
"Which one of the tribes of Israel failed to assemble before the LORD at
Mizpah?" They discovered that no one from Jabesh Gilead had come to the
camp for the assembly.
21:9 For when they
counted the people, they found that none of the people of Jabesh Gilead were
there.
21:10 So the assembly
sent twelve thousand fighting men with instructions to go to Jabesh Gilead and
put to the sword those living there, including the women and children.
21:11 "This is
what you are to do," they said. "Kill every male and every woman who
is not a virgin."
21:12 They found among
the people living in Jabesh Gilead four hundred young women who had never slept
with a man, and they took them to the camp at Shiloh in Canaan.
21:13 Then the whole
assembly sent an offer of peace to the Benjamites at the rock of Rimmon.
21:14 So the
Benjamites returned at that time and were given the women of Jabesh Gilead who
had been spared. But there were not enough for all of them.
21:15 The people grieved
for Benjamin, because the LORD had made a gap in the tribes of Israel.
21:16 And the elders of
the assembly said, "With the women of Benjamin destroyed, how shall we
provide wives for the men who are left?
21:17 The Benjamite
survivors must have heirs," they said, "so that a tribe of Israel
will not be wiped out.
21:18 We can't give
them our daughters as wives, since we Israelites have taken this oath: 'Cursed
be anyone who gives a wife to a Benjamite.'
21:19 But look, there
is the annual festival of the LORD in Shiloh, to the north of Bethel, and east
of the road that goes from Bethel to Shechem, and to the south of
Lebonah."
21:20 So they
instructed the Benjamites, saying, "Go and hide in the vineyards
21:21 and watch. When
the girls of Shiloh come out to join in the dancing, then rush from the
vineyards and each of you seize a wife from the girls of Shiloh and go to the
land of Benjamin.
21:22 When their
fathers or brothers complain to us, we will say to them, 'Do us a kindness by
helping them, because we did not get wives for them during the war, and you are
innocent, since you did not give your daughters to them.'"
21:23 So that is what
the Benjamites did. While the girls were dancing, each man caught one and
carried her off to be his wife. Then they returned to their inheritance and
rebuilt the towns and settled in them.
21:24 At that time the
Israelites left that place and went home to their tribes and clans, each to his
own inheritance.
21:25 In those days
Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.
Bibliography,
Ryrie, Charles C. The Ryrie
study Bible (NIV).Chicago, IL: The Moody Bible Institute, 1986
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