“1 Now the men of Israel had sworn in Mizpeh, saying, There shall not
any of us give his daughter unto Benjamin to wife. 2 And the people came
to the house of God, and abode there till even before God, and lifted up
their voices, and wept sore; 3 And said, O LORD God of Israel, why is
this come to pass in Israel, that there should be to day one tribe
lacking in Israel? 4 And it came to pass on the morrow, that the people
rose early, and built there an altar, and offered burnt offerings and
peace offerings. 5 And the children of Israel said, Who [is there] among
all the tribes of Israel that came not up with the congregation unto the
LORD? For they had made a great oath concerning him that came not up to
the LORD to Mizpeh, saying, He shall surely be put to death. 6 And the
children of Israel repented them for Benjamin their brother, and said,
There is one tribe cut off from Israel this day. 7 How shall we do for
wives for them that remain, seeing we have sworn by the LORD that we
will not give them of our daughters to wives? 8 And they said, What one
[is there] of the tribes of Israel that came not up to Mizpeh to the
LORD? And, behold, there came none to the camp from Jabeshgilead to the
assembly. 9 For the people were numbered, and, behold, [there were] none
of the inhabitants of Jabeshgilead there. 10 And the congregation sent
thither twelve thousand men of the valiantest, and commanded them,
saying, Go and smite the inhabitants of Jabeshgilead with the edge of
the sword, with the women and the children. 11 And this [is] the thing
that ye shall do, Ye shall utterly destroy every male, and every woman
that hath lain by man. 12 And they found among the inhabitants of
Jabeshgilead four hundred young virgins, that had known no man by lying
with any male: and they brought them unto the camp to Shiloh, which [is]
in the land of Canaan. 13 And the whole congregation sent [some] to
speak to the children of Benjamin that [were] in the rock Rimmon, and to
call peaceably unto them. 14 And Benjamin came again at that time; and
they gave them wives which they had saved alive of the women of
Jabeshgilead: and yet so they sufficed them not. 15 And the people
repented them for Benjamin, because that the LORD had made a breach in
the tribes of Israel.”
“16 Then the elders of the congregation said, How shall we do for
wives for them that remain, seeing the women are destroyed out of
Benjamin? 17 And they said, [There must be] an inheritance for them that
be escaped of Benjamin, that a tribe be not destroyed out of Israel. 18
Howbeit we may not give them wives of our daughters: for the children of
Israel have sworn, saying, Cursed [be] he that giveth a wife to
Benjamin. 19 Then they said, Behold, [there is] a feast of the LORD in
Shiloh yearly [in a place] which [is] on the north side of Bethel, on
the east side of the highway that goeth up from Bethel to Shechem, and
on the south of Lebonah. 20 Therefore they commanded the children of
Benjamin, saying, Go and lie in wait in the vineyards; 21 And see, and,
behold, if the daughters of Shiloh come out to dance in dances, then
come ye out of the vineyards, and catch you every man his wife of the
daughters of Shiloh, and go to the land of Benjamin. 22 And it shall be,
when their fathers or their brethren come unto us to complain, that we
will say unto them, Be favourable unto them for our sakes: because we
reserved not to each man his wife in the war: for ye did not give unto
them at this time, [that] ye should be guilty. 23 And the children of
Benjamin did so, and took [them] wives, according to their number, of
them that danced, whom they caught: and they went and returned unto
their inheritance, and repaired the cities, and dwelt in them. 24 And
the children of Israel departed thence at that time, every man to his
tribe and to his family, and they went out from thence every man to his
inheritance. 25 In those days [there was] no king in Israel: every man
did [that which was] right in his own eyes.” (Judges 21:1-25 AV)
© 2011-2018 Kathy L. McFarland. All Rights Reserved Privacy Policy