Judges 21
1 Now the men of Israel had sworn in Mizpah, saying, “None of us will give his daughter to Benjamin as a wife.”
Now the children of Israel swore in Massephath, saying, No man of us shall give his daughter to Benjamin for a wife.
2 The people came to Bethel and sat there until evening before God, and lifted up their voices, and wept severely.
And the people came to Baethel, and sat there until evening before God: and they lifted up their voice and wept with a great weeping;
3 They said, “The LORD, the God of Israel, why has this happened in Israel, that there should be one tribe lacking in Israel today?”
and said, Therefore, O Lord God of Israel, has this come to pass, that today one tribe should be counted [as missing] from Israel?
4 On the next day, the people rose early and built an altar there, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings.
And it came to pass on the morrow that the people rose up early, and built there an altar, and offered up whole burnt offerings and peace offerings.
5 The children of Israel said, “Who is there among all the tribes of Israel who didn’t come up in the assembly to the LORD?” For they had made a great oath concerning him who didn’t come up to the LORD to Mizpah, saying, “He shall surely be put to death.”
And the children of Israel said, Who of all the tribes of Israel, went not up in the congregation to the Lord? for there was a great oath concerning those who went not up to the Lord to Massephath, saying, He shall surely be put to death.
6 The children of Israel grieved for Benjamin their brother, and said, “There is one tribe cut off from Israel today.
And the children of Israel relented toward Benjamin their brother, and said, To-day one tribe is cut off from Israel.
7 How shall we provide wives for those who remain, since we have sworn by the LORD that we will not give them of our daughters to wives?”
What shall we do for wives for the rest that remain? whereas we have sworn by the Lord, not to give them of our daughters for wives.
8 They said, “What one is there of the tribes of Israel who didn’t come up to the LORD to Mizpah?” Behold, no one came from Jabesh Gilead to the camp to the assembly.
And they said, What one [man is there] of the tribes of Israel, who went not up to the Lord to Massephath? and, behold, no man came to the camp from Jabis Galaad to the assembly.
9 For when the people were counted, behold, there were none of the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead there.
And the people were numbered, and there was not there a man from the inhabitants of Jabis Galaad.
10 The congregation sent twelve thousand of the most valiant men there, and commanded them, saying, “Go and strike the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead with the edge of the sword, with the women and the little ones.
And the congregation sent there twelve thousand men of the strongest, and they charged them, saying, Go you and strike the inhabitants of Jabis Galaad with the edge of the sword.
11 This is the thing that you shall do: you shall utterly destroy every male, and every woman who has lain with a man.”
And this shall you do: every male and every woman that has known the lying with man you shall devote [to destruction], but the virgins you shall save alive: and they did so.
12 They found among the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead four hundred young virgins who had not known man by lying with him; and they brought them to the camp to Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan.
And they found among the inhabitants of Jabis Galaad four hundred young virgins, who had not known man by lying with him; and they brought them to Selom in the land of Chanaan.
13 The whole congregation sent and spoke to the children of Benjamin who were in the rock of Rimmon, and proclaimed peace to them.
And all the congregation sent and spoke to the children of Benjamin in the rock Remmon, and invited them to [make] peace.
14 Benjamin returned at that time; and they gave them the women whom they had saved alive of the women of Jabesh Gilead. There still weren’t enough for them.
And Benjamin returned to the children of Israel at that time, and the children of Israel gave them the women whom they [had] save alive of the daughters of Jabis Galaad; and they were content.
15 The people grieved for Benjamin, because the LORD had made a breach in the tribes of Israel.
And the people relented for Benjamin, because the Lord had made a breach in the tribes of Israel.
16 Then the elders of the congregation said, “How shall we provide wives for those who remain, since the women are destroyed out of Benjamin?”
And the elders of the congregation said, What shall we do for wives for them that remain? for the women have been destroyed out of Benjamin.
17 They said, “There must be an inheritance for those who are escaped of Benjamin, that a tribe not be blotted out from Israel.
And they said, [There must be] an inheritance of them that are escaped of Benjamin; and [so] a tribe shall not be destroyed out of Israel.
18 However, we may not give them wives of our daughters, for the children of Israel had sworn, saying, ‘Cursed is he who gives a wife to Benjamin.’”
For we shall not be able to give them wives of our daughters, because we swore among the children of Israel, saying, Cursed [is] he that gives a wife to Benjamin.
19 They said, “Behold, there is a feast of the LORD from year to year in Shiloh, which is on the north of Bethel, on the east side of the highway that goes up from Bethel to Shechem, and on the south of Lebonah.”
And they said, Behold! now [there is] a feast of the Lord from year to year in Selom, which is on the north of Baethel, eastward on the way that goes up from Baethel to Sychem, and from the south of Lebona.
20 They commanded the children of Benjamin, saying, “Go and lie in wait in the vineyards,
And they charged 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 the dances, then come out of the vineyards, and each man catch his wife of the daughters of Shiloh, and go to the land of Benjamin.
and you shall see; and behold! if there come out the daughters of the inhabitants of Selom to dance in dances, then shall you go out of the vineyards and seize for yourselves every man a wife of the daughters of Selom, and go you into the land of Benjamin.
22 It shall be, when their fathers or their brothers come to complain to us, that we will say to them, ‘Grant them graciously to us, because we didn’t take for each man his wife in battle, neither did you give them to them; otherwise you would now be guilty.’”
And it shall come to pass, when their fathers or their brethren come to dispute with us, that we will say to them, Grant them freely to us, for we have not taken every man his wife in the battle: because you did not give to them according to the occasion, you transgressed.
23 The children of Benjamin did so, and took wives for themselves according to their number, of those who danced, whom they carried off. They went and returned to their inheritance, built the cities, and lived in them.
And the children of Benjamin did so; and they took wives according to their number from the dancers whom they seized: and they went and returned to their inheritance, and built the cities, and lived in them.
24 The children of Israel departed from there at that time, every man to his tribe and to his family, and they each went out from there to his own inheritance.
And the children of Israel went thence at that time every man to his tribe and his kindred; and they went thence every man to his inheritance.
25 In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did that which was right in his own eyes.
And in those days there was no king in Israel; every man did that which was right in his own sight.
