21:1 Now the children of Israel swore in
Massephath, saying, No man of us shall give his daughter to Benjamin for a
wife.
21:2 And the people came to Baethel, and sat there until evening before Elohim:
and they lifted up their voice and wept with a great weeping;
21:3 and said, Wherefore, O Lord Elohim of Israel, has this come to pass, that
to-day one tribe should be counted [as missing] from Israel?
21:4 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.
21:5 And the children of Israel said, Who of all the tribes of Israel, went
not up in the congregation to Yehovah? for there was a great oath
concerning those who went not up to Yehovah to Massephath, saying, He shall
surely be put to death.
21:6 And the children of Israel relented toward Benjamin their brother, and
said, To-day one tribe is cut off from Israel.
21:7 What shall we do for wives for the rest that remain? whereas we have
sworn by Yehovah, not to give them of our daughters for wives.
21:8 And they said, What one [man is there] of the tribes of Israel, who
went not up to Yehovah to Massephath? and, behold, no man came to the camp
from Jabis Galaad to the assembly.
21:9 And the people were numbered, and there was not there a man from the
inhabitants of Jabis Galaad.
21:10 And the congregation sent thither twelve thousand men of the
strongest, and they charged them, saying, Go ye and smite the inhabitants of
Jabis Galaad with the edge of the sword.
21:11 And this shall ye do: every male and every woman that has known the
lying with man ye shall devote [to destruction], but the virgins ye shall
save alive: and they did so.
21:12 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.
21:13 And all the congregation sent and spoke to the children of Benjamin in
the rock Remmon, and invited them to [make] peace.
21:14 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.
21:15 And the people relented for Benjamin, because Yehovah had made a
breach in the tribes of Israel.
21:16 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.
21:17 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.
21:18 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.
21:19 And they said, Lo! now [there is] feast of Yehovah 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.
21:20 And they charged the children of Benjamin, saying, Go and lie in wait
in the vineyards;
21:21 and ye shall see; and lo! if there come out the daughters of the
inhabitants of Selom to dance in dances, then shall ye go out of the
vineyards and seize for yourselves every man a wife of the daughters of
Selom, and go ye into the land of Benjamin.
21:22 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 ye did not give
to them according to the occasion, ye transgressed.
21:23 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 dwelt in them.
21:24 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.
21:25 And in those days there was no king in Israel; every man did that
which was right in his own sight. |
21:1 Now the men of Israel had sworn in
Mizpeh, saying, There shall not any of us give his daughter unto Benjamin to
wife.
21:2 And the people came to the house of Elohim, and abode there till even
before Elohim, and lifted up their voices, and wept sore;
21:3 And said, O Yehovah Elohim of Israel, why is this come to pass in Israel,
that there should be to day one tribe lacking in Israel?
21:4 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.
21:5 And the children of Israel said, Who is there among all the tribes of
Israel that came not up with the congregation unto Yehovah? For they had
made a great oath concerning him that came not up to Yehovah to Mizpeh,
saying, He shall surely be put to death.
21:6 And the children of Israel repented them for Benjamin their brother,
and said, There is one tribe cut off from Israel this day.
21:7 How shall we do for wives for them that remain, seeing we have sworn by
Yehovah that we will not give them of our daughters to wives?
21:8 And they said, What one is there of the tribes of Israel that came not
up to Mizpeh to Yehovah? And, behold, there came none to the camp from
Jabeshgilead to the assembly.
21:9 For the people were numbered, and, behold, there were none of the
inhabitants of Jabeshgilead there.
21:10 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.
21:11 And this is the thing that ye shall do, Ye shall utterly destroy every
male, and every woman that hath lain by man.
21:12 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.
21:13 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.
21:14 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.
21:15 And the people repented them for Benjamin, because that Yehovah had
made a breach in the tribes of Israel.
21:16 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?
21:17 And they said, There must be an inheritance for them that be escaped
of Benjamin, that a tribe be not destroyed out of Israel.
21:18 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.
21:19 Then they said, Behold, there is a feast of Yehovah 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.
21:20 Therefore they commanded the children of Benjamin, saying, Go and lie
in wait in the vineyards;
21:21 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.
21:22 And it shall be, when their fathers or their brethren come unto us to
complain, that we will say unto them, Be favorable 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.
21:23 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.
21:24 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.
21:25 In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which
was right in his own eyes. |