Judges:20

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* Then all the children of Israel went out , and the congregation was assembled as one man , from Dan even to Beersheba , with the land of Gilead , to Yahweh at Mizpah . * The chiefs of all the people , even of all the tribes of Israel , presented themselves in the assembly of the people of God , four hundred thousand footmen who drew sword . * (Now the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel had gone up to Mizpah .) The children of Israel said , "Tell us , how did this wickedness happen ?" * The Levite , the husband of the woman who was murdered , answered , "I came into Gibeah that belongs to Benjamin , I and my concubine , to lodge . * The men of Gibeah rose against me , and surrounded the house by night . They thought to have slain me , and they forced my concubine , and she is dead . * I took my concubine , and cut her in pieces , and sent her throughout all the country of the inheritance of Israel ; for they have committed lewdness and folly in Israel . * Behold , you children of Israel , all of you , give here your advice and counsel ." * All the people arose as one man , saying , "None of us will go to his tent , neither will any of us turn to his house . * But now this is the thing which we will do to Gibeah : we will go up against it by lot ; * and we will take ten men of one hundred throughout all the tribes of Israel , and one hundred of one thousand , and a thousand out of ten thousand , to get food for the people , that they may do , when they come to Gibeah of Benjamin , according to all the folly that they have worked in Israel ." * So all the men of Israel were gathered against the city , knit together as one man . * The tribes of Israel sent men through all the tribe of Benjamin , saying , "What wickedness is this that is happen among you ? * Now therefore deliver up the men , the base fellows , who are in Gibeah , that we may put them to death , and put away evil from Israel ." But Benjamin would not listen to the voice of their brothers the children of Israel . * The children of Benjamin gathered themselves together out of the cities to Gibeah , to go out to battle against the children of Israel . * The children of Benjamin were numbered on that day out of the cities twenty-six thousand men who drew the sword , besides the inhabitants of Gibeah , who were numbered seven hundred chosen men . * Among all this people there were seven hundred chosen men left-handed ; everyone could sling stones at a hair-breadth , and not miss . * The men of Israel , besides Benjamin , were numbered four hundred thousand men who drew sword : all these were men of war . * The children of Israel arose , and went up to Bethel , and asked counsel of God ; and they said , "Who shall go up for us first to battle against the children of Benjamin ?" Yahweh said , "Judah first ." * The children of Israel rose up in the morning , and encamped against Gibeah . * The men of Israel went out to battle against Benjamin ; and the men of Israel set the battle in array against them at Gibeah . * The children of Benjamin came forth out of Gibeah , and destroyed down to the ground of the Israelites on that day twenty-two thousand men . * The people , the men of Israel , encouraged themselves , and set the battle again in array in the place where they set themselves in array the first day . * The children of Israel went up and wept before Yahweh until evening ; and they asked of Yahweh , saying , "Shall I again draw near to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother ?" Yahweh said , "Go up against him ." * The children of Israel came near against the children of Benjamin the second day . * Benjamin went forth against them out of Gibeah the second day , and destroyed down to the ground of the children of Israel again eighteen thousand men ; all these drew the sword . * Then all the children of Israel , and all the people , went up , and came to Bethel , and wept , and sat there before Yahweh , and fasted that day until evening ; and they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before Yahweh . * The children of Israel asked of Yahweh (for the ark of the covenant of God was there in those days , * and Phinehas , the son of Eleazar , the son of Aaron , stood before it in those days ), saying , "Shall I yet again go out to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother , or shall I cease ?" Yahweh said , "Go up ; for tomorrow I will deliver him into your hand ." * Israel set ambushes all around Gibeah . * The children of Israel went up against the children of Benjamin on the third day , and set themselves in array against Gibeah , as at other times . * The children of Benjamin went out against the people , and were drawn away from the city ; and they began to strike and kill of the people , as at other times , in the highways , of which one goes up to Bethel , and the other to Gibeah , in the field , about thirty men of Israel . * The children of Benjamin said , "They are struck down before us , as at the first ." But the children of Israel said , "Let us flee , and draw them away from the city to the highways ." * All the men of Israel rose up out of their place , and set themselves in array at Baal Tamar : and the ambushers of Israel broke forth out of their place , even out of Maareh Geba . * There came over against Gibeah ten thousand chosen men out of all Israel , and the battle was severe ; but they didn 't know that evil was close on them . * Yahweh struck Benjamin before Israel ; and the children of Israel destroyed of Benjamin that day twenty-five thousand one hundred men : all these drew the sword . * So the children of Benjamin saw that they were struck ; for the men of Israel gave place to Benjamin , because they trusted the ambushers whom they had set against Gibeah . * The ambushers hurried , and rushed on Gibeah ; and the ambushers drew themselves along , and struck all the city with the edge of the sword . * Now the appointed sign between the men of Israel and the ambushers was that they should make a great cloud of smoke rise up out of the city . * The men of Israel turned in the battle , and Benjamin began to strike and kill of the men of Israel about thirty persons ; for they said , "Surely they are struck down before us , as in the first battle ." * But when the cloud began to arise up out of the city in a pillar of smoke , the Benjamites looked behind them ; and behold , the whole of the city went up in smoke to the sky . * The men of Israel turned , and the men of Benjamin were dismayed ; for they saw that evil had come on them . * Therefore they turned their backs before the men of Israel to the way of the wilderness ; but the battle followed hard after them ; and those who came out of the cities destroyed them in its midst . * They surrounded the Benjamites , chased them , and trod them down at their resting place , as far as over against Gibeah toward the sunrise . * There fell of Benjamin eighteen thousand men ; all these were men of valor . * They turned and fled toward the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon : and they gleaned of them in the highways five thousand men , and followed hard after them to Gidom , and struck of them two thousand men . * So that all who fell that day of Benjamin were twenty-five thousand men who drew the sword ; all these were men of valor . * But six hundred men turned and fled toward the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon , and stayed in the rock of Rimmon four months . * The men of Israel turned again on the children of Benjamin , and struck them with the edge of the sword , both the entire city , and the livestock , and all that they found : moreover all the cities which they found they set on fire .

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