Judges:20

---

Seeker Overlay ON

* Then all the children of Israel went out , and the congregation was gathered together as one man , from Dan even to Beersheba , with the land of Gilead , unto the LORD in Mizpeh . * And the chief 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 that drew sword . * (Now the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel were gone up to Mizpeh .) Then said the children of Israel , Tell us , how was this wickedness ? * And the Levite , the husband of the woman that was slain , answered and said , I came into Gibeah that belongeth to Benjamin , I and my concubine , to lodge . * And the men of Gibeah rose against me , and beset the house round about upon me by night , and thought to have slain me : and my concubine have they forced , that she is dead . * And 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 , ye are all children of Israel ; give here your advice and counsel . * And all the people arose as one man , saying , We will not any of us go to his tent , neither will we any of us turn into his house . * But now this shall be the thing which we will do to Gibeah ; we will go up by lot against it ; * And we will take ten men of an hundred throughout all the tribes of Israel , and an hundred of a thousand , and a thousand out of ten thousand , to fetch victual for the people , that they may do , when they come to Gibeah of Benjamin , according to all the folly that they have wrought in Israel . * So all the men of Israel were gathered against the city , knit together as one man . * And the tribes of Israel sent men through all the tribe of Benjamin , saying , What wickedness is this that is done among you ? * Now therefore deliver us the men , the children of Belial , which are in Gibeah , that we may put them to death , and put away evil from Israel . But the children of Benjamin would not hearken to the voice of their brethren the children of Israel : * But the children of Benjamin gathered themselves together out of the cities unto Gibeah , to go out to battle against the children of Israel . * And the children of Benjamin were numbered at that time out of the cities twenty and six thousand men that drew sword , beside the inhabitants of Gibeah , which were numbered seven hundred chosen men . * Among all this people there were seven hundred chosen men lefthanded ; every one could sling stones at an hair breadth , and not miss . * And the men of Israel , beside Benjamin , were numbered four hundred thousand men that drew sword : all these were men of war . * And the children of Israel arose , and went up to the house of God , and asked counsel of God , and said , Which of us shall go up first to the battle against the children of Benjamin ? And the LORD said , Judah shall go up first . * And the children of Israel rose up in the morning , and encamped against Gibeah . * And the men of Israel went out to battle against Benjamin ; and the men of Israel put themselves in array to fight against them at Gibeah . * And the children of Benjamin came forth out of Gibeah , and destroyed down to the ground of the Israelites that day twenty and two thousand men . * And the people the men of Israel encouraged themselves , and set their battle again in array in the place where they put themselves in array the first day . * (And the children of Israel went up and wept before the LORD until even , and asked counsel of the LORD , saying , Shall I go up again to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother ? And the LORD said , Go up against him .) * And the children of Israel came near against the children of Benjamin the second day . * And 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 unto the house of God , and wept , and sat there before the LORD , and fasted that day until even , and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD . * And the children of Israel enquired of the LORD , (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 ? And the LORD said , Go up ; for to morrow I will deliver them into thine hand . * And Israel set liers in wait round about Gibeah . * And the children of Israel went up against the children of Benjamin on the third day , and put themselves in array against Gibeah , as at other times . * And the children of Benjamin went out against the people , and were drawn away from the city ; and they began to smite of the people , and kill , as at other times , in the highways , of which one goeth up to the house of God , and the other to Gibeah in the field , about thirty men of Israel . * And the children of Benjamin said , They are smitten down before us , as at the first . But the children of Israel said , Let us flee , and draw them from the city unto the highways . * And all the men of Israel rose up out of their place , and put themselves in array at Baaltamar : and the liers in wait of Israel came forth out of their places , even out of the meadows of Gibeah . * And there came against Gibeah ten thousand chosen men out of all Israel , and the battle was sore : but they knew not that evil was near them . * And the LORD smote Benjamin before Israel : and the children of Israel destroyed of the Benjamites that day twenty and five thousand and an hundred men : all these drew the sword . * So the children of Benjamin saw that they were smitten : for the men of Israel gave place to the Benjamites , because they trusted unto the liers in wait which they had set beside Gibeah . * And the liers in wait hasted , and rushed upon Gibeah ; and the liers in wait drew themselves along , and smote all the city with the edge of the sword . * Now there was an appointed sign between the men of Israel and the liers in wait , that they should make a great flame with smoke rise up out of the city . * And when the men of Israel retired in the battle , Benjamin began to smite and kill of the men of Israel about thirty persons : for they said , Surely they are smitten down before us , as in the first battle . * But when the flame began to arise up out of the city with a pillar of smoke , the Benjamites looked behind them , and , behold , the flame of the city ascended up to heaven . * And when the men of Israel turned again , the men of Benjamin were amazed : for they saw that evil was come upon them . * Therefore they turned their backs before the men of Israel unto the way of the wilderness ; but the battle overtook them ; and them which came out of the cities they destroyed in the midst of them . * Thus they inclosed the Benjamites round about , and chased them , and trode them down with ease over against Gibeah toward the sunrising . * And there fell of Benjamin eighteen thousand men ; all these were men of valour . * And they turned and fled toward the wilderness unto the rock of Rimmon : and they gleaned of them in the highways five thousand men ; and pursued hard after them unto Gidom , and slew two thousand men of them . * So that all which fell that day of Benjamin were twenty and five thousand men that drew the sword ; all these were men of valour . * But six hundred men turned and fled to the wilderness unto the rock Rimmon , and abode in the rock Rimmon four months . * And the men of Israel turned again upon the children of Benjamin , and smote them with the edge of the sword , as well the men of every city , as the beast , and all that came to hand : also they set on fire all the cities that they came to .

---