20So all the children of Israel came out, from Dan to Beersheba, as well as from the land of Gilead, and the congregation gathered together as one man before the LORD at Mizpah.H1121H3478H3318H5712H6950H259H376H1835H884H776H1568H3068H47092And the leaders of all the people, all the tribes of Israel, presented themselves in the assembly of the people of God, four hundred thousand foot soldiers who drew the sword.H6438H5971H7626H3478H3320H6951H5971H430H702H3967H505H376H7273H8025H27193(Now the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel had gone up to Mizpah.) Then the children of Israel said, "Tell us, how did this wicked deed happen?"H1121H1144H8085H1121H3478H5927H4709H559H1121H3478H1696H1961H74514So the Levite, the husband of the woman who was murdered, answered and said, "My concubine and I went into Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin, to spend the night.H3881H376H376H802H7523H6030H559H935H1390H1144H6370H38855"And the men of Gibeah rose against me, and surrounded the house at night because of me. They intended to kill me, but instead they ravished my concubine so that she died.H1167H1390H6965H5437H1004H5437H3915H1819H2026H6370H6031H41916"So I took hold of my concubine, cut her in pieces, and sent her throughout all the territory of the inheritance of Israel, because they committed lewdness and outrage in Israel.H270H6370H5408H7971H7704H5159H3478H6213H2154H5039H34787"Look! All of you are children of Israel; give your advice and counsel here and now!"H1121H3478H3051H1988H1697H60988So all the people arose as one man, saying, "None of us will go to his tent, nor will any turn back to his house;H5971H6965H259H376H559H376H3212H168H376H5493H10049"but now this is the thing which we will do to Gibeah: We will go up against it by lot.H1697H6213H1390H148610"We will take ten men out of every hundred throughout all the tribes of Israel, a hundred out of every thousand, and a thousand out of every ten thousand, to make provisions for the people, that when they come to Gibeah in Benjamin, they may repay all the vileness that they have done in Israel."H3947H6235H582H3967H7626H3478H3967H505H505H7233H3947H6720H5971H6213H935H1387H1144H5039H6213H347811So all the men of Israel were gathered against the city, united together as one man.H376H3478H622H5892H2270H259H37612Then the tribes of Israel sent men through all the tribe of Benjamin, saying, "What is this wickedness that has occurred among you?H7626H3478H7971H582H7626H1144H559H7451H196113"Now therefore, deliver up the men, the perverted men who are in Gibeah, that we may put them to death and remove the evil from Israel!" But the children of Benjamin would not listen to the voice of their brethren, the children of Israel.H5414H582H1121H1100H1390H4191H1197H7451H3478H1121H1144H14H8085H6963H251H1121H347814Instead, the children of Benjamin gathered together from their cities to Gibeah, to go to battle against the children of Israel.H1121H1144H622H5892H1390H3318H4421H1121H347815And from their cities at that time the children of Benjamin numbered twenty-six thousand men who drew the sword, besides the inhabitants of Gibeah, who numbered seven hundred select men.H1121H1144H6485H3117H5892H6242H8337H505H376H8025H2719H3427H1390H6485H7651H3967H977H37616Among all this people were seven hundred select men who were left-handed; every one could sling a stone at a hair's breadth and not miss.H5971H7651H3967H977H376H334H3027H3225H7049H68H8185H239817Now besides Benjamin, the men of Israel numbered four hundred thousand men who drew the sword; all of these were men of war.H376H3478H1144H6485H702H3967H505H376H8025H2719H376H442118Then the children of Israel arose and went up to the house of God to inquire of God. They said, "Which of us shall go up first to battle against the children of Benjamin?" The LORD said, "Judah first!"H1121H3478H6965H5927H1004H430H1008H7592H430H559H4310H5927H8462H4421H1121H1144H3068H559H3063H846219So the children of Israel rose in the morning and encamped against Gibeah.H1121H3478H6965H1242H2583H139020And the men of Israel went out to battle against Benjamin, and the men of Israel put themselves in battle array to fight against them at Gibeah.H376H3478H3318H4421H1144H376H3478H6186H4421H139021Then the children of Benjamin came out of Gibeah, and on that day cut down to the ground twenty-two thousand men of the Israelites.H1121H1144H3318H1390H7843H776H3478H3117H6242H8147H505H37622And the people, that is, the men of Israel, encouraged themselves and again formed the battle line at the place where they had put themselves in array on the first day.H5971H376H3478H2388H4421H3254H6186H4725H6186H7223H311723Then the children of Israel went up and wept before the LORD until evening, and asked counsel of the LORD, saying, "Shall I again draw near for battle against the children of my brother Benjamin?" And the LORD said, "Go up against him."H1121H3478H5927H1058H6440H3068H6153H7592H3068H559H5066H3254H4421H1121H1144H251H3068H559H592724So the children of Israel approached the children of Benjamin on the second day.H1121H3478H7126H1121H1144H8145H311725And Benjamin went out against them from Gibeah on the second day, and cut down to the ground eighteen thousand more of the children of Israel; all these drew the sword.H1144H3318H7125H1390H8145H3117H7843H776H1121H3478H8083H6240H505H376H8025H271926Then all the children of Israel, that is, all the people, went up and came to the house of God and wept. They sat there before the LORD and fasted that day until evening; and they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD.H1121H3478H5971H5927H935H1004H430H1008H1058H3427H6440H3068H6684H3117H6153H5927H5930H8002H6440H306827So the children of Israel inquired of the LORD (the ark of the covenant of God was there in those days,H1121H3478H7592H3068H727H1285H430H311728and 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 my brother Benjamin, or shall I cease?" And the LORD said, "Go up, for tomorrow I will deliver them into your hand."H6372H1121H499H1121H175H5975H6440H3117H559H3254H3318H4421H1121H1144H251H2308H3068H559H5927H4279H5414H302729Then Israel set men in ambush all around Gibeah.H3478H7760H693H5439H139030And the children of Israel went up against the children of Benjamin on the third day, and put themselves in battle array against Gibeah as at the other times.H1121H3478H5927H1121H1144H7992H3117H6186H1390H647131So the children of Benjamin went out against the people, and were drawn away from the city. They began to strike down and kill some of the people, as at the other times, in the highways (one of which goes up to Bethel and the other to Gibeah) and in the field, about thirty men of Israel.H1121H1144H3318H7125H5971H5423H5892H2490H5221H5971H2491H6471H4546H259H5927H1004H430H1008H259H1390H7704H7970H376H347832And the children of Benjamin said, "They are defeated before us, as at first." But the children of Israel said, "Let us flee and draw them away from the city to the highways."H1121H1144H559H5062H6440H7223H1121H3478H559H5127H5423H5892H454633So all the men of Israel rose from their place and put themselves in battle array at Baal Tamar. Then Israel's men in ambush burst forth from their position in the plain of Geba.H376H3478H6965H4725H6186H1193H693H3478H1518H4725H4629H138734And ten thousand select men from all Israel came against Gibeah, and the battle was fierce. But the Benjamites did not know that disaster was upon them.H935H5048H1390H6235H505H977H376H3478H4421H3513H3045H7451H506035The LORD defeated Benjamin before Israel. And the children of Israel destroyed that day twenty-five thousand one hundred Benjamites; all these drew the sword.H3068H5062H1144H6440H3478H1121H3478H7843H1145H3117H6242H2568H505H3967H376H8025H271936So the children of Benjamin saw that they were defeated. The men of Israel had given ground to the Benjamites, because they relied on the men in ambush whom they had set against Gibeah.H1121H1144H7200H5062H376H3478H5414H4725H1145H982H693H7760H139037And the men in ambush quickly rushed upon Gibeah; the men in ambush spread out and struck the whole city with the edge of the sword.H693H2363H6584H1390H693H4900H5221H5892H6310H271938Now the appointed signal between the men of Israel and the men in ambush was that they would make a great cloud of smoke rise up from the city,H4150H376H3478H5973H693H7235H4864H6227H5927H589239whereupon the men of Israel would turn in battle. Now Benjamin had begun to strike and kill about thirty of the men of Israel. For they said, "Surely they are defeated before us, as in the first battle."H376H3478H2015H4421H1144H2490H5221H2491H376H3478H7970H376H559H5062H5062H6440H7223H442140But when the cloud began to rise from the city in a column of smoke, the Benjamites looked behind them, and there was the whole city going up in smoke to heaven.H4864H2490H5927H5892H5982H6227H1145H6437H310H3632H5892H5927H806441And when the men of Israel turned back, the men of Benjamin panicked, for they saw that disaster had come upon them.H376H3478H2015H376H1144H926H7200H7451H506042Therefore they turned their backs before the men of Israel in the direction of the wilderness; but the battle overtook them, and whoever came out of the cities they destroyed in their midst.H6437H6440H376H3478H1870H4057H4421H1692H5892H7843H843243They surrounded the Benjamites, chased them, and easily trampled them down as far as the front of Gibeah toward the east.H3803H1145H3803H7291H1869H4496H5227H1390H4217H812144And eighteen thousand men of Benjamin fell; all these were men of valor.H5307H1144H8083H6240H505H376H582H242845Then they turned and fled toward the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon; and they cut down five thousand of them on the highways. Then they pursued them relentlessly up to Gidom, and killed two thousand of them.H6437H5127H4057H5553H7417H5953H4546H2568H505H376H1692H310H1440H5221H505H37646So all who fell of Benjamin that day were twenty-five thousand men who drew the sword; all these were men of valor.H5307H3117H1144H6242H2568H505H376H8025H2719H582H242847But six hundred men turned and fled toward the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon, and they stayed at the rock of Rimmon for four months.H8337H3967H376H6437H5127H4057H5553H7417H3427H5553H7417H702H232048And the men of Israel turned back against the children of Benjamin, and struck them down with the edge of the sword—from every city, men and beasts, all who were found. They also set fire to all the cities they came to.H376H3478H7725H1121H1144H5221H6310H2719H4974H5892H5704H929H4672H7971H784H5892H4672
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