Israel goes to battle against one tribe, Benjamin
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¶ 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.
.2 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. 3 (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? |
1 -
Then At the end of the previous chapter, a Benjamite had just murdered
his concubine, cut her in pieces and sent them across the land
jg1929.
1 - Went out Out to battle jg0215. 1 - Dan ... Beersheba Areas at the southern and northern edges of the nation. It appears seven times. See 1sa0320, etc. 1 - Gilead Including this area implies that the people east of Jordan were included. jg0517. 1 - Mizpeh NW of Jerusalem. See map. 2 - Chief The leaders. |
| 4 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.
5 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. 6 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. 7 Behold, ye are all children of Israel; give here your advice and counsel. |
5 - Thought to have slain me This wasn't in the the account of the previous chapter jg1922. |
| 8 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.
9 But now this shall be the thing which we will do to Gibeah; we will go up by lot against it; 10 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. 11 So all the men of Israel were gathered against the city, knit together as one man. |
8 - Not any of us go They had a cause to defend righteousness. |
| 12 ¶ And the tribes of
Israel sent men through all the tribe of Benjamin, saying, What wickedness
is this that is done among you?
.13 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: 14 But the children of Benjamin gathered themselves together out of the cities unto Gibeah, to go out to battle against the children of Israel. .15 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. .16 Among all this people there were seven hundred chosen men lefthanded; every one could sling stones at an hair breadth, and not miss. 17 And the men of Israel, beside Benjamin, were numbered four hundred thousand men that drew sword: all these were men of war. |
12 - Israel sent A good plan. |
| 18 ¶ 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.
19 And the children of Israel rose up in the morning, and encamped against Gibeah. 20 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. |
18
- Children of Israel The term first means the sons of Jacob. Of
course with time the families were very large. We would see here only delegates
of the people meeting. They could all pray.
18 - House of God This is the meaning of the word, "Bethel." The tabernacle was then at Shiloah, 9½ mi./15 km. to the north of the city of Bethel although it could have been moved for the occasion. |
| 21 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.
22 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. 23 (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.) |
23 - Wept They had reason to. The Lord was apparently helping them see their dependence on Him zc0406 and their need for holiness jn0807. The man with the concubine was not following God's plan. |
| 24 And the children of Israel
came near against the children of Benjamin the second day.
25 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. |
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| 26 ¶ 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.
27 And the children of Israel enquired of the LORD, (for the ark of the covenant of God was there in those days, .28 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. |
28
- Phinehas This mention indicates that the events occurred early.
The incidents of the last five chapters apparently happened before the
rest of the book. See jg1829.
Compare jg1901.
28 - I will deliver After feeling their own weakness, they were ready. The viewpoint of the Benjamites was rebellion. They had strongly defended their evil. They had protected the wicked men who should have been slain for adultery. |
| 29 And Israel set liers in
wait round about Gibeah.
30 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. 31 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. |
29 - Liers in wait They practiced gorilla warfare. |
| 32 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.
33 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. 34 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. .35 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. |
35 - [25,100] men The count seems to have been taken carefully. It was not a multiple of 5,000 or 1,000. |
| .36
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.
37 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. 38 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. |
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| 39 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.
.40 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. 41 And when the men of Israel turned again, the men of Benjamin were amazed: for they saw that evil was come upon them. |
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| 42 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.
43 Thus they inclosed the Benjamites round about, and chased them, and trode them down with ease over against Gibeah toward the sunrising. 44 And there fell of Benjamin eighteen thousand men; all these were men of valour. 45 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. 46 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. |
45
- Turned and fled "Many of the fugitives found refuge in the caves
of this rocky mountain, which is situated to the northeast of Beth-el.
Such places are still sought as secure retreats in times of danger; and
until the method of blowing up rocks by gunpowder became known, a few men
could in such caves sustain a siege for months." (JFB commentary).
46 - Fell .. [25,000] "On comparing this with ... [verse 35], it will be seen that the loss is stated here in round numbers and is confined only to that of the third day. We must conclude that a thousand had fallen during the two previous engagements, in order to make the aggregate amount given ... [verse 15]" (JFB) |
| .47
But six hundred men turned and fled to the wilderness unto the rock Rimmon,
and abode in the rock Rimmon four months.
48 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. |
47
- Rock, Rimmon A small fraction.
48 - All that came to hand This indiscriminate slaughter was uncalled-for. The Benjamites realized their defeat (verses 36 and 40). At that point, the redemptive purpose of God had been accomplished. In battle, anger is developed. God's original way would have been best ex2328. |
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