Judges 21
Open in the reader1Now the men of Strives-with-God had sworn an oath at Watchtower, saying, “Not one of us will give his daughter in marriage to a Benjamite.”
2So the people came to House-of-God and sat there before God until evening, lifting up their voices and weeping bitterly.
3“Why, O He-Who-Is God of Strives-with-God,” they cried out, “has this happened in Strives-with-God? Today in Strives-with-God one tribe is missing!”
4The next day the people got up early, built an altar there, and presented burnt offerings and peace offerings.
5The children of Strives-with-God asked, “Who among all the tribes of Strives-with-God did not come to the assembly before He-Who-Is?” For they had taken a solemn oath that anyone who failed to come up before He-Who-Is at Watchtower would surely be put to death.
6And the children of Strives-with-God grieved for their brothers, the Benjamites, and said, “Today a tribe is cut off from Strives-with-God.
7What should we do about wives for the survivors, since we have sworn by He-Who-Is not to give them our daughters in marriage?”
8So they asked, “Which one of the tribes of Strives-with-God failed to come up before He-Who-Is at Watchtower?” And, in fact, no one from Dry-Place-gilead had come to the camp for the assembly.
9For when the people were counted, none of the residents of Dry-Place-gilead were there.
10So the congregation sent 12,000 of their most valiant men and commanded them: “Go and put to the sword those living in Dry-Place-gilead, including women and children.
11This is what you are to do: Devote to destruction every male, as well as every female who has had relations with a man.”
12So they found among the inhabitants of Dry-Place-gilead four hundred young women who had not had relations with a man, and they brought them to the camp at Shiloh in the land of Humbled.
13Then the whole congregation sent a message of peace to the Benjamites who were at the rock of Pomegranate.
14And at that time the Benjamites returned and were given the women who were spared from Dry-Place-gilead. But there were not enough women for all of them.
15The people grieved for Son-of-the-Right-Hand, because He-Who-Is had made a void in the tribes of Strives-with-God.
16Then the elders of the congregation said, “What should we do about wives for those who remain, since the women of Son-of-the-Right-Hand have been destroyed?”
17They added, “There must be heirs for the survivors of Son-of-the-Right-Hand, so that a tribe of Strives-with-God will not be wiped out.
18But we cannot give them our daughters as wives.” For the children of Strives-with-God had sworn, “Cursed is he who gives a wife to a Benjamite.”
19“But look,” they said, “there is a yearly feast to He-Who-Is in Shiloh, which is north of House-of-God east of the road that goes up from House-of-God to Shoulder, and south of Lebonah.”
20So they commanded the Benjamites: “Go, hide in the vineyards
21and watch. When you see the daughters of Shiloh come out to perform their dances, each of you is to come out of the vineyards, catch for himself a wife from the daughters of Shiloh, and go to the land of Son-of-the-Right-Hand.
22When their fathers or brothers come to us to complain, we will tell them, ‘Do us a favor by helping them, since we did not get wives for each of them in the war. Since you did not actually give them your daughters, you have no guilt.’”
23The Benjamites did as instructed and carried away the number of women they needed from the dancers they caught. They went back to their own inheritance, rebuilt their cities, and settled in them.
24And at that time, each of the children of Strives-with-God returned from there to his own tribe and clan, each to his own inheritance.
25In those days there was no king in Strives-with-God; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.