New King James Version (NKJV)

Samson’s Philistine Wife

1 Now Samson went downto Timnah, andsaw a woman in Timnah of the daughters of the Philistines.

2 So he went up and told his father and mother, saying, “I have seen a woman in Timnah of the daughters of the Philistines; now therefore,get her for me as a wife.”

3 Then his father and mother said to him, “Isthereno woman among the daughters ofyour brethren, or among all my people, that you must go and get a wife from theuncircumcised Philistines?”

And Samson said to his father, “Get her for me, for she pleases me well.”

4 But his father and mother did not know that it wasof theLord—that He was seeking an occasion to move against the Philistines. For at that timethe Philistines had dominion over Israel.

5 So Samson went down to Timnah with his father and mother, and came to the vineyards of Timnah.

Nowtohissurprise, a young lioncameroaring against him.

6 Andthe Spirit of theLordcame mightily upon him, and he tore the lion apart as one would have torn apart a young goat, thoughhehadnothing in his hand. But he did not tell his father or his mother what he had done.

7 Then he went down and talked with the woman; and she pleased Samson well.

8 After some time, when he returned to get her, he turned aside to see the carcass of the lion. And behold, a swarm of bees and honeywerein the carcass of the lion.

9 He took some of it in his hands and went along, eating. When he came to his father and mother, he gavesometo them, and they also ate. But he did not tell them that he had taken the honey out of thecarcass of the lion.

10 So his father went down to the woman. And Samson gave a feast there, for young men used to do so.

11 And it happened, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him.

12 Then Samson said to them, “Let mepose a riddle to you. If you can correctly solve and explain it to mewithin the seven days of the feast, then I will give you thirty linen garments and thirtychanges of clothing.

13 But if you cannot explainitto me, then you shall give me thirty linen garments and thirty changes of clothing.”

# And they said to him,“Pose your riddle, that we may hear it.”

14 So he said to them:

“Out of the eater came something to eat,

And out of the strong came something sweet.”

Now for three days they could not explain the riddle.

15 But it came to pass on the seventh day that they said to Samson’s wife,“Entice your husband, that he may explain the riddle to us,or else we will burn you and your father’s house with fire. Have you invited us in order to take what is ours?Isthatnotso?”

16 Then Samson’s wife wept on him, and said,“You only hate me! You do not love me! You have posed a riddle to the sons of my people, but you have not explaineditto me.”

And he said to her, “Look, I have not explaineditto my father or my mother; so should I explainitto you?”

17 Now she had wept on him the seven days while their feast lasted. And it happened on the seventh day that he told her, because she pressed him so much. Then she explained the riddle to the sons of her people.

18 So the men of the city said to him on the seventh day before the sun went down:

“Whatissweeter than honey?

And whatisstronger than a lion?”

And he said to them:

“If you had not plowed with my heifer,

You would not have solved my riddle!”

19 Thenthe Spirit of theLordcame upon him mightily, and he went down to Ashkelon and killed thirty of their men, took their apparel, and gave the changesofclothingto those who had explained the riddle. So his anger was aroused, and he went back up to his father’s house.

20 And Samson’s wifewasgivento his companion, who had beenhis best man.

Samson Defeats the Philistines

1 After a while, in the time of wheat harvest, it happened that Samson visited his wife with ayoung goat. And he said, “Let me go in to my wife, intoherroom.” But her father would not permit him to go in.

2 Her father said, “I really thought that you thoroughlyhated her; therefore I gave her to your companion.Isnot her younger sister better than she? Please, take her instead.”

3 And Samson said to them, “This time I shall be blameless regarding the Philistines if I harm them!”

4 Then Samson went and caught three hundred foxes; and he took torches, turnedthefoxestail to tail, and put a torch between each pair of tails.

5 When he had set the torches on fire, he letthefoxesgo into the standing grain of the Philistines, and burned up both the shocks and the standing grain, as well as the vineyardsandolive groves.

6 Then the Philistines said, “Who has done this?”

# And they answered, “Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite, because he has taken his wife and given her to his companion.”So the Philistines came up and burned her and her father with fire.

7 Samson said to them, “Since you would do a thing like this, I will surely take revenge on you, and after that I will cease.”

8 So he attacked them hip and thigh with a great slaughter; then he went down and dwelt in the cleft of the rock ofEtam.

9 Now the Philistines went up, encamped in Judah, and deployed themselvesagainst Lehi.

10 And the men of Judah said, “Why have you come up against us?”

So they answered, “We have come up to arrest Samson, to do to him as he has done to us.”

11 Then three thousand men of Judah went down to the cleft of the rock of Etam, and said to Samson, “Do you not know that the Philistinesrule over us? Whatisthis you have done to us?”

And he said to them, “As they did to me, so I have done to them.”

12 But they said to him, “We have come down to arrest you, that we may deliver you into the hand of the Philistines.”

Then Samson said to them, “Swear to me that you will not kill me yourselves.”

13 So they spoke to him, saying, “No, but we will tie you securely and deliver you into their hand; but we will surely not kill you.” And they bound him with twonew ropes and brought him up from the rock.

14 When he came to Lehi, the Philistines came shouting against him. Thenthe Spirit of theLordcame mightily upon him; and the ropes thatwereon his arms became like flax that is burned with fire, and his bonds broke loose from his hands.

15 He found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, reached out his hand and took it, andkilled a thousand men with it.

16 Then Samson said:

“With the jawbone of a donkey,

Heaps upon heaps,

With the jawbone of a donkey

I have slain a thousand men!”

17 And so it was, when he had finished speaking, that he threw the jawbone from his hand, and called that place Ramath Lehi.

18 Then he became very thirsty; so he cried out to theLordand said,“You have given this great deliverance by the hand of Your servant; and now shall I die of thirst and fall into the hand of the uncircumcised?”

19 So God split the hollow place thatisin Lehi, and water came out, and he drank; andhis spirit returned, and he revived. Therefore he called its name En Hakkore, which is in Lehi to this day.

20 Andhe judged Israeltwenty yearsin the days of the Philistines.

Samson and Delilah

1 Now Samson went toGaza and saw a harlot there, and went in to her.

2 Whenthe Gazitesweretold,“Samson has come here!” theysurroundedtheplaceand lay in wait for him all night at the gate of the city. They were quiet all night, saying, “In the morning, when it is daylight, we will kill him.”

3 And Samson laylowtill midnight; then he arose at midnight, took hold of the doors of the gate of the city and the two gateposts, pulled them up, bar and all, putthemon his shoulders, and carried them to the top of the hill that faces Hebron.

4 Afterward it happened that he loved a woman in the Valley of Sorek, whose namewasDelilah.

5 And thelords of the Philistines came up to her and said to her,“Entice him, and find out where his great strengthlies,and by whatmeanswe may overpower him, that we may bind him to afflict him; and every one of us will give you eleven hundredpiecesof silver.”

6 So Delilah said to Samson, “Please tell me where your great strengthlies,and with what you may be bound to afflict you.”

7 And Samson said to her, “If they bind me with seven fresh bowstrings, not yet dried, then I shall become weak, and be like anyotherman.”

8 So the lords of the Philistines brought up to her seven fresh bowstrings, not yet dried, and she bound him with them.

9 Nowmenwerelying in wait, staying with her in the room. And she said to him, “The Philistinesareupon you, Samson!” But he broke the bowstrings as a strand of yarn breaks when it touches fire. So the secret of his strength was not known.

10 Then Delilah said to Samson, “Look, you have mocked me and told me lies. Now, please tell me what you may be bound with.”

11 So he said to her, “If they bind me securely withnew ropes that have never been used, then I shall become weak, and be like anyotherman.”

12 Therefore Delilah took new ropes and bound him with them, and said to him, “The Philistinesareupon you, Samson!” Andmenwerelying in wait, staying in the room. But he broke them off his arms like a thread.

13 Delilah said to Samson, “Until now you have mocked me and told me lies. Tell me what you may be bound with.”

And he said to her, “If you weave the seven locks of my head into the web of the loom”—

14 So she woveittightly with the batten of the loom, and said to him, “The Philistinesareupon you, Samson!” But he awoke from his sleep, and pulled out the batten and the web from the loom.

15 Then she said to him,“How can you say, ‘I love you,’ when your heartisnot with me? You have mocked me these three times, and have not told me where your great strengthlies.”

16 And it came to pass, when she pestered him daily with her words and pressed him,sothat his soul was vexed to death,

17 that hetold her all his heart, and said to her,“No razor has ever come upon my head, for Ihavebeena Nazirite to God from my mother’s womb. If I am shaven, then my strength will leave me, and I shall become weak, and be like anyotherman.”

18 When Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent and called for the lords of the Philistines, saying, “Come up once more, for he has told me all his heart.” So the lords of the Philistines came up to her and brought the money in their hand.

19 Then she lulled him to sleep on her knees, and called for a man and had him shave off the seven locks of his head. Then she began to torment him, and his strength left him.

20 And she said, “The Philistinesareupon you, Samson!” So he awoke from his sleep, and said, “I will go out as before, at other times, and shake myself free!” But he did not know that theLordhad departed from him.

21 Then the Philistines took him and put out hiseyes, and brought him down to Gaza. They bound him with bronze fetters, and he became a grinder in the prison.

22 However, the hair of his head began to grow again after it had been shaven.

Samson Dies with the Philistines

23 Now the lords of the Philistines gathered together to offer a great sacrifice toDagon their god, and to rejoice. And they said:

“Our god has delivered into our hands

Samson our enemy!”

24 When the people saw him, theypraised their god; for they said:

“Our god has delivered into our hands our enemy,

The destroyer of our land,

And the one who multiplied our dead.”

25 So it happened, when their hearts weremerry, that they said, “Call for Samson, that he may perform for us.” So they called for Samson from the prison, and he performed for them. And they stationed him between the pillars.

26 Then Samson said to the lad who held him by the hand, “Let me feel the pillars which support the temple, so that I can lean on them.”

27 Now the temple was full of men and women. All the lords of the Philistineswerethere—about three thousand men and women on theroof watching while Samson performed.

28 Then Samson called to theLord, saying, “O LordGod,remember me, I pray! Strengthen me, I pray, just this once, O God, that I may with oneblowtake vengeance on the Philistines for my two eyes!”

29 And Samson took hold of the two middle pillars which supported the temple, and he braced himself against them, one on his right and the other on his left.

30 Then Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines!” And he pushed withallhismight, and the temple fell on the lords and all the people whowerein it. So the dead that he killed at his death were more than he had killed in his life.

31 And his brothers and all his father’s household came down and took him, and broughthimup andburied him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of his father Manoah. He had judged Israeltwenty years.

Micah’s Idolatry

1 Now there was a man from the mountains of Ephraim, whose namewasMicah.

2 And he said to his mother, “The eleven hundredshekelsof silver that were taken from you, and on which youput a curse, even saying it in my ears—hereisthe silver with me; I took it.”

# And his mother said,“Mayyoubeblessed by theLord, my son!”

3 So when he had returned the eleven hundredshekelsof silver to his mother, his mother said, “I had wholly dedicated the silver from my hand to theLordfor my son, tomake a carved image and a molded image; now therefore, I will return it to you.”

4 Thus he returned the silver to his mother. Then his mothertook two hundredshekelsof silver and gave them to the silversmith, and he made it into a carved image and a molded image; and they were in the house of Micah.

5 The man Micah had ashrine, and made anephod andhousehold idols; and he consecrated one of his sons, who became his priest.

6 In those daystherewasno king in Israel;everyone didwhatwasright in his own eyes.

7 Now there was a young man fromBethlehem in Judah, of the family of Judah; hewasa Levite, andwas staying there.

8 The man departed from the city of Bethlehem in Judah to stay wherever he could findaplace.Then he came to the mountains of Ephraim, to the house of Micah, as he journeyed.

9 And Micah said to him, “Where do you come from?”

So he said to him, “Iama Levite from Bethlehem in Judah, and I am on my way to findaplaceto stay.”

10 Micah said to him, “Dwell with me,and be afather and a priest to me, and I will give you tenshekelsof silver per year, a suit of clothes, and your sustenance.” So the Levite went in.

11 Then the Levite was content to dwell with the man; and the young man became like one of his sons to him.

12 So Micahconsecrated the Levite, and the young manbecame his priest, and lived in the house of Micah.

13 Then Micah said, “Now I know that theLordwill be good to me, since I have a Levite aspriest!”

The Danites Adopt Micah’s Idolatry

1 Inthose daystherewasno king in Israel. And in those daysthe tribe of the Danites was seeking an inheritance for itself to dwell in; for until that daytheirinheritance among the tribes of Israel had not fallen to them.

2 So the children of Dan sent five men of their family from their territory, men of valor fromZorah and Eshtaol,to spy out the land and search it. They said to them, “Go, search the land.” So they went to the mountains of Ephraim, to thehouse of Micah, and lodged there.

3 While theywereat the house of Micah, they recognized the voice of the young Levite. They turned aside and said to him, “Who brought you here? What are you doing in thisplace?What do you have here?”

4 He said to them, “Thus and so Micah did for me. He hashired me, and I have become his priest.”

5 So they said to him, “Pleaseinquire ofGod, that we may know whether the journey on which we go will be prosperous.”

6 And the priest said to them,“Go in peace. The presence of theLordbewith you on your way.”

7 So the five men departed and went toLaish. They saw the people whowerethere,how they dwelt safely, in the manner of the Sidonians, quiet and secure.Therewereno rulers in the land who might putthemto shame for anything. Theywerefar from theSidonians, and they had no ties with anyone.

8 Thenthespiescame back to their brethren atZorah and Eshtaol, and their brethren said to them, “Whatisyourreport?”

9 So they said,“Arise, let us go up against them. For we have seen the land, and indeed itisvery good.Wouldyoudonothing? Do not hesitate to go,andenter to possess the land.

10 When you go, you will come to asecure people and a large land. For God has given it into your hands,a place wherethereisno lack of anything thatison the earth.”

11 And six hundred men of the family of the Danites went from there, from Zorah and Eshtaol, armed with weapons of war.

12 Then they went up and encamped inKirjath Jearim in Judah. (Therefore they call that placeMahaneh Dan to this day. Thereitis,west of Kirjath Jearim.)

13 And they passed from there to the mountains of Ephraim, and came tothe house of Micah.

14 Then the five men who had gone to spy out the country of Laish answered and said to their brethren, “Do you know thatthere are in these houses an ephod, household idols, a carved image, and a molded image? Now therefore, consider what you should do.”

15 So they turned aside there, and came to the house of the young Levite man—to the house of Micah—and greeted him.

16 Thesix hundred men armed with their weapons of war, whowereof the children of Dan, stood by the entrance of the gate.

17 Thenthe five men who had gone to spy out the land went up. Entering there, they tookthe carved image, the ephod, the household idols, and the molded image. The priest stood at the entrance of the gate with the six hundred menwhowerearmed with weapons of war.

18 When these went into Micah’s house and took the carved image, the ephod, the household idols, and the molded image, the priest said to them, “What are you doing?”

19 And they said to him, “Be quiet,put your hand over your mouth, and come with us;be a father and a priest to us.Isitbetter for you to be a priest to the household of one man, or that you be a priest to a tribe and a family in Israel?”

20 So the priest’s heart was glad; and he took the ephod, the household idols, and the carved image, and took his place among the people.

21 Then they turned and departed, and put the little ones, the livestock, and the goods in front of them.

22 When they were a good way from the house of Micah, the men whowerein the houses near Micah’s house gathered together and overtook the children of Dan.

23 And they called out to the children of Dan. So they turned around and said to Micah,“What ails you, that you have gathered such a company?”

24 So he said, “You havetaken away my gods which I made, and the priest, and you have gone away. Now what more do I have? How can you say to me, ‘What ails you?’ ”

25 And the children of Dan said to him, “Do not let your voice be heard among us, lest angry men fall upon you, and you lose your life, with the lives of your household!”

26 Then the children of Dan went their way. And when Micah saw that theyweretoo strong for him, he turned and went back to his house.

Danites Settle in Laish

27 So they tookthethingsMicah had made, and the priest who had belonged to him, and went to Laish, to a people quiet and secure;and they struck them with the edge of the sword and burned the city with fire.

28 Therewasno deliverer, because itwasfar from Sidon, and they had no ties with anyone. It was in the valley that belongsto Beth Rehob. So they rebuilt the city and dwelt there.

29 Andthey called the name of the cityDan, after the name of Dan their father, who was born to Israel. However, the name of the city formerlywasLaish.

30 Then the children of Dan set up for themselves the carved image; and Jonathan the son of Gershom, the son of Manasseh, and his sons were priests to the tribe of Danuntil the day of the captivity of the land.

31 So they set up for themselves Micah’s carved image which he made,all the time that the house of God was in Shiloh.

The Levite’s Concubine

1 And it came to pass in those days,whentherewasno king in Israel, that there was a certain Levite staying in the remote mountains of Ephraim. He took for himself a concubine fromBethlehem in Judah.

2 But his concubine played the harlot against him, and went away from him to her father’s house at Bethlehem in Judah, and was there four whole months.

3 Then her husband arose and went after her, tospeak kindly to herandbring her back, having his servant and a couple of donkeys with him. So she brought him into her father’s house; and when the father of the young woman saw him, he was glad to meet him.

4 Now his father-in-law, the young woman’s father, detained him; and he stayed with him three days. So they ate and drank and lodged there.

5 Then it came to pass on the fourth day that they arose early in the morning, and he stood to depart; but the young woman’s father said to his son-in-law,“Refresh your heart with a morsel of bread, and afterward go your way.”

6 So they sat down, and the two of them ate and drank together. Then the young woman’s father said to the man, “Please be content to stay all night, and let your heart be merry.”

7 And when the man stood to depart, his father-in-law urged him; so he lodged there again.

8 Then he arose early in the morning on the fifth day to depart, but the young woman’s father said, “Please refresh your heart.” So they delayed until afternoon; and both of them ate.

9 And when the man stood to depart—he and his concubine and his servant—his father-in-law, the young woman’s father, said to him, “Look, the day is now drawing toward evening; please spend the night. See, the day is coming to an end; lodge here, that your heart may be merry. Tomorrow go your way early, so that you may get home.”

10 However, the man was not willing to spend that night; so he rose and departed, and came oppositeJebus (thatis,Jerusalem). With him were the two saddled donkeys; his concubinewasalso with him.

11 Theywerenear Jebus, and the day was far spent; and the servant said to his master, “Come, please, and let us turn aside into this cityof the Jebusites and lodge in it.”

12 But his master said to him, “We will not turn aside here into a city of foreigners, whoarenot of the children of Israel; we will go onto Gibeah.”

13 So he said to his servant, “Come, let us draw near to one of these places, and spend the night in Gibeah or inRamah.”

14 And they passed by and went their way; and the sun went down on them near Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin.

15 They turned aside there to go in to lodge in Gibeah. And when he went in, he sat down in the open square of the city, for no one wouldtake them intohishouse to spend the night.

16 Just then an old man came in fromhis work in the field at evening, who alsowasfrom the mountains of Ephraim; he was staying in Gibeah, whereas the men of the placewereBenjamites.

17 And when he raised his eyes, he saw the traveler in the open square of the city; and the old man said, “Where are you going, and where do you come from?”

18 So he said to him, “Wearepassing from Bethlehem in Judah toward the remote mountains of Ephraim; Iamfrom there. I went to Bethlehem in Judah;nowI am going tothe house of theLord. But thereisno one who will take me into his house,

19 although we have both straw and fodder for our donkeys, and bread and wine for myself, for your female servant, and for the young manwhoiswith your servant;thereisno lack of anything.”

20 And the old man said,“Peacebewith you! However,letall your needsbemy responsibility;only do not spend the night in the open square.”

21 So he brought him into his house, and gave fodder to the donkeys.And they washed their feet, and ate and drank.

Gibeah’s Crime

22 As they wereenjoying themselves, suddenlycertain men of the city,perverted men, surrounded the houseandbeat on the door. They spoke to the master of the house, the old man, saying,“Bring out the man who came to your house, that we may know himcarnally!”

23 Butthe man, the master of the house, went out to them and said to them, “No, my brethren! I beg you, do not actsowickedly! Seeing this man has come into my house,do not commit this outrage.

24 Look,hereismy virgin daughter andtheman’sconcubine; let me bring them out now.Humble them, and do with them as you please; but to this man do not do such a vile thing!”

25 But the men would not heed him. So the man took his concubine and broughtherout to them. And theyknew her and abused her all night until morning; and when the day began to break, they let her go.

26 Then the woman came as the day was dawning, and fell down at the door of the man’s house where her masterwas,till it was light.

27 When her master arose in the morning, and opened the doors of the house and went out to go his way, there was his concubine, fallenatthe door of the house with her hands on the threshold.

28 And he said to her, “Get up and let us be going.” Butthere was no answer. So the man lifted her onto the donkey; and the man got up and went to his place.

29 When he entered his house he took a knife, laid hold of his concubine, anddivided her into twelve pieces, limb by limb, and sent her throughout all the territory of Israel.

30 And so it was that all who saw it said, “No such deed has been done or seen from the day that the children of Israel came up from the land of Egypt until this day. Consider it,confer, and speak up!”

Israel’s War with the Benjamites

1 Soall the children of Israel came out, fromDan toBeersheba, as well as from the land of Gilead, and the congregation gathered together as one man before theLordat Mizpah.

2 And 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 soldierswho drew the sword.

3 (Now the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel had gone up to Mizpah.)

Then the children of Israel said, “Tellus,how did this wicked deed happen?”

4 So the Levite, the husband of the woman who was murdered, answered and said, “My concubine andI went into Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin, to spend the night.

5 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.

6 SoI took hold of my concubine, cut her in pieces, and sent her throughout all the territory of the inheritance of Israel, because theycommitted lewdness and outrage in Israel.

7 Look! All of youarechildren of Israel;give your advice and counsel here and now!”

8 So all the people arose as one man, saying, “Noneofuswill go to his tent, nor will any turn back to his house;

9 but now thisisthe thing which we will do to Gibeah:Wewillgoupagainst it by lot.

10 We will take ten men out ofeveryhundred throughout all the tribes of Israel, a hundred out ofeverythousand, and a thousand out ofeveryten 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.”

11 So all the men of Israel were gathered against the city, united together as one man.

12 Then the tribes of Israel sent men through all the tribe of Benjamin, saying, “Whatisthis wickedness that has occurred among you?

13 Now therefore, deliver up the men,the perverted men whoarein Gibeah, that we may put them to death andremove the evil from Israel!” But the children of Benjamin would not listen to the voice of their brethren, the children of Israel.

14 Instead, the children of Benjamin gathered together from their cities to Gibeah, to go to battle against the children of Israel.

15 And from their cities at that timethe children of Benjamin numbered twenty-six thousand men who drew the sword, besides the inhabitants of Gibeah, who numbered seven hundred select men.

16 Among all this peoplewereseven hundred select menwhowereleft-handed; every one could sling a stone at a hair’sbreadthand not miss.

17 Now besides Benjamin, the men of Israel numbered four hundred thousand men who drew the sword; all of theseweremen of war.

18 Then the children of Israel arose andwent up to the house of God toinquire of God. They said, “Which of us shall go up first to battle against the children of Benjamin?”

# TheLordsaid,“Judah first!”

19 So the children of Israel rose 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 battle array to fight against them at Gibeah.

21 Thenthe children of Benjamin came out of Gibeah, and on that day cut down to the ground twenty-two thousand men of the Israelites.

22 And 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.

23 Then the children of Israel went up and wept before theLorduntil evening, and asked counsel of theLord, saying, “Shall I again draw near for battle against the children of my brother Benjamin?”

And theLordsaid, “Go up against him.”

24 So the children of Israel approached the children of Benjamin on the second day.

25 AndBenjamin 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.

26 Then 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 theLordand fasted that day until evening; and they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before theLord.

27 So the children of Israel inquired of theLord(the ark of the covenant of Godwasthere 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 my brother Benjamin, or shall I cease?”

And theLordsaid, “Go up, for tomorrow I will deliver them into your hand.”

29 Then Israelset men in ambush all around Gibeah.

30 And 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.

31 So the children of Benjamin went out against the people,andwere drawn away from the city. They began to strike downandkill 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.

32 And the children of Benjamin said, “Theyaredefeated before us, as at first.”

But the children of Israel said, “Let us flee and draw them away from the city to the highways.”

33 So 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.

34 And ten thousand select men from all Israel came against Gibeah, and the battle was fierce.ButtheBenjamitesdid not know that disasterwasupon them.

35 TheLorddefeated Benjamin before Israel. And the children of Israel destroyed that day twenty-five thousand one hundred Benjamites; all these drew the sword.

36 So 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.

37 And 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.

38 Now the appointed signal between the men of Israel and the men in ambush was that they would make a great cloud ofsmoke rise up from the city,

39 whereupon the men of Israel would turn in battle. Now Benjamin had begun to strikeandkill about thirty of the men of Israel. For they said, “Surely they are defeated before us, asinthe first battle.”

40 But when the cloud began to rise from the city in a column of smoke, the Benjamiteslooked behind them, and there was the whole city going upinsmoketo heaven.

41 And when the men of Israel turned back, the men of Benjamin panicked, for they saw that disaster had come upon them.

42 Therefore they turnedtheirbacksbefore the men of Israel in the direction of the wilderness; but the battle overtook them, and whoevercameout of the cities they destroyed in their midst.

43 They surrounded the Benjamites, chased them,andeasily trampled them down as far as the front of Gibeah toward the east.

44 And eighteen thousand men of Benjamin fell; all theseweremen of valor.

45 Then they turned and fled toward the wilderness to the rock ofRimmon; 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.

46 So all who fell of Benjamin that day were twenty-five thousand men who drew the sword; all theseweremen of valor.

47 But 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.

48 And the men of Israel turned back against the children of Benjamin, and struck them down with the edge of the sword—fromeverycity, men and beasts, all who were found. They also set fire to all the cities they came to.

Wives Provided for the Benjamites

1 Nowthe men of Israel had sworn an oath at Mizpah, saying, “None of us shall give his daughter to Benjamin as a wife.”

2 Then the people cameto the house of God, and remained there before God till evening. They lifted up their voices and wept bitterly,

3 and said, “OLordGod of Israel, why has this come to pass in Israel, that today there should be one tribemissingin Israel?”

4 So it was, on the next morning, that the people rose early andbuilt an altar there, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings.

5 The children of Israel said, “Whoisthereamong all the tribes of Israel who did not come up with the assembly to theLord?”For they had made a great oath concerning anyone who had not come up to theLordat Mizpah, saying, “He shall surely be put to death.”

6 And the children of Israel grieved for Benjamin their brother, and said, “One tribe is cut off from Israel today.

7 What shall we do for wives for those who remain, seeing we have sworn by theLordthat we will not give them our daughters as wives?”

8 And they said, “What oneistherefrom the tribes of Israel who did not come up to Mizpah to theLord?” And, in fact, no one had come to the camp fromJabesh Gilead to the assembly.

9 For when the people were counted, indeed, not one of the inhabitants of Jabesh Gileadwasthere.

10 So the congregation sent out there twelve thousand of their most valiant men, and commanded them, saying,“Go and strike the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead with the edge of the sword, including the women and children.

11 And thisisthe thing that you shall do:You shall utterly destroy every male, and every woman who has known a man intimately.”

12 So they found among the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead four hundred young virgins who had not known a man intimately; and they brought them to the camp atShiloh, which is in the land of Canaan.

13 Then the whole congregation sentwordto the children of Benjaminwhowereat the rock of Rimmon, and announced peace to them.

14 So Benjamin came back at that time, and they gave them the women whom they had saved alive of the women of Jabesh Gilead; and yet they had not found enough for them.

15 And the peoplegrieved for Benjamin, because theLordhad made a void in the tribes of Israel.

16 Then the elders of the congregation said, “What shall we do for wives for those who remain, since the women of Benjamin have been destroyed?”

17 And they said, “Theremustbean inheritance for the survivors of Benjamin, that a tribe may not be destroyed from Israel.

18 However, we cannot give them wives from our daughters,for the children of Israel have sworn an oath, saying, ‘Cursedbethe one who gives a wife to Benjamin.’ ”

19 Then they said, “In fact,thereisa yearlyfeast of theLordinShiloh, whichisnorth of Bethel, on the east side of thehighway that goes up from Bethel to Shechem, and south of Lebonah.”

20 Therefore they instructed the children of Benjamin, saying, “Go, lie in wait in the vineyards,

21 and watch; and just when the daughters of Shiloh come outto perform their dances, then come out from the vineyards, and every man catch a wife for himself from the daughters of Shiloh; then go to the land of Benjamin.

22 Then it shall be, when their fathers or their brothers come to us to complain, that we will say to them, ‘Be kind to them for our sakes, because we did not take a wife for any of them in the war; foritisnotasthoughyou have given thewomento them at this time, making yourselves guilty of your oath.’ ”

23 And the children of Benjamin did so; they took enough wives for their number from those who danced, whom they caught. Then they went and returned to their inheritance, and theyrebuilt the cities and dwelt in them.

24 So the children of Israel departed from there at that time, every man to his tribe and family; they went out from there, every man to his inheritance.

25 In those daystherewasno king in Israel;everyone didwhatwasright in his own eyes.