CHAPTER 20. THE RESPONSE. In this chapter the Levite's appeal to the tribal confederacy of Israel is answered. The case is heard and the children of Benjamin are commanded to deliver the wrongdoers for punishment in accordance with the law and the covenant. Their refusal to do so is a breach of cov... [ Continue Reading ]
CHAPTER 20. THE RESPONSE. In this chapter the Levite's appeal to the tribal confederacy of Israel is answered. The case is heard and the children of Benjamin are commanded to deliver the wrongdoers for punishment in accordance with the law and the covenant. Their refusal to do so is a breach of cov... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And the chiefs (literally ‘corner-tower') of all the people, even of all the tribes of Israel, presented themselves in the assembly of the people of God. Four hundred eleph of footmen that drew sword.' The leading men (those who were the ‘corner-tower', the strong point) of all the tribes of Isra... [ Continue Reading ]
Judges 20:3 a ‘Now the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel were gone up to Mizpah.' This is a parenthesis. It would hardly seem surprising as they met on Benjaminite territory. But the statement ‘had heard' probably means that they had received the call and had refused it. It wa... [ Continue Reading ]
Judges 20:4 a ‘And the Levite, the husband of the woman who was murdered, answered and said.' He stood up before the judges in order to testify to the hearing the facts of the case. Judges 20:4 (4b-5) “I came into Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin, I and my concubine to lodge. And the men of Gib... [ Continue Reading ]
“ 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.” He then explained his unusual action in cutting up her body and sending it round to the tribes. But what he had done emphasi... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ Behold, you children of Israel, all of you, give here your advice and counsel.' This was probably an official way of ending testimony. He requested the court to consider the facts and give their verdict on behalf of the whole confederation, in the light of the covenant of God made with Israel thr... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ 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.” ' The verdict was unanimous. All were agreed, as indeed they had no option but to be in the light of the evidence, no doubt backed up by that of the servant and the... [ Continue Reading ]
“But now this is the thing which we will do to Gibeah. We will go up against it by lot. And we will take ten men of a hundred, throughout all the tribes of Israel, and a hundred of a thousand, and a thousand out of ten thousand, to fetch provisions for the people, that they may do, when they come to... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ So all the men of Israel were gathered against the city, knit together as one man.' “ALL THE MEN OF ISRAEL.” That is all who had gathered. The army was gathered as agreed, and they were all one in their aims. This was probably most unusual for the tribal confederation, and this incident and its r... [ Continue Reading ]
Judges 20:12 a ‘And the tribes of Israel sent men through all the tribes of Benjamin.' The plural for tribes is used indicating sub-tribes (as in Numbers 4:18; 1 Samuel 9:21). The emphasis is on the fact that all heard. Judges 20:12 a (12b-13a) ‘Saying, “What wickedness is this that was done amo... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And the children of Benjamin gathered themselves together out of the cities, to Gibeah, to go out to battle against the children of Israel.' Recognising that the next move would be for the tribal confederacy to attack Gibeah, the Benjaminites gathered their fighting men together there in order to... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And the children of Benjamin were numbered on that day out of the cities, twenty six eleph men who drew sword, besides the inhabitants of Gibeah who were numbered seven hundred chosen men.' The children of Benjamin were numbered for battle and their numbers came to twenty six military units, comp... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ Among all this people there were seven hundred chosen men, left-handed, every one could sling stones at a hair breadth and not miss.' Each unit would have a number of slingers and in all they numbered seven hundred. They slung left-handed and were deadly accurate (compare 1 Chronicles 12:2 where... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And the men of Israel, excluding Benjamin, were numbered four hundred eleph men who drew sword. All these were men of war.' The opposing tribal confederacy had four hundred fighting units (see Judges 20:2). But as verse 10 may be telling us, they were at first only committing forty. Again they we... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And the children of Israel arose, and went up to Bethel, and sought counsel of God, and they said, “Who should first go up to battle for us against the children of Benjamin?” And the Yahweh said, “Judah shall go up first.” The forty units moved from Mizpeh to Bethel, a recognised holy place, wher... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And the children of Israel rose up in the morning and encamped against Gibeah.' The forty units of the tribal confederacy, with Judah to the fore, marched to Gibeah and encamped near the city. (Notice that it is ‘the children of Israel' who go forward, not just the men of Judah. Thus Judah are ju... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And the men of Israel went out to battle against Benjamin, and the men of Israel set the battle in array against them at Gibeah.' Then at the appropriate time they left their camp and set themselves in battle array ready for action, forty units against twenty six units.... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And the children of Benjamin came forth out of Gibeah, and destroyed down to the ground of the Israelites on that day twenty two eleph of men.' The phrase ‘destroyed down to the ground' is unusual. They were not necessarily all killed, but many knocked to the ground as though dead. This may have... [ Continue Reading ]
Judges 20:22 a ‘And the people, the men of Israel, made themselves strong.' This may indicate that they brought up further reinforcements as a result of messengers going back to the main force with an indication of what had happened. It may also indicate that many men who had seemed fatally struck... [ Continue Reading ]
Judges 20:23 a ‘And the children of Israel went up and wept before Yahweh until even, and asked counsel of Yahweh, saying, “shall I again draw near to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother?” ' Their confidence had been dented, so as well as bringing up reinforcements they again sought... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And the children of Israel came near against the children of Benjamin the second day.' Once again the children of Israel advanced against the Benjaminites. The ‘second day' may refer to a second day of battle rather than literally the next day following the first day.... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And Benjamin went out against them from Gibeah the second day, and destroyed down to the ground of the children of Israel again eighteen eleph men, all these drew the sword.' How many units went forward we are not told, but eighteen of them were again thoroughly defeated. It is very probable that... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ Then all the children of Israel and all the people went up, and came to the house of God, and wept and sat there before Yahweh, and fasted that day until evening.' The second defeat brought them to their senses. The whole army of Israel, together with others who were concerned (the people), went... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And the children of Israel enquired of Yahweh, for the Ark of the Covenant was there in those days.' This confirms that at this time for some reason the Ark was at Bethel, and probably the Tabernacle, although it was mostly at this time at Shiloh (Joshua 18:1; Joshua 18:8; Joshua 19:51; Jdg 18:31;... [ Continue Reading ]
Judges 20:28 a ‘(And Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, stood before it in those days).' Assuming this to be the Phinehas, son of Eleazar mentioned in Numbers 25:7; Joshua 24:33, who was known as a young man to Moses, and whose father died not long after Joshua (Joshua 24:33) this incid... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And Israel set liers in wait round about Gibeah.' There was now a change of tactics. Their previous tactics had not worked, probably because of the slingers. Now they decided that they must draw the children of Benjamin out of the city allowing the liers in wait to come in from behind and capture... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And the children of Israel went up against the children of Benjamin on the third day, and set themselves in array against Gibeah, as at other times.' This was the third day of battle not the third day in succession. (Alternatively it might be seen as the third day following the previous battle).... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And the children of Benjamin went out against the people, and were drawn away from the city. And they began to smite and to kill some of the people as at other times, in the high ways, of which one goes up to Bethel and the other to Gibeah, in the country, about thirty men of Israel.' The childre... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And the children of Benjamin said, “They are smitten down before us, as at first.” ' This was their view of the position. They were overconfident and became careless, forgetting that their previous victories had been due to the slingers and the massed ranks of their enemies coming towards them.... [ Continue Reading ]
Judges 20:33 a ‘And all the men of Israel rose up out of their place, and put themselves in array at Baaltamar.' These men who ‘rose up out of their place' were probably a large force lying in ambush. As the fleeing Israelites came towards them, followed by the exultant Benjaminites, they rose up... [ Continue Reading ]
Judges 20:34 a ‘And there came over against Gibeah ten eleph chosen men out of all Israel.' These ten units may have been the liers in wait, or they may have been the forces in ambush that suddenly appeared in front of the horrified Benjaminites, joining forces with the fleeing children of Israel.... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And Yahweh smote Benjamin before Israel, and the children of Israel destroyed of Benjamin that day twenty five eleph and one hundred men. All these drew the sword.' Twenty five out of twenty six Benjaminite units were destroyed. One unit had probably remained to protect Gibeah. The ‘hundred' men... [ Continue Reading ]
Judges 20:36 a ‘So the children of Benjamin saw that they were smitten.' A summary of the situation. Benjamin now became aware that their end was near. It conveyed to the listeners, who were hearing the account read, the turning point in the battle. This will now be followed by a further descripti... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And the liers in wait acted speedily, and rushed on Gibeah, and the liers in wait drew (or ‘extended') themselves along and smote all the city with the edge of the sword.' “DREW THEMSELVES ALONG” may describe some tactic used. It may mean extended themselves along so as to attack over a wide rang... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ Now the appointed sign between the men of Israel and the liers in wait was that they should make a great cloud of smoke rise up out of the city.' The smoke would alert their fellow soldiers that the city had been taken and would bring alarm and despondency to the enemy. For the Benjaminites, if G... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And the men of Israel retired (‘turned') in the battle, and Benjamin began to smite and to kill of the men of Israel about thirty men, for they said, ‘surely they are smitten down before us as in the first battle'.' Compare Judges 20:31. That working out of the strategy is repeated again here toge... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ But when the cloud began to rise up out of the city in a pillar of smoke, the Benjaminites looked behind them, and behold the whole of the city went up in smoke to heaven.' A huge pillar of smoke ascended from the city and one of their number first noticed it and yelled, and others then turned an... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And the men of Israel turned back again, and the men of Benjamin were aghast for they saw that evil had come on them.' Their city destroyed behind them in an appalling way by a force of unknown strength, the sudden resolute turning of what they had thought was a defeated army, and the appearance... [ Continue Reading ]
Judges 20:42 a ‘Therefore they turned their backs before the men of Israel, into the way of the wilderness, but the battle followed hard after them.' The Benjaminites saw no alternative but to flee for their lives into the rough country, for the highways would just lead them into enemy forces, but... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ They enclosed the Benjaminites round about, and pursued them, and overtook (‘or ‘trod down') them at their resting place as far as over against Gibeah towards the sunrising.' This describes a typical pursuit in such a situation. The Benjaminites were surrounded on all sides, for the confederation... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And there fell of Benjamin eighteen eleph men. All these were men of valour.' Eighteen military units were destroyed in the initial battle and pursuit, the same number as they themselves had destroyed in the second battle. And all brave fighting men. This latter was probably a boast of the writer... [ Continue Reading ]
Judges 20:45 a ‘And they turned and fled toward the wilderness towards the rock of Rimmon.' This would be a rocky cliff with caves, possibly modern Rammon, eight miles east of Bethel. They knew that if they reached that rocky fortress they would be able to hide and defend themselves against any wh... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ So that all who fell that day of Benjamin were twenty five eleph men that drew the sword. All these were men of valour.' Compare Judges 20:35. Twenty five of the twenty six military units were destroyed in battle and pursuit. The remaining unit was presumably destroyed defending Gibeah, or possib... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ But six hundred men turned and fled towards the wilderness, to the Rock of Rimmon, and they lived in the Rock of Rimmon for four months.' Of the army that started out only six hundred identifiable men remained, although we can be sure that here and there stragglers escaped and found refuge somewh... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And the men of Israel turned again on the children of Benjamin, and smote them with the edge of the sword, both the entire city and the cattle and all that they found. Moreover all the cities that they found they burned with fire.' Now began that most dreadful of events, the carrying out of The Ba... [ Continue Reading ]