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Text -- Judges 20:1-30 (NET)
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Strongs On/Off
Context
Civil War Breaks Out
20:1 All the Israelites from Dan to Beer Sheba and from the land of Gilead left their homes and assembled together before the Lord at Mizpah .
20:2 The leaders of all the people from all the tribes of Israel took their places in the assembly of God’s people , which numbered four hundred thousand sword-wielding foot soldiers .
20:3 The Benjaminites heard that the Israelites had gone up to Mizpah . Then the Israelites said , “Explain how this wicked thing happened !”
20:4 The Levite , the husband of the murdered woman , spoke up , “I and my concubine stopped in Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin to spend the night.
20:5 The leaders of Gibeah attacked me and at night surrounded the house where I was staying. They wanted to kill me; instead they abused my concubine so badly that she died .
20:6 I grabbed hold of my concubine and carved her up and sent the pieces throughout the territory occupied by Israel , because they committed such an unthinkable atrocity in Israel .
20:7 All you Israelites , make a decision here !”
20:8 All Israel rose up in unison and said , “Not one of us will go home ! Not one of us will return to his house !
20:9 Now this is what we will do to Gibeah : We will attack the city as the lot dictates.
20:10 We will take ten of every group of a hundred men from all the tribes of Israel (and a hundred of every group of a thousand , and a thousand of every group of ten thousand ) to get supplies for the army . When they arrive in Gibeah of Benjamin they will punish them for the atrocity which they committed in Israel .”
20:11 So all the men of Israel gathered together at the city as allies .
20:12 The tribes of Israel sent men throughout the tribe of Benjamin , saying , “How could such a wicked thing take place ?
20:13 Now , hand over the good-for-nothings in Gibeah so we can execute them and purge Israel of wickedness .” But the Benjaminites refused to listen to their Israelite brothers .
20:14 The Benjaminites came from their cities and assembled at Gibeah to make war against the Israelites .
20:15 That day the Benjaminites mustered from their cities twenty-six thousand sword-wielding soldiers , besides seven hundred well-trained soldiers from Gibeah .
20:16 Among this army were seven hundred specially-trained left-handed soldiers . Each one could sling a stone and hit even the smallest target.
20:17 The men of Israel (not counting Benjamin ) had mustered four hundred thousand sword-wielding soldiers , every one an experienced warrior .
20:18 The Israelites went up to Bethel and asked God , “Who should lead the charge against the Benjaminites ?” The Lord said , “Judah should lead .”
20:19 The Israelites got up the next morning and moved against Gibeah .
20:20 The men of Israel marched out to fight Benjamin ; they arranged their battle lines against Gibeah .
20:21 The Benjaminites attacked from Gibeah and struck down twenty-two thousand Israelites that day .
20:22 The Israelite army took heart and once more arranged their battle lines, in the same place where they had taken their positions the day before .
20:23 The Israelites went up and wept before the Lord until evening . They asked the Lord , “Should we again march out to fight the Benjaminites , our brothers ?” The Lord said , “Attack them!”
20:24 So the Israelites marched toward the Benjaminites the next day .
20:25 The Benjaminites again attacked them from Gibeah and struck down eighteen thousand sword-wielding Israelite soldiers .
20:26 So all the Israelites , the whole army , went up to Bethel . They wept and sat there before the Lord ; they did not eat anything that day until evening . They offered up burnt sacrifices and tokens of peace to the Lord .
20:27 The Israelites asked the Lord (for the ark of God’s covenant was there in those days ;
20:28 Phinehas son of Eleazar , son of Aaron , was serving the Lord in those days ), “Should we once more march out to fight the Benjaminites our brothers , or should we quit ?” The Lord said , “Attack , for tomorrow I will hand them over to you.”
20:29 So Israel hid men in ambush outside Gibeah .
20:30 The Israelites attacked the Benjaminites the next day ; they took their positions against Gibeah just as they had done before .
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Names, People and Places, Dictionary Themes and Topics
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Names, People and Places:
Dictionary Themes and Topics:
Gibeah |
Benjamin |
ARCHERY |
Wolf |
BETHLEHEM |
Vows |
Zeal |
War |
Armies |
JUDAH, KINGDOM OF |
Congregation |
BETHEL |
Urim and Thummim |
Mizpah |
ARMY |
LAW, JUDICIAL |
Phinehas |
Tabernacle |
HOUSE OF GOD |
Left-handed |
more
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expand allCommentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes
NET Notes -> Jdg 20:1; Jdg 20:1; Jdg 20:1; Jdg 20:1; Jdg 20:2; Jdg 20:2; Jdg 20:4; Jdg 20:4; Jdg 20:4; Jdg 20:5; Jdg 20:6; Jdg 20:6; Jdg 20:6; Jdg 20:7; Jdg 20:7; Jdg 20:8; Jdg 20:8; Jdg 20:8; Jdg 20:9; Jdg 20:9; Jdg 20:10; Jdg 20:10; Jdg 20:11; Jdg 20:12; Jdg 20:12; Jdg 20:13; Jdg 20:13; Jdg 20:14; Jdg 20:15; Jdg 20:16; Jdg 20:16; Jdg 20:16; Jdg 20:17; Jdg 20:18; Jdg 20:18; Jdg 20:18; Jdg 20:19; Jdg 20:20; Jdg 20:21; Jdg 20:22; Jdg 20:22; Jdg 20:23; Jdg 20:23; Jdg 20:23; Jdg 20:23; Jdg 20:24; Jdg 20:25; Jdg 20:26; Jdg 20:26; Jdg 20:26; Jdg 20:26; Jdg 20:26; Jdg 20:28; Jdg 20:28; Jdg 20:28; Jdg 20:28; Jdg 20:28; Jdg 20:30
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NET Notes: Jdg 20:9 As the lot dictates. The Israelite soldiers intended to cast lots to determine which tribe would lead the battle charge (see v. 18).
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NET Notes: Jdg 20:10 Heb “to do at their arrival in Geba of Benjamin according to all the disgraceful [thing] which he [collective = “Benjamin”] did in I...
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NET Notes: Jdg 20:15 Heb “besides from the ones living in Gibeah they mustered seven hundred choice men.”
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NET Notes: Jdg 20:20 Heb “the men of Israel.” The noun phrase has been replaced by the pronoun (“they”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
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NET Notes: Jdg 20:21 Heb “The sons of Benjamin came out of Gibeah and they struck down in Israel that day twenty-two thousand men to the ground.”
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NET Notes: Jdg 20:25 Heb “And Benjamin went out to meet them from Gibeah the second day, and they struck down among the sons of Israel eighteen thousand men to the g...
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