When a leader died, the next generation ¹  would again ²  act more wickedly than the previous one. ³  They would follow after other gods, worshiping them ⁴  and bowing down to them. They did not give up ⁵  their practices or their stubborn ways.

They invaded the land ¹  and devoured ²  its crops ³  all the way to Gaza. They left nothing for the Israelites to eat, ⁴  and they took away ⁵  the sheep, oxen, and donkeys.

When they invaded ¹  with their cattle and tents, they were as thick ²  as locusts. Neither they nor their camels could be counted. ³  They came to devour ⁴  the land.

The Benjaminites attacked from Gibeah and struck down twenty-two thousand Israelites that day. ¹ 

They retreated before the Israelites, taking the road to the wilderness. But the battle overtook ¹  them as men from the surrounding cities struck them down. ² 

The Benjaminites again attacked them from Gibeah and struck down eighteen thousand sword-wielding Israelite soldiers. ¹ 

The Lord annihilated Benjamin before Israel; the Israelites struck down that day 25,100 sword-wielding Benjaminites. ¹