Judges 20:23 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And the people of Israel went up and wept before the Lord until the evening. And they inquired of the Lord, "Shall we again draw near to fight against our brothers, the people of Benjamin?" And the Lord said, "Go up against them."

NIV: The Israelites went up and wept before the Lord until evening, and they inquired of the Lord. They said, "Shall we go up again to fight against the Benjamites, our fellow Israelites?" The Lord answered, "Go up against them."

NASB: And the sons of Israel went up and wept before the Lord until evening, and inquired of the Lord, saying, 'Shall we again advance for battle against the sons of my brother Benjamin?' And the Lord said, 'Go up against him.'

CSB: They went up, wept before the Lord until evening, and inquired of him: "Should we again attack our brothers the Benjaminites?" And the Lord answered: "Fight against them."

NLT: For they had gone up to Bethel and wept in the presence of the Lord until evening. They had asked the Lord, 'Should we fight against our relatives from Benjamin again?' And the Lord had said, 'Go out and fight against them.'

KJV: (And the children of Israel went up and wept before the Lord until even, and asked counsel of the Lord, saying, Shall I go up again to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother? And the Lord said, Go up against him.)

NKJV: Then the children of Israel went up and wept before the Lord until evening, and asked counsel of the Lord, saying, “Shall I again draw near for battle against the children of my brother Benjamin?” And the Lord said, “Go up against him.”

How does a nation respond to devastating defeat despite having everything necessary for victory? Eleven of Israel's tribes had not gone to battle on a whim. They investigated the crimes of Gibeah (Judges 19:22–28). They secured unity of purpose: to purge the evil found in the land (Judges 20:12–20). They even asked God which tribe should attack first, seemingly securing His approval (Judges 20:18).

Still, by the end of the day, the first battle resulted in more than one in twenty Israeli soldiers killed. Then, as now, such a defeat would have been considered a major disaster. The soldiers were ready to try again, but the leaders of Israel once more insisted on approaching the Lord. They send another delegation to nearby Bethel, where the ark of the covenant sits.

This time, the leaders bring the question they seem to think should have been asked in the first place: Does God want them to war against their own brothers, at all. Their question here has less to do with strategy and more to do with purpose. The terrible defeat of the first day has them wondering if the Lord is with them in the fight.

God graciously answers once again, telling them to continue their campaign. He wants them to pursue this effort for justice.

Judges 20:18–34 describes three battles between eleven tribes of Israel and the twelfth, Benjamin. Benjamin's forces are outnumbered about fifteen-to-one as they defend the city of Gibeah (Judges 19:14, 22; 20:13). The first two attacks fail, with almost a tenth of the Israelite fighters killed. After a day of fasting and sacrifices, God promises Israel victory. Israel's army uses a new strategy and succeeds. The following section begins with a summary of their eventual victory (Judges 20:35).

A massive army collected from eleven of the twelve tribes of Israel gather near the town of Gibeah. Their goal is to purge evil from the land (Judges 19:22–28). The tribe of Benjamin refuses to cooperate. Instead, they assemble an army about one-fifteenth the size of Israel's army. After two failed attempts and a promise of victory from the Lord, Israel uses a false retreat and ambush strategy to destroy Gibeah. This results in the loss of Benjamin's entire army. Israel's wrath spills over onto the territory, itself. All the people, animals, and towns in the tribe's territory are attacked, and it appears that only 600 Benjaminite men survive.

In the prior chapter, Benjaminite men of the town of Gibeah committed an act of heinous sin (Judges 19:22–25). In response, the murdered woman's husband rallies Israel with a gruesome message (Judges 19:29–30). Chapter 20 depicts how the tribe of Benjamin refuses to hand over the guilty men. Civil war ensues, resulting in near-total annihilation of their tribe. This creates a new crisis in Israel, as described in chapter 21; Israel doesn't want Benjamin to become extinct.

The Book of Judges describes Israel's history from the death of Joshua to shortly before Israel's first king, Saul. Israel fails to complete God's command to purge the wicked Canaanites from the land (Deuteronomy 7:1–5; 9:4). This results in a centuries-long cycle where Israel falls into sin and is oppressed by local enemies. After each oppression, God sends a civil-military leader, labeled using a Hebrew word loosely translated into English as "judge." These appointed rescuers would free Israel from enemy control and govern for a certain time. After each judge's death, the cycle of sin and oppression begins again. This continues until the people of Israel choose a king, during the ministry of the prophet-and-judge Samuel (1 Samuel 1—7).