Judges 20:3 - Printer Friendly

ESV: (Now the people of Benjamin heard that the people of Israel had gone up to Mizpah.) And the people of Israel said, "Tell us, how did this evil happen?"

NIV: (The Benjamites heard that the Israelites had gone up to Mizpah.) Then the Israelites said, "Tell us how this awful thing happened."

NASB: (Now the sons of Benjamin heard that the sons of Israel had gone up to Mizpah.) And the sons of Israel said, 'Tell us, how did this wickedness take place?'

CSB: The Benjaminites heard that the Israelites had gone up to Mizpah. The Israelites asked, "Tell us, how did this evil act happen?"

NLT: (Word soon reached the land of Benjamin that the other tribes had gone up to Mizpah.) The Israelites then asked how this terrible crime had happened.

KJV: (Now the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel were gone up to Mizpeh.) Then said the children of Israel, Tell us, how was this wickedness?

NKJV: (Now the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel had gone up to Mizpah.) Then the children of Israel said, “Tell us, how did this wicked deed happen?”

Eleven of the twelve tribes of Israel have gathered at the town of Mizpah (Judges 20:1–2), near the Benjaminite city of Gibeah (Judges 19:14). They act in a rare moment of unity and submission to the Lord. They have come in response to a call to action from a Levite man. In a gruesome message, he sent the twelve pieces of his concubine's corpse around the region. She had been raped and murdered by the men of Gibeah (Judges 19:22–30).

As noted here, the people of Benjamin were not invited to this assembly. They heard about it, however, as one would expect. The Mizpah mentioned here is barely an hour's walk from the Benjaminite town of Gibeah. According to this passage, Israel has amassed a massive army. Clearly, the other tribes already plan to punish Gibeah. The tribe of Benjamin, for their part, will respond by assembling their own fighting forces.

Given the number of soldiers already present, it's clear the leaders of Israel already determined their response to the atrocity in Gibeah. With the assembly officially begun, the Levite man is now called to speak. Everyone would have already heard some version of his story. Now, though, the leaders of the eleven tribes can hear from him directly, so they can make a formal declaration of their intent.

Judges 20:1–17 depicts Israel's response to an atrocity in Gibeah, a town of the tribe of Benjamin (Judges 19:22, 25). The people agree to punish Gibeah, saying their intent is to purge evil from Israel. When the Benjaminites refuse to hand over the guilty men, the other eleven tribes prepare a large army to invade. Benjamin rallies their own troops and prepares to defend the city of Gibeah.

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).