Judges 20:8 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And all the people arose as one man, saying, "None of us will go to his tent, and none of us will return to his house.

NIV: All the men rose up together as one, saying, "None of us will go home. No, not one of us will return to his house.

NASB: Then all the people rose up as one person, saying, 'Not one of us will go to his tent, nor will any of us go home.

CSB: Then all the people stood united and said, "None of us will go to his tent or return to his house.

NLT: And all the people rose to their feet in unison and declared, 'None of us will return home! No, not even one of us!

KJV: 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.

NKJV: So all the people arose as one man, saying, “None of us will go to his tent, nor will any turn back to his house;

The leaders of eleven of the twelve tribes of Israel have heard the testimony of a Levite (Judges 20:1–7). They had been shocked and compelled to convene when he sent body parts of his dead concubine throughout Israel (Judges 19:29–30). Now they are convinced to take swift action by his statement about what the men of Gibeah did to him and to his concubine.

At this point, the tribes of Israel have already sent a massive number of soldiers. Hearing the Levite's account in person, and meeting as a group, seem to be a formal way of "passing sentence" on Gibeah. The assembled soldiers make a vow, implying they will not rest or return home until justice has been carried out.

The army assembled at Mizpah—a town only a short walk from Gibeah—is only taken from eleven tribes. The twelfth tribe of Israel, Benjamin (Judges 19:14) was excluded from this assembly. Before vengeance can be accomplished, the Benjaminites will have something to say about it. Rather than turning over the guilty, or allowing Israel to simply destroy the town, the tribe of Benjamin will fight back.

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).

Accessed 12/25/2024 10:38:16 AM