Judges 20:14 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Then the people of Benjamin came together out of the cities to Gibeah to go out to battle against the people of Israel.

NIV: From their towns they came together at Gibeah to fight against the Israelites.

NASB: Instead, the sons of Benjamin gathered from the cities to Gibeah, to go out to battle against the sons of Israel.

CSB: Instead, the Benjaminites gathered together from their cities to Gibeah to go out and fight against the Israelites.

NLT: Instead, they came from their towns and gathered at Gibeah to fight the Israelites.

KJV: But the children of Benjamin gathered themselves together out of the cities unto Gibeah, to go out to battle against the children of Israel.

NKJV: Instead, the children of Benjamin gathered together from their cities to Gibeah, to go to battle against the children of Israel.

In this pivotal moment in Israel's history, the people of Benjamin make a choice. Instead of agreeing with the other eleven tribes that the wicked rapists and murderers of Gibeah (Judges 19:14) must be destroyed (Judges 19:22–27), those of Benjamin choose to defend them. Instead of joining the effort to purge the evil from Israel, the Benjaminites decided to stand their ground in defending their own, no matter how evil they might be (Judges 20:12–13).

However, the armies of the tribes of Israel are already camped nearby, ready to attack. In response, the people of Benjamin rally their own army and prepare for war.

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 4/29/2024 4:20:32 PM