Judges 21:7 - Printer Friendly

ESV: What shall we do for wives for those who are left, since we have sworn by the LORD that we will not give them any of our daughters for wives?”

NIV: How can we provide wives for those who are left, since we have taken an oath by the LORD not to give them any of our daughters in marriage?'

NASB: What are we to do for wives for those who are left, since we have sworn by the Lord not to give them any of our daughters as wives?'

CSB: What should we do about wives for the survivors? We've sworn to the Lord not to give them any of our daughters as wives."

NLT: How can we find wives for the few who remain, since we have sworn by the Lord not to give them our daughters in marriage?'

KJV: How shall we do for wives for them that remain, seeing we have sworn by the LORD that we will not give them of our daughters to wives?

NKJV: What shall we do for wives for those who remain, seeing we have sworn by the Lord that we will not give them our daughters as wives?”

First, Israel slaughters nearly the entire tribe of Benjamin (Judges 20:47–48) for defending their city of Gibeah (Judges 20:12–13), whose people were guilty of heinous crimes against the Lord. They seem relieved that several hundred Benjaminites escaped the carnage and were now hiding in nearby caves. They don't want the tribe of Benjamin to become extinct. They don't want the circle of the tribes of Israel to be broken.

However, before the fighting with Benjamin began, all eleven tribes took an oath not to marry their daughters to any men of Benjamin. They do not even consider breaking this oath, likely because it was well known the Lord would judge those who broke sacred oaths (Deuteronomy 21:21–23). Since all the Benjaminite women and children have been killed and marrying Canaanite women is also not allowed (Deuteronomy 7:1–5), the survivors of Benjamin have no hope to rebuild their tribe.

As it happens, the leaders of the Israelites have an idea for how they can find genuine Israelite wives for the men of Benjamin without breaking their oath (Judges 21:14).

Judges 21:1–7 finds Israel mourning. After the other eleven tribes raged through the territory in a civil war, only six hundred men survive from the tribe of Benjamin. Cities, animals, women, and children have been wiped out. Beyond that, the Israelites made an unwise oath not to give wives to Benjamin. The people weep and make sacrifices to God, but He remains silent. Israel's leaders investigate which clans did not send anyone to fight in the war. This might give them a way to honor their oath while sparing Benjamin from extinction.

Israel grieves the near extinction of the tribe of Benjamin, though the situation is the result of their own excessive force. Worse, the other eleven tribes vowed not to give wives to Benjamin. To prevent the loss of a tribe, two schemes are enacted. First, the Israelites of Jabesh-gilead are wiped out for not sending anyone to support the civil war; the young women are spared and given as wives to Benjamin. Next, the remaining unmarried men of Benjamin stage an arranged kidnapping to "take" wives they cannot be "given." The book ends with another reminder of Israel's lawlessness in this era.

Judges 21 finds the people of Israel reeling after they killed nearly every person in the tribe of Benjamin. This began as an effort to enact justice and turned into a wide-ranging massacre. To keep Benjamin from dying out, Israel's leaders must work around their own mistakes and two ill-considered vows. The book ends with another reminder that Israel was without a king in this era. The nation was literally leaderless, and spiritually rebellious. Soon, the judge-and-prophet Samuel will rise to guide the people into the era of kings.

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).