Judges 21
1. Now the men of Israel had sworn * in Mizpeh, saying * , There shall not any of us give * his daughter unto Benjamin to wife.
2. And the people came * to the house of God * , and abode * there till even before God, and lifted up * their voices, and wept * sore;
3. And said * , O LORD God of Israel, why is this come to pass in Israel, that there should be to day one tribe lacking * in Israel?
4. And it came to pass on the morrow, that the people rose early * , and built * there an altar, and offered * burnt offerings and peace offerings.
5. And the children of Israel said * , Who is there among all the tribes of Israel that came * not up with the congregation unto the LORD? For they had made a great oath concerning him that came not up * to the LORD to Mizpeh, saying * , He shall surely * be put to death * .
6. And the children of Israel repented * them for Benjamin their brother, and said * , There is one tribe cut off * from Israel this day.
7. 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?
8. And they said * , What one is there of the tribes of Israel that came not up * to Mizpeh to the LORD? And, behold, there came * none to the camp from Jabeshgilead to the assembly.
9. For the people were numbered * , and, behold, there were none of the inhabitants * of Jabeshgilead there.
10. And the congregation sent * thither twelve thousand men of the valiantest, and commanded * them, saying * , Go * and smite * the inhabitants * of Jabeshgilead with the edge of the sword, with the women and the children.
11. And this is the thing that ye shall do * , Ye shall utterly destroy * every male, and every woman that hath lain by man * .
12. And they found * among the inhabitants * of Jabeshgilead four hundred young virgins, that had known * no man by lying with any male: and they brought * them unto the camp to Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan.
13. And the whole congregation sent * some to speak * to the children of Benjamin that were in the rock Rimmon,and to call * peaceably unto them.
14. And Benjamin came again * at that time; and they gave * them wives which they had saved alive * of the women of Jabeshgilead: and yet so they sufficed * them not.
15. And the people repented * them for Benjamin, because that the LORD had made * a breach in the tribes of Israel.
16. Then the elders of the congregation said * , How shall we do * for wives for them that remain * , seeing the women are destroyed * out of Benjamin?
17. And they said * , There must be an inheritance for them that be escaped of Benjamin,that a tribe be not destroyed * out of Israel.
18. Howbeit we may * not give * them wives of our daughters: for the children of Israel have sworn * , saying * , Cursed * be he that giveth * a wife to Benjamin.
19. Then they said * , Behold, there is a feast of the LORD in Shiloh yearly in a place which is on the north side of Bethel, on the east side of the highway that goeth up * from Bethel to Shechem, and on the south of Lebonah.
20. Therefore they commanded * the children of Benjamin, saying * , Go * and lie in wait * in the vineyards;
21. And see * , and, behold, if the daughters of Shiloh come out * to dance * in dances, then come ye out * of the vineyards, and catch * you every man his wife of the daughters of Shiloh, and go * to the land of Benjamin.
22. And it shall be, when their fathers or their brethren come * unto us to complain * , that we will say * unto them, Be favourable * unto them for our sakes: because we reserved * not to each man his wife in the war:for ye did not give * unto them at this time, that ye should be guilty * .
23. And the children of Benjamin did so * , and took * them wives, according to their number, of them that danced * , whom they caught * : and they went * and returned * unto their inheritance, and repaired * the cities, and dwelt * in them.
24. And the children of Israel departed * thence at that time, every man to his tribe and to his family, and they went out * from thence every man to his inheritance.
25. In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did * that which was right in his own eyes.
