Skip to content
Logo Devotion Header

Judges 21 Samson's Revenge

1 Wives for the Benjamites
The men of Israel had taken an oath at Mizpah: “Not one of us will give his daughter in marriage to a Benjamite.”

2 The people went to Bethel, where they sat before God until evening, raising their voices and weeping bitterly.

3 “O Lord, the God of Israel,” they cried, “why has this happened to Israel? Why should one tribe be missing from Israel today?”

4 Early the next day the people built an altar and presented burnt offerings and fellowship offerings.

5 Then the Israelites asked, “Who from all the tribes of Israel has failed to assemble before the Lord?” For they had taken a solemn oath that anyone who failed to assemble before the Lord at Mizpah should certainly be put to death.

6 Now the Israelites grieved for their brothers, the Benjamites. “Today one tribe is cut off from Israel,” they said.

7 “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?”

8 Then they asked, “Which one of the tribes of Israel failed to assemble before the Lord at Mizpah?” They discovered that no one from Jabesh Gilead had come to the camp for the assembly.

9 For when they counted the people, they found that none of the people of Jabesh Gilead were there.

10 So the assembly sent twelve thousand fighting men with instructions to go to Jabesh Gilead and put to the sword those living there, including the women and children.

11 “This is what you are to do,” they said. “Kill every male and every woman who is not a virgin.”

12 They found among the people living in Jabesh Gilead four hundred young women who had never slept with a man, and they took them to the camp at Shiloh in Canaan.

13 Then the whole assembly sent an offer of peace to the Benjamites at the rock of Rimmon.

14 So the Benjamites returned at that time and were given the women of Jabesh Gilead who had been spared. But there were not enough for all of them.

15 The people grieved for Benjamin, because the Lord had made a gap in the tribes of Israel.

16 And the elders of the assembly said, “With the women of Benjamin destroyed, how shall we provide wives for the men who are left?

17 The Benjamite survivors must have heirs,” they said, “so that a tribe of Israel will not be wiped out.

18 We can’t give them our daughters as wives, since we Israelites have taken this oath: ‘Cursed be anyone who gives a wife to a Benjamite.’

19 But look, there is the annual festival of the Lord in Shiloh, to the north of Bethel, and east of the road that goes from Bethel to Shechem, and to the south of Lebonah.”

20 So they instructed the Benjamites, saying, “Go and hide in the vineyards

21 and watch. When the girls of Shiloh come out to join in the dancing, then rush from the vineyards and each of you seize a wife from the girls of Shiloh and go to the land of Benjamin.

22 When their fathers or brothers complain to us, we will say to them, ‘Do us a kindness by helping them, because we did not get wives for them during the war, and you are innocent, since you did not give your daughters to them.’”

23 So that is what the Benjamites did. While the girls were dancing, each man caught one and carried her off to be his wife. Then they returned to their inheritance and rebuilt the towns and settled in them.

24 At that time the Israelites left that place and went home to their tribes and clans, each to his own inheritance.

25 In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.

Previous Chapter Judges 20 Next Book Ruth

“`html

Analysis of Judges Chapter 21

The final chapter of the Book of Judges, Chapter 21, narrates the aftermath of the brutal civil war between the Israelites and the tribe of Benjamin. This chapter examines the complexities of justice, mercy, and repentance through the actions and decisions taken by the Israelites. The chapter’s main theme revolves around the reconciliation and restoration of Israel’s unity following a divisive and violent conflict.

Verses 1-3: The Emotional Aftermath

In the opening verses, the Israelites who gathered at Mizpah vow not to give their daughters in marriage to the Benjamites. This oath represents not only the anger and desire for retribution but also the depth of the breach created between the tribes of Israel. The Israelites soon recognize the gravity of their decision, lamenting the near destruction of an entire tribe:

“Now the men of Israel had sworn at Mizpah, ‘No one of us shall give his daughter in marriage to Benjamin.’ And the people came to Bethel and sat there till evening before God, and they lifted up their voices and wept bitterly. And they said, ‘O LORD, the God of Israel, why has this happened in Israel, that today there should be one tribe lacking in Israel?'” (Judges 21: 1-3)

This lamentation reveals a critical shift from vengeance to sorrow over the potential annihilation of the tribe of Benjamin. The Israelites’ weeping and questioning demonstrate their realization of the values of unity and kinship within the covenant community. They recognize that their collective action out of a desire for justice has left a profound scar on their national identity and integrity.

Verses 4-9: Seeking Solutions

These verses describe the Israelites’ quest to find an acceptable solution under the constraints of their oath. They build an altar and offer sacrifices, seeking divine guidance for a resolution. The sacrificial act emphasizes their return to seeking God’s will, highlighting their repentance and the desire to correct their earlier fervent and impulsive action.

“And the next day the people rose early and built there an altar and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. And the people of Israel said, ‘Which of all the tribes of Israel did not come up in the assembly to the LORD?’ For they had taken a great oath concerning him who did not come up to the LORD to Mizpah, saying, ‘He shall surely be put to death.'” (Judges 21:4-5)

By reflecting on the absence at the assembly, the Israelites identify Jabesh-Gilead, a community that did not participate in their collective vow, thus intending to use them to address the problem at hand. This step shows the complexity of balancing justice, divine commands, and communal responsibility. Rather than breaking their vow, they search for a loophole within the community’s framework.

Verses 10-14: The Destructive Solution

In a drastic decision, the Israelites strike Jabesh-Gilead, sparing only young virgins to be given to the Benjamites as wives. The execution of this plan is severe and morally troubling:

“So the congregation sent 12,000 of their bravest men there and commanded them, ‘Go and strike the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead with the edge of the sword; also the women and the little ones. This is what you shall do: every male and every woman that has lain with a male you shall devote to destruction.'” (Judges 21:10-11)

The massacre at Jabesh-Gilead reflects the Israelites’ commitment to preserving their oath, but it also underscores the extremes to which they are willing to go to maintain unity without contravening their vow. Such decisions underscore the tension between human justice and divine mercy, revealing the Israelites’ struggle to navigate righteousness in profoundly turbulent times.

Verses 15-18: Further Appeals for Mercy

With Jabesh-Gilead’s virgins insufficient to supply the needed wives, the Israelites again seek alternative measures:
“And the people had compassion on Benjamin because the LORD had made a breach in the tribes of Israel.” (Judges 21:15)

The acknowledgment that God allowed this breach underscores the Israelites’ recognition of divine sovereignty and their need to act within his will. Here, their compassion begins to surface more clearly, indicating a significant shift from seeking retribution to extending mercy and grace.

Verses 19-24: The Festival and the Incident at Shiloh

Finally, the elders of Israel devise a plan involving the annual festival at Shiloh. They instruct the Benjamites to abduct the maidens of Shiloh during the festivities:

“So they instructed the people of Benjamin, saying, ‘Go and lie in ambush in the vineyards and watch. If the daughters of Shiloh come out to dance in the dances, then come out of the vineyards and snatch each man his wife from the daughters of Shiloh, and go to the land of Benjamin.'” (Judges 21:20-21)

This plan, albeit unorthodox and morally ambiguous, ultimately reflects a pragmatic attempt to restore the tribe of Benjamin within the constraints of their vow. The festival setting also alludes to a socially acceptable mechanism for marriage, albeit twisted by the Israelites to resolve their predicament.

The abducted maidens and the resulting marriages symbolize a bittersweet resolution, representing both an act of mercy and a perpetuation of previous violence. The conclusion thus leaves readers contemplating the complexities of moral decisions, the consequences of collective oaths, and the difficulty of achieving true reconciliation.

Conclusion: Lessons and Reflections

The final verse of Judges encapsulates the overarching narrative theme of the book:

“In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” (Judges 21:25)

This concluding observation offers profound insight into the cyclical nature of the Israelite experience during the time of the Judges. The absence of a central authority and unified leadership led to moral ambiguity, societal fragmentation, and constant struggles with faithfulness to the covenant.

Judges Chapter 21 serves as a sobering reminder of the consequences of unbridled human actions, even those with initially righteous intentions. It calls for reflection on the importance of seeking divine guidance, emphasizing mercy and reconciliation over vengeance. The chapter’s narrative complexity and moral dilemmas offer timeless lessons about justice, community, and the divine-human relationship. Through its exploration of the Israelites’ quest for solutions in the wake of civil strife, the chapter invites readers to consider the balance between justice and mercy in their own lives and communities.

“`