Judges 20:40-46

40 But when the column of smoke began to rise from the city, the Benjamites turned and saw the whole city going up in smoke.

41 Then the Israelites counterattacked, and the Benjamites were terrified, because they realized that disaster had come on them.

42 So they fled before the Israelites in the direction of the wilderness, but they could not escape the battle. And the Israelites who came out of the towns cut them down there.

43 They surrounded the Benjamites, chased them and easily^[a] overran them in the vicinity of Gibeah on the east.

44 Eighteen thousand Benjamites fell, all of them valiant fighters.

45 As they turned and fled toward the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon, the Israelites cut down five thousand men along the roads. They kept pressing after the Benjamites as far as Gidom and struck down two thousand more.

46 On that day twenty-five thousand Benjamite swordsmen fell, all of them valiant fighters.

Judges 20:40-46 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO JUDGES 20

This chapter relates, how that there was an assembly of the children of Israel at Mizpeh, upon what had happened to the concubine of the Levite, where he appeared and related the whole affair to them, Jud 20:1-7 upon which they unanimously agreed to chastise the inhabitants of Gibeah for what they had done, Jud 20:8-11, and in order to do that sent to the tribe of Benjamin to deliver the guilty, but instead of that they took to their arms, and prepared for battle in defence of them, Jud 20:12-17 and two battles ensued on this, in which the Israelites, who were on the right side of the question, were worsted, Jud 20:18-25 but upon their seeking the Lord again, and their humiliation before him, they engaged a third time in battle, and got an entire victory over the Benjaminites, and destroyed them all excepting six hundred men, Jud 20:26-48.

Cross References

• 1. Joshua 8:20
• 2. Joshua 8:21
• 3. ver 34
• 4. 1 Samuel 10:26; Psalms 76:5
• 5. S Joshua 15:32; Judges 21:13
• 6. 1 Samuel 9:21

Footnotes

• [a]. The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.