Parallel Bible results for "judges 20"

Judges 20

The Complete Jewish Bible CJB

1 All the people of Isra'el came out, from Dan to Be'er-sheva, including Gil'ad; the community assembled with one accord before ADONAI at Mitzpah.

2 The leaders of all the tribes of Isra'el presented themselves in the assembly of the people of God, 400,000 foot soldiers armed with swords.

3 Now the people of Binyamin heard that the people of Isra'el had gone up to Mitzpah. The people of Isra'el said, "Tell us, how was this crime committed?"

4 The Levi, the husband of the murdered woman, answered, "I came to Giv'ah, which belongs to Binyamin, I and my concubine, to stay the night;

5 and the men in Giv'ah attacked me and surrounded the house I was staying in at night. They wanted to kill me, but instead they raped my concubine to death.

6 I took my concubine's body, cut it into pieces and sent them throughout all the territories belonging to Isra'el; because they committed a shockingly obscene and degrading crime in Isra'el.

7 Look, you are all people of Isra'el. So discuss what to do, and give your advice here and now."

8 All the people stood up in agreement and said, "None of us will go home to his tent or his house.

9 What we will do now to Giv'ah is this: we'll draw lots,

10 we'll take ten men out of each hundred throughout all the tribes of Isra'el, and a hundred out of a thousand, and a thousand out of ten thousand to collect food for the others. When these come to Giv'ah in Binyamin, they will avenge the crime that was committed."

11 Thus all the men of Isra'el, joined together in complete agreement, assembled to attack the city.

12 The tribes of Isra'el sent men throughout all the tribe of Binyamin with this message: "What is this crime committed by some of your people?

13 Turn over these good-for-nothings who are in Giv'ah at once, so that we can execute them and rid Isra'el of such evil." But the people of Binyamin refused to obey the order of their kinsmen the people of Isra'el.

14 Instead the people of Binyamin gathered themselves together from their cities and went to Giv'ah to fight the people of Isra'el.

15 On that day there were 26,000 men from Binyamin armed with swords, besides the inhabitants of Giv'ah, who numbered 700 specially chosen men.

16 All of these 700 specially picked men were left-handed, and every one could sling a stone at a hair and not miss.

17 The army of Isra'el, apart from Binyamin, numbered 400,000 men with swords; they were all experienced soldiers.

18 The army of Isra'el began by going up to Beit-El, where they asked God, "Who should go up first to attack the army of Binyamin?" ADONAI said, "Y'hudah first."

19 So the army of Isra'el got up in the morning and set up their camp near Giv'ah.

20 Then the army of Isra'el went out to attack Binyamin and set up their battle line in front of Giv'ah.

21 But the army of Binyamin came out of Giv'ah and slaughtered the army of Isra'el; on that day 22,000 men fell.

22 The people, the men of Isra'el, restored their morale and again positioned themselves for battle where they had been the first day.

23 Then the army of Isra'el went up and cried before ADONAI until evening. They asked ADONAI, "Should we attack our kinsmen the people of Binyamin again? ADONAI answered, "Attack them."

24 So the army of Isra'el went out to attack the army of Binyamin the second day.

25 But Binyamin went out against them from Giv'ah the second day and slaughtered the army of Isra'el; 18,000 men armed with swords fell.

26 Then the whole army of Isra'el, all the people, went up to Beit-El and cried and sat there in the presence of ADONAI. They fasted that day until evening, offered burnt offerings and peace offerings to ADONAI,

27 and asked ADONAI what to do. The ark for the covenant of God was there at that time;

28 and Pinchas the son of El'azar, the son of Aharon, stood before it at that time. They asked, "Should we still go out to battle again against our kinsmen the people of Binyamin, or should we stop?" ADONAI answered, "Attack, because tomorrow I will hand them over to you."

29 Isra'el hid some men around Giv'ah,

30 and on the third day Isra'el attacked the army of Binyamin and took a position against Giv'ah as they had the other times.

31 Again the army of Binyamin went out against the people. Lured away from the city, they began attacking and killing some of the people, as they had the other times - they killed about thirty men of Isra'el in the countryside and on the roads, one of which goes up to Beit-El and the other to Giv'ah.

32 The army of Binyamin said, "They're defeated, just as before." But the army of Isra'el said, "Let's run off and draw them away from the city onto the roads."

33 All the men of Isra'el left their places and took up a battle position at Ba'al-Tamar, while the other Isra'el men burst out of their hiding places at Ma'areh-Geva.

34 Ten thousand men chosen out of all Isra'el came over to attack Giv'ah, and the combat was intense. But the army of Binyamin didn't know that they were about to be defeated.

35 For ADONAI routed Binyamin in Isra'el's presence; that day the army of Isra'el destroyed 25,100 men of Binyamin, all of whom carried swords;

36 and the people of Binyamin realized that they had been beaten. The men of Isra'el, trusting the ones they had put in place to ambush Binyamin, gave ground to the men of Binyamin.

37 Then the men who had been lying in wait rushed in on Giv'ah, drew their swords and destroyed the city.

38 The army of Isra'el and the ambushers had agreed that as a signal they would make a huge cloud of smoke rise from the city,

39 at which time the men of Isra'el would turn back. When this happened, Binyamin began to attack. They killed about thirty of Isra'el's men and said, "Clearly we're defeating them again, as in the first battle."

40 But when the smoke signal began rising from the city, the men of Binyamin looked behind them and saw the whole city going up to the sky in smoke.

41 Then, as the men of Isra'el reversed direction, those of Binyamin were overcome with terror. When they saw that disaster had come upon them,

42 they turned their backs on the men of Isra'el and made for the road to the desert. But the battle followed them, and those who came out of the city destroyed them from the rear.

43 They surrounded the men of Binyamin, chased them and trampled them down across from Giv'ah on the east.

44 Eighteen thousand men of Binyamin fell, all of them experienced soldiers.

45 They turned and fled toward the desert to the Rock of Rimmon; and 5,000 of them were killed on the roads. They followed them to Gid'om and killed another 2,000.

46 Thus the total number from Binyamin who fell that day was 25,000 experienced, sword-bearing soldiers.

47 But 600 turned and fled toward the desert to the Rock of Rimmon, and lived there four months.

48 The men of Isra'el turned back on the people of Binyamin and killed them with the sword, the entire city, the cattle and everything they found. Moreover, they set on fire all the cities they encountered.

New International Version NIV

1 Then all Israel from Dan to Beersheba and from the land of Gilead came together as one and assembled before the LORD in Mizpah.

2 The leaders of all the people of the tribes of Israel took their places in the assembly of God’s people, four hundred thousand men armed with swords.

3 (The Benjamites heard that the Israelites had gone up to Mizpah.) Then the Israelites said, “Tell us how this awful thing happened.”

4 So the Levite, the husband of the murdered woman, said, “I and my concubine came to Gibeah in Benjamin to spend the night.

5 During the night the men of Gibeah came after me and surrounded the house, intending to kill me. They raped my concubine, and she died.

6 I took my concubine, cut her into pieces and sent one piece to each region of Israel’s inheritance, because they committed this lewd and outrageous act in Israel.

7 Now, all you Israelites, speak up and tell me what you have decided to do.”

8 All the men rose up together as one, saying, “None of us will go home. No, not one of us will return to his house.

9 But now this is what we’ll do to Gibeah: We’ll go up against it in the order decided by casting lots.

10 We’ll take ten men out of every hundred from all the tribes of Israel, and a hundred from a thousand, and a thousand from ten thousand, to get provisions for the army. Then, when the army arrives at Gibeah in Benjamin, it can give them what they deserve for this outrageous act done in Israel.”

11 So all the Israelites got together and united as one against the city.

12 The tribes of Israel sent messengers throughout the tribe of Benjamin, saying, “What about this awful crime that was committed among you?

13 Now turn those wicked men of Gibeah over to us so that we may put them to death and purge the evil from Israel.” But the Benjamites would not listen to their fellow Israelites.

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

15 At once the Benjamites mobilized twenty-six thousand swordsmen from their towns, in addition to seven hundred able young men from those living in Gibeah.

16 Among all these soldiers there were seven hundred select troops who were left-handed, each of whom could sling a stone at a hair and not miss.

17 Israel, apart from Benjamin, mustered four hundred thousand swordsmen, all of them fit for battle.

18 The Israelites went up to Bethel and inquired of God. They said, “Who of us is to go up first to fight against the Benjamites?” The LORD replied, “Judah shall go first.”

19 The next morning the Israelites got up and pitched camp near Gibeah.

20 The Israelites went out to fight the Benjamites and took up battle positions against them at Gibeah.

21 The Benjamites came out of Gibeah and cut down twenty-two thousand Israelites on the battlefield that day.

22 But the Israelites encouraged one another and again took up their positions where they had stationed themselves the first day.

23 The Israelites went up and wept before the LORD until evening, and they inquired of the LORD. They said, “Shall we go up again to fight against the Benjamites, our fellow Israelites?” The LORD answered, “Go up against them.”

24 Then the Israelites drew near to Benjamin the second day.

25 This time, when the Benjamites came out from Gibeah to oppose them, they cut down another eighteen thousand Israelites, all of them armed with swords.

26 Then all the Israelites, the whole army, went up to Bethel, and there they sat weeping before the LORD. They fasted that day until evening and presented burnt offerings and fellowship offerings to the LORD.

27 And the Israelites inquired of the LORD. (In those days the ark of the covenant of God was there,

28 with Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, ministering before it.) They asked, “Shall we go up again to fight against the Benjamites, our fellow Israelites, or not?” The LORD responded, “Go, for tomorrow I will give them into your hands.”

29 Then Israel set an ambush around Gibeah.

30 They went up against the Benjamites on the third day and took up positions against Gibeah as they had done before.

31 The Benjamites came out to meet them and were drawn away from the city. They began to inflict casualties on the Israelites as before, so that about thirty men fell in the open field and on the roads—the one leading to Bethel and the other to Gibeah.

32 While the Benjamites were saying, “We are defeating them as before,” the Israelites were saying, “Let’s retreat and draw them away from the city to the roads.”

33 All the men of Israel moved from their places and took up positions at Baal Tamar, and the Israelite ambush charged out of its place on the west of Gibeah.

34 Then ten thousand of Israel’s able young men made a frontal attack on Gibeah. The fighting was so heavy that the Benjamites did not realize how near disaster was.

35 The LORD defeated Benjamin before Israel, and on that day the Israelites struck down 25,100 Benjamites, all armed with swords.

36 Then the Benjamites saw that they were beaten. Now the men of Israel had given way before Benjamin, because they relied on the ambush they had set near Gibeah.

37 Those who had been in ambush made a sudden dash into Gibeah, spread out and put the whole city to the sword.

38 The Israelites had arranged with the ambush that they should send up a great cloud of smoke from the city,

39 and then the Israelites would counterattack. The Benjamites had begun to inflict casualties on the Israelites (about thirty), and they said, “We are defeating them as in the first battle.”

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 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.

47 But six hundred of them turned and fled into the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon, where they stayed four months.

48 The men of Israel went back to Benjamin and put all the towns to the sword, including the animals and everything else they found. All the towns they came across they set on fire.