The Bible in Basic English BBE
New International Version NIV
10 So they (the meeting) sent twelve thousand of the best fighting-men, and gave them orders, saying, Go and put the people of Jabesh-gilead to the sword without mercy, with their women and their little ones.
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 And this is what you are to do: every male, and every woman who has had sex relations with a man, you are to put to the curse, but you are to keep safe the virgins. And they did so.
11
“This is what you are to do,” they said. “Kill every male and every woman who is not a virgin.”
12 Now there were among the people of Jabesh-gilead four hundred young virgins who had never had sex relations with a man; these they took to their tents in Shiloh in the land of Canaan.
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 And all the meeting sent to the men of Benjamin who were in the rock of Rimmon, offering them peace.
13
Then the whole assembly sent an offer of peace to the Benjamites at the rock of Rimmon.
14 Then Benjamin came back; and they gave them the women whom they had kept from death among the women of Jabesh-gilead: but still there were not enough for them.
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 And the people were moved with pity for Benjamin, because the Lord had let his wrath loose on the tribes of Israel.
15
The people grieved for Benjamin, because the LORD had made a gap in the tribes of Israel.
16 Then the responsible men of the meeting said, What are we to do about wives for the rest of them, seeing that the women of Benjamin are dead?
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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 And they said, How is the rest of Benjamin to be given offspring so that one tribe of Israel may not be put out of existence,
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The Benjamite survivors must have heirs,” they said, “so that a tribe of Israel will not be wiped out.
18 Seeing that we may not give them our daughters as wives? For the children of Israel had taken an oath, saying, Cursed is he who gives a wife to Benjamin.
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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 And they said, See, every year there is a feast of the Lord in Shiloh, which is to the north of Beth-el, on the east side of the highway which goes up from Beth-el to Shechem, and on the south of Lebonah.
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But look, there is the annual festival of the LORD in Shiloh, which lies north of Bethel, east of the road that goes from Bethel to Shechem, and south of Lebonah.”
20 And they said to the men of Benjamin, Go into the vine-gardens, waiting there secretly,
20
So they instructed the Benjamites, saying, “Go and hide in the vineyards
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