1
And the men of Israel have sworn in Mizpeh, saying, “None of us gives his daughter to Benjamin for a wife.”
2
And the people come to Beth-El, and sit there until the evening before God, and lift up their voice, and weep [with] a great weeping,
3
and say, “Why, O YHWH, God of Israel, has this been in Israel—to be lacking one tribe from Israel today?”
4
And it comes to pass on the next day, that the people rise early, and build an altar there, and cause burnt-offerings and peace-offerings to ascend.
5
And the sons of Israel say, “Who [is] he that has not come up in the assembly to YHWH out of all the tribes of Israel?” For the great oath has been concerning him who has not come up to YHWH to Mizpeh, saying, “He is surely put to death.”
6
And the sons of Israel sigh concerning their brother Benjamin, and say, “Today there has been one tribe cut off from Israel,
7
what do we do for them—for those who are left—for wives, since we have sworn by YHWH not to give to them from our daughters for wives?”
8
And they say, “Who is [that] one out of the tribes of Israel who has not come up to YHWH to Mizpeh?” And behold, none has come to the camp from Jabesh-Gilead—to the assembly.
9
And the people numbered themselves, and behold, there is no man from the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead.
10
And the congregation sends twelve thousand men of the sons of valor there, and commands them, saying, “Go—and you have struck the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead by the mouth of the sword, even the women and the infants.
11
And this [is] the thing which you do; every male, and every woman knowing the lying of a male, you devote.”
12
And they find four hundred young women, virgins, out of the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead, who have not known man by the lying of a male, and they bring them to the camp at Shiloh, which [is] in the land of Canaan.
13
And all the congregation sends [word] and speaks to the sons of Benjamin who [are] in the rock of Rimmon, and proclaims peace to them;
14
and Benjamin turns back at that time, and they give to them the women whom they have kept alive of the women of Jabesh-Gilead, and they have not found for [all of] them so.
15
And the people sighed concerning Benjamin, for YHWH had made a breach among the tribes of Israel.
16
And [the] elderly of the congregation say, “What do we do to the remnant for wives—for the women have been destroyed out of Benjamin?”
17
And they say, “A possession of an escaped party [is] to Benjamin, and a tribe is not blotted out from Israel;
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and we are not able to give wives to them out of our daughters, for the sons of Israel have sworn, saying, Cursed [is] he who is giving a wife to Benjamin.”
19
And they say, “Behold, a festival of YHWH [is] in Shiloh, from time to time, which [is] on the north of Beth-El, at the rising of the sun, by the highway which is going up from Beth-El to Shechem, and on the south of Lebonah.”
20
And they command the sons of Benjamin, saying, “Go—and you have laid wait in the vineyards,
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and have seen, and behold, if the daughters of Shiloh come out to dance in dances—then you have gone out from the vineyards, and each caught his wife out of the daughters of Shiloh for yourselves, and have gone to the land of Benjamin;
22
and it has been, when their fathers or their brothers come in to plead to us, that we have said to them, Favor us [by] them, for we have not each taken his wife in battle, for you have not given [wives] to them at this time, [so] you are [not] guilty.”
23
And the sons of Benjamin do so, and take women according to their number, out of the dancers whom they have seized; and they go, and return to their inheritance, and build the cities, and dwell in them.
24
And the sons of Israel go up and down there at that time, each to his tribe, and to his family; and they each go out there to his inheritance.
25
In those days there is no king in Israel; each does that which is right in his own eyes.
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