1 Then all the children of Israel went out, and the congregation was gathered together as one man, from Dan even to Beersheba, with the land of Gilead, unto the Lord in Mizpeh.
2 And the chief of all the people, even of all the tribes of Israel, presented themselves in the assembly of the people of God, four hundred thousand footmen that drew sword.
3 (Now the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel were gone up to Mizpeh.) Then said the children of Israel, Tell us, how was this wickedness?
4 And the Levite, the husband of the woman that was slain, answered and said, I came into Gibeah that belongeth to Benjamin, I and my concubine, to lodge.
5 And the men of Gibeah rose against me, and beset the house round about upon me by night, and thought to have slain me: and my concubine have they forced, that she is dead.
6 And I took my concubine, and cut her in pieces, and sent her throughout all the country of the inheritance of Israel: for they have committed lewdness and folly in Israel.
7 Behold, ye are all children of Israel; give here your advice and counsel.
8 And all the people arose as one man, saying, We will not any of us go to his tent, neither will we any of us turn into his house.
9 But now this shall be the thing which we will do to Gibeah; we will go up by lot against it;
10 And we will take ten men of an hundred throughout all the tribes of Israel, and an hundred of a thousand, and a thousand out of ten thousand, to fetch victual for the people, that they may do, when they come to Gibeah of Benjamin, according to all the folly that they have wrought in Israel.
11 So all the men of Israel were gathered against the city, knit together as one man.
12 And the tribes of Israel sent men through all the tribe of Benjamin, saying, What wickedness is this that is done among you?
13 Now therefore deliver us the men, the children of Belial, which are in Gibeah, that we may put them to death, and put away evil from Israel. But the children of Benjamin would not hearken to the voice of their brethren the children of Israel.
14 But the children of Benjamin gathered themselves together out of the cities unto Gibeah, to go out to battle against the children of Israel.
15 And the children of Benjamin were numbered at that time out of the cities twenty and six thousand men that drew sword, beside the inhabitants of Gibeah, which were numbered seven hundred chosen men.
16 Among all this people there were seven hundred chosen men lefthanded; every one could sling stones at an hair breadth, and not miss.
17 And the men of Israel, beside Benjamin, were numbered four hundred thousand men that drew sword: all these were men of war.
18 And the children of Israel arose, and went up to the house of God, and asked counsel of God, and said, Which of us shall go up first to the battle against the children of Benjamin? And the Lord said, Judah shall go up first.
19 And the children of Israel rose up in the morning, and encamped against Gibeah.
20 And the men of Israel went out to battle against Benjamin; and the men of Israel put themselves in array to fight against them at Gibeah.
21 And the children of Benjamin came forth out of Gibeah, and destroyed down to the ground of the Israelites that day twenty and two thousand men.
22 And the people the men of Israel encouraged themselves, and set their battle again in array in the place where they put themselves in array the first day.
23 (And the children of Israel went up and wept before the Lord until even, and asked counsel of the Lord, saying, Shall I go up again to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother? And the Lord said, Go up against him.)
24 And the children of Israel came near against the children of Benjamin the second day.
25 And Benjamin went forth against them out of Gibeah the second day, and destroyed down to the ground of the children of Israel again eighteen thousand men; all these drew the sword.
26 Then all the children of Israel, and all the people, went up, and came unto the house of God, and wept, and sat there before the Lord, and fasted that day until even, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the Lord.
27 And the children of Israel enquired of the Lord, (for the ark of the covenant of God was there in those days,
28 And Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, stood before it in those days,) saying, Shall I yet again go out to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother, or shall I cease? And the Lord said, Go up; for to morrow I will deliver them into thine hand.
29 And Israel set liers in wait round about Gibeah.
30 And the children of Israel went up against the children of Benjamin on the third day, and put themselves in array against Gibeah, as at other times.
31 And the children of Benjamin went out against the people, and were drawn away from the city; and they began to smite of the people, and kill, as at other times, in the highways, of which one goeth up to the house of God, and the other to Gibeah in the field, about thirty men of Israel.
32 And the children of Benjamin said, They are smitten down before us, as at the first. But the children of Israel said, Let us flee, and draw them from the city unto the highways.
33 And all the men of Israel rose up out of their place, and put themselves in array at Baaltamar: and the liers in wait of Israel came forth out of their places, even out of the meadows of Gibeah.
34 And there came against Gibeah ten thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and the battle was sore: but they knew not that evil was near them.
35 And the Lord smote Benjamin before Israel: and the children of Israel destroyed of the Benjamites that day twenty and five thousand and an hundred men: all these drew the sword.
36 So the children of Benjamin saw that they were smitten: for the men of Israel gave place to the Benjamites, because they trusted unto the liers in wait which they had set beside Gibeah.
37 And the liers in wait hasted, and rushed upon Gibeah; and the liers in wait drew themselves along, and smote all the city with the edge of the sword.
38 Now there was an appointed sign between the men of Israel and the liers in wait, that they should make a great flame with smoke rise up out of the city.
39 And when the men of Israel retired in the battle, Benjamin began to smite and kill of the men of Israel about thirty persons: for they said, Surely they are smitten down before us, as in the first battle.
40 But when the flame began to arise up out of the city with a pillar of smoke, the Benjamites looked behind them, and, behold, the flame of the city ascended up to heaven.
41 And when the men of Israel turned again, the men of Benjamin were amazed: for they saw that evil was come upon them.
42 Therefore they turned their backs before the men of Israel unto the way of the wilderness; but the battle overtook them; and them which came out of the cities they destroyed in the midst of them.
43 Thus they inclosed the Benjamites round about, and chased them, and trode them down with ease over against Gibeah toward the sunrising.
44 And there fell of Benjamin eighteen thousand men; all these were men of valour.
45 And they turned and fled toward the wilderness unto the rock of Rimmon: and they gleaned of them in the highways five thousand men; and pursued hard after them unto Gidom, and slew two thousand men of them.
46 So that all which fell that day of Benjamin were twenty and five thousand men that drew the sword; all these were men of valour.
47 But six hundred men turned and fled to the wilderness unto the rock Rimmon, and abode in the rock Rimmon four months.
48 And the men of Israel turned again upon the children of Benjamin, and smote them with the edge of the sword, as well the men of every city, as the beast, and all that came to hand: also they set on fire all the cities that they came to.
<html><b> The leaders of the entire people.</b> The heads of the entire people.1<i class=“footnote”>This is Targum Yonasan’s translation.</i></html>
<html><b> They thought they would murder me.</b> They intended to murder me. “Apesment” in old French.</html>
<html><b> When taking action in their engagement</b> in this engagement with Givas Binyomin, as befits their entirely loathsome, etc.</html>
<html><b> Comrades.</b> In unified counsel.</html>
<html><b> To all the tribes of Binyomin.</b> Their ten clans were considered ten families, so that twelve tribes would emanate from Rochel.2<i class=“footnote”>The ten clans and the tribes of Menashe and Efraim.</i></html>
<html><b> With shriveled right arms.</b> Their right arms were shrunken. They could not utilize them, as if they were closed, as in “Let not the well close its mouth over me.”3<i class=“footnote”>Tehilim, 69:16.</i> <b>Each of them</b> These seven hundred men. <b>At a hair.</b> A strand of hair. <b>And not miss.</b> And not err.</html>
<html><b> Yehudah first.</b> But they did not try to inquire whether they would be victorious or vanquished. When they ultimately tried, He replied, “Go up, for tomorrow I shall deliver them into your hand.” They were consistent, and fulfilled their promise.4<i class=“footnote”>V.28.</i></html>
<html><b> They crushed.</b> They were punished because they were not equally vengeful over the incident of the figure of Michah,5<i class=“footnote”>Chapters 17, 18.</i> which had already taken place.6<i class=“footnote”>Sanhedrin, 103:b.</i></html>
<html><b> Baal Tamar.</b> The plain of Yericho.7<i class=“footnote”>“Tamar”, lit. “date”, alludes to Yericho, “The city of dates.” Devarim, 34:3.</i> <b>Poured.</b> Extended themselves, as in “He shall draw the Yardein into his mouth,”8<i class=“footnote”>Eyov, 40:23.</i> “You drew me from the womb.”9<i class=“footnote”>Tehilim, 22:10.</i> <b>Maareh Gev'ah.</b> From a narrow pass, the “nakedness,”10<i class=“footnote”>“Maareh” is from <i>“Ervah,”</i> nakedness.</i> or exposed overlook of Givas Binyomin; its uncovered part from which it was defenseless against conquest, as in, “You have come to gaze at the nakedness of the land.”11<i class=“footnote”>Beraishis, 42:9. Yoseif accused his brothers of spying, claiming. that they were seeking Egypt’s “nakedness,” or exposed, defenseless areas.</i></html>
<html><b> The Yisroelite troops gave.</b> Those in the field gave ground to Binyomin to escape to Givoh, since the Yisroelites depended on the ambushers to advance toward them.</html>
<html><b> The ambushers sounded the signal.</b> The shofar blast. Another interpretation: With the shofar, they drew the people with them to the city.</html>
<html><b> A time frame was pre-arranged</b> At the outset, a signal was arranged between the Yisroelites and the ambushers, whereby the ambushers would raise continuous smoke from the city. The Yisroelites would thus understand that the ambushers had conquered Givoh. <b>Clouds of smoke.</b> High hanging smoke.</html>
<html><b> The Yisroelite troops retreated.</b> Scripture now returns to the beginning of the narrative, reviewing and explaining how the twenty five thousand mentioned above12<i class=“footnote”>V.35.</i> fell, and where they fell.</html>
<html><b> While those in the city.</b> The ambushers who had penetrated the city demolished the tribe from within the city.</html>
<html><b> The [lit. crowned] Binyomin.</b> They encircled Binyomin the way a crown encircles the head. Similarly, “The mighty of Bashan encircled me,”13<i class=“footnote”>Tehilim, 22:13.</i> and, “For the villain encircles the saint.”14<i class=“footnote”>Chabakuk, 1:4.</i> Also, the word “wreath” connotes encirclement, as in, “Shaul and his troops encircled [lit. wreathed] David and his troops in order to seize them”15<i class=“footnote”>Shmuel 1, 23:26.</i> <b>Called for their pursuit.</b> They called for pursuit behind them—they shouted to each other to pursue. <b>And intercepted them at rest.</b> At the cities, where they generally rested, they intercepted them. <b>Intercepted them.</b> Caught them. There is a similar term in the Talmud, “He pursued him a parsa in the sand, but did not catch him.”16<i class=“footnote”>Kesubos, 60:b.</i> <b>Up to the area facing Givoh.</b> East of Givoh.</html>
<html><b> There fell, from Binyomin,</b> eighteen thousand troops In the field, in the thick of battle.</html>
<html><b> They gleaned them.</b> Killing constantly, like plucking gleanings after reaping. <b>Five thousand troops.</b> Thus totaling twenty three thousand. <b>Until Gid'om.</b> The name of a place. <b>Striking down, of them, two thousand troops.</b> Thus totaling twenty-five thousand mentioned above.17<i class=“footnote”>V.35.</i> The remaining one hundred recorded above18<i class=“footnote”>Ibid.</i> fell at unnamed locations.</html>
<html><b> Turned to the sons of Binyomin</b> in all the cities. <b>Completely annihilating the cities.</b> They annihilated all the inhabitants of the cities, <b>Including the cattle—</b>the people are included in “completely annihilating,” since <span><b>מְּתֹם</b></span> denotes absolute annihilation. There is a problem with the location of one thousand, as twenty-six thousand were counted in the cities, and seven hundred at Givoh;19<i class=“footnote”>V.15.</i> here, those who fell totaled twenty-five thousand, one hundred troops,20<i class=“footnote”>V. 46.</i> and six hundred escaped to Rimon cliff.21<i class=“footnote”>V. 47. This totals 25,700, whereas the total in v. 15 was 26,700.</i> Evidently, one thousand fled to the cities, and fell the following day when the Bnei Yisroel turned to the cities of Binyomin to annihilate the women and children.</html>