1 Now the children of Israel had also sworn in Maspha, saying: None of us shall give of his daughters to the children of Benjamin to wife.
2 And they all came to the house of God in Silo, and abiding before him till the evening, lifted up their voices, and began to lament and weep, saying:
3 O Lord God of Israel, why is so great an evil come to pass in thy people, that this day one tribe should be taken away from among us?
4 And rising early the next day, they built an altar: and offered there holocausts, and victims of peace, and they said:
5 Who is there among all the tribes of Israel that came not up with the army of the Lord? for they had bound themselves with a great oath, when they were in Maspha, that whosoever were wanting should be slain.
6 And the children of Israel being moved with repentance for their brother Benjamin, began to say: One tribe is taken away from Israel.
7 Whence shall they take wives? For we have all in general sworn, not to give our daughters to them.
8 Therefore they said: Who is thereof all the tribes of Israel, that came not up to the Lord to Maspha. And behold the inhabitants of Jabes Galaad were found not to have been in that army.
9 (At that time also when they were in Silo, no one of them was found there.)
10 So they sent ten thousand of the most valiant men, and commanded them, saying: Go and put the inhabitants of Jabes Galaad to the sword, with their wives and their children.
11 And this is what you shall observe: Every male, and all women that have known men, you shall kill, but the virgins you shall save.
12 And there were found of Jabes Galaad four hundred virgins, that had not known the bed of a man, and they brought them to the camp Silo, into the land of Chanaan.
13 And they sent messengers to the children of Benjamin, that were in the rock Remmon, and commanded them to receive them in peace.
14 And the children of Benjamin came at that time, and wives were given them of the daughters of Jabes Galaad: but they found no others, whom they might give in like manner.
15 And all Israel was very sorry, and repented for the destroying of one tribe out of Israel.
16 And the ancients said: What shall we do with the rest, that have not received wives? for all the women in Benjamin are dead.
17 And we must use all care, and provide with great diligence, that one tribe be not destroyed out of Israel.
18 For as to our own daughters we cannot give them, being bound with an oath and a curse, whereby we said: Cursed be he that shall give Benjamin any of his daughters to wife.
19 So they took counsel, and said: Behold there is a yearly solemnity of the Lord in Silo, which is situate on the north of the city of Bethel, and on the east side of the way, that goeth from Bethel to Sichem, and on the south of the town of Lebona.
20 And they commanded the children of Benjamin, and said: Go, and lie hid in the vineyards,
21 And when you shall see the daughters of Silo come out, as the custom is, to dance, come ye on a sudden out of the vineyards, and catch you every man his wife among them, and go into the land of Benjamin.
22 And when their fathers and their brethren shall come, and shall begin to complain against you, and to chide, we will say to them: Have pity on them for they took them not away as by the right of war or conquest, but when they asked to have them, you gave them not, and the fault was committed on your part.
23 And the children of Benjamin did, as they had been commanded: and according to their number, they carried off for themselves every man his wife of them that were dancing: and they went into their possession and built up their cities, and dwelt in them.
24 The children of Israel also returned by their tribes, and families, to their dwellings. In those days there was no king in Israel: but every one did that which seemed right to himself.
Versículos relacionados com Judges, 21:
Chapter 21 of the book of Judges narrates the outcome of a war between the Israelites and the tribe of Benjamin, which resulted in the almost extinction of the latter. Faced with the situation, the Israelites seek a way to ensure the continuity of Benjamin's tribe without disrespecting God's law, which prohibited marriage between Israelites and Benjamites. In this context, controversial decisions are made involving kidnapping of women and violation of the inheritance law. Below are five verses related to the topics covered in judges 21:
Deuteronomy 25:5: "If brothers live together, and one of them die, and have no son, the deceased's wife will not marry a strange man; his brother -in -law will join her, take her for a woman and thus fulfill the duty brother -in -law. " This verse mentions the Levirat marriage law, which established that a man should marry the widow of his deceased brother if he had not left male children. This law is cited in Judges chapter 21 as a possible solution to the problem of lack of women available for marriage among Benjamites.
Judges 21:1: "The men of Israel had sworn in Mispá, saying, 'None of us will give their daughter a wife to a Benjamite." This verse illustrates the restriction that the Israelites had imposed themselves as to marriage to the Benjamites.
Leviticus 18:16: "Do not dishonor your brother, having relationships with his wife." This verse refers to the law that prohibited adultery and the violation of another man's marriage relationship. In Judges chapter 21, this law is violated when Jabes-Gilead women are kidnapped to be surviving Benjamites' wives.
Deuteronomy 24:16: "Parents will not be killed because of their children, nor their children because of their parents; each one will be killed by their own sin." This verse highlights the principle of individual justice, according to which each person must answer for his own acts. In Judges chapter 21, this principle is violated when the Israelites decide to kill the inhabitants of Jabes-Gilead, who had not participated in the war against Benjamin, to provide wives to surviving Benjamites.
Judges 21:25: "In those days there was no king in Israel; each one did what he thought was most straight." This verse is a repetition of the chorus that appears several times in the book of Judges and summarizes the situation of anarchy and lack of leadership that characterized this period of the history of Israel. Judges chapter 21 is another example of chaos and violence that was due to the lack of centralized authority.
Chapters: