1Then all the sons of Israel went out, and the congregation assembled as one man, from Dan to Beersheba, along with the land of Gilead, to Yahweh at Mizpah.
2And the chiefs of all the people, of all the tribes of Israel, presented themselves in the assembly of the people of God — four hundred thousand men on foot who drew the sword.
3Now the sons of Benjamin heard that the sons of Israel had gone up to Mizpah. And the sons of Israel said, “Tell us, how did this evil come about?”
4Then the Levite, the husband of the murdered woman, answered and said, “I came to Gibeah that belongs to Benjamin, I and my concubine, to spend the night.
5And the lords of Gibeah rose up against me and surrounded the house against me by night. Me they intended to kill, and my concubine they violated, so that she died.
6So I seized my concubine and cut her in pieces and sent her throughout all the territory of Israel’s inheritance, because they had committed a lewd and disgraceful deed in Israel.
7See, all of you are sons of Israel; give here your word and counsel.
8Then all the people rose up as one man, saying, “None of us will go to his tent, and none of us will turn aside to his house.
9But now, this is the thing that we will do to Gibeah: against it by lot!
10We will take ten men out of a hundred throughout all the tribes of Israel, and a hundred out of a thousand, and a thousand out of ten thousand, to fetch provisions for the people, that they may act, when they come to Geba of Benjamin, according to all the disgraceful deed that has been done in Israel.
11So all the men of Israel were gathered against the city, united as one man.
12Then the tribes of Israel sent men throughout all the tribe of Benjamin, saying, “What is this evil that has occurred among you?
13Now hand over the men, the sons of worthlessness who are in Gibeah, that we may put them to death and purge the evil from Israel.” But the Benjaminites would not listen to the voice of their brothers, the sons of Israel.
14And the sons of Benjamin gathered from the cities to Gibeah, to go out for battle against the sons of Israel.
15On that day the sons of Benjamin were mustered from the cities: twenty-six thousand men who drew the sword, apart from the inhabitants of Gibeah, who were mustered — seven hundred chosen men.
16Out of all this people were seven hundred chosen men, left-handed; every one of them could sling a stone at a hair and not miss.
17And the men of Israel were mustered, apart from Benjamin, four hundred thousand men who drew the sword; every one of them a man of war.
18They arose and went up to Bethel and inquired of God, and the sons of Israel said, “Who shall go up first for us to battle against the sons of Benjamin?” And Yahweh said, “Judah first.”
19So the sons of Israel arose in the morning and encamped against Gibeah.
20The men of Israel went out for battle against Benjamin, and the men of Israel drew up in battle against them at Gibeah.
21And the sons of Benjamin came out from Gibeah and destroyed on that day twenty-two thousand men of Israel to the ground.
22But the people, the men of Israel, took courage and again drew up for battle in the place where they had drawn up on the first day.
23And the sons of Israel went up and wept before Yahweh until evening, and they inquired of Yahweh, saying, “Shall I again draw near to battle against the sons of Benjamin my brother?” And Yahweh said, “Go up against him.”
24So the sons of Israel drew near to the sons of Benjamin on the second day.
25And Benjamin came out to meet them from Gibeah on the second day, and again destroyed to the ground eighteen thousand men of the sons of Israel — all these drawing the sword.
26Then all the sons of Israel, indeed all the people, went up and came to Bethel; and they wept and sat there before Yahweh, and they fasted that day until evening, and they offered up burnt offerings and peace offerings before Yahweh.
27And the sons of Israel inquired of Yahweh — for the ark of the covenant of God was there in those days,
28and Phinehas son of Eleazar, son of Aaron, was standing before it in those days — saying, “Shall I again go out to battle against the sons of Benjamin my brother, or shall I stop?” And Yahweh said, “Go up, for tomorrow I will give them into your hand.”
29So Israel set men in ambush against Gibeah all around.
30And the sons of Israel went up against the sons of Benjamin on the third day, and they drew up against Gibeah as at the other times.
31And the sons of Benjamin went out to meet the people; they were drawn away from the city. And they began to strike down some of the people, slain as time after time, on the highways—of which one goes up to Bethel and one to Gibeah—in the open country, about thirty men of Israel.
32And the sons of Benjamin said, ‘They are being struck down before us as at the first.’ But the sons of Israel said, ‘Let us flee and draw them away from the city onto the highways.’
33Then all the men of Israel rose up from their places and set themselves in battle array at Baal-tamar; and the ambush of Israel burst forth from its place, from the plain of Geba.
34And there came from opposite Gibeah ten thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and the battle was heavy; but they did not know that disaster was touching them.
35And Yahweh struck down Benjamin before Israel, and the sons of Israel destroyed among Benjamin on that day twenty-five thousand one hundred men; all these drew the sword.
36And the sons of Benjamin saw that they were struck down. Now the men of Israel had given ground to Benjamin, because they trusted in the ambush that they had set against Gibeah.
37And the ambush hurried and rushed against Gibeah; the ambush spread out and struck the whole city with the edge of the sword.
38Now the appointed sign between the men of Israel and the ambush was that they should send up a great cloud of smoke from the city.
39So the men of Israel turned in the battle, and Benjamin had begun to strike down and slay among the men of Israel about thirty men, for they said, ‘Surely they are utterly defeated before us as in the first battle.’
40But when the signal began to rise up from the city, a column of smoke, Benjamin turned around behind him, and behold, the whole of the city was going up to the heavens.
41Then the men of Israel turned, and the men of Benjamin were terrified, for they saw that disaster had touched them.
42So they turned before the men of Israel toward the way of the wilderness, but the battle overtook them, and those from the cities were destroying them in their midst.
43They surrounded Benjamin, pursued him, trampled him down at his resting place, as far as opposite Gibeah toward the sunrise.
44And there fell from Benjamin eighteen thousand men, all these men of valor.
45And they turned and fled toward the wilderness, to the rock of Rimmon; and they gleaned five thousand men of them on the highways, and pursued hard after him as far as Gidom, and struck down two thousand men of them.
46So all who fell from Benjamin on that day were twenty-five thousand men who drew the sword, all these men of valor.
47But six hundred men turned and fled toward the wilderness, to the rock of Rimmon, and they remained at the rock of Rimmon four months.
48And the men of Israel turned back against the sons of Benjamin and struck them with the edge of the sword—the whole city, both men and beasts, all that was found; also all the towns they came upon they set on fire.
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