King James Version

1 And all the children of Israel went out, and the congregation was gathered as one man from Dan to Beersheba and the land of Gilead to the Lord at Mizpah. 2 And all the people, all the tribes of Israel, stood before the assembly of the people of God, four hundred thousand foot soldiers wielding swords. 3 And the sons of Benjamin heard that the sons of Israel had gone up to Mizpah, and the sons of Israel said, "Speak, how has this evil occurred?" 4 And the man the Levite answered, the man of the woman who was murdered, and said, "I came to the house of Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin, I and my concubine, to lodge." 5 And they arose against me, the lords of Gibeah, and they surrounded the house at night to kill me; and they abused my concubine, and she died. 6 And I will hold the concubine, and I will break her, and I will send her in every field of the inheritance of Israel, for they have committed vile deeds and abominations in Israel. 7 Behold, all of you, sons of Israel, have come to you with a matter and counsel. 8 And all the people rose up as one man, saying, "We will not go, each man to his tent, and we will not turn back, each man to his house." 9 And now this is the matter that we will do to the Gibeah concerning it by lot. 10 And we will take ten men from a hundred out of all the tribes of Israel, and a hundred from a thousand, and a thousand from ten thousand, to supply provisions for the people to do when they come to Gibeah in Benjamin, according to all the wickedness that has been done in Israel. 11 And all the men of Israel were gathered to the city as one man, friends. 12 And the tribes of Israel sent men throughout all the tribes of Benjamin, saying, "What is this evil that has happened among you?" 13 And now you shall hand over the men, sons of Belial, who are in Gibeah, and we will kill them and purge the evil from Israel; but the sons of Benjamin would not listen to the voice of their brothers, the sons of Israel. 14 And the sons of Benjamin gathered from the cities of Gibeah to go out to battle against the children of Israel. 15 And the sons of Benjamin were counted on that day from the cities, twenty-six thousand men drawing the sword, besides the inhabitants of Gibeah; they were counted seven hundred chosen men. 16 From all this people, seven hundred chosen men are left-handed; all these are skilled with the sling and can shoot a hair and not miss. 17 And the men of Israel were counted separately, from Benjamin four hundred thousand men who drew the sword; all these were men of war. 18 And they arose and went up to Bethel and asked of God, and the children of Israel said, "Who shall go up for us first to the battle against the children of Benjamin?" And the Lord said, "Judah shall go up first." 19 And the sons of Israel rose early in the morning and camped against the hill. 20 And a man of Israel went out to battle against Benjamin, and the men of Israel arranged for battle against them at Gibeah. 21 And the sons of Benjamin went out from Gibeah and destroyed in Israel on that day two and twenty thousand men. 22 And the people of Israel grew strong, and they added to the battle array in the place where they had arranged it on the first day. 23 And the children of Israel went up and wept before the Lord until evening and they asked of the Lord saying, “Shall we go up again to battle against the children of Benjamin our brothers?” And the Lord said, “Go up against them.” 24 And the sons of Israel drew near to the sons of Benjamin on the second day. 25 And Benjamin went out to meet them from the hilltop on the second day, and the sons of Israel killed again eighteen thousand men of the ground, all these were drawn with the sword. 26 And all the children of Israel and all the people went up to Bethel, and they wept there and sat before the LORD, and they fasted on that day until evening, and they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD. 27 And the children of Israel asked of the LORD, and there was the Ark of the Covenant of God in those days. 28 And Phinehas son of Eleazar son of Aaron stood before Me in those days saying, "Will the one who keeps going out to battle against the children of Benjamin, my brother, cease?" And the LORD said, "Go up, for tomorrow I will deliver them into your hand." 29 And Israel set ambushes around the hill. 30 And the sons of Israel went up to the sons of Benjamin on the third day, and they arranged against the Gibeah as at other times. 31 And the sons of Benjamin went out to meet the people, and they began to strike down some of the people, killing them as at other times on the highways which go up to Bethel and the one to Gibeah in the field, about thirty men of Israel. 32 And the children of Benjamin said, "They are defeated before us as before," and the children of Israel said, "Let us flee and let us escape from the city to the highways." 33 And all the men of Israel arose from their place and they arranged themselves at Baal Tamar, and the ambush of Israel was coming from its location from the ascent of Gaba. 34 And they came against the hill, ten thousand young men from all Israel, and the battle was heavy, and they did not know that calamity was upon them. 35 And the LORD struck Benjamin before Israel, and the children of Israel destroyed in Benjamin on that day twenty-five thousand and one hundred men; all these were drawn sword. 36 And the sons of Benjamin saw that they were defeated, and each man of Israel gave place to Benjamin because they trusted in the ambush which they had set against Gibeah. 37 And the ambushers hurried and rushed to the hill, and the ambusher drew and struck all the city with the edge of the sword. 38 And the appointed time was for a man of Israel with the hunter to send up the smoke from the city. 39 And an Israelite man turned in battle, and Benjamin began to strike down the slain among the Israelites, as thirty men, for they said, "Surely he is defeated before us like in the first battle." 40 And the burden began to rise from the city, a pillar of smoke, and Benjamin turned behind me, and behold, the whole of the city ascended like the heavens. 41 And a man of Israel turned and was terrified, a man of Benjamin, because he saw that the evil had come upon him. 42 And they turned to the face of a man of Israel toward the way of the wilderness, and the war clung to him; and those who were from the cities were destroying him in his midst. 43 You pursued Benjamin; he was led to rest until in front of the hill from the east of the sun. 44 And the men of Benjamin fell, twelve thousand men, all these valiant men. 45 And they turned and fled into the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon, and they gathered on the paths five thousand men, and they pursued after him until Gidom, and they struck from them two thousand men. 46 And there were all the fallen from Benjamin twenty-five thousand men who drew the sword on that day, all these were men of valor. 47 And they turned and fled the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon, six hundred men, and they sat in the rock of Rimmon four months. 48 And the men of Israel returned to the children of Benjamin and struck them with the edge of the sword, from the city of Mitem to Behemoth, and all that was found, also all the cities that were found, they set on fire.