Judges 21

In Judges 21, we find Israel grappling with the aftermath of the civil war against the tribe of Benjamin. The other tribes had sworn an oath not to give their daughters in marriage to Benjamin. However, after realizing the potential extinction of an entire tribe, they devised ways to provide wives for Benjamin without breaking their oath. This chapter reflects both the severity of their earlier decisions and their desire to preserve unity among the tribes.

Judges 21:1-5 (NKJV)
1 Now the men of Israel had sworn an oath at Mizpah, saying, “None of us shall give his daughter to Benjamin as a wife.”
2 Then the people came to the house of God, and remained there before God till evening. They lifted up their voices and wept bitterly,
3 and said, “O Lord God of Israel, why has this come to pass in Israel, that today there should be one tribe missing in Israel?”
4 So it was, on the next morning, that the people rose early and built an altar there, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings.
5 The children of Israel said, “Who is there among all the tribes of Israel who did not come up with the assembly to the Lord?” For they had made a great oath concerning anyone who had not come up to the Lord at Mizpah, saying, “He shall surely be put to death.”

The Israelites had made a rash vow not to give their daughters to the Benjamites in marriage, but now they faced the reality that this decision could lead to the extinction of a tribe. They were grieving the loss of unity in Israel, and this led them to seek God in worship and offering. In their distress, they also sought to identify those who did not join the assembly at Mizpah, enforcing a severe punishment on any tribe that had abstained.

Judges 21:6-9 (NKJV)
6 And the children of Israel grieved for Benjamin their brother, and said, “One tribe is cut off from Israel today.
7 What shall we do for wives for those who remain, seeing we have sworn by the Lord that we will not give them our daughters as wives?”
8 And they said, “What one is there from the tribes of Israel who did not come up to Mizpah to the Lord?” And, in fact, no one had come to the camp from Jabesh Gilead to the assembly.
9 For when the people were counted, indeed, not one of the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead was there.

The Israelites were deeply grieved by the potential loss of Benjamin. They realized they needed to find wives for the remaining men, but their oath restricted them from offering their own daughters. In their search for a solution, they discovered that the people of Jabesh Gilead had not joined the assembly at Mizpah, providing them with a way to address the situation.

Judges 21:10-12 (NKJV)
10 So the congregation sent out twelve thousand of their most valiant men, and commanded them, saying, “Go and strike the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead with the edge of the sword, including the women and children.
11 And this is the thing that you shall do: You shall utterly destroy every male, and every woman who has known a man intimately.”
12 So they found among the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead four hundred young virgins who had not known a man intimately; and they brought them to the camp at Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan.

To resolve the issue, the Israelites decided to attack Jabesh Gilead, punishing them for not participating in the assembly. They spared only the virgins, providing 400 women for the remaining Benjamites. This brutal action, while preserving the tribe of Benjamin, demonstrates the extreme measures they took in maintaining their oath and trying to repair the damage.

Judges 21:13-15 (NKJV)
13 Then the whole congregation sent word to the children of Benjamin who were at the rock of Rimmon, and announced peace to them.
14 So Benjamin came back at that time, and they gave them the women whom they had saved alive of the women of Jabesh Gilead; and yet they had not found enough for them.
15 And the people grieved for Benjamin, because the Lord had made a void in the tribes of Israel.

The Israelites extended an olive branch to the Benjamites hiding at Rimmon, offering peace and the women they had taken from Jabesh Gilead. However, even after this effort, there were still not enough wives for all the men of Benjamin. The void left by the near extinction of a tribe weighed heavily on the people, revealing the consequences of their earlier decisions.

Judges 21:16-18 (NKJV)
16 Then the elders of the congregation said, “What shall we do for wives for those who remain, since the women of Benjamin have been destroyed?”
17 And they said, “There must be an inheritance for the survivors of Benjamin, that a tribe may not be destroyed from Israel.
18 However, we cannot give them wives from our daughters, for the children of Israel have sworn an oath, saying, ‘Cursed be the one who gives a wife to Benjamin.’”

The leaders were still faced with the challenge of providing more wives for Benjamin, as the number of women from Jabesh Gilead was insufficient. Their commitment to preserve Benjamin’s inheritance was strong, but they were bound by their oath not to give their daughters. This predicament led them to seek another way to fulfill their obligations without breaking their vow.

Judges 21:19-21 (NKJV)
19 Then they said, “In fact, there is a yearly feast of the Lord in Shiloh, which is north of Bethel, on the east side of the highway that goes up from Bethel to Shechem, and south of Lebonah.”
20 Therefore they instructed the children of Benjamin, saying, “Go, lie in wait in the vineyards,
21 and watch; and just when the daughters of Shiloh come out to perform their dances, then come out from the vineyards, and every man catch a wife for himself from the daughters of Shiloh; then go to the land of Benjamin.”

The Israelites, after nearly wiping out the tribe of Benjamin, seek a way to provide wives for the remaining Benjamite men without breaking their vow not to give their daughters in marriage to them. They devise a plan that involves the annual festival at Shiloh, where women from various Israelite tribes—not from other nations—gather to celebrate. The Israelites instruct the Benjamites to hide in the vineyards and seize wives from the dancing women at the festival. This solution allows the Benjamites to take wives without violating the vow, as the women are taken rather than being formally "given." By doing this, the Israelites preserve the tribe of Benjamin while upholding their commitment to the oath they had sworn.

Judges 21:22-24 (NKJV)
22 Then it shall be, when their fathers or their brothers come to us to complain, that we will say to them, ‘Be kind to them for our sakes, because we did not take a wife for any of them in the war; for it is not as though you have given the women to them at this time, making yourselves guilty of your oath.’”
23 And the children of Benjamin did so; they took enough wives for their number from those who danced, whom they caught. Then they went and returned to their inheritance, and they rebuilt the cities and dwelt in them.
24 So the children of Israel departed from there at that time, every man to his tribe and family; they went out from there, every man to his inheritance.

The plan worked, and the Benjamites took wives from the women of Shiloh. When the families of the women would later protest, the elders had prepared a defense, arguing that the families had not technically given their daughters, so the oath was not broken. The Benjamites rebuilt their cities and were reintegrated into the community, preventing the destruction of a tribe in Israel. This plan was not just practical but also aimed at preserving the unity and integrity of Israel as a whole, ensuring that no tribe would be lost from the nation.

Judges 21:25 (NKJV)
25 In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

This final verse encapsulates the chaotic and morally ambiguous nature of the period of the Judges. Without centralized leadership, the Israelites often acted independently, leading to extreme decisions like those seen in this chapter. The lack of a king contributed to a time of instability, where personal judgment often replaced divine guidance.