10 And the congregation sent twelve thousand [a]of the valiant warriors there, and commanded them, saying, “Go and (A)strike the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead with the edge of the sword, along with the women and the children. 11 And this is the thing that you shall do: you (B)shall utterly destroy every male, and every woman who has [b]slept with a male.” 12 And they found among the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead four hundred young virgins who had not known a man by [c]sleeping with him; and they brought them to the camp at Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan.

13 Then the whole congregation sent word and spoke to the sons of Benjamin who were (C)at the rock of Rimmon, and (D)proclaimed peace to them. 14 And the tribe of Benjamin returned at that time, and they gave them the women whom they had allowed to live from the women of Jabesh-gilead; but they [d]were not enough for them. 15 And the people were sorry for Benjamin, because the Lord had created a gap in the tribes of Israel.

16 Then the elders of the congregation said, “What are we to do for wives for those who are left, since the women have been eliminated from Benjamin?” 17 And they said, “There must be an inheritance for the survivors of Benjamin, so that a tribe will not be wiped out from Israel. 18 But we cannot give them wives from our daughters.” For the sons of Israel (E)had sworn, saying, “Cursed is he who gives a wife to Benjamin!”

19 So they said, “Behold, there is a feast of the Lord from year to year in (F)Shiloh, which is on the north side of Bethel, on the east side of the road that goes up from Bethel to Shechem, and on the south side of Lebonah.” 20 And they commanded the sons of Benjamin, saying, “Go and lie in wait in the vineyards, 21 and watch; and behold, if the daughters of Shiloh come out to [e](G)take part in the dances, then you shall come out of the vineyards, and each of you shall seize his wife from the daughters of Shiloh, and go to the land of Benjamin. 22 And when their fathers or their brothers come to complain to us, we shall say to them, ‘[f]Give them to us voluntarily, because we did not take for each man of Benjamin [g]a wife in battle, [h](H)nor did you give them to them, [i]otherwise you would now be guilty.’” 23 The sons of Benjamin did so, and took wives according to their number from those who danced, whom they seized. And they went and returned to their inheritance, and (I)rebuilt the cities and lived in them. 24 And the sons of Israel departed from there at that time, every man to his tribe and family, and each one departed from there to his inheritance.

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

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Footnotes

  1. Judges 21:10 Lit men from the sons of valor
  2. Judges 21:11 Lit known the bed of
  3. Judges 21:12 Lit the bed of a male
  4. Judges 21:14 Lit did not find it so
  5. Judges 21:21 Lit dance
  6. Judges 21:22 Lit Favor us with them
  7. Judges 21:22 Lit his
  8. Judges 21:22 Lit because you did not
  9. Judges 21:22 Lit as

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