Judges 21:1-25
Q.1. How strongly had the tribes of Israel reacted against the sins of the Benjamites? What threat did this pose? What tribe had gone missing? How was Jabesh-gilead punished? – (Jdgs.21:1-12)
The impact of the dismembered body of the concubine had galvanised the other eleven tribes against the tribe of Benjamin. Not only did they amass an army of four hundred thousand soldiers, but they had also made a solemn oath declaring – … None of us shall give his daughter to Benjamin in marriage (Jdgs.21:1). However, after the event they grieved for the virtual decimation of one of the tribes in Israel (Jdgs.21:2-3). They wanted to help repopulate Benjamin but recognised their inability to help – … since we have sworn by the Lord not to give them any of our daughters in marriage? (Jdgs.21:7). What could they do? It had been discovered at the roll call of the tribes at Mizpah, that no members from Jabesh-gilead from the tribe of Gad had been represented (Jdgs.21:8-9). The army dispatched twelve thousand soldiers who slew every male, and every woman who was not a virgin. This left four hundred young virgins, who could then become wives for the survivors of the tribe of Benjamin (Jdgs.21:10-12).
Q.2. What acts of grace were shown to the survivors of Benjamin? Why? How did they explain their actions to the bereft families? Was the solution altogether acceptable? – (Jdgs.21:13-25)
The congregation of Israel expressed their sorrow and sent a message of reconciliation to the surviving soldiers of Benjamin, because – … There must be an inheritance for the survivors of Benjamin, so that a tribe will not be blotted out from Israel (Jdgs.21:17). They gave the four hundred maidens to these Benjamite men … but there were still insufficient wives for all the men (Jdgs.21:14). The rest of the tribes could not break their vow, lest they brought a curse upon themselves, so they advised the Benjamites – 20 … Go and lie in wait in the vineyards, 21 and watch; and behold, if the daughters of Shiloh come out to take part in the dances, then you shall come out of the vineyards and each of you shall catch his wife from the daughters of Shiloh, and go to the land of Benjamin (Jdgs.21:20-21). They promised to subdue their families from reprisals, yet in this way had found a way to keep from breaking their vows to God (Jdgs.21:18, 22). Thus Benjamin – … went and returned to their inheritance and rebuilt the cities and lived in them (Jdgs.21:23). Then everyone returned to their families in their respective tribal territories (Jdgs.21:24). The solution was far from satisfactory, with massacres and kidnappings to cover the ravages of sin. Perhaps the best explanation comes from the last words of the book of Judges – In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes (Jdgs.21:25). We learn from history that we have learnt little from history