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10 thy home. But the man would not consent to stay all night,

but arose and departed, and came over against Jebus that is Je11 rusalem. Now he had with him a couple of asses, saddled, for himself and his concubine. And when they came to Jebus the day was far spent, so the servant said to his master, Come, I pray thee, and let us turn in to this city of the Jebusites, and 12 lodge there; But his master said, We will not turn aside to a strange city, in which there is none of the children of Israel, but 13 go on to Gabaa. Then he said to his servant, Come let us draw near to one of those places, that we may lodge either in Gabaa, 14 or in Rama. So they passed on, and proceeded in their journey, and the sun set upon them when they were near Gabaa, 15 which is in Benjamin. Whereupon they turned aside thither, to go and lodge in Gabaa, and they went in, and sat down in the street of the city; but there was not a man who invited them 16 to lodge at his house. And behold there came an old man from

his work, out of the field, late in the evening. Now the man was from mount Ephraim, and sojourned at Gabaa, but the 17 men of the place were Benjaminites. And when he raised his eyes, and saw a wayfaring man in the street of the city, the old man said, Whither art thou going, and whence comest 18 thou? And he said to him, We are on our way from Bethlehem of Juda to the side of mount Ephraim. I am of that place. I went to Bethlehem Juda, and am on my way home, but there 19 is not a man who inviteth me to his house. I have indeed straw and provender for our asses, and bread and wine for myself and the handmaid, and the young man with thy servants. 20 There is no want of any thing. Thereupon the old man said, Peace be to thee. But let all thy wants be upon me. But thou must not lodge in the street. So he took him to his house, and provided a place for the asses. And when they had washed 22 their feet, they ate and drank. But while they were cheering their hearts, behold the men of the city-sons of transgressors, surrounded the house, and knocked at the door, and spake to the man, the master of the house, the old man, saying, Bring out the man who came to thy house that we may know him. 23 Upon this the man, the master of the house, went out to them and said, Do not, my brethren; do not, I pray you, the man an injury after his entering my house. You must not commit such

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24 folly. Behold here is my daughter, a virgin, and his concubine; I will bring them out, and you may humble them and do to them what scemeth good in your eyes, but to the man you 25 must not do such an act of folly. But the men would not hearken to him. Then the man took his concubine, and brought her out to them, and they knew her, and abused her the whole night till the morning. And soon as the day began to dawn 26 they let her go. And the woman went at the dawn of day and threw herself down at the door of the house where her husband 27 was, until it should be light. And when her husband arose in

the morning, and opened the doors of the house, and went out with a design to proceed on in his journey, behold the woman, his concubine, was lying at the doors of the house with her 28 hands on the threshold. And he said to her, Arise and let us depart. But she made no answer; for she was dead. So he took her up, upon the ass, and went to his place, and took a knife. 29 and laid hold on his concubine, and divided her into twelve 30 pieces, and sent them through all the borders of Israel. Where

upon every one who saw them said, There never was such a thing done or seen from the day the children of Israel came out of Egypt to this day. Appoint for yourselves a counsel over XX.

her and speak. So all the children of Israel set out, and the congregation assembled as one man from Dan to Bersabee, and from the land of Galaad, before the Lord at Massepha. 2 And when all the tribes of Israel were drawn up before the Lord in the congregation of the people of God, there were four 3 hundred thousand footmen who drew the sword. Now the children of Benjamin heard that the Israelites were gone up to Massepha. Then the children of Israel who had come together 4 said, Speak. Where was this wickedness done. Whereupon the man, the Levite, the husband of the woman who was slain, answered and said, I came to Gabaa of Benjamin, I and my 5 concubine, to lodge. And the men of Gabaa rose upon me, and beset me and the house by night. Me they would have 6 killed, and my concubine they forced so that she died. Upon which I took my concubine, and divided her in pieces and sent 7 them through all the borders of the inheritance of the children of Israel. Since they have occasioned a ferment and destruction in Israel, behold you are all Israelites; Advise and consult here for

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8 yourselves. Then all the people arose as one man, and said, We 9 will not, any of us go to his habitation, nor shall any of us return to his house; and this is what shall be done to Gabaa; we will go up 10 against it by lot. But let us take ten men for the hundreds through all the tribes of Israel, and a hundred for the thousands and a thousand for the ten thousands to collect provisions, and bring them to Gabaa of Benjamin, that we may do to it according to the 11 abominable act which it hath committed in Israel. And when 12 all Israel was united against that city, as one man, the tribes of Israel sent men through all the tribe of Benjamin, saying, What 13 wickedness is this which is done among you? Now therefore deliver up those men, those sons of transgressors in Gabaa, that we may put them to death, and purge away evil from Israel. But the children of Benjamin would not hearken to their brethren 14 the children of Israel. Nay the children of Benjamin assembled from their cities to Gabaa, to go out to battle against the children 15 of Israel. And the children of Benjamin, who came from their cities, were at that time reviewed, twenty three thousand men who drew the sword, exclusive of the inhabitants of Gabaa, 16 who were also reviewed. Out of all the people seven hundred were selected, who used both hands alike. All these were men who could sling stones to a hair breadth, and not 17 miss. Now the men of Israel had been reviewed, exclusive of Benjamin, four hundred thousand men, who drew the sword. 18 All these were men of array. And they arose, and went up to Baithel, and inquired of God. And the children of Israel said, Who shall go up as our commander in chief to battle against the children of Benjamin? And the Lord said Juda shall go up as 19 commander in chief. And all the children of Israel arose in the 20 morning, and encamped against Gabaa; and all Israel went

out to battle against Benjamin, and drew up for them before 21 Gabaa. And the children of Benjamin sallied from Gabaa, and

destroyed of Israel that day on the field of battle twenty two 22 thousand men. But the men of Israel took courage, and proceed

ed again to set the battle in array in the same place where they 23 had drawn up the first day. The sons of Israel had indeed gone up, and wept before the Lord till evening, and inquired of the Lord saying, Shall we again proceed to draw near to battle against the children of Benjamin our brethren? And the

24 Lord said, Go up against them. So the children of Israel ad25 vanced against the children of Benjamin the second day. And the children of Benjamin came out from Gabaa to meet them on the second day, and destroyed of Israel again on the field of battle, eighteen thousand men. All these were men who 26 drew the sword. Upon this all the children of Israel, even the whole people went up and came to Baithel, and wept, and sat there before the Lord, and fasted the whole day till evening, and offered whole burnt offerings and sacrifices before the 27 Lord. For in those days the ark of the covenant of the Lord their God was there, and Phineas son of Eleazar, son of Aaron, 28 stood before it in those days. And the children of Israel inquir

ed of the Lord saying, Shall we proceed again to go out to battle against the children of Benjamin our brethren? And the Lord 29 said, Go up. To-morrow I will deliver them into your hands.

Then the children of Israel set men in ambush all around Ga30 baa. And the children of Israel went up against the children

of Benjamin, the third day, and drew up in array before Gabaa 31 as they had done once and again. And the children of Benja

min sallied out to meet the people, and were drawn clean out of the city, and began to smite some of the people dead, as in the first and second engagement in the high ways, which lead up, one to Baithel, and the other to Gabaa, through the fields, 32 about thirty men of Israel. And the children of Benjamin said,

They fall before us, as heretofore. Now the sons of Israel had said, Let us flee, and draw them clean out of the city into the 33 high ways. And when they had done so, and every man arose

from his place, then they drew up in array at Baal-thamar, and 34 the ambush of Israel came up from their place, from Maraa

gabo, and there came over against Gabaa ten thousand men, chosen out of all Israel; and the battle was fierce, for they did 35 not know that evil was coming upon them. And the Lord smote Benjamin before the children of Israel. And the children of Israel destroyed of Benjamin that day twenty five thou36 sand one hundred men. All these drew the sword. When the children of Benjamin saw that they were smitten-now the Israelites had given way to Benjamin because they trusted 37 to the ambush which they had laid for Gabaa; but when they retreated, the ambush was put in motion, and rushed forward

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against Gabaa, and poured into it, and smote the city with the 38 edge of the sword. The children of Israel indeed had settled a signal of battle with the ambush, and that they should raise a coun39 ter signal of smoke from the city. So when the sons of Israel saw that the men in ambush had taken Gabaa, they halted, in order of battle. Now Benjamin had begun to smite dead of the men of Israel about thirty men, for they said, They fall again 40 before us, as in the former engagement. But when the counter sign ascended over the city, higher and higher, like a pillar of smoke, Benjamin looked back, and behold, the destruction of 41 the city ascended up to heaven. So when Israel faced about, 42 the men of Benjamin were struck with consternation, for they saw that evil was coming upon them, and they looked about before the children of Israel, towards the way of the wilderness, and fled. But the battle overtook them. And they sur43 rounded and destroyed them who came from the cities. They cut down Benjamin and pursued them closely from Nua to 44 over against Gabaa, towards the rising of the sun, and there

fell of Benjamin eighteen thousand men. All these were men 45 of valour. Now the rest of them had looked about, and fled towards the wilderness to the rock of Remmon; but of them the children of Israel gleaned up five thousand men. And the children of Israel went down after them to Gedan, and smote 46 of them two thousand men. So that all who fell of Benjamin

were twenty five thousand men who that day drew the sword. 47 All these were men of valour. And the remainder, being six hundred men, turned and fled to the wilderness, to the rock of 48 Remmon, and abode at Rock Remmon four months. And the children of Israel turned back upon the Benjaminites, and smote them with the edge of the sword, beginning at the city Methla, including cattle and every thing throughout all the cities. And the cities which they came to, they burned with fire.

XXI.

Now the children of Israel had sworn at Massepha, saying, Not a man of us shall give his daughter to a Benjaminite 2 to wife. So when the people came to Baithel they sat there till evening before God, then raising their voice, they wept bitterly 3 and said, Why O Lord God of Israel hath this happened that 4 there should be this day one tribe cut off from Israel? And on

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