WEBVTT 00:00:00.900 --> 00:00:03.700 Hello, this is Father Paul, and I'm glad we're 00:00:03.700 --> 00:00:05.700 taking this journey together to read the Bible 00:00:05.700 --> 00:00:08.720 in a year. Today we wrap up the book of Judges 00:00:08.720 --> 00:00:13.380 with reading chapters 20 and 21. Chapter 20 So 00:00:13.380 --> 00:00:15.519 all the children of Israel came out from Dan 00:00:15.519 --> 00:00:18.500 to Beersheba, as well as from the land of Gilead, 00:00:18.500 --> 00:00:20.739 and the congregation gathered together as one 00:00:20.739 --> 00:00:23.480 man before the Lord at Mizpah. And the leaders 00:00:23.480 --> 00:00:26.039 of all the people All the tribes of Israel presented 00:00:26.039 --> 00:00:28.239 themselves in the assembly of the people of God, 00:00:28.399 --> 00:00:32.039 400 ,000 foot soldiers who drew the sword. Now 00:00:32.039 --> 00:00:33.920 the children of Benjamin heard that the children 00:00:33.920 --> 00:00:36.500 of Israel had gone up to Mizpah. Then the children 00:00:36.500 --> 00:00:39.079 of Israel said, Tell us, how did this wicked 00:00:39.079 --> 00:00:41.740 deed happen? So the Levite, the husband of the 00:00:41.740 --> 00:00:44.399 woman who was murdered, answered and said, My 00:00:44.399 --> 00:00:46.780 concubine and I went into Gibeah, which belongs 00:00:46.780 --> 00:00:49.159 to Benjamin, to spend the night. And the men 00:00:49.159 --> 00:00:51.340 of Gibeah rose against me and surrounded the 00:00:51.340 --> 00:00:53.340 house at night because of me. They intended to 00:00:53.340 --> 00:00:55.700 kill me. But instead they ravaged my concubine 00:00:55.700 --> 00:00:58.619 so that she died. So I took hold of my concubine, 00:00:58.759 --> 00:01:00.780 cut her in pieces, and sent her throughout all 00:01:00.780 --> 00:01:03.340 the territory of the inheritance of Israel, because 00:01:03.340 --> 00:01:05.659 they committed lewdness and outrage in Israel. 00:01:05.879 --> 00:01:09.040 Look, all of you are children of Israel. Give 00:01:09.040 --> 00:01:12.060 your advice and counsel, here and now. So all 00:01:12.060 --> 00:01:14.560 the people arose as one man, saying, None of 00:01:14.560 --> 00:01:17.299 us will go to his tent, nor will any turn back 00:01:17.299 --> 00:01:19.939 to his house. But now this is the thing which 00:01:19.939 --> 00:01:22.680 we will do to Gibeah. We will go up against it 00:01:22.680 --> 00:01:25.540 by lot. We will take ten men out of every hundred 00:01:25.540 --> 00:01:28.079 throughout all the tribes of Israel, a hundred 00:01:28.079 --> 00:01:30.319 out of every thousand, and a thousand out of 00:01:30.319 --> 00:01:32.480 every ten thousand, to make provisions for the 00:01:32.480 --> 00:01:35.060 people, that when they come to Gibeah in Benjamin, 00:01:35.239 --> 00:01:37.840 they may repay all the vileness that they have 00:01:37.840 --> 00:01:40.260 done in Israel. So all the men of Israel were 00:01:40.260 --> 00:01:42.859 gathered against the city, united together as 00:01:42.859 --> 00:01:46.010 one man. Then the tribes of Israel sent men throughout 00:01:46.010 --> 00:01:48.390 all the tribe of Benjamin, saying, What is this 00:01:48.390 --> 00:01:51.370 wickedness that has occurred among you? Now therefore 00:01:51.370 --> 00:01:53.750 deliver up the men, the perverted men who are 00:01:53.750 --> 00:01:55.989 in Gibeah, that we may put them to death and 00:01:55.989 --> 00:01:58.390 remove the evil from Israel. But the children 00:01:58.390 --> 00:02:00.349 of Benjamin would not listen to the voice of 00:02:00.349 --> 00:02:02.939 their brethren, the children of Israel. Instead, 00:02:03.099 --> 00:02:05.200 the children of Benjamin gathered together from 00:02:05.200 --> 00:02:07.599 their cities to Gibeah to go to battle against 00:02:07.599 --> 00:02:09.800 the children of Israel. And from their cities 00:02:09.800 --> 00:02:12.039 at that time the children of Benjamin numbered 00:02:12.039 --> 00:02:15.479 26 ,000 men who drew the sword, besides the inhabitants 00:02:15.479 --> 00:02:19.300 of Gibeah, who numbered 700 select men. Among 00:02:19.300 --> 00:02:22.039 all these people were 700 select men who were 00:02:22.039 --> 00:02:25.039 left -handed. Everyone could sling a stone at 00:02:25.039 --> 00:02:28.039 a hair's breadth and not miss. Now besides Benjamin, 00:02:28.219 --> 00:02:31.240 the men of Israel numbered 400 ,000 men who drew 00:02:31.240 --> 00:02:34.280 the sword. All of these were men of war. Then 00:02:34.280 --> 00:02:36.379 the children of Israel arose and went up to the 00:02:36.379 --> 00:02:39.060 house of God to inquire of God. They said, Which 00:02:39.060 --> 00:02:41.620 of us shall go up first to battle against the 00:02:41.620 --> 00:02:44.319 children of Benjamin? The Lord said, Judah first. 00:02:44.719 --> 00:02:46.979 So the children of Israel rose in the morning 00:02:46.979 --> 00:02:49.560 and encamped against Gibeah. And the men of Israel 00:02:49.560 --> 00:02:51.939 went out to battle against Benjamin. And the 00:02:51.939 --> 00:02:54.259 men of Israel put themselves in battle array 00:02:54.259 --> 00:02:57.120 to fight against them at Gibeah. Then the children 00:02:57.120 --> 00:03:00.020 of Benjamin came out of Gibeah, and on that day 00:03:00.020 --> 00:03:03.219 cut down to the ground 22 ,000 men of the Israelites. 00:03:03.539 --> 00:03:05.919 And the people, that is, the men of Israel, encouraged 00:03:05.919 --> 00:03:08.979 themselves and again formed a battle line at 00:03:08.979 --> 00:03:11.039 the place where they had put themselves in array 00:03:11.039 --> 00:03:13.599 on the first day. Then the children of Israel 00:03:13.599 --> 00:03:16.300 went up and wept before the Lord until evening, 00:03:16.400 --> 00:03:18.919 and asked counsel of the Lord, saying, Shall 00:03:18.919 --> 00:03:21.560 I again draw near for battle against the children 00:03:21.560 --> 00:03:24.520 of my brother Benjamin? And the Lord said, Go 00:03:24.520 --> 00:03:27.340 up against them. So the children of Israel approached 00:03:27.340 --> 00:03:29.979 the children of Benjamin on the second day. And 00:03:29.979 --> 00:03:32.500 Benjamin went out against them from Gibeah on 00:03:32.500 --> 00:03:35.020 the second day and cut down to the ground 18 00:03:35.020 --> 00:03:38.219 ,000 more of the children of Israel. All these 00:03:38.219 --> 00:03:40.879 drew the sword. Then all the children of Israel, 00:03:40.960 --> 00:03:43.620 that is, all the people, went up and came to 00:03:43.620 --> 00:03:46.159 the house of God and wept. They sat there before 00:03:46.159 --> 00:03:48.860 the Lord and fasted that day until evening, and 00:03:48.860 --> 00:03:51.120 they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings 00:03:51.120 --> 00:03:53.879 before the Lord. So the children of Israel inquired 00:03:53.879 --> 00:03:56.139 of the Lord. The ark of the covenant of God was 00:03:56.139 --> 00:03:58.719 there in those days. And Phinehas, the son of 00:03:58.719 --> 00:04:01.219 Eleazar, the son of Aaron, stood before it in 00:04:01.219 --> 00:04:04.479 those days, saying, Shall I yet again go out 00:04:04.479 --> 00:04:06.340 to battle against the children of my brother 00:04:06.340 --> 00:04:09.330 Benjamin, or shall I cease? And the Lord said, 00:04:09.530 --> 00:04:12.050 Go up, for tomorrow I will deliver them into 00:04:12.050 --> 00:04:14.930 your hand. Then Israel set men in ambush all 00:04:14.930 --> 00:04:17.069 around Gibeah. And the children of Israel went 00:04:17.069 --> 00:04:19.089 up against the children of Benjamin on the third 00:04:19.089 --> 00:04:21.769 day and put themselves in battle array against 00:04:21.769 --> 00:04:24.870 Gibeah as at the other times. So the children 00:04:24.870 --> 00:04:27.509 of Benjamin went out against the people and were 00:04:27.509 --> 00:04:29.870 drawn away from the city. They began to strike 00:04:29.870 --> 00:04:32.389 down and kill some of the people as at the other 00:04:32.389 --> 00:04:35.389 times in the highways, one of which goes up to 00:04:35.389 --> 00:04:38.019 Bethel and the other to Gibeah. and in the field 00:04:38.019 --> 00:04:40.480 about thirty men of Israel. And the children 00:04:40.480 --> 00:04:42.860 of Benjamin said, They are defeated before us, 00:04:42.920 --> 00:04:45.339 as at first. But the children of Israel said, 00:04:45.540 --> 00:04:47.620 Let us flee and draw them away from the city 00:04:47.620 --> 00:04:50.339 to the highways. So all the men of Israel rose 00:04:50.339 --> 00:04:52.600 from their place and put themselves in battle 00:04:52.600 --> 00:04:55.819 array at Baal Tamar. Then Israel's men in ambush 00:04:55.819 --> 00:04:58.139 burst forth from their position in the plain 00:04:58.139 --> 00:05:00.939 of Geba. And ten thousand select men from all 00:05:00.939 --> 00:05:03.639 Israel came against Geba, and the battle was 00:05:03.639 --> 00:05:06.000 fierce. But the Benjamites did not know that 00:05:06.000 --> 00:05:08.560 disaster was upon them. The Lord defeated Benjamin 00:05:08.560 --> 00:05:11.519 before Israel, and the children of Israel destroyed 00:05:11.519 --> 00:05:16.199 that day 25 ,100 Benjamites. All these drew the 00:05:16.199 --> 00:05:18.680 sword. So the children of Benjamin saw that they 00:05:18.680 --> 00:05:21.040 were defeated. The men of Israel had given ground 00:05:21.040 --> 00:05:23.300 to the Benjamites because they relied on the 00:05:23.300 --> 00:05:25.939 men in ambush whom they had set against Gibeah. 00:05:26.240 --> 00:05:28.540 And the men in ambush quickly rushed upon Gibeah. 00:05:28.560 --> 00:05:31.160 The men in ambush spread out and struck the whole 00:05:31.160 --> 00:05:33.519 city with the edge of the sword. Now the appointed 00:05:33.519 --> 00:05:35.500 signal between the men of Israel and the men 00:05:35.500 --> 00:05:38.100 in ambush was that they would make a great cloud 00:05:38.100 --> 00:05:41.240 of smoke rise up from the city, whereupon the 00:05:41.240 --> 00:05:43.980 men of Israel would turn in battle. Now Benjamin 00:05:43.980 --> 00:05:46.220 had begun to strike and kill about thirty of 00:05:46.220 --> 00:05:48.500 the men of Israel, for they said, Surely they 00:05:48.500 --> 00:05:50.939 are defeated before us, as in the first battle. 00:05:51.279 --> 00:05:53.040 But when the cloud began to rise from the city 00:05:53.040 --> 00:05:55.680 in a column of smoke, the Benjamites looked behind 00:05:55.680 --> 00:05:57.920 them, and there was the whole city going up in 00:05:57.920 --> 00:06:00.100 smoke to heaven. And when the men of Israel turned 00:06:00.100 --> 00:06:02.740 back, the men of Benjamin panicked, for they 00:06:02.740 --> 00:06:05.040 saw that disaster had come upon them. Therefore 00:06:05.040 --> 00:06:07.000 they turned their backs before the men of Israel 00:06:07.000 --> 00:06:09.579 in the direction of the wilderness, but the battle 00:06:09.579 --> 00:06:12.139 overtook them. And whoever came out of the cities 00:06:12.139 --> 00:06:14.740 they destroyed in their midst. They surrounded 00:06:14.740 --> 00:06:17.240 the Benjamites, chased them, and easily trampled 00:06:17.240 --> 00:06:19.600 them down as far as the front of Gibeah toward 00:06:19.600 --> 00:06:22.300 the east. And eighteen thousand men of Benjamin 00:06:22.300 --> 00:06:25.420 fell. All these were men of valor. Then they 00:06:25.420 --> 00:06:27.519 turned and fled toward the wilderness to the 00:06:27.519 --> 00:06:29.959 rock of Ramon. And they cut down five thousand 00:06:29.959 --> 00:06:33.079 men on the highways. Then they pursued them relentlessly 00:06:33.079 --> 00:06:35.600 up to Gedom, and killed two thousand of them. 00:06:35.720 --> 00:06:38.319 So all who fell of Benjamin that day were twenty 00:06:38.319 --> 00:06:40.899 -five thousand men who drew the sword. All these 00:06:40.899 --> 00:06:43.519 were men of valor. But six hundred men turned 00:06:43.519 --> 00:06:45.680 and fled toward the wilderness, to the rock of 00:06:45.680 --> 00:06:48.100 Ramon, and they stayed at the rock of Ramon for 00:06:48.100 --> 00:06:50.449 four months. And the men of Israel turned back 00:06:50.449 --> 00:06:52.529 against the children of Benjamin and struck them 00:06:52.529 --> 00:06:55.089 down with the edge of the sword. From every city, 00:06:55.189 --> 00:06:58.550 men and beasts, all were found. They also set 00:06:58.550 --> 00:07:02.410 fire to all the cities they came to. Chapter 00:07:02.410 --> 00:07:05.990 21 Now the men of Israel had sworn an oath at 00:07:05.990 --> 00:07:08.569 Mizpah, saying, None of us shall give his daughter 00:07:08.569 --> 00:07:11.160 to Benjamin as a wife. Then the people came to 00:07:11.160 --> 00:07:13.139 the house of God and remained there before God 00:07:13.139 --> 00:07:15.500 till evening. They lifted up their voices and 00:07:15.500 --> 00:07:18.620 wept bitterly, and said, O Lord God of Israel, 00:07:18.779 --> 00:07:21.600 why has this come to pass in Israel, that today 00:07:21.600 --> 00:07:24.300 there should be one tribe missing in Israel? 00:07:24.500 --> 00:07:26.980 So it was on the next morning that the people 00:07:26.980 --> 00:07:29.480 rose early and built an altar there, and offered 00:07:29.480 --> 00:07:32.060 burnt offerings and peace offerings. The children 00:07:32.060 --> 00:07:34.750 of Israel said, Who is there among all the tribes 00:07:34.750 --> 00:07:36.930 of Israel who did not come up with the assembly 00:07:36.930 --> 00:07:40.149 to the Lord? For they had made a great oath concerning 00:07:40.149 --> 00:07:42.689 anyone who had not come up to the Lord at Mizpah, 00:07:42.769 --> 00:07:45.839 saying, He shall surely be put to death. And 00:07:45.839 --> 00:07:48.019 the children of Israel grieved for Benjamin their 00:07:48.019 --> 00:07:50.699 brother and said, One tribe is cut off from Israel 00:07:50.699 --> 00:07:53.759 today. What shall we do for wives for those who 00:07:53.759 --> 00:07:56.120 remain, seeing we have sworn by the Lord that 00:07:56.120 --> 00:07:58.459 we will not give them our daughters as wives? 00:07:58.720 --> 00:08:01.779 And they said, What one is there from the tribes 00:08:01.779 --> 00:08:03.959 of Israel who did not come up to Mizpah to the 00:08:03.959 --> 00:08:06.660 Lord? And in fact, no one had come up to the 00:08:06.660 --> 00:08:10.160 camp from Jabesh -Gilead to the assembly. For 00:08:10.160 --> 00:08:12.319 when the people were counted, indeed, not one 00:08:12.319 --> 00:08:14.920 of the inhabitants of Jabesh -Gilead was there. 00:08:15.240 --> 00:08:17.579 So the congregation sent out twelve thousand 00:08:17.579 --> 00:08:19.839 of their most valiant men and commanded them, 00:08:19.879 --> 00:08:22.560 saying, Go and strike the inhabitants of Jabesh 00:08:22.560 --> 00:08:24.759 -Gilead with the edge of the sword, including 00:08:24.759 --> 00:08:27.220 the women and children. And this is the thing 00:08:27.220 --> 00:08:29.519 that you shall do. You shall utterly destroy 00:08:29.519 --> 00:08:32.320 every male and every woman who has known a man 00:08:32.320 --> 00:08:34.879 intimately. So they found among the inhabitants 00:08:34.879 --> 00:08:37.460 of Jabesh -Gilead four hundred young virgins 00:08:37.460 --> 00:08:39.639 who had not known a man intimately, and they 00:08:39.639 --> 00:08:42.159 brought them to the camp at Shiloh, which is 00:08:42.159 --> 00:08:44.710 in the land of Canaan. Then the whole congregation 00:08:44.710 --> 00:08:46.789 sent word to the children of Benjamin who were 00:08:46.789 --> 00:08:49.129 at the rock of Ramon and announced peace to them. 00:08:49.269 --> 00:08:52.230 So Benjamin came back at that time and gave them 00:08:52.230 --> 00:08:54.870 the women whom they had saved alive of the women 00:08:54.870 --> 00:08:57.470 of Jabesh Gilead, and yet they had not found 00:08:57.470 --> 00:09:00.009 enough for them. And the people grieved for Benjamin 00:09:00.009 --> 00:09:02.529 because the Lord had made a void in the tribes 00:09:02.529 --> 00:09:04.769 of Israel. then the elders of the congregation 00:09:04.769 --> 00:09:07.649 said what shall we do for wives for those who 00:09:07.649 --> 00:09:09.950 remain since the women of benjamin have been 00:09:09.950 --> 00:09:12.629 destroyed and they said there must be an inheritance 00:09:12.629 --> 00:09:15.350 for the survivors of benjamin that a tribe may 00:09:15.350 --> 00:09:17.649 not be destroyed from israel however we cannot 00:09:17.649 --> 00:09:19.809 give them wives from our daughters for the children 00:09:19.809 --> 00:09:22.570 of israel have sworn an oath saying cursed be 00:09:22.570 --> 00:09:25.250 the one who gives a wife to benjamin then they 00:09:25.250 --> 00:09:28.190 said in fact There is a yearly feast of the Lord 00:09:28.190 --> 00:09:30.610 at Shiloh, which is north of Bethel on the east 00:09:30.610 --> 00:09:33.129 side of the highway that goes up from Bethel 00:09:33.129 --> 00:09:35.769 to Shechem and south of Libona. Therefore they 00:09:35.769 --> 00:09:37.409 instructed the children of Benjamin, saying, 00:09:37.629 --> 00:09:40.429 Go lie in wait in the vineyards and watch. And 00:09:40.429 --> 00:09:42.429 just when the daughters of Shiloh come out to 00:09:42.429 --> 00:09:44.549 perform their dances, then come out from the 00:09:44.549 --> 00:09:46.730 vineyards, and every man catch a wife for himself 00:09:46.730 --> 00:09:49.070 from the daughters of Shiloh, then go to the 00:09:49.070 --> 00:09:51.450 land of Benjamin. Then it shall be, when their 00:09:51.450 --> 00:09:53.850 fathers or their brothers come to us to complain, 00:09:54.070 --> 00:09:56.669 that we will say to them, Be kind to them for 00:09:56.669 --> 00:09:59.129 our sakes, because we did not take a wife for 00:09:59.129 --> 00:10:01.570 any of them in the war. For it is not as though 00:10:01.570 --> 00:10:03.389 you have given the women to them at this time, 00:10:03.429 --> 00:10:05.909 making yourselves guilty of your oath. And the 00:10:05.909 --> 00:10:08.049 children of Benjamin did so. They took enough 00:10:08.049 --> 00:10:10.789 wives for their number from those who danced, 00:10:10.990 --> 00:10:13.289 whom they caught. Then they went and returned 00:10:13.289 --> 00:10:15.450 to their inheritance, and they rebuilt the cities 00:10:15.450 --> 00:10:17.759 and dwelt in them. So the children of Israel 00:10:17.759 --> 00:10:20.419 departed from there. At that time, every man 00:10:20.419 --> 00:10:23.080 to his tribe and family. They went out from there, 00:10:23.139 --> 00:10:25.799 every man to his inheritance. In those days, 00:10:25.820 --> 00:10:28.700 there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what 00:10:28.700 --> 00:10:36.220 was right in his own eyes. I hope you enjoyed 00:10:36.220 --> 00:10:38.559 today's reading as much as I did. And I look 00:10:38.559 --> 00:10:40.539 forward to seeing you again tomorrow to continue 00:10:40.539 --> 00:10:42.740 on our journey. God bless you and have a great 00:10:42.740 --> 00:10:42.980 day.