Judges 21:4-23

⁴And it came to pass on the morrow that the people rose up early, and built there an altar, and offered up whole burnt offerings and peace offerings.

⁵And the children of Israel said, Who of all the tribes of Israel, went not up in the congregation to the Lord? for there was a great oath concerning those who went not up to the Lord to Massephath, saying, He shall surely be put to death.

⁶And the children of Israel relented towards Benjamin their brother, and said, To-day one tribe is cut off from Israel.

⁷What shall we do for wives for the rest that remain? whereas we have sworn by the Lord, not to give them of our daughters for wives.

⁸And they said, What one man is there of the tribes of Israel, who went not up to the Lord to Massephath? and, behold, no man came to the camp from Jabis Galaad to the assembly.

⁹And the people were numbered, and there was not there a man from the inhabitants of Jabis Galaad.

¹⁰And the congregation sent there twelve thousand men of the strongest, and they charged them, saying, Go you° and strike the inhabitants of Jabis Galaad with the edge of the sword.

¹¹And this shall you° do: every male and every woman that has known the lying with man you° shall devote to destruction, but the virgins you° shall save alive: and they did so.

¹²And they found amongst the inhabitants of Jabis Galaad four hundred young virgins, who had not known man by lying with him; and they brought them to Selom in the land of Chanaan.

¹³And all the congregation sent and spoke to the children of Benjamin in the rock Remmon, and invited them to make peace.

¹⁴And Benjamin returned to the children of Israel at that time, and the children of Israel gave them the women whom they had save alive of the daughters of Jabis Galaad; and they were content.

¹⁵And the people relented for Benjamin, because the Lord had made a breach in the tribes of Israel.

¹⁶And the elders of the congregation said, What shall we do for wives for them that remain? for the women have been destroyed out of Benjamin.

¹⁷And they said, There must be an inheritance of them that are escaped of Benjamin; and so a tribe shall not be destroyed out of Israel.

¹⁸For we shall not be able to give them wives of our daughters, because we swore amongst the children of Israel, saying, Cursed is he that gives a wife to Benjamin.

¹⁹And they said, Behold! now there is a feast of the Lord from year to year in Selom, which is on the north of Baethel, eastward on the way that goes up from Baethel to Sychem, and from the south of Lebona.

²⁰And they charged the children of Benjamin, saying, Go and lie in wait in the vineyards;

²¹and you° shall see; and behold! if there come out the daughters of the inhabitants of Selom to dance in dances, then shall you° go out of the vineyards and seize for yourselves every man a wife of the daughters of Selom, and go you° into the land of Benjamin.

²²And it shall come to pass, when their fathers or their brethren come to dispute with us, that we will say to them, Grant them freely to us, for we have not taken every man his wife in the battle: because you° did not give to them according to the occasion, you° transgressed.

²³And the children of Benjamin did so; and they took wives according to their number from the dancers whom they seized: and they went and returned to their inheritance, and built the cities, and lived in them.