50. The Benjaminite Fiasco

A Good Plan Turned Deadly

The fact that the grandson of Aaron is mentioned in this story indicates that it must have happened quite early in the history of the Book of Judges.

Then, there, in the Book of Judges, is a 21st-century news story.  One can't help but wonder, are modern people any more depraved than the ancients were?

A certain Levite had married a concubine who started "fooling around", and after a while, she decided to break up her marriage relationship and she went back to her father's house. Then, after four whole months. ... her husband arose and went after her, to speak kindly to her and bring her back.

On his way home with the concubine, as nightfall approached, the servant suggested that they lodge in Jebus (that is, Jerusalem).  However, the Levite replied, We will not turn aside here into a city of foreigners, who are not of the children of Israel; we will go on to Gibeah. 

We ran into this line of thinking also in the life of Abram.  He lied to Pharaoh because he assumed that since Pharaoh was not an Israelite he would have very low moral standards. He was so wrong.  Abram's son, Isaac, had the same illogical mindset.  In this story, the Levite was also cursed with racial discrimination.  That was a horrible mistake!

The town of Gibeah belonged to the tribe of Benjamin, and we recall that Benjamin was Joseph's baby brother.  It was in Gibeah that the Levite and his entourage settled down for the night.  While in Gibeah, some gay, the Bible uses the word, perverted men came to the door and demanded that the stranger be brought outside so that we may know him carnally! 

The owner of the house said, “No, my brethren! I beg you, do not act so wickedly! ... here is my virgin daughter and the man’s concubine; Humble them, and do with them as you please; ... And they knew her and abused her (gang rape) all night until morning; and when the day began to break, they let her go. Then the woman came as the day was dawning, and fell down at the door of the man’s house where her master was, till it was light. 

When her master arose in the morning...  This is beyond belief!  His wife is just outside the door, being gang-raped and he is inside sleeping till morning.  One can't help but wonder, does this Levite have a heart at all?  When he opened the door he saw her with her hand on the threshold, and he said, Get up and let us be going.” But there was no answer (she was dead). 

Brace yourself for this!   Her husband took her home and when they got there he took a knife, laid hold of his concubine, and divided her into twelve pieces, limb by limb, and sent her throughout all the territory of Israel. Judges 19:1-30.  The twelve tribes investigated the validity of the story of her death, and when they knew the truth they joined forces against the tribe of Benjamin to inflict revenge.

A Family War To The Death

However, before the fighting began the leaders sent some men to scour the Gibeon territory to find and destroy the perverted men who had done such a horrible thing.  The Benjaminites refused to surrender them.  

They must have thought that such kind of perversion was acceptable; certainly not punishable by death.  The problem is, Canadian law holds the same view!

Before the war started the Israelites went to prayer, to ascertain the Lord's will, with their minds already made up.  They did not pray, Lord, should we go to war against our brother? They prayed, Which of us shall go up first to battle against the children of Benjamin?  They concluded that the Lord said, Judah first!  Men are commonly more zealous to support their own authority than God’s. Matthew Henry.

The war started with about 28,000 Benjaminite soldiers and about 400,000 from the other eleven tribes.  After the first day was finished the eleven tribes had lost 22,000 soldiers.   The next day they lost 18,000 soldiers.  There is no record that the Benjaminites lost any soldiers in those two days of fighting.

On the third day of the war, the Israelites did some planning and they used strategy rather than just pure force.  They won the battle that day and killed 25,000 Benjaminites of an army that started with about 28,000.

Now, too late, the Israelites realized the horror of what they had done.  The tribe of Benjamin, their youngest brother, was virtually annihilated.  They had promised the Lord that “None of us shall give his daughter to Benjamin as a wife.”  What recourse did the Israelites have?  

They went to prayer again and wept over their brother's fate.  They prayed, "O Lord God of Israel, why has this come to pass in Israel, that today there should be one tribe missing in Israel?"  Why indeed?  Couldn't you envision what would happen?  You killed most of their soldiers, (all except 600), you killed their farmers and herdsmen. You killed their women, children and livestock and now you have the audacity to ask, why has this come to pass.

They devised a plan.  The remaining Benjaminite men were to go to a town across the Jordan and kidnap young women whom they could then marry.   In such a sneaky, underhanded way the tribe of Benjamin could yet be saved.  The fathers of the girls were not in control of the situation and hence it was argued that they were not in any way responsible for breaking the covenant which they had made, the one that said None of us shall give his daughter to Benjamin as a wife.

In concluding this story, Matthew Henry fittingly writes: There may be over-doing in well-doing. Great care must be taken in the government of our zeal, lest that which seemed supernatural in its causes prove unnatural in its effects. That is no good divinity which swallows up humanity. Many a war is ill ended which was well begun.