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Judges
Chapter
21
{Israel's
Guilt Reaction}
1~~Now
the men of Israel had sworn in Mizpeh, saying,
"There
shall not any of us give his daughter unto a Benjamin to wife."
{Note: They had made a great oath that might eventually wipe out the tribe of Benjamin entirely.}
2~~And
the people came to the house of 'Elohiym/Godhead,
and
abode there till evening before 'Elohiym/Godhead,
and
lifted up their voices, and wept terribly.
{they had a guilt reaction - no doctrine in their soul and they are
all mixed up as to what is right}
3~~And
said,
"O
Jehovah/God 'Elohiym/Godhead of Israel,
why
is this come to pass in Israel,
that
there should be today one tribe lacking in Israel?"
{Note: The common cry of those without doctrine in their soul is 'why'. They don't KNOW why.}
4~~And
it came to pass on the morrow,
that
the people rose early, and built there an altar,
and
offered burnt offerings and peace offerings.
{Note: This is ritual without reality. They are DOING what they think will please God. But without doctrine in their soul, they do not know what DOES please God - vanity of vanities.}
5~~And
the sons of Israel {bene Yisra'el} said,
"Who
is there among all the tribes of Israel
who
came not up with the congregation unto the Jehovah/God?
For
they had made a great oath concerning him
who
came not up to Jehovah/God to Mizpeh, saying,
"He
shall surely be put to death."
{Note: So there is one city of slackers who did not march out with Israel. So these people did not get in on the oath.}
6-7~~And
the sons of Israel {bene Yisra'el}
repented
them for Benjamin their brother, and said,
"There
is one tribe cut off from Israel this day.7~~
How
shall we do for wives for them who remain {the 600 survivors},
seeing
we have sworn by Jehovah/God
that
we will not give them of our daughters to wives?"
8~~And
they said,
"Where
is one of the tribes of Israel
that
came not up to Mizpeh to Jehovah/God?"
And, behold, there came none to the camp from Jabesh-Gilead to the assembly.
9~~For
the people were numbered,
and,
behold, there were none of the inhabitants
of
Jabesh-Gilead there.
10~~And
the congregation sent forth twelve thousand men of the bravest, and
commanded them, saying,
"Go
and smite the inhabitants of Jabesh -Gilead
with
the edge of the sword,
with
the women and the children." {kill everyone}
{Note: From this verse it is clear that these Judges were not truly following God and His Word. This form of judgment was not ordained by God against their own people.}
11~~"And
this is the thing that you shall do,
you
shall utterly destroy every male,
and
every woman who has had intercourse with a man."
{virgin girls were allowed to live}
12~~And
they found among the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead
four
hundred young virgins,
who
had known no man by lying with any male.
And
they brought them unto the camp to Shiloh,
which
is in the land of Canaan.
{Note: So now 400 of the 600 remaining Benjamites have wives with 200 bachelors remaining. All the Israelites did was compound one wrong on another because of their guilt complex in thoroughly wiping out the tribe of Benjamin down to a few hundred men.}
13~~And
the whole congregation sent some to speak to the children of
Benjamin who were in the rock Rimmon,
and
to call peaceably unto them.
14~~And Benjamin came again at that time.
And
they gave them wives
which
they had saved alive of the women of Jabesh-Gilead.
And yet so they sufficed them not.
15~~And
the people repented them for Benjamin,
because
that Jehovah/God had made a breach in the tribes of Israel.
16~~Then
the elders of the congregation said,
"How
shall we do for wives for them that remain,
seeing
the women are destroyed out of Benjamin?"
17~~And
they said,
"There
must be an inheritance for them who escaped of Benjamin,
that
a tribe be not destroyed out of Israel."
18~~Howbeit
we may not give them wives of our daughters . . .
for
the sons of Israel {bene Yisra'el} have sworn, saying,
"Cursed
be he who gives a wife to Benjamin."
19~~Then
they said,
"Behold,
there is a feast of Jehovah/God in Shiloh yearly
in
a place which is on the north side of Bethel,
on
the east side of the highway that goes up from Bethel
to
Shechem, and on the south of Lebonah
{a town in Ephraim 3 miles west northwest of Shiloh}.
{Note: This is a retreat for the young female believers at Shiloh. They are going to kidnap these young girls to give Benjamin more wives. Evil upon evil upon evil. No king in the land. No divine viewpoint really.}
20~~Therefore
they commanded the children of Benjamin, saying,
"Go
and lie in wait in the vineyards."
21~~"And
see, and, behold, if the daughters of Shiloh
come
out to dance in dances,
{idiom meaning to prepare themselves for the world through the
study of the Word}
then
come you out of the vineyards,
and
catch you every man
his
wife of the daughters of Shiloh,
and
go to the land of Benjamin."
22~~And
it shall be,
when
their fathers or their brethren come unto us to complain,
that
we will say unto them,
"Be
gracious unto them for our sakes {a distortion of grace} . . .
because
we reserved not to each man his wife in the war.
For
you did not give unto them at this time,
that
you should be guilty."
23~~And
the children of Benjamin did so, and took them wives,
according
to their number,
of
them who danced . . . whom they caught.
And
they went and returned unto their inheritance,
and
repaired the cities, and dwelt in them.
24~~And
the sons of Israel {bene Yisra'el}
departed
there at that time,
every
man to his tribe and to his family,
and
they went out from there
every
man to his inheritance.
25~~In
those days . . . {there was} no king in Israel.
Every man did that which was right in his own eyes.
{Note: See also Judges Chapter 19:1. Between 19.1 and 21:25 here, there was the most intense suffering of any people. And, it was because 'there was no king in Israel' - God and His Word were not honored in the land.}
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