Judges 20-21 What A Mess!

Everything comes to a head that began in the last chapter, as Judges comes to a close.  Leaving out the tribe of Benjamin and the men of Jabesh-Gilead, the rest of the Israelites met to determine just what was going on with the body parts of the Levite's concubine they'd received.  They determined that the men of Jabesh-Gilead were guilty of either sexual assault or failure to stop it, and they decided they needed to be turned over to the authorities.  They also vowed that none of them would give their daughters to men from Benjamin as wives.

"Since the Levite had willingly given his concubine to the men of Gebeah, their sin can hardly be called adultery," my commentary said.  "The penalty for rape was death, and gang rape would be even more serious ... The tribes were concerned to 'put away evil out of the land' ... But the people of Benjamin wouldn't admit that Gibeah had sinned, nor would they turn over the men who had done the wicked deed ... Their refusal to cooperate was definitely an act of rebellion against the Lord ... The tribe of Benjamin declared war on the rest of the tribes of Israel!  ... The representatives of the eleven tribes went to the tabernacle in Shiloh and sought the mind of the Lord ... God gave them permission to do battle.  That first day, God allowed the Benjamites to win and kill 22,000 Israelite soldiers.  The eleven tribes wept before the Lord and again sought His will ... Perhaps one reason why God permitted the Israelites to lose that first battle was that it gave them an opportunity to reflect on the fact that they were fighting their own flesh and blood.  But on the second day, Benjamin won again, killing 18,000 Israelites soldiers.  The eleven tribes again sought the face of the Lord, this time with fasting and sacrifices along with their tears ... The Lord assured them that this time they would win ... Over 25,000 Benjamites were killed ... Gibeah was taken, its inhabitants were slain, and the city was burned to the ground."

The tribe of Benjamin was left with only 600 men.  In a sordid tale that never mentioned seeking God's will, the other tribes allowed some of their daughters to be kidnapped to become wives of the men of Benjamin so that the tribe wouldn't cease to exist by not having children.  "All this carnage and destruction happened because one Levite didn't have the courage to stand up for what was right and treat his concubine honorably."

Father, please help me to stand up and do the right thing at the right time, not to seek anything other than Your will for my life.  I don't want my life to cause such pain to others.

Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford