1 The men of Israel had sworn at Mizpah, saying, 'None of us will give his daughter in marriage to Benjamin.'

Now the men of Israel had sworn in Mizpeh, saying, There shall not any of us give his daughter unto Benjamin to wife.

2 The people went to Bethel, where they stayed until evening weeping loudly before God.

And the people came to the house of God, and abode there till even before God, and lifted up their voices, and wept sore;

3 They said, 'Why, LORD, God of Israel, has this happened in Israel, that one tribe is missing today?'

And said, O LORD God of Israel, why is this come to pass in Israel, that there should be to day one tribe lacking in Israel?

4 The next day the people rose early, built an altar there, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings.

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.

5 The Israelites asked, 'Who among all the tribes of Israel did not come up to the assembly of the LORD at Mizpah?' They had made a solemn oath that anyone who did not come before the LORD at Mizpah would surely be put to death.

And the children of Israel said, Who is there among all the tribes of Israel that came not up with the congregation unto the LORD? For they had made a great oath concerning him that came not up to the LORD to Mizpeh, saying, He shall surely be put to death.

6 The Israelites grieved for Benjamin, their brother, and said, 'Today one tribe has been cut off from Israel.'

And the children of Israel repented them for Benjamin their brother, and said, There is one tribe cut off from Israel this day.

7 'What can we do for the survivors to provide wives, since we have sworn by the LORD not to give them our daughters?'

How shall we do for wives for them that remain, seeing we have sworn by the LORD that we will not give them of our daughters to wives?

8 They asked, 'Which one of the tribes of Israel did not come to the LORD at Mizpah?' They found that no one had come from Jabesh-Gilead to the assembly.

And they said, What one is there of the tribes of Israel that came not up to Mizpeh to the LORD? And, behold, there came none to the camp from Jabeshgilead to the assembly.

9 When the people were counted, it was discovered that none of the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead were there.

For the people were numbered, and, behold, there were none of the inhabitants of Jabeshgilead there.

10 So the assembly sent twelve thousand armed men with the command, 'Go and strike down the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead with the sword, including the women and children.'

And the congregation sent thither twelve thousand men of the valiantest, and commanded them, saying, Go and smite the inhabitants of Jabeshgilead with the edge of the sword, with the women and the children.

11 This is what you are to do: Completely destroy every male and every woman who has had relations with a man.

And this is the thing that ye shall do, Ye shall utterly destroy every male, and every woman that hath lain by man.

12 They found among the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead four hundred young women who were virgins and had not been intimate with a man. They brought them to the camp at Shiloh in the land of Canaan.

And they found among the inhabitants of Jabeshgilead four hundred young virgins, that 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.

13 Then the whole assembly sent a message to the Benjaminites at the rock of Rimmon, and they offered them peace.

And the whole congregation sent some to speak to the children of Benjamin that were in the rock Rimmon, and to call peaceably unto them.

14 The Benjaminites returned at that time, and the Israelites gave them the women they had spared from Jabesh-Gilead, but there were not enough for all of them.

And Benjamin came again at that time; and they gave them wives which they had saved alive of the women of Jabeshgilead: and yet so they sufficed them not.

15 The people of Israel grieved for Benjamin because the LORD had created a gap in the tribes of Israel.

And the people repented them for Benjamin, because that the LORD had made a breach in the tribes of Israel.

16 The elders of the assembly said, 'What shall we do for wives for those who remain, since the women of Benjamin have been destroyed?'

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 They said, 'The inheritance of the survivors of Benjamin must be preserved, so that a tribe will not be wiped out from Israel.'

And they said, There must be an inheritance for them that be escaped of Benjamin, that a tribe be not destroyed out of Israel.

18 'But we cannot give them wives from our own daughters, for we have sworn with a curse that anyone who gives a wife to Benjamin will be cursed.'

Howbeit we may not give them wives of our daughters: for the children of Israel have sworn, saying, Cursed be he that giveth a wife to Benjamin.

19 Then they said, 'There is a yearly festival to the LORD in Shiloh, which lies north of Bethel, east of the road that goes up from Bethel to Shechem, and south of Lebonah.'

Then they said, Behold, there is a feast of the LORD in Shiloh yearly in a place which is on the north side of Bethel, on the east side of the highway that goeth up from Bethel to Shechem, and on the south of Lebonah.

20 So they instructed the Benjaminites, 'Go and hide in the vineyards.'

Therefore they commanded the children of Benjamin, saying, Go and lie in wait in the vineyards;

21 'Watch, and when the young women of Shiloh come out to join in the dances, rush out from the vineyards and each of you seize a wife for yourself from the daughters of Shiloh. Then return to the land of Benjamin.'

And see, and, behold, if the daughters of Shiloh come out to dance in dances, then come ye out of the vineyards, and catch you every man his wife of the daughters of Shiloh, and go to the land of Benjamin.

22 'When their fathers or brothers come to us to complain, we will say to them, "Do us a favor by allowing them to have these wives, for we did not obtain wives for them during the battle. And you did not give your daughters to them, so you are not guilty of breaking your oath."'

And it shall be, when their fathers or their brethren come unto us to complain, that we will say unto them, Be favourable unto them for our sakes: because we reserved not to each man his wife in the war: for ye did not give unto them at this time, that ye should be guilty.

23 So the Benjaminites did as instructed. They took wives according to their number from the dancers they had seized. Then they went back to their inheritance, rebuilt their cities, and settled in them.

And the children of Benjamin did so, and took them wives, according to their number, of them that danced, whom they caught: and they went and returned unto their inheritance, and repaired the cities, and dwelt in them.

24 At that time, the Israelites departed from there, each man to his tribe and family. They returned to their inheritance.

And the children of Israel departed thence at that time, every man to his tribe and to his family, and they went out from thence every man to his inheritance.

25 In those days, there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in their own eyes.

In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.