Benjamite Wives
Comments for Study 20
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I. No Benjamite Will Be My Son-in-Law (21:1-5)
>1. What did Israel swear? (1)
* Judges 21:1 "The men of Israel had taken an oath at Mizpah: "Not one of us will give his daughter in marriage to a Benjamite."
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>Why might this be so? (19:22-26, 20:12-13)
* Judges 19:22 "While they were enjoying themselves, some of the wicked men of the city surrounded the house. Pounding on the door, they shouted to the old man who owned the house, "Bring out the man who came to your house so we can have sex with him."
* Judges 19:26 "At daybreak the woman went back to the house where her master was staying, fell down at the door and lay there until daylight."
* Judges 20:12-13 "The tribes of Israel sent men throughout the tribe of Benjamin, saying, "What about this awful crime that was committed among you? Now surrender those wicked men of Gibeah so that we may put them to death and purge the evil from Israel." But the Benjamites would not listen to their fellow Israelites."
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>2. What did Israel do when only six hundred male Benjamites were left? (2)
* Judges 21:2 "The people went to Bethel, where they sat before God until evening, raising their voices and weeping bitterly."
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>What did they pray to the Lord? (3)
* Judges 21:3 "O LORD, the God of Israel," they cried, "why has this happened to Israel? Why should one tribe be missing from Israel today?"
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>How does this show a lack of understanding of God and his covenant with Israel?
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>3. What did Israel do? (4)
* Judges 21:4 "Early the next day the people built an altar and presented burnt offerings and fellowship offerings."
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>Why might they want to know who had not assembled before the Lord at this time?
* Judges 21:5 "Then the Israelites asked, "Who from all the tribes of Israel has failed to assemble before the LORD?" For they had taken a solemn oath that anyone who failed to assemble before the LORD at Mizpah should certainly be put to death."
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II. This is How Israel Found Some Wives for Benjamin (21:6-14)
>4. How had Israel relented of what had become of the Benjamites?
* Judges 21:6 "Now the Israelites grieved for their brothers, the Benjamites. "Today one tribe is cut off from Israel," they said."
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>What problem did the have? (7; Num. 30:1-2)
* Judges 21:7 "How can we provide wives for those who are left, since we have taken an oath by the LORD not to give them any of our daughters in marriage?"
* Numbers 30:1-2 "Moses said to the heads of the tribes of Israel: "This is what the LORD commands: When a man makes a vow to the LORD or takes an oath to obligate himself by a pledge, he must not break his word but must do everything he said."
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>Is it possible for believers in Jesus to get themselves into similar situations?
* Consider Paul when he went to the temple to help other Christians make a vow before the Lord. (Acts 20:21-36)
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>5. Who was not there and thus had not taken the oath? (8-9)
* Judges 21:8-9 "Then they asked, "Which one of the tribes of Israel failed to assemble before the LORD at Mizpah?" They discovered that no one from Jabesh Gilead had come to the camp for the assembly. For when they counted the people, they found that none of the people of Jabesh Gilead were there."
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>Why might they have not been there?
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>6. What did Israel do to get virgins for the Benjamites? (10-12)
* Judges 21:10-12 "So the assembly sent twelve thousand fighting men with instructions to go to Jabesh Gilead and put to the sword those living there, including the women and children. "This is what you are to do," they said. "Kill every male and every woman who is not a virgin." They found among the people living in Jabesh Gilead four hundred young women who had never slept with a man, and they took them to the camp at Shiloh in Canaan."
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>How did the six hundred Benjamites respond?
* Judges 21:13-14 "Then the whole assembly sent an offer of peace to the Benjamites at the rock of Rimmon. So the Benjamites returned at that time and were given the women of Jabesh Gilead who had been spared. But there were not enough for all of them."
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>What must have it been like to be a woman in Israel at this time?
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III. This is How They Found the Rest (21:15-25)
>7. Why did Israel grieve? (15)
* Judges 21:15 "The people grieved for Benjamin, because the LORD had made a gap in the tribes of Israel."
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>8. What was soon to happen in Israel? (16-19)
* Judges 21:16-19 "And the elders of the assembly said, "With the women of Benjamin destroyed, how shall we provide wives for the men who are left?
17 The Benjamite survivors must have heirs," they said, "so that a tribe of Israel will not be wiped out.
18 We can't give them our daughters as wives, since we Israelites have taken this oath: 'Cursed be anyone who gives a wife to a Benjamite.'
19 But look, there is the annual festival of the LORD in Shiloh, to the north of Bethel, and east of the road that goes from Bethel to Shechem, and to the south of Lebonah."
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>How did they decide to use that time to get wives for the rest of the Benjamites? (20-22)
* Judges 21:20-22 "So they instructed the Benjamites, saying, "Go and hide in the vineyards and watch. When the girls of Shiloh come out to join in the dancing, then rush from the vineyards and each of you seize a wife from the girls of Shiloh and go to the land of Benjamin. When their fathers or brothers complain to us, we will say to them, 'Do us a kindness by helping them, because we did not get wives for them during the war, and you are innocent, since you did not give your daughters to them.'"
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>Was this right?
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>9. What did the Benjamites do? (23)
* Judges 21:23 "So that is what the Benjamites did. While the girls were dancing, each man caught one and carried her off to be his wife. Then they returned to their inheritance and rebuilt the towns and settled in them."
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>What must have Israel felt like when this event was over? (24)
* Judges 21:24 "At that time the Israelites left that place and went home to their tribes and clans, each to his own inheritance."
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>10. Why is the reason stated that this took place? (25)
* Judges 21:25 "In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit."
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>How might have this affected the first two kings of Israel? (1 Samuel 9:1-2, 16:1; Judges 19:2-3)
* 1 Samuel 9:1-2 "There was a Benjamite, a man of standing, whose name was Kish son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Becorath, the son of Aphiah of Benjamin. He had a son named Saul, an impressive young man without equal among the Israelites--a head taller than any of the others."
* 1 Samuel 16:1 "The LORD said to Samuel, "How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king."
* Judges 19:2-3 "But she was unfaithful to him. She left him and went back to her father's house in Bethlehem, Judah. After she had been there four months, her husband went to her to persuade her to return. He had with him his servant and two donkeys. She took him into her father's house, and when her father saw him, he gladly welcomed him."
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