To read this text CLICK HERE

Judges 21:23-25, So that is what the Benjamites did. While the young women 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. At that time the Israelites left that place and went home to their tribes and clans, each to his own inheritance. In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit.

In this chapter, we witness the consequence of the Israelite battle against their brothers, the Benjamites.  In a fit of rage, they have sworn an oath to not allow their daughters to marry Benjamites (ironic because they seem to have no issue intermarrying with Canaanites).  However, once the smoke has cleared and the battles are over, their allegiance to the Benjamites begins to resurface.  There are only 600 Benjamite men remaining, as the rest were killed in battle and all the women and children were also slaughtered.  The other Israelites fear they will be celibate and unable to carry on the Benjamite line.  They weep loudly as a group over the literal end of the tribe of Benjamin. 

Their solution to the problem is brutal and violent, in keeping with the lack of value for human life which we find throughout the book of Judges.  They punish those from Jabesh Gilead who failed to appear at their assembly by killing the whole village, except for the virgin women, who they give to the Benjamites in marriage.  The rest of the wives were simply kidnapped by the Benjamites, at the urging of the Israelite elders.  If their daughters were "stolen," then they couldn't be accused of giving them in marriage and breaking their former oath.  Again, we see the treatment of women in this time and place is appalling.  We move from the rape and murder of one woman (from chapter 19), to the kidnapping and rape of literally hundreds of women.

The total unraveling of the Israelite people seems to be complete.  They are vicious, depraved, and worthy of death.  And yet, we will continue to see God's grace shine through in the least expected ways as we work our way through the Old Testament.  Tomorrow, we head back to the New Testament and make our way through I and 2 Timothy.  But we will be back to the Old Covenant soon enough with the book of Ruth, one of my favorite books of the Bible!

Let's pray...Almighty God, Your patience, grace, and love for your people is amazing.  We thank you for how you love us when we don't deserve it.  We thank you most of all for Jesus.  More of you, less of me.  Amen.