Judges 20:32-48 ▼

32 And the sons of Benjamin say, “They are struck before us as at the beginning”; but the sons of Israel said, “Let us flee, and draw them away out of the city, to the highways.”

33 And all the men of Israel have risen from their place, and arrange themselves at Ba‘al-Tamar, and the ambush of Israel is coming forth out of its place, out of the meadow of Gibeah.

34 And they come in from the front against Gibeah—ten thousand chosen men out of all Israel—and the battle [is] grievous, and they have not known that the calamity is reaching toward them.

35 And YHWH strikes Benjamin before Israel, and the sons of Israel destroy in Benjamin, on that day, twenty-five thousand and one hundred men; all these [are] drawing sword.

36 And the sons of Benjamin see that they have been struck—and the men of Israel give place to Benjamin, for they have trusted in the ambush which they had set against Gibeah,

37 and the ambush has hurried, and pushes against Gibeah, and the ambush draws itself out, and strikes the whole of the city by the mouth of the sword.

38 And the appointed sign of the men of Israel with the ambush was their causing a great volume of smoke to go up from the city.

39 And the men of Israel turn in battle, and Benjamin has begun to strike the wounded among the men of Israel, about thirty men, for they said, “Surely they are utterly struck before us, as [at] the first battle”;

40 but the volume has begun to go up from the city—a pillar of smoke—and Benjamin turns behind, and behold, the perfection of the city has gone up toward the heavens.

41 And the men of Israel have turned, and the men of Benjamin are troubled, for they have seen that the calamity has struck against them—

42 and they turn before the men of Israel to the way of the wilderness, and the battle has followed them; and those who [are] from the cities are destroying them in their midst;

43 they have surrounded the Benjamites—they have pursued them—they have trodden them down with ease as far as the front of Gibeah, at the sun-rising.

44 And eighteen thousand men of Benjamin fall—all these [were] men of valor;

45 and they turn and flee toward the wilderness, to the rock of Rimmon; and they glean five thousand of their men in the highways, and follow after them to Gidom, and strike two thousand [more] of their men.

46 And all those falling of Benjamin are twenty-five thousand men drawing sword, on that day—all these [were] men of valor;

47 but six hundred men turn and flee into the wilderness, to the rock of Rimmon, and they dwell in the rock of Rimmon four months.

48 And the men of Israel have turned back to the sons of Benjamin, and strike them by the mouth of the sword out of the city—men even to livestock, even to all that is found; they have also sent all the cities which are found into the fire.