Study Desk

The Levite answered, "We have come from Bethlehem in Judah, where I went for a visit. Now I am on my way home, which is a long way into the hill country of Ephraim. I expected that someone here would invite us in for the night, but no one has.

The old man said, "You are welcome to stay at my house. I will give you anything you need, but don't stay the night in the public square."

Look, here is my daughter. She has never had sex before. I will bring her out to you now. This man also has a slave woman. You can use them any way you want, but don't do such a terrible sin against this man."

But those evil men would not listen to the old man. So the Levite took his slave woman and put her outside with them. They hurt her and raped her all night long. Then, at dawn, they let her go.

The Levite said to her, "Get up; let's go." But there was no answer. The Levite put her body on his donkey and went home.

But during the night the men of the city of Gibeah came to the house where I was staying. They surrounded the house, and they wanted to kill me. They raped my slave woman, and she died.

Send the bad men from the city of Gibeah to us so that we can put them to death. We must remove the evil from among the Israelites." But the people from the tribe of Benjamin would not listen to the messengers from their relatives, the other Israelites.

The men of Benjamin said, "We are winning as before!" The men of Israel were running away, but it was a trick. They wanted to lead the men of Benjamin away from their city and onto the roads.

10,000 of Israel's best-trained soldiers attacked the city of Gibeah. The fighting was very heavy. But the army of Benjamin did not know that a terrible thing was about to happen to them.

The army of Benjamin had killed about 30 Israelite soldiers. So the men of Benjamin were saying, "We are winning, as before." But then a big cloud of smoke began to rise from the city. The men of Benjamin turned around and saw the smoke. The whole city was on fire. Then the army of Israel stopped running away. They turned around and began to fight. The men of Benjamin were afraid because they knew that a terrible thing had happened to them.

So the army of Benjamin ran away from the army of Israel. They ran toward the desert. But they could not escape the fighting. And the men of Israel came out of the cities and killed them.

The army of Benjamin turned around and ran toward the desert. They ran to a place called the Rock of Rimmon, but the army of Israel killed 5000 soldiers from Benjamin along the roads. They kept chasing the men of Benjamin. They chased them as far as a place named Gidom. The army of Israel killed 2000 more men from Benjamin in that place.

But 600 men from Benjamin ran into the desert to the place called the Rock of Rimmon and stayed there for four months.

You must do this! You must kill every man in Jabesh Gilead and every woman who has had sexual relations with a man. But do not kill any woman who has never had sex with a man." So the soldiers did these things.

So the men of Benjamin came back to Israel. The Israelites gave them the women from Jabesh Gilead who they had not killed. But there were not enough women for all the men of Benjamin.

But we cannot allow our daughters to marry the men of Benjamin. We have made this promise: ‘Bad things will happen to anyone who gives a wife to a man of Benjamin.'

The fathers or brothers of the young women will come and complain to us. But we will say, ‘Be kind to the men of Benjamin. Let them marry the women. We could not get wives for each of them during the war. And you did not willingly give the women to the men of Benjamin, so you did not break your promise.'"

Then the daughters said, "But we want to come with you and go to your family."

But Naomi said, "No, daughters, go back to your own homes. Why should you go with me? I can't have any more sons to be your husbands.

So again they cried very much. Then Orpah kissed Naomi goodbye, but Ruth hugged her and stayed.