WHAT HAPPENED TO THE WICKED BENJAMITES?
Last week we left the twelve tribes of Israel in shock. They were pondering what they should do to take action against those wicked Benjamites who had killed the concubine of the Levite.
The Levite sending 12 pieces of his concubine around to every tribe surely woke everyone up. They began to see their sins. Israel as a whole began to know that the Benjamites had done something very wicked and wrong in the eyes of God. They wanted no part of it; ever again.
WELCOME
Thanks for joining us today in this every-Thursday on-line bible study called COME AS A CHILD. You can find us here at The IN SEASON Lifestyle blog each week, or you can click on the "submit" button above to have our articles delivered directly into your e-mail box each time we publish a new lesson. We love that you have decided to follow our studies. This faithful community of believers is walking through the bible together page-by-page. We love details and we are not in a hurry.
Today's lesson is taken from Judges Chapters 19 and 20. We invite you to take the heart of a child and study our Father's ways with us!
A TIME TO TURN
None of the other tribes were exactly perfect either; but at least they were willing to ask God's forgiveness. The eleven were willing to try to begin to turn away from such wicked and pagan ways in the land. Israel had wandered far from the original plan and purposes for which God had granted them the Promised Lands. What happened with the concubine of the Levite simply underscored this horror.
In all of the miserable considerations taking place among the people, the first thought of each and every other tribe was that they definitely did not want their daughters marrying into the tribe of Benjamin. The fathers of the young virgins took a vow to never let that happen.
NOT ANOTHER GENERATION
The other eleven tribes of Israel assembled at Mizpah to get ready to take revenge on the Benjamites.
400,000 men with swords showed up ready to fight.
Of course the Levite was there to retell his story. The men's hearts were stirred up to go against the Benjamites. They decided to draw lots to see which tribe should go out first, then they decided to take ten men out of every 100 from each tribe to go up with provisions for the men who were fighting.
Each man firmly set his heart to fight against the Benjamites at Gibeah.
THE WARNING
Before the battle they sent messages ahead to tell the guilty to surrender and turn themselves over to them. That would have protected all the others in the area who might have been innocent. However; those Benjamites were wicked and evil through and through.
They did not care about the innocent.
The Benjamites did not even consider surrendering and facing their crimes against humanity.
THE BATTLES BEGIN
The Benjamites mobilized 26,000 swordsmen from their town, plus 700 able young men from Gibeah. The 700 were all left-handed, skilled and accurate marksmen with sling-shots.
The Israelites took 400,000 fit swordsmen. God instructed them to send Judah out first.
Once the battle began the Benjamites cut down 22,000 Israelites.
At that point, the men of Israel wept before God and inquired if it was right for them to go out to fight against their own brethren.
The Lord said for them to continue the battle.
After morning their dead and seeking God's protection, the Israelites then re-grouped and encouraged one another to continue the battle.
THE SECOND BATTLE
They went out again.
This time the Benjamites cut down 18,000 more Israelites.
Saddened by such losses, the Israelites retreated and went back to the altar at Bethel and fasted and prayed to God.
They offered up burnt offerings and fellowship offerings.
The son of Eleazer, the son of Aaron was Phinehas. Phinehas offered up the sacrifices to God. He served as a minister between the men and God. Once again they sought God's will together.
Again; The Lord responded for them to "Go - For tomorrow I will give them into your hands."
THE THIRD BATTLE
In the next battle, the Israelites drew the Benjamites away from the city for the battle. They did this by slowly retreating away from the city and the Benjamites pursued them as they went.
Some Israelites had taken another course for an ambush. They charged out from the west of Gibeah. 10,000 of Israel's finest made an attack on Gibeah while the Benjamite army was distracted away from the city.
That was the day that the LORD defeated the Benjamites before Israel. 25,000 armed Benjamites were killed.
THE TERRIFIED BENJAMITES RUN AWAY
The two Israelite forces joined back together at Gibeath and took the city from a counterattack.
The terrified Benjamites fled into the wilderness. Another 18,000 Benjamites fell in the city.
Those who fled went to the Rock at Rimmon, but the Israelites cut down 5,000 men along the roads. Later they struck down 2,000 more men as far as Gidom.
25,000 fell that day. 600 fled to the Rock at Rimmon. They stayed in that area for four months.
DESTROYING THE EVIL PLACES
Israel went back and put all of the Benjamite towns to the sword. They spared no one.
Even the animals were killed. They set all of those towns on fire and burned them to the ground.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN TO US TODAY?
Next week we very prayerfully try to sort all of this out.
What should it mean to those of us who are looking back on what God was doing then; as far as how we should be living today?
We will ponder this.
Also; we will discuss what happened to those few Benjamites who fled away and survived. Would they ever be brothers and a part of Israel again?
Could a divided Israel ever survive and thrive? These are things we will consider once we know more of the meaning of today's battles.
WE ALL HAVE OUR BATTLES
In the meantime; remember that God has given us all battles to fight for the sake of righteousness and the coming Kingdom of Heaven.
The destiny of every Christian heart should be to be a productive and effective part of the whole and sovereignty of God's appointed Kingdom. We were not created to become joined to the wicked and wayward groups who decide to go astray only to fulfill a different purpose full of wrong and worldly desires.
Think of all of this and pray for God to reveal further truth to you from this lesson.
See you here next Thursday!
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