Judges 20:28 - Printer Friendly

ESV: and Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron, ministered before it in those days), saying, "Shall we go out once more to battle against our brothers, the people of Benjamin, or shall we cease?" And the Lord said, "Go up, for tomorrow I will give them into your hand."

NIV: with Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, ministering before it.) They asked, "Shall we go up again to fight against the Benjamites, our fellow Israelites, or not?" The Lord responded, "Go, for tomorrow I will give them into your hands."

NASB: and Phinehas the son of Eleazar, Aaron’s son, stood before it to minister in those days), saying, 'Shall I yet again go out to battle against the sons of my brother Benjamin, or shall I stop?' And the Lord said, 'Go up, for tomorrow I will hand them over to you.'

CSB: and Phinehas son of Eleazar, son of Aaron, was serving before it. The Israelites asked: "Should we again fight against our brothers the Benjaminites or should we stop?" The Lord answered: "Fight, because I will hand them over to you tomorrow."

NLT: and Phinehas son of Eleazar and grandson of Aaron was the priest.) The Israelites asked the Lord, 'Should we fight against our relatives from Benjamin again, or should we stop?' The Lord said, 'Go! Tomorrow I will hand them over to you.'

KJV: And Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, stood before it in those days,) saying, Shall I yet again go out to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother, or shall I cease? And the Lord said, Go up; for to morrow I will deliver them into thine hand.

NKJV: and Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, stood before it in those days), saying, “Shall I yet again go out to battle against the children of my brother Benjamin, or shall I cease?” And the Lord said, “Go up, for tomorrow I will deliver them into your hand.”

The previous verse revealed that the ark of the covenant of God (Exodus 25:10–22) was at Bethel during the events of this chapter (Judges 20:12–17). It may have been brought to Bethel specifically to be close to the Israelites when they went to battle. The mission of eleven of the twelve tribes is to bring justice for crimes committed in the territory of the tribe of Benjamin. So far, these efforts have not gone well (Judges 20:18–27).

Here, Scripture notes that Phinehas was still serving as priest during this time. Phinehas was the grandson of Aaron, the first high priest over Israel. Phinehas was famous for his intense passion for serving the Lord, especially in deflecting God's anger toward Israel (Numbers 25). The mention of Phinehas here likely means these events happened in the early years in Israel after Joshua's death. That helps explain the unified approach taken by the Israelite tribes, something not as apparent in later stories from this era.

The people of Israel have spent the day fasting and offering sacrifices to the Lord and mourning the loss of approximately one out of eleven soldiers from their massive army. They had brought this same question to the Lord previously, but they are clearly doubting that He is still with them. So, they ask again: Should we attack Gibeah and the Benjaminites, our brothers, a third time? Or should we stop?

In His prior response, the Lord had told them to attack, but had not said they would be victorious. Here, God tells Israel to attack, and that this time they will win. This is the assurance for which the people had hoped.

Judges 20:18–34 describes three battles between eleven tribes of Israel and the twelfth, Benjamin. Benjamin's forces are outnumbered about fifteen-to-one as they defend the city of Gibeah (Judges 19:14, 22; 20:13). The first two attacks fail, with almost a tenth of the Israelite fighters killed. After a day of fasting and sacrifices, God promises Israel victory. Israel's army uses a new strategy and succeeds. The following section begins with a summary of their eventual victory (Judges 20:35).

A massive army collected from eleven of the twelve tribes of Israel gather near the town of Gibeah. Their goal is to purge evil from the land (Judges 19:22–28). The tribe of Benjamin refuses to cooperate. Instead, they assemble an army about one-fifteenth the size of Israel's army. After two failed attempts and a promise of victory from the Lord, Israel uses a false retreat and ambush strategy to destroy Gibeah. This results in the loss of Benjamin's entire army. Israel's wrath spills over onto the territory, itself. All the people, animals, and towns in the tribe's territory are attacked, and it appears that only 600 Benjaminite men survive.

In the prior chapter, Benjaminite men of the town of Gibeah committed an act of heinous sin (Judges 19:22–25). In response, the murdered woman's husband rallies Israel with a gruesome message (Judges 19:29–30). Chapter 20 depicts how the tribe of Benjamin refuses to hand over the guilty men. Civil war ensues, resulting in near-total annihilation of their tribe. This creates a new crisis in Israel, as described in chapter 21; Israel doesn't want Benjamin to become extinct.

The Book of Judges describes Israel's history from the death of Joshua to shortly before Israel's first king, Saul. Israel fails to complete God's command to purge the wicked Canaanites from the land (Deuteronomy 7:1–5; 9:4). This results in a centuries-long cycle where Israel falls into sin and is oppressed by local enemies. After each oppression, God sends a civil-military leader, labeled using a Hebrew word loosely translated into English as "judge." These appointed rescuers would free Israel from enemy control and govern for a certain time. After each judge's death, the cycle of sin and oppression begins again. This continues until the people of Israel choose a king, during the ministry of the prophet-and-judge Samuel (1 Samuel 1—7).