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In the Days of the Judges (Part 5)
Part 5: Bad Problems, Bad Solutions
In Judges 19 we read about a shocking crime in the town of Gibeah. In chapter 20 we saw how Israel’s pursuit of justice led to a civil war, then to the virtual extermination of the tribe of Benjamin. With those events behind them, the Israelites began to reflect on what had happened. An entire tribe reduced to a few hundred refugees! The thought of it broke their hearts. Chapter 21 details the misguided steps that Israel took to try to salvage the situation.
All that remained of the tribe of Benjamin were 600 warriors. To make matters worse, the men of Israel had made a rash vow not to give their daughters to any Benjamite in marriage. They now realized that if they kept this vow, the tribe would die out completely. The people were filled with regret. How could they prevent Benjamin’s extinction? As they saw it, they needed to find a way to provide wives for the few surviving Benjamites without breaking the terms of their vow. Their solution was as clever as it was cruel.
As it turns out, the Israelites had also made another vow: they had sworn death upon those who did not answer the call to arms at Mizpah. A roll call found that that the city of Jabesh-Gilead had sent no one to fight. So Israel quickly dispatched troops to that city with orders to destroy all its inhabitants — all, that is, except for its virgin maidens. They were to be spared so that they could be given as wives to the Benjamites. This way, no living man of Israel could be said to have given his daughter to Benjamin. “Thus human logic determined to resort to massacre of their countrymen in order to undo the results of the massacre of other countrymen… to undo the effects of one rash vow by the selective implementation of another” (Smith). 400 girls were brought back from Jabesh-Gilead, and Israel sent word to the Benjamite survivors to come pick up their brides.
Of course, that still left some 200 men of Benjamin without wives. So another plan was hatched — one far less violent, but no less shameful. There was soon to be a feast to God at the city of Shiloh. During the feast, the maidens of Shiloh would be performing their customary dance outside the city. Israel’s plan was for the men of Benjamin to hide in the nearby vineyards. When the maidens came out to do their dance, each Benjamite would rush out and grab himself a wife! When the feast day came, that’s precisely what the men of Benjamin did. (Picture 200 men carrying off their wives, cave-man style!) Since the girls technically weren’t given to Benjamin, their fathers and brothers would not be held guilty of breaking their vow.
Their consciences now satisfied, the Israelites disbanded their force and returned home.
What a mess!
The lesson of Judges 21 is that two wrongs (or three) don’t make a right. Israel’s guilt over nearly destroying Benjamin made them desperate. Their desire to correct the situation was admirable; but instead of appealing to the Lord, they resorted to their own ingenuity. What resulted were the disgraceful “solutions” at Jabesh-Gilead and Shiloh. Let this remind us that we can’t fix the mess of sin through our own devices. That will only lead to more problems. “There is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death” (Proverbs 14:12). God alone has the answers; we need to listen to Him and do as He says.
The “historical appendix” of Judges 17-21 underscores the defining feature of the Judges era: “In those days…every man did what was right in his own eyes” (17:6; 21:25). These chapters present a sad progression from bad to worse: from corrupt worship to disregard for God’s order, to open immorality, to social chaos. As Shane Scott wrote, “When mankind calls its own shots, the results are profligacy, perversion, and savagery.” And capping it all off is man’s pathetic attempt to put things right without humbly seeking the Lord.
To borrow the words of Paul, these things were “written for our instruction” (Romans 15:4). They stand as a warning to every generation. When it comes to obeying the will of God, we cannot be content with “sort of” or “mostly.” We cannot give our wants priority over His words. Not when He has shown us so dramatically where that thinking can lead us. Seemingly small departures from God’s standard will pave the way for bigger and bigger ones. Sin that is allowed to fester and grow in individual lives will eventually affect an entire community or even a whole nation.
Let’s heed the words of the writer of Hebrews:
For this reason we must pay closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it. For if the word spoken through angels proved unalterable, and every transgression and disobedience received a just penalty, how will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? (Hebrews 2:1-3)
