“And the people of Israel had compassion for Benjamin their brother and said, ‘One tribe is cut off from Israel this day. What shall we do for wives for those who are left, since we have sworn by the Lord that we will not give them any of our daughters for wives?'” (ESV – Read the chapter)
You would think that here at the end of the book we would get some kind of a happy ending. And as this chapter starts, it looks like we might. The people collectively realize what they have done in nearly completely eliminating the tribe of Benjamin by civil war. They also consider the gravity of having sworn an oath to the Lord together that they would not give their daughters as wives to the surviving men, thereby guaranteeing their eventually disappearance. It leaves the reader finally cheering a bit: “Here, now they will finally turn back to the Lord and get back on the right track.” But, that’s not the kind of book this is. Read the rest…
The Nexus 