The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing,
majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of
him and what came to my mind and heart in Judges 20:18-28,
"The Israelites went up to Bethel and inquired of God. They said, 'Who
of us shall go first to fight against the Benjamites?' The Lord
replied, 'Judah shall go first.'... The Benjamites came out of Gibeah
and cut down twenty-two thousand Israelites on the battlefield that
day... The Israelites went up and wept before the Lord until evening,
and they inquired of the Lord. They said, 'Shall we go up again to
battle against the Benjamites, our brothers?' The Lord answered, 'Go
up against them.'... This time, when the Benjamites came out from
Gibeah to oppose them, they cut down another eighteen thousand
Israelites, all of them armed with swords... Then the Israelites, all
the people, went up to Bethel, and there they sat weeping before the
Lord. They fasted that day until evening and presented burnt offerings
and fellowship offerings to the Lord... They asked, 'Shall we go up
again to battle with Benjamin our brother, or not?' The Lord
responded, 'Go, for tomorrow I will give them into your hands.'"
When the depravity of the tribe of Benjamin in Gibeah was reported to
the nation of Israel as a whole, they gathered against Benjamin to
"give them what they deserve for all this vileness done in Israel." At
first they asked the tribe of Benjamin to hand over the men of Gibeah
who had raped and murdered a Levite's concubine. When Benjamin refused
they assembled together to fight against the entire tribe.
Three times the Israelites sought out the Lord prior to attacking the
Benjamites. They failed on the first two attempts and suffered losses.
Finally the nation achieved the victory on the third campaign. Why did
the tribes of Israel fail on the first two attempts? They got God's
direction on all three occasions. Why did the first two fail?
This is a question that goes unanswered in the text and it appears to
me there could be several answers to it. Possibly the Lord wanted to
show Israel that in spite of the other tribes superior strength to
Benjamin, a four hundred thousand to twenty six thousand troop
difference, it wouldn't be their own strength that would eventually
bring victory. The tribes lost forty thousand troops in the first two
incursions. More than all Benjamin was able to field. Possibly a
lesson such as what Gideon would later learn. Maybe the Lord was
testing their faith in him. The Lord gave them direction to go on all
three campaigns, but held back the victory for only the last. How many
times would Israel come back to the Lord to seek his direction? The
whole national decline in depravity was a result of Israel not seeking
the Lord's direction, possibly this was a practical lesson for them.
I'm sure there are many possibilities as to why the tribes experienced
defeat twice before achieving the victory over Benjamin. What catches
my eye today is that just because something fails the first time or
two, even after looking to the Lord for direction does not necessarily
mean its over. Victory may come at the next attempt, on the next
occasion. We are told the Lord tests our faith, he may also be doing
other things we will never be aware of. In any event, from this
account I learn that just because I face failure, it is no indication
that it isn't the Lord's will, that it is not what the Lord wants from
me.
Just something to think about when the occasion should rise...
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share
what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to
hear from you!
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
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