Judges 21:16-25
Everyone Did What Was Right in His Own Eyes
16Then the elders of the congregation said, “What should we do about wives for those who remain, since the women of Benjamin have been destroyed?”
17They added, “There must be heirs for the survivors of Benjamin, so that a tribe of Israel will not be wiped out.
18But we cannot give them our daughters as wives.” For the Israelites had sworn, “Cursed is he who gives a wife to a Benjamite.”
19“But look,” they said, “there is a yearly feast to the LORD in Shiloh, which is north of Bethel east of the road that goes up from Bethel to Shechem, and south of Lebonah.”
20So they commanded the Benjamites: “Go, hide in the vineyards
21and watch. When you see the daughters of Shiloh come out to perform their dances, each of you is to come out of the vineyards, catch for himself a wife from the daughters of Shiloh, and go to the land of Benjamin.
22When their fathers or brothers come to us to complain, we will tell them, ‘Do us a favor by helping them, since we did not get wives for each of them in the war. Since you did not actually give them your daughters, you have no guilt.’”
23The Benjamites did as instructed and carried away the number of women they needed from the dancers they caught. They went back to their own inheritance, rebuilt their cities, and settled in them.
24And at that time, each of the Israelites returned from there to his own tribe and clan, each to his own inheritance.
25In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
Berean Standard Bible
The elders seek a way to preserve Benjamin, and the final plan sends the remaining men to seize wives from the dance at Shiloh.
The chapter closes with a sentence that names the absence of a king, but it does not imply that any human king would automatically cure the people's hearts. The story has shown leaders, elders, soldiers, priests, and households all participating in disorder.
Then the elders of the congregation said, “What should we do about wives for those who remain, since the women of Benjamin have been destroyed?”
The closing plan sends the remaining Benjamites to seize wives, and the narrator places that action under the refrain that everyone did what was right in his own eyes. The line explains the moral atmosphere, but it does not make the actions right. Judges ends by showing that leaders, soldiers, priests, and households all need more than private conviction; they need faithful submission to God.
The refrain is a diagnosis of a society without a shared submission to God's rule. It explains the atmosphere of the closing chapters; it does not excuse every action or promise that political power alone will make people faithful.
In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
Let the family ask where personal preference has become its highest law. Pray for the humility to live under God's word and to protect people who can be treated as means to someone else's solution.
Questions
1 What is happening in this reading?
AnswerThe elders seek a way to preserve Benjamin, and the final plan sends the remaining men to seize wives from the dance at Shiloh. The chapter closes with a sentence that names the absence of a king, but it does not imply that any human king would automatically cure the people's hearts.
2 Where do we see responsibility or failure?
AnswerThe refrain is a diagnosis of a society without a shared submission to God's rule. It explains the atmosphere of the closing chapters; it does not excuse every action or promise that political power alone will make people faithful.
3 What does this passage make clear?
AnswerThe closing plan sends the remaining Benjamites to seize wives, and the narrator places that action under the refrain that everyone did what was right in his own eyes. The line explains the moral atmosphere, but it does not make the actions right. Judges ends by showing that leaders, soldiers, priests, and households all need more than private conviction; they need faithful submission to God.
4 What should our household remember?
AnswerLet the family ask where personal preference has become its highest law. Pray for the humility to live under God's word and to protect people who can be treated as means to someone else's solution.
What This Means for Us
The closing refrain diagnoses a people whose private judgments have displaced God's rule. Ask where preference has become the household's highest law, and pray for the humility to protect people who might otherwise be used to solve someone else's problem.
The final diagnosis reaches ordinary decisions, not only public leadership. Ask which preferences have become untouchable, whose needs are being sacrificed to preserve them, and what it would mean to welcome God's correction.
Prayer
Lord, help our family ask where personal preference has become its highest law. Keep us from confusing strength with faithfulness. Amen.