20. The men of Israel went out to fight against the men of Benjamin. They took up their battle positions against them at Gibeah.
21. The men of Benjamin came out of Gibeah. They killed 22,000 men of Israel on the field of battle that day.
22. But the men of Israel cheered each other on. They again took up their positions in the places where they had been the first day.
23. The men of Israel went and sobbed in the sight of the Lord until evening. They spoke to the Lord. They asked, "Should we go up again to fight against the men of Benjamin? They are our fellow Israelites." The Lord answered, "Go up and fight against them."
24. The men of Israel came near the men of Benjamin on the second day.
25. The men of Benjamin came out from Gibeah to oppose them. That time they killed 18,000 more men of Israel. All of the men who died had been carrying swords.
26. Then all of the people of Israel went up to Bethel. They sat there and sobbed in the sight of the Lord. They didn't eat anything that day until evening. Then they brought burnt offerings and friendship offerings to the Lord.
27. Again the people of Israel spoke to the Lord. In those days the ark of the covenant of God was there.
28. Phinehas was serving as priest at the ark. He was the son of Eleazar. Eleazar was the son of Aaron. The people of Israel asked, "Should we go up again to fight against the men of Benjamin? They are our fellow Israelites." The Lord answered, "Go. Tomorrow I will hand them over to you."
29. Then Israel hid some men and had them wait all around Gibeah.
30. They went up to fight against the men of Benjamin on the third day. They took up their positions against Gibeah, just as they had done before.
31. The men of Benjamin came out to fight against them. They were drawn away from the city. They began to wound and kill the men of Israel just as they had done before. About 30 men fell in battle. They fell in the open fields and on the roads. One of the roads led to Bethel. The other led to Gibeah.
32. The men of Benjamin said, "We're winning the battle over them, just as we did before." But the men of Israel said, "Let's pull back. Let's draw them away from the city to the roads."
33. All of the men of Israel moved away from their places. They took up new battle positions at Baal Tamar. The men who had been hiding charged out. They came from west of Gibeah.
34. Then 10,000 of Israel's finest men attacked Gibeah. The men of Benjamin didn't realize they were about to be destroyed. The fighting was very heavy.
35. The Lord helped Israel win the battle over Benjamin. On that day the men of Israel struck down 25,100 men of Benjamin. All of the men who died had been carrying swords.
36. Then the men of Benjamin saw that they had lost the battle. The men of Israel had moved away from their positions in front of Benjamin. They had depended on the men they had hidden near Gibeah.
37. Suddenly the men who had been hiding rushed into Gibeah. They spread out. Then they killed everyone in the city with their swords.