against Gabaa, and poured into it, and smote the city with the 38 edge of the sword. The children of Israel indeed had settled a

signal of battle with the ambush, and that they should raise a coun39 ter signal of smoke from the city. So when the sons of Israel saw that the men in ambush had taken Gabaa, they halted, in order of battle. Now Benjamin had begun to smite dead of the men of Israel about thirty men, for they said, They fall again 40 before us, as in the former engagement. But when the counter sign ascended over the city, higher and higher, like a pillar of smoke, Benjamin looked back, and behold, the destruction of 41 the city ascended up to heaven. So when Israel faced about, 42 the men of Benjamin were struck with consternation, for they saw that evil was coming upon them, and they looked about before the children of Israel, towards the way of the wilderness, and fled. But the battle overtook them. And they sur43 rounded and destroyed them who came from the cities. They

cut down Benjamin and pursued them closely from Nua to 44 over against Gabaa, towards the rising of the sun, and there

fell of Benjamin eighteen thousand men. All these were men 45 of valour. Now the rest of them had looked about, and fled towards the wilderness to the rock of Remmon; but of them the children of Israel gleaned up five thousand men. And the children of Israel went down after them to Gedan, and smote 46 of them two thousand men. So that all who fell of Benjamin

were twenty five thousand men who that day drew the sword. 47 All these were men of valour. And the remainder, being six hundred men, turned and fled to the wilderness, to the rock of 48 Remmon, and abode at Rock Remmon four months. And the children of Israel turned back upon the Benjaminites, and smote them with the edge of the sword, beginning at the city Methla, including cattle and every thing throughout all the cities. And the cities which they came to, they burned with fire.

XXI.

Now the children of Israel had sworn at Massepha, saying, Not a man of us shall give his daughter to a Benjaminite 2 to wife. So when the people came to Baithel they sat there till evening before God, then raising their voice, they wept bitterly 3 and said, Why O Lord God of Israel hath this happened that 4 there should be this day one tribe cut off from Israel? And on

the day following the people arose early in the morning, and built there an altar, and offered whole burnt offerings and sacri5 fices. Then the children of Israel said, Who is there among all the tribes of Israel who came not up before the Lord at the general assembly? For they had denounced the great curse against those who came not up before the Lord to Massepha, 6 saying, Let him assuredly be put to death. Now the children of Israel had felt compassion for Benjamin their brother, and 7 said, There is now one tribe cut off from Israel, What shall we do for wives for the few who are left, seeing we have sworn by the Lord, that we will not give them any of our, daughters 8 for wives? So when they said, Who is there among the tribes of Israel who came not up before the Lord to Massepha? and behold not a man had come to the camp from Jabis Galaad to 9 the general assembly, and the people were reviewed, and there 10 was not a man of the inhabitants of Jabis Galaad; the congregation sent thither twelve thousand men from among the young warriors, and gave them a charge saying, Go and smite the in11 habitants of Jabis Galaad with the edge of the sword: And this you shall do, You shall devote to destruction every male, and every woman who hath cohabited with man: but the virgins 12 you shall preserve alive. And having done so they found among the inhabitants four hundred young virgins who had not cohabited with man, and brought them to the camp at Selom which 13 is in the land of Chanaan. Then all the congregation sent, and spoke to the children of Benjamin at Rock Remmon, and in14 vited them to peace. And when Benjamin returned to the children of Israel at that time, the Israelites gave them the women whom they had saved alive from among the daughters of Jabis 15 Galaad. So they were pleased, and the people relented for Benjamin, because the Lord had made a breach among the tribes 16 of Israel. Then the elders of the congregation said, What shall

we do for wives for the rest? For all the women of Benjamin 17 are destroyed: (Now they had determined that the inheritance

of the Benjaminites should belong to them who had escaped, 18 that a tribe might not be blotted out from Israel:) for we cannot give them any of our daughters for wives; for we have sworn among the children of Israel, saying, Cursed be the man 19 who giveth a wife to a Benjaminite. Then they said, Behold

there is a festival of the Lord at Selom, which is kept yearly, on the north of Baithel, towards the rising of the sun, on the high way which goeth up from Baithel to Sychem, and on the 20 south of Lebona. So they gave a charge to the Benjaminites 21 saying, Go and lie in wait among the vineyards, and watch, and behold when the daughters of the inhabitants of Selom go out to dance in choirs, start out from the vineyards, and seize for yourselves every man a wife from among the daughters of 22 Selom, and go to the land of Benjamin. And when their fathers or their brothers come to us, to enter a complaint before us, we will say to them, Grant them as a favour to us, because 23 we did not take every man a woman at the battle. Seeing you have not given them, you have, as it were, accidentally transgressed. And the children of Benjamin did so. And having taken wives according to their number from among the choirs whom they surprised, they went, and returned to their inhe24 ritance, and rebuilt their cities and dwelt therein. And the chil

dren of Israel went at that time every man to his tribe, and to his kindred, and went out thence every man to his possession. 25 And in those days, there being no king in Israel, every man did what was right in his own eyes.

I.

RUTH.

Now when the Judges ruled, there was a famine in the land, and a man went from Bethlehem Juda to sojourn in the coun2 try of Moab, he and his wife and his two sons. The man's name was Elimelech, and his wife's name was Noemin, and the names of his two sons, Maalon and Chelaion. They were Ephrath3 ites of Bethlehem Juda. They went to the country of Moab,

and while they were there, Elimelech, the husband of Noemin, 4. died, and she was left with her two sons. And they took for

themselves wives of the daughters of Moab, the name of the 5 one was Orpha, and the name of the other Ruth. And when they had dwelt there about ten years, both Maalon and Chelaion died, so that the woman was bereaved of her husband, 6 and her two sons. Whereupon she arose with her two daughters in law, and set out on her return from the country of Moab; for she had heard, in the country of Moab, that the Lord

7 had visited his people in giving them bread. So she set out from the place where she was with her two daughters in law. 8 And when they had travelled some part of the way on their return to the land of Juda, Noemin said to her two daughters in law, Go, I pray you, return each to her mother's house. 9 May the Lord deal kindly with you, as you have done with

the dead, and with me. The Lord grant, that you may find 10 rest, each in the house of her husband. So she kissed them,

and they wept aloud, and said to her, We will go back with 11 thee to thy people. But Noemin said, Return, I pray you, my

daughters! for why should you go with me? Have I yet any 12 more sons in my womb to be husbands for you? Return, I pray you, my daughters! For I am too old to have a husbandfor should I say, I am in condition to marry, and should I bear 13 sons, would you wait for them till they grow up; or should you be restrained by them from having husbands? No, my daughters. Indeed it grieveth me much for your sakes, that the hand of the Lord hath gone forth against me.

14

And when they had raised their voice, and wept again, Orpha kissed her mother in law, and returned to her people; 15 but Ruth followed her. Then Noemin said to Ruth; Behold

thy sister in law is gone back to her people, and to her gods, 16 return thou also, I pray thee, after thy sister in law. Whereupon Ruth said, Force me not to leave thee, nor to return from following thee; for whither soever thou goest, I will go; and wherever thou lodgest, I will lodge. Thy people shall be my people; and thy God, my God; and wherever thou diest, I 17 will die, and there will I be buried. The Lord do so to me and 18 more also, if any thing but death shall part me and thee. And

when Noemin saw that she was steadfastly determined to go 19 with her, she refrained from speaking to her any more. So they both proceeded on till they came to Bethlehem. And when they arrived at Bethlehem, all the city was moved about 20 them, and they said, Is this Noemin? But she said to them, Call me not, I pray you, Noemin. Call me, Bitter: for the 21 Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full; but the Lord hath brought me back empty. Why therefore do you call me Noemin, seeing the Lord hath brought me low, and the Almighty hath afflicted me?

22 Thus Noemin returned, with Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter in law; and having returned from the country of Moab, they came to Bethlehem, at the beginning of the barII. ley harvest. Now Noemin had a kinsman of her husband's; a mighty man of wealth, of the family of Elimelech, and his 2 name was Boaz. And Ruth the Moabitess said to Noemin, Let me go, I pray thee, into the field, and glean among the stubble after him in whose eyes I shall find favour. And she said 3 to her, Go, my daughter. So she went, and coming into a field, gleaned after the reapers. Now she happened to light upon the part of the field which belonged to Boaz, who was of the 4 kindred of Elimelech. And behold Boaz came from Bethle

hem, and said to the reapers, The Lord be with you! And 5 they said to him, The Lord bless thee. Then Boaz said to his servant, who was set over the reapers, Whose damsel is 6 that? And the servant who was over the reapers said in re

ply, It is the Moabitess girl, who came with Noemin from the 7 country of Moab. She said, Let me, I pray thee, glean, and gather among the sheaves after the reapers. So she came, and hath been on her feet from early in the morning, and is continuing on till evening. She hath not rested a moment in the 8 field. Then Boaz said to Ruth, Hearest thou not, my daugh

ter? Thou must not go to glean in any other field, nor must 9 thou go hence, but abide here fast by my maids, let thy eyes be on the field where they reap and go after them. Behold I have given a charge to my servants not to touch thee, and when thou art thirsty, go to the vessels, and drink of what the 10 servants have drawn. Upon which she fell on her face, and made an obeisance to the ground, and said to him, How have I found favour in thy sight, that thou shouldst take notice of 11 me, seeing I am a stranger? And Boaz in reply said to her, I have been fully informed of all that thou hast done to thy mother in law after the death of thy husband; and how thou hast left thy father, and thy mother, and the land of thy nativity, to 12 come to a people whom thou knewest not heretofore. The Lord recompense thy work, and may a full reward be given thee by the Lord God of Israel, to whom thou art come, to 13 put thy trust under his wings. And she said, Let me find favour in thy sight, my Lord, for thou hast comforted me. Now