SEV Biblia, Chapter 20:12
¶ Y las tribus de Israel enviaron varones por toda la tribu de Benjamín, diciendo: ¿Qué maldad es ésta que ha sido hecha entre vosotros?
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 12. And the tribes of Israel sent men through all the tribes of Benjamin , etc.] Meaning the families of Benjamin; for as sometimes a tribe is called a family, ( Joshua 7:17) so a family is called a tribe; and there were ten families in the tribe of Benjamin, according to the number of his sons, the fathers of these families. ( Genesis 46:21), which being numerous and powerful, and consisting of men of courage, and expert in war, thought themselves a match for the ten tribes of Israel now assembled, who sent one out of each tribe, very probably ten in all, upon this errand; for they judged it most advisable, before they went to war with them, to try to get the offenders, delivered up to justice, and so prevent the shedding of blood of either side; and the rather, as there were none of the tribe of Benjamin at this assembly, and which indeed might give them reason to suspect they meant not to join with them in an amicable manner in this affair: however, they were willing to try peaceable methods first: saying, what wickedness is this that is done among you ? not that they were sent to inquire what the crime was that was committed, that was fully known; but by putting the question in this manner, their design was to aggravate it, and to put the men of Benjamin on considering how great it was, what an enormous sin it was that was committed, and that among them; and therefore it lay upon them, either to punish the perpetrators of it themselves or deliver them up to them to be punished according to the common law of Israel.
Matthew Henry Commentary
The tribe of Benjamin nearly extirpated. --The Israelites' abhorrence of the crime committed at Gibeah, an their resolution to punish the criminals, were right; but they forme their resolves with too much haste and self-confidence. The eterna ruin of souls will be worse, and more fearful, than these desolation of a tribe __________________________________________________________________
Original Hebrew
וישׁלחו 7971 שׁבטי 7626 ישׂראל 3478 אנשׁים 582 בכל 3605 שׁבטי 7626 בנימן 1144 לאמר 559 מה 4100 הרעה 7451 הזאת 2063 אשׁר 834 נהיתה׃ 1961
