Daughters of Shiloh

The Israelites had made a promise not to give their daughters to the tribe of Benjamin, so they had to find away around this promise to God.
They came up with an idea– get the men from the tribe of Benjamin to take by force some of the daughters from the other tribes when they went out to dance.
This solution made all the different to the leaders of the twelve tribes of Israel. They were now happy that one tribe would now not be wiped out.
The men of Benjamin were told to go back to your own land.

After the Israelites heard the Levite’s story
(about chopping up his dead concubine
and sending her body parts to each tribe of Israel)
they vowed not to “give” in marriage,
their daughters to the Benjamites.

Unfortunately, the Israelites had just finished killing
all the Benjamite women (non-virgin) and children in Jabeshgilead, (Judges
20:48) whilst bringing back 400 virgin women to give to the Benjamites.

But they were still 200 short.
[There were 600 Benjamite men
that survived the war with the Israelites. (Judges 20:47)]

Ironically, the men of Benjamin
were told to set an ambush
by hiding in the vineyard, for the virgin girls,
who were dancing at the tabernacle festival of Shiloh,
in a women only event.
These are young girls from all over the country
and from every tribe of Israel.

This was the same method used by the Israelites
against the Benjamites at Gibeah (Judges 20:37).

The plan worked flawlessly,
and each man obtained his wife (200 only).

Then the men of Benjamin went back to their own land with their new wives.

Though the Benjaminite tribe was reduced to a small number,
The other tribes were only interested in providing each Benjaminite man with
one wife, not with any more, under the pretense of multiplying them faster.

Thus, the elders undertook to reconcile the families to the forced abduction
of their daughters. And the expression of their public sanction to this deed of violence
meant that the girls had large estate since all the land of Benjamin was now
divided between only 600 families.

Background reading:

Daughters of Shiloh

“Go and lie in wait in the vineyards, and watch; if the daughters of Shiloh come out to dance in the dances, then come out of the vineyards and seize each man his wife from the daughters of Shiloh, and go to the land of
Benjamin.
Judges 21:20-21