Quotes About Unity

Jephthah then gathered all the men of Gilead and fought against Ephraim. And the men of Gilead struck them down because the Ephraimites had said, “You Gileadites are fugitives in Ephraim, living in the territories of Ephraim and Manasseh.”

And when the Philistines saw him, they selected thirty men to accompany him.

So six hundred Danites departed from Zorah and Eshtaol, armed with weapons of war.

The six hundred Danites stood at the entrance of the gate, armed with their weapons of war.

Then all the Israelites from Dan to Beersheba and from the land of Gilead came out, and the congregation assembled as one man before the LORD at Mizpah.

The leaders of all the people and all the tribes of Israel presented themselves in the assembly of Godís people: 400,000 men on foot, armed with swords.

Behold, all you Israelites, give your advice and verdict here and now.”

Then all the people stood as one man and said, “Not one of us will return to his tent or to his house.

Now this is what we will do to Gibeah: We will go against it as the lot dictates.

We will take ten men out of every hundred from all the tribes of Israel, and a hundred out of every thousand, and a thousand out of every ten thousand, to supply provisions for the army when they go to Gibeah in Benjamin to punish them for the atrocity they have committed in Israel.”

So all the men of Israel gathered as one man, united against the city.

And from their cities they came together at Gibeah to go out and fight against the Israelites.

On that day the Benjamites mobilized 26,000 swordsmen from their cities, in addition to the 700 select men of Gibeah.

The Israelites, apart from Benjamin, mobilized 400,000 swordsmen, each one an experienced warrior.

The Israelites set out, went up to Bethel, and inquired of God, “Who of us shall go up first to fight against the Benjamites?” “Judah will be first,” the LORD replied.

The next morning the Israelites set out and camped near Gibeah.

And the men of Israel went out to fight against Benjamin and took up their battle positions at Gibeah.

But the Israelite army took courage and again took their battle positions in the same place where they had arrayed themselves on the first day.

On the second day the Israelites advanced against the Benjamites.

On the third day the Israelites went up against the Benjamites and arrayed themselves against Gibeah as they had done before.

So all the men of Israel got up from their places and arrayed themselves at Baal-tamar, and the Israelites in ambush charged from their positions west of Gibeah.

Now the men of Israel had sworn an oath at Mizpah, saying, “Not one of us will give his daughter in marriage to a Benjamite.”

“Why, O LORD God of Israel,” they cried out, “has this happened in Israel? Today in Israel one tribe is missing!”

The Israelites asked, “Who among all the tribes of Israel did not come to the assembly before the LORD?” For they had taken a solemn oath that anyone who failed to come up before the LORD at Mizpah would surely be put to death.