BENJAMIN, TRIBE OF. The tribe of Ben jamin, though the least numerous of Israel, became nevertheless a considerable race in process of time. In the desert it counted 35,40o warriors, all above twenty years of age (Num. i :36 ; :22), and, at the entrance of Israel into Canaan, even as many as 45,600.
(1) Portion and Position. The portion al lotted to this tribe was in proportion to its small number, and was encompassed by the districts of Ephraim, Dan and Judah, in central Palestine. In Josh. xviii :II-20, the northern and southern boundaries are minutely described ; from verses 12 to 16 is sketched the northern boundary line, and from 16 to 20 the southern. Within the boundaries described in these eight verses lay a district rather small, but highly cultivated and naturally fertile (Joseph. Antiq. V 22; Reland, p. 637), containing thirty-six towns (with the villages appertaining to them), which are named in Josh. xviii :21-28, and the principal of which were Jericho, Bethagla, Bethel, Gibeon, Ramah and Jebus or Jerusalem. This latter place subse quently became the capital of the whole Jewish empire, but was, after the division of the land, still in possession of the Jebusites. The Benja mites had indeed been charged to dispossess them and occupy that important town, but (Judg. :21) the Benjamites are reproached with having neg lected to drive them from thence, that is, from the upper, well-fortified part of the place Zion, since the lower and less fortified part had already been taken by Judah (Judg. i :8), who in this matter had almost a common interest with Ben jamin. Zion was finally taken from the Jebusites by David (2 Sam. v:6, sq.) '(2) Civil War. In the time of the judges, the tribe of Benjamin became involved in a civil war with the other eleven tribes, for having re fused to give up to justice the miscreants of Gibeah who had publicly violated and caused the death of a concubine of a man of Ephraim, who had passed with her through Gibeah. This war terminated in the almost utter extinction of the tribe, leaving no hope for its regeneration from the circumstance that not only had nearly all the women of that tribe been previously slain by their foes, but the eleven other tribes had en gaged themselves by a solemn oath not to marry their daughters to any man belonging to Benja min. When the thirst of revenge, however, had abated, they found means to evade the letter of the oath, and to revive the tribe again by an alli ance with them (Judg. xix :2o, 2t).
(3) Numbers. This revival was so rapid that in the time of David it already numbered 59.434 able warriors (1 Chron. vii :6-12) ; in that of Asa, 280.000 Chron. xiv :8) ; and in that of Jehoshaphat. 200.000 (2 Chron. xvii :17).
(4) Subsequent History. This tribe had also the honor of giving the first king to the Jews, Saul being a Benjamite ( t Sam. ix :1, 2). After the death of Saul, the Benjamites, as might have been expected, declared themselves for his son Ishbosheth (2 Sam. ii :8, sq.); until, after the assassination of that prince, David became king of all Israel. David having at last expelled the Jebusites from Zion, and made it his own resi dence, the close alliance that seems previously to have existed between the tribes of Benjamin and Judah (Judg. i :8) was cemented by the circum stance that, while Jerusalem actually belonged to the district of Benjamin, that of Judah was im mediately contiguous to it. Thus it happened that, at the division of the kingdom after the death of Solomon, Benjamin espoused the cause of Judah, and formed, together with it, a kingdom by themselves. Indeed, the two tribes stood al ways in such a close connection as often to be included under the single term Judah (1 Kings xi:t3; xii:2o). After the exile, also, these two tribes constituted the flower of the new Jewish colony in Palestine (Comp. Ezra ix ;t ; x :9).
(5) Difficulties. There are some grave diffi culties in the account of the outrage at Gibeali and the almost entire destruction of Benjamin. in consequence of its support of the perpetrators (Judg. xix-xxi) previously referred to. These difficulties are chiefly to be found in the account of the war with Benjamin (Judg. xxi). Isratl is spoken of as a 'congregation,' and represented as acting together as one man, unlike everything else we know of the period. The size of the army raised (400.000) is quite incredible. and the inci dents of the campaign no less so. Benjamin. with 26.700, destroys in two days 40.00o Israelites, but does not lose a single man. On the third day the whole tribe of Benjamin is destroyed, with the ex ception of 60o men. The date given for this is %ague; it is said to have been in the days of Phinehas, the grandson of Aaron. A satisfactory solution has so far riot been presented by the critics (Hastings' Bib. Diet.).