After wiping out all but 600 of the Benjamite tribe, the remaining Israelites felt remorse and wept for their loss. Then they decided they needed to find wives for the Benjamites. Since none of the people of Jabesh Gilead joined the battle with the Benjamites, and the punishment for abdicating responsibility was death, they wiped out all of the men and women of Jabesh Gilead, sparing only the 400 women (girls) who were virgin. The remaining 200 Benjamite men seized their wives from the girls of Shiloh who were joining the annual festival of the Lord.
In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit. (Judges 21:25)
Indeed these were lawless times.
