31. The descendants of Benjamin went out to meet the troops, and they lured them away from the city and began to inflict casualties on the troops as before, on the main road, one of which goes up to Bethel, the other to Gibeah; and in the field there were about thirty men of Israel.
32. And the descendants of Benjamin thought, “They are being defeated before us as previously,” and the Israelites said, “Let us flee and lure them away from the city to the main roads.”
33. And all the men of Israel got up from their places and took up positions in Baal Tamar; and the ambush of Israel charged from their places, from the vicinity of Gibeah.
34. Then ten thousand well-trained men from all Israel came out against Gibeah, and the battle became fierce; they did not know that disaster was about to close in on them.
35. And Yahweh defeated Benjamin in the presence of Israel, and the Israelites destroyed on that day twenty-five thousand one hundred men of Benjamin, all of them sword-wielding.
36. The descendants of Benjamin saw that they were defeated, and the men of Israel gave ground to Benjamin because they trusted the ambush that they had set against Gibeah.
37. And the ambush came quickly and advanced against Gibeah, and it put the whole city to the sword.
38. Now the appointed time for the men of Israel with the ambush was that they sent up for them a great amount of smoke from the city.
39. And the men of Israel turned in the battle, and Benjamin began to inflict casualties on about thirty men of Israel because they thought, “They will be completely defeated before us as in the first battle.”
40. And the cloud of smoke began to go up from the city in a column of smoke, and Benjamin turned backward, and behold, the whole city was going up in smoke!
41. And the men of Israel turned, and the men of Benjamin were dismayed because they saw that disaster was closing in on them.
42. And they retreated from before the men of Israel to the way of the wilderness, but the battle caught up to them, and those who came from the cities destroyed them in the midst of them.
43. They surrounded Benjamin; they pursued them without rest and trod them down opposite Gibeah to the east.
44. And eighteen thousand men from Benjamin fell, all of them able men.