The City of Beit El: Gateway to Heaven

(6) Abram passed through the land as far as the site of Shechem, at the terebinth of Moreh. The Canaanites were then in the land. (7) The LORD appeared to Abram and said, “I will assign this land to your offspring.” And he built an altar there to the LORD who had appeared to him. (8) From there he moved on to the hill country east of Beit El and pitched his tent, with Beit El on the west and Ai on the east; and he built there an altar to the LORD and invoked the LORD by name. (9) Then Abram journeyed by stages toward the Negeb.

(10) Jacob left Beer-sheba, and set out for Haran. (11) He came upon a certain place and stopped there for the night, for the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of that place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place. (12) He had a dream; a stairway was set on the ground and its top reached to the sky, and angels of God were going up and down on it. (13) And the LORD was standing beside him and He said, “I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac: the ground on which you are lying I will assign to you and to your offspring. (14) Your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All the families of the earth shall bless themselves by you and your descendants. (15) Remember, I am with you: I will protect you wherever you go and will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” (16) Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the LORD is present in this place, and I did not know it!” (17) Shaken, he said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the abode of God, and that is the gateway to heaven.” (18) Early in the morning, Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up as a pillar, and poured oil on the top of it. (19) He named that site Beit El; but previously the name of the city had been Luz. (20) Jacob then made a vow, saying, “If God remains with me, if He protects me on this journey that I am making, and gives me bread to eat and clothing to wear, (21) and if I return safe to my father’s house—the LORD shall be my God. (22) And this stone, which I have set up as a pillar, shall be God’s abode; and of all that You give me, I will set aside a tithe for You.”

(3) The Benjaminites heard that the Israelites had come up to Mizpah.—The Israelites said, “Tell us, how did this evil thing happen?” (4) And the Levite, the husband of the murdered woman, replied, “My concubine and I came to Gibeah of Benjamin to spend the night. (5) The citizens of Gibeah set out to harm me. They gathered against me around the house in the night; they meant to kill me, and they ravished my concubine until she died. (6) So I took hold of my concubine and I cut her in pieces and sent them through every part of Israel’s territory. For an outrageous act of depravity had been committed in Israel. (7) Now you are all Israelites; produce a plan of action here and now!” (8) Then all the people rose, as one man, and declared, “We will not go back to our homes, we will not enter our houses! (9) But this is what we will do to Gibeah: [we will wage war] against it according to lot. (10) We will take from all the tribes of Israel ten men to the hundred, a hundred to the thousand, and a thousand to the ten thousand to supply provisions for the troops—to prepare for their going to Geba in Benjamin^-b for all the outrage it has committed in Israel.” (11) So all the men of Israel, united as one man, massed against the town. (12) And the tribes of Israel sent men through the whole tribe of Benjamin, saying, “What is this evil thing that has happened among you? (13) Come, hand over those scoundrels in Gibeah so that we may put them to death and stamp out the evil from Israel.” But the Benjaminites would not yield to the demand of their fellow Israelites. (14) So the Benjaminites gathered from their towns to Gibeah in order to take the field against the Israelites. (15) On that day the Benjaminites mustered from the towns 26,000 fighting men, mustered apart from the inhabitants of Gibeah; 700 picked men (16) of all this force—700 picked men—were left-handed. Every one of them could sling a stone at a hair and not miss. (17) The men of Israel other than Benjamin mustered 400,000 fighting men, warriors to a man. (18) They proceeded to Bethel and inquired of God; the Israelites asked, “Who of us shall advance first to fight the Benjaminites?” And the LORD replied, “Judah first.” (19) So the Israelites arose in the morning and encamped against Gibeah. (20) The men of Israel took the field against the Benjaminites; the men of Israel drew up in battle order against them at Gibeah. (21) But the Benjaminites issued from Gibeah, and that day they struck down 22,000 men of Israel. (22) Now the army—the men of Israel—rallied and again drew up in battle order at the same place as they had on the first day. (23) For the Israelites had gone up and wept before the LORD until evening. They had inquired of the LORD, “Shall we again join battle with our kinsmen the Benjaminites?” And the LORD had replied, “March against them.” (24) The Israelites advanced against the Benjaminites on the second day. (25) But the Benjaminites came out from Gibeah against them on the second day and struck down 18,000 more of the Israelites, all of them fighting men. (26) Then all the Israelites, all the army, went up and came to Beit El and they sat there, weeping before the LORD. They fasted that day until evening, and presented burnt offerings and offerings of well-being to the LORD. (27) The Israelites inquired of the LORD (for the Ark of God’s Covenant was there in those days, (28) and Phinehas son of Eleazar son of Aaron the priest ministered before Him in those days), “Shall we again take the field against our kinsmen the Benjaminites, or shall we not?” The LORD answered, “Go up, for tomorrow I will deliver them into your hands.” (29) Israel put men in ambush against Gibeah on all sides. (30) And on the third day, the Israelites went up against the Benjaminites, as before, and engaged them in battle at Gibeah. (31) The Benjaminites dashed out to meet the army and were drawn away from the town onto the roads, of which one runs to Bethel and the other to Gibeah. As before, they started out by striking some of the men dead in the open field, about 30 men of Israel. (32) The Benjaminites thought, “They are being routed before us as previously.” But the Israelites had planned: “We will take to flight and draw them away from the town to the roads.” (33) And while the main body of the Israelites had moved away from their positions and had drawn up in battle order at Baal-tamar, the Israelite ambush was rushing out from its position at Maareh-geba. (34) Thus 10,000 picked men of all Israel came to a point south of Gibeah, and the battle was furious. Before they realized that disaster was approaching, (35) the LORD routed the Benjaminites before Israel. That day the Israelites slew 25,100 men of Benjamin, all of them fighting men.

(2) All who entered the Temple Mount entered by the right and went round [to the right] and went out by the left, save for one to whom something had happened, who entered and went round to the left.