Now the men of Israel had sworn in Mizpah, saying, There shall not any of us give his daughter to Benjamin as wife.
"For they had made a great oath concerning him that came not up ... that he should surely be put to death"  (Judges 21:5).  This is the second foolish oath of which Israel was guilty.  It was, by no means, a Divine order for "all Israel" to come to Mizpah.  That command rested absolutely upon the human authority of the elders of the congregation.  How convenient that oath seemed to be here.  By killing all of the Jabesh-Gileadites, except the virgin maidens, they might be able to get wives for Benjamin. The stupidity of this action demonstrates how foolish it is for people to solve their problems by the fallible wisdom of themselves instead of seeking the counsel of God.  There is no record whatever of their asking God what they should have done.