What is especially horrific about this war is that it is against one of the tribes of Israel and is executed “with a determination and a thoroughness surpassing anything evidenced in Israel’s wars with the Canaanites elsewhere in Judges.”88 The men on both sides are called “valiant fighters” or “swordsmen” (20:2, 15, 17, 25, 35, 44, 46). The tragedy is that these are all valuable soldiers whom Israel cannot afford to lose in their occupation of the land of Canaan—a task that seems all but forgotten.
