All throughout history, civil war is an evil that has continually appeared in various cultures. The ancient Israelites are no exception. Here are the details of various civil wars and fighting between the Israelites.
Surprisingly enough, God was involved in some of the affairs. In fact, God even took sides in the battles, but for good reasons that will be made apparent.
Gileadites Wage War With The Ephraimites
Judges 12:4
Then Jephthah gathered together all the men of Gilead, and fought with Ephraim: and the men of Gilead smote Ephraim, because they said, Ye Gileadites are fugitives of Ephraim among the Ephraimites, and among the Manassites.
- The Gileadites were descendants of the tribe of Manasseh.
- The Ephraimites were descendants of the tribe of Ephriam.
Together, these tribes were descendants of Joseph who was the son of Jacob, the father of the 12 Tribes of Israel.
Benjamin Battles Israel At God’s Direction
The tribe of Benjamin waged war against the rest of Israel.
Judges 20:14, 18
14 But the children of Benjamin gathered themselves together out of the cities unto Gibeah, to go out to battle against the children of Israel.18 And the children of Israel arose, and went up to the house of God, and asked counsel of God, and said, Which of us shall go up first to the battle against the children of Benjamin? And the LORD said, Judah shall go up first.
The rest of the Israelites even asked God who should go to battle against them, and God allowed and promoted the war. The Israelites seemed astonished and enquire again.
Judges 20:23
(And the children of Israel went up and wept before the LORD until even, and asked counsel of the LORD, saying, Shall I go up again to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother? And the LORD said, Go up against him.)
Not only did God grant the rest of Israel permission, but He ensured Benajmin was defeated.
Judges 20:28, 35
28 And Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, stood before it in those days,) saying, Shall I yet again go out to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother, or shall I cease? And the LORD said, Go up; for to morrow I will deliver them into thine hand.35 And the LORD smote Benjamin before Israel: and the children of Israel destroyed of the Benjamites that day twenty and five thousand and an hundred men: all these drew the sword.
The reason for the war to begin with?
The Benjaminites didn’t turn over the sons of “Belial” (ungodly men) who wanted homosexual acts just as in the days of Lot, (Judges 19:22, 20:13). All in all, the Israelites nearly wiped out the Benjaminites.
Interestingly enough, the Israelites experienced a civil war as a faction of society protected homosexuals. Those on God’s side won the war.
Absolom And David
Absolom rebelled against his father David and stole the kingdom. The Israelites broke into separate factions and war ensued until David was placed back on the throne.
2 Samuel 18:7-8
7 Where the people of Israel were slain before the servants of David, and there was there a great slaughter that day of twenty thousand men.8 For the battle was there scattered over the face of all the country: and the wood devoured more people that day than the sword devoured.
Details: 2 Samuel 13-19
God Did Not Want Civil War
God did not want civil war at times.
However, as we have learned, it happened anyway due to the raging sin in the land.
2 Chronicles 11:4
Thus saith the LORD, Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren: return every man to his house: for this thing is done of me. And they obeyed the words of the LORD, and returned from going against Jeroboam.
God Sided With Judah In Civil War
2 Chronicles 13:15-17
15 Then the men of Judah gave a shout: and as the men of Judah shouted, it came to pass, that God smote Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah.16 And the children of Israel fled before Judah: and God delivered them into their hand.
17 And Abijah and his people slew them with a great slaughter: so there fell down slain of Israel five hundred thousand chosen men.
The reason God sided with Judah?
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The House of Israel, the northern kingdom had essentially gone the way of the heathen nations around them, (2 Chronicles 13:9). Judah was hoping to reunite and turn Israel back to join them and become one with God again.
Unfortunately, that was not the case, war ensued and the House of Israel fell. In fact, “the LORD struck him,” being Jeroboam (northern king) causing him to perish later on, (2 Chronicles 13:20).
God Vexed Israel With All Adversity
Let’s read what Azariah filled with God’s Spirit told Judean king Asa.
2 Chronicles 15:6
And nation was destroyed of nation, and city of city: for God did vex them with all adversity.
“Nation was destroyed of nation,” meaning the northern Israelite tribes were constantly fighting.
The reason?
“…for a long season Israel hath been without the true God, and without a teaching priest, and without law.”
2 Chronicles 15:3
When you leave God, He will leave you.
God will remove the wall of protection around you, and in this case, your nation when it leaves God. In fact, “adversity” in verse 8 means, “adversary” and “rival.” God allowed rivalry between the divided northern and southern kingdoms of Israel, which of course led to, civil war.
Israelite Army Attacked Judah
2 Chronicles 25:13
Details: 2 Chronicles 25:1-13
But the soldiers of the army which Amaziah sent back, that they should not go with him to battle, fell upon the cities of Judah, from Samaria even unto Bethhoron, and smote three thousand of them, and took much spoil.
Judah’s king Amaziah constructed an army from the 10 northern tribes. However, a man of God said, don’t use them, God is not with the northern kingdom of Israel where these men were from. So king Amaziah adhered to the prophet and sent the men back home.
King Amaziah then used his own army from Judah to attack the “children of Seir.” Unfortunately, the original army he constructed was furious they were sent back and couldn’t go to war. So while king Amaziah was away, the original army attacked the inhabitants of Judah killing 3,000.
Israel Took From Their Brothers In Samaria
2 Chronicles 28:8
And the children of Israel carried away captive of their brethren two hundred thousand, women, sons, and daughters, and took also away much spoil from them, and brought the spoil to Samaria.
Once again, we see civil war and fighting between the ten northern kingdoms and the two southern kingdoms. It should become clear, this fighting was due to idolatry. Due to each kingdom falling away from God, which led to sin, death, and destruction, (Psa 106:39, Jer 3:8, Eze 39:23).
This eventually consumed both kingdoms, and ended with all Israelites being led into captivity. All at the behest of our Heavenly Father.