Judges 20:1

Went out. That is, went out prepared for battle (see ch. 2:15; etc.).

As one man. It was a spontaneous assembling, the result of their serious discussion of the problem with one another.

Dan even to Beer-sheba. That is, from the northernmost settlement of Hebrews, the city of Dan (see ch. 18), to Beer-sheba, the most southern Israelite settlement on the fringe of the Negeb in southern Judah. The expression occurs seven times in the Bible (Judges 20:1; 1 Sam. 3:20; 2 Sam. 3:10; 17:11; 24:2, 15; 1 Kings 4:25), and once as Beersheba even to Dan (1 Chron. 21:2).

Land of Gilead. This expression seems to include all the Hebrews east of the Jordan (see chs. 5:17; 11:5, 6; etc.). All the Hebrew settlements sent delegations, with the exception of the city of Jabesh-gilead (ch. 21:8, 10).

Unto the Lord. This does not necessarily mean that they brought the ark or tabernacle hither, nor yet that Mizpeh was Shiloh, where the ark was situated. David was made king in Hebron “before the Lord” (2 Sam. 5:3), and yet there was no ark there. The phrase may mean that they assembled to discuss together what course of action to take, and that they asked God to guide them in their deliberation (see on Joshua 24:1; see also on Judges 20:27).

Mizpeh. This settlement is often identified with the hill Nebi Samwil, 5 mi. (8 km.) northwest of Jerusalem and 3 mi. (4.8 km.) from Gibeah, the scene of the crime. The hill is about 3,000 ft. (914 m.) high. More likely is the identification with Tell en-Nasbeh, 7 1/2 mi. (12 km.) north of Jerusalem. Mizpeh in Benjamin served at other times as a gathering place of the tribes (1 Sam. 7:5-17; 10:17). This was the first great gathering of all the Hebrews since the days of Joshua.