²⁴ But when they came to the camp of Israel, the Israelites rose and struck the Moabites, till they fled before them. And they went forward, striking the Moabites as they went.^[a]

³ While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then ^(A)sudden destruction will come upon them ^(B)as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. ⁴ But you ^(C)are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief.

⁴⁰ But when the signal began to rise out of the city in a column of smoke, the Benjaminites looked behind them, and behold, ^(A)the whole of the city went up in smoke to heaven. ⁴¹ Then the men of Israel turned, and the men of Benjamin were dismayed, ^(B)for they saw that disaster was close upon them. ⁴² Therefore they turned their backs before the men of Israel in ^(C)the direction of the wilderness, but the battle overtook them. And those who came out of the cities were destroying them in their midst. ⁴³ Surrounding the Benjaminites, they pursued them and trod them down from Nohah^[a] as far as opposite Gibeah on the east. ⁴⁴ Eighteen thousand men of Benjamin fell, all of them men of valor. ⁴⁵ And they turned ^(D)and fled toward the wilderness to the rock of ^(E)Rimmon. Five thousand men of them were cut down in the highways. And they were pursued hard to Gidom, and 2,000 men of them were struck down. ⁴⁶ So all who fell that day of Benjamin were 25,000 men who drew the sword, all of them men of valor.

²⁰ So when the men of Ai looked back, behold, the smoke of the city went up to heaven, and they had no power to flee this way or that, for the people who fled to the wilderness turned back against the pursuers. ²¹ And when Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambush had captured the city, and that the smoke of the city went up, then they turned back and struck down the men of Ai. ²² And the others came out from the city against them, so they were in the midst of Israel, some on this side, and some on that side. And Israel struck them down, until there was ^(A)left none that survived or escaped.