Judges 20:46
So that all which fell that day of Benjamin were twenty and five thousand men that drew the sword; all these were men of valour. So that all which fell that day of Benjamin were twenty and five thousand men that drew the sword; all these were men of valour.
Twenty-five thousand men of Benjamin who drew the sword fell in one day, and all of them were skilled warriors and men of valour. The battle belonged to the war that followed the murder of the Levite's concubine at Gibeah. It stands in the closing chapters of Judges, which show the disgrace, punishment, and low state into which Israel had fallen through backsliding before the call of Samuel the prophet.
Israel's victory over Benjamin came only after two humiliating defeats. The fighting nearly exterminated Benjamin, leaving the tribe least and almost extinct with only six hundred men surviving. Because Benjamin had become so small, choosing the king from that tribe removed grounds for jealousy among the other and larger tribes. The tribe was later blessed when united with Judah.
Military courage did not excuse sin. The outcome illustrates that a cause may suffer oppression and apparent defeat for a time yet ultimately triumph when its people turn sincerely to God. This history of Israel's low condition stands in mighty contrast to the miracles and teaching of Jesus in Luke, yet both speak of the goodness and mercy of God.