But the sons of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites who lived in Jerusalem; so the Jebusites have lived with the sons of Benjamin in Jerusalem to this day.I'm very confused at this point in the book, which is never a good thing when you're at the beginning. A few verses earlier it says that Judah and Simeon had captured Jerusalem, and burned it. Yet here it says that Benjamin did not drive out the people of Jerusalem. So what's going on?
I see two possible answers, neither of which really satisfies me. The first is that we're not dealing with events in chronological order. That would mean that while Benjamin didn't drive out the people, Judah came in later and did. Looking at everything else happening, I guess this is possible, but it doesn't make a lot of sense. Granted, we're dealing with a new author, so it's possible that this is what's happening, but it seems odd.
The other option would be that Judah sacked Jerusalem, but the people escaped, returned, and rebuilt. This, however, makes even less sense. Why would Benjamin not go after the defenseless people when they were vulnerable, trying to rebuild their city? Forcing them out should have been simple, barely requiring an army. So why not do it?
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