LEB JDG Chapter 1

Israel Continues Its Conquest

1 After the death of Joshua, the Israelites[fn] inquired of Yahweh, saying, “Who will go up first for us against the Canaanites[fn] to fight against them?” 2 And Yahweh said, “Judah will go up. I hereby give the land into his hand.” 3 And Judah said to Simeon his brother, “Go up with me into my allotment, and let us fight against the Canaanites; then I too will go with you into your allotment.” And Simeon went with him. 4 And Judah went up, and Yahweh gave the Canaanites[fn] and the Perizzites[fn] into their hand, and they defeated ten thousand men at Bezek. 5 At Bezek they came upon Adoni-bezek, and they fought against him and defeated the Canaanites[fn] and the Perizzites.[fn] 6 And Adoni-bezek fled, but they pursued after him; they caught him and cut off his thumbs and big toes.[fn] 7 Adoni-bezek said, “Seventy kings with their thumbs and big toes[fn] cut off used to pick up scraps under my table; just as I have done, so God has repaid to me. And they brought him to Jerusalem, and he died there.

8 The descendants[fn] of Judah fought against Jerusalem, and they captured it, put it to the sword,[fn] and set the city on fire.[fn] 9 Afterward the descendants[fn] of Judah pursued to fight against the Canaanites[fn] who were living in the hill country, the Negev,[fn] and the Shephelah.[fn] 10 And Judah went against the Canaanites[fn] living in Hebron (the former name of Hebron was Kiriath Arba). And they defeated Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai.

11 And from there they went to the inhabitants of Debir (the former name of Debir was Kiriath Sepher). 12 And Caleb said, “Whoever attacks Kiriath Sepher and captures it, I will give to him Acsah my daughter as a wife.” 13 Othniel son of Kenaz, the younger brother of Caleb, captured it, and he gave to him Acsah his daughter as a wife. 14 When she came to him, she urged him to ask her father for a field. As she dismounted from the donkey, Caleb said to her, “What do you want?”[fn] 15 And she said to him, “Give me a gift;[fn] you have given me the land of the Negev,[fn] and give me also a spring of water.” And Caleb gave to her the upper and lower spring.[fn]

16 The descendants[fn] of Hobab the Kenite, Moses’ father-in-law, went up with the descendants[fn] of Judah from the city of palms into the wilderness of Judah, which is in the Negev[fn] near Arad. And they went[fn] and settled with the people. 17 And Judah went with his brother Simeon, and they defeated the Canaanites[fn] inhabiting Zephath; they utterly destroyed it, so he called the name of the city Hormah. 18 Judah captured Gaza and its territory, Ashkelon and its territory, and Ekron and its territory. 19 And Yahweh was with Judah, and he took possession of the hill country, but they could not drive out the inhabitants of the plain because they had chariots of iron. 20 They gave Hebron to Caleb just as Moses said, and he drove out the three sons of Anak from there. 21 But the descendants[fn] of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites[fn] who lived in Jerusalem, so the Jebusites have lived among the descendants[fn] of Benjamin in Jerusalem to this day.

22 Likewise, the house of Joseph went up against Bethel, and Yahweh was with them. 23 And the house of Joseph spied out Bethel (the former name of the city was Luz). 24 And when the spies saw a man leaving the city,[fn] they said to him, “Please show us the entrance of the city, and we will deal kindly[fn] with you.” 25 So he showed them the entrance of the city, and they struck the city with the edge of the sword,[fn] but they let go the man and all his family. 26 And the man went to the land of the Hittites, and he built a city and named it Luz; this is its name to this day.

27 Manasseh did not drive out Beth-Sean and its towns, or Taanach and its towns, or the inhabitants[fn] of Dor and its towns, or the inhabitants of Ibleam and its towns, or the inhabitants of Megiddo and its towns; the Canaanites[fn] were determined to live in this land. 28 And it happened, when Israel grew strong, they put the Canaanites[fn] to forced labor, but they never totally drove them out. 29 Ephraim did not drive out the Canaanites[fn] living in Gezer, so the Canaanites[fn] lived in their midst in Gezer. 30 Zebulun did not drive out the inhabitants of Kitron or Nahalol, so the Canaanites[fn] lived in their midst and became subjected to forced labor. 31 Asher did not drive out the inhabitants of Acco, Sidon, Ahlab, Aczib, Helbah, Aphik, or Rehob, 32 so the Asherites[fn] lived in the midst of the Canaanites,[fn] the inhabitants of the land, for they did not drive them out.

33 Naphtali did not drive out the inhabitants of Beth Shemesh or Beth-anath, but lived in the midst of the Canaanites,[fn] the inhabitants of the land; the inhabitants of Beth Shemesh and Beth-anath became forced labor for them.

34 The Amorites pressed[fn] the descendants[fn] of Dan to the hill country, and they did not allow them to come down to the plain; 35 the Amorites were determined to live in Har-heres,[fn] in Aijalon, and in Shaalbim, but the hand of the house of Joseph was heavy on them, and they became subjected to forced labor. 36 The border of the Amorites[fn] ran from the ascent of Akrabbim from Sela and upward.