UST JDG Chapter 18

◄ JDG 18 ► ║ ═ ©

18 At that time the Israelites had no king.

And at that time people of tribe of Dan wanted more land where they could live. The other Israelite tribes had been able to occupy the territories that their leaders had assigned to them. But the tribe of Dan had not yet been able to occupy all of their territory. 2 So the Danites chose five strong soldiers from their tribe to look carefully for more land where they could live. These men lived in the part of their territory that the tribe had been able to occupy, in the cities of Zorah and Eshtaol. When the tribe sent them out to explore the land, the men went to the hilly area where the people of the tribe of Ephraim live. They stayed overnight in the area where Micah lived. 3 Since they were close to his house, they could hear the people there talking. They recognized from the way he spoke that the young Levite was from the southern part of Israel, as they were. So they went and asked him, “How did you come here? What are your duties here? How do you support yourself?” 4 He answered, “Let me explain exactly what Micah has done for me. He has given me the job of being his priest.” 5 So they said to him, “Please ask God to tell us whether we will succeed in what we are trying to do on this journey.” 6 The young man replied, “You should not worry. Yahweh will make you successful in what you are trying to do on your journey” 7 Then the five men left. They came to the city of Laish, and they saw that the people there were not warlike. Instead, they engaged in trading, as the people of the city of Sidon do. The people there thought that they were safe. No ruler was controlling them. Their city was far from Sidon, and they were not part of a defensive league of cities. 8 When those five men returned to their tribe in Zorah and Eshtaol, the other Danites asked them “What do you have to report?” 9 They replied, “We have found some land, and we can assure you that it is very good. So we should go and attack the people who live there. We should not stay here and do nothing. We should go right away and take possession of that land! 10 When you get there, you will find that the people there are not expecting anyone to attack them. There is plenty of land, and it has everything that we will need. We should certainly go there, because God will enable us to conquer that land.” 11 So 600 men from the tribe of Dan left Zorah and Eshtaol. They brought their weapons with them so they could attack the people of Laish. 12 On their way, they set up their tents near the city of Kiriath Jearim in the area where the tribe of Judah lives. That is why people call the area west of Kiriath Jearim Mahaneh Dan. People still call it that now. 13 From there, they went to the hilly area where the people of the tribe of Ephraim live. And they arrived at Micah’s house. 14 The five men who had explored the land near Laish said to their fellow Danites, “We want to inform you that in one of these houses, there is a sacred vest, several household idols, and a silver molded figure. Think about the advantages of having those things for ourselves.” 15 So they interrupted their journey and went to the house on Micah’s property where the young Levite lived. They told him they hoped he was doing well. 16 The 600 soldiers from the tribe of Dan stood outside the gate to the compound, holding their weapons. 17 The five men who had explored the land went into the house where Micah himself lived. They took the sacred vest, the household idols, and the silver molded figure. They made the priest go out and stand outside the gate with the 600 soldiers who were holding weapons. 18 He saw them bringing out the sacred vest, the household idols, and the silver molded figure from Micah's house. The priest told them it was wrong to take those things. 19 They replied, “Do not object. Just come quietly with us and advise us and be our priest. It is certainly better for you to be the priest for a whole tribe of Israelites than to stay here and be the priest just for one man’s family and servants.” 20 The priest liked what they were suggesting. So he took the sacred vest, the household idols, and the silver molded figure and he left with the Danites. 21 When they left, the soldiers had their children and livestock walk in front of them. They also had the animals that were carrying their baggage, including the items they had taken from Micah, walk in front of them. That was to protect them from an attack from the rear. 22 Micah gathered together the men who lived near him and they formed an army. Although the Danites had gotten some distance away by the time they started pursuing them, they were able to catch up with them. 23 Micah and his men shouted at the men of the tribe of Dan. They turned around and asked Micah, “Why have you come after us with this army?” 24 Micah replied, “You took away my own silver idols and my priest! Those were the things I valued the most. So you should not be asking me why I have come after you with an army.” 25 The men from the tribe of Dan replied, “You had better not say anything further about this to us. Otherwise some of our men will become angry and attack you, and they would kill you and your relatives and servants!” 26 Then the men from the tribe of Dan continued walking. Micah realized that those soldiers would defeat him and his neighbors if they fought. So he turned around and went home. 27 The men of the tribe of Dan kept Micah’s household idols and his priest, and they continued traveling to Laish. They attacked the people who were living there, who had thought that they were safe. They killed all of them, and then they burned everything in the city. 28 There was no group of people to rescue the people of Laish. The city was far from Sidon, so the people who lived there could not help them. And the people of Laish had no other allies. (Laish was in a valley near the town of Beth Rehob.) The people of the tribe of Dan rebuilt the city and lived there themselves. 29 They gave a new name to the city. They called it Dan, in honor of their ancestor whose name was Dan. He was one of Israel’s sons. But previously the name of the city had been Laish. 30 The people of the tribe of Dan began to worship the silver molded figure that had belonged to Micah. They appointed Jonathan son of Gershom, the grandson of Moses, to be their priest. His descendants continued to be their priests until the Assyrians captured the Israelites who lived in that area and took them away to other countries. 31 Even though the sacred tent was in Shiloh at this time and Israelites were supposed to worship there, the people of the tribe of Dan worshiped the silver molded figure that had belonged to Micah.

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