Judges 18

1 In those days there was no king in Israel; and in those days the tribe of Dan sought for itself an inheritance to inhabit, because no inheritance had fallen to it until that day in the midst of the tribes of the children of Israel.

In tho daies was no kyng in Israel; and the lynage of Dan souyte possessioun to it silf, to dwelle ther ynne; for `til to that dai it hadde not take eritage among other lynagis.

2 And the sons of Dan sent from their families five men of valour, from Saraa and from Esthaol, to spy out the land and to search it; and they said to them, Go and search out the land. And they came as far as the mount of Ephraim to the house of Michaias and they lodged there,

Therfor the sones of Dan senten fyue the strongeste men of her generacioun and meynee fro Saraa and Escahol, that thei schulden aspie the lond, and biholde diligentli. And thei seiden to hem, Go ye, and biholde the lond. And whanne thei goynge hadden come in to the hil of Effraym, and hadden entrid in to the hows of Mycha, thei restiden there.

3 in the house of Michaias, and they recognised the voice of the young man the Levite, and turned in there; and said to him, Who brought you in hither? and what do you in this place? and what have you here?

And thei knewen the voys of the yong wexynge dekene; and thei restiden in `the yn of hym, and seiden to hym, Who brouyte thee hidur? What doist thou here? For what cause woldist thou come hidur?

4 And he said to them, Thus and thus did Michaias to me, and he hired me, and I became his priest.

Which answeride `to hem, Mychas yaf to me these and these thingis, and hiride me for meede, that Y be preest to hym.

5 And they said to him, Enquire now of God, and we shall know whether our way will prosper, on which we are going.

Forsothe thei preieden hym, that he schulde counsele the Lord, and thei myyten wite, whether thei yeden in weie of prosperite, and the thing schulde haue effect.

6 And the priest said to them, Go in peace; your way in which you go, [is] before the Lord.

Which answeride to hem, Go ye with pees, the Lord biholdith youre weie, and the iourney whidur ye goon.

7 And the five men went on, and came to Laisa; and they saw the people in the midst of it dwelling securely, at ease as [is] the manner of the Sidonians, and there is no one perverting or shaming a matter in the land, no heir extorting treasures; and they are far from the Sidonians, and they have no intercourse with any one.

Therfor the fyue men yeden, and camen to Lachys; and thei siyen the puple dwellynge ther ynne with outen ony drede, bi the custom of Sidonyis, sikur and resteful, for no man outirli ayenstood hem, and `of grete richessis, and fer fro Sidon, and departid fro alle men.

8 And the five men came to their brethren to Saraa and Esthaol, and said to their brethren, Why sit you here [idle]?

And thei turneden ayen to her britheren in Saraa and Escahol; and thei answeriden to `britheren axynge what thei hadden do,

9 And they said, Arise, and let us go up against them, for we have seen the land, and, behold, [it is] very good, yet you are still: delay not to go, an to enter in to possess the land.

Rise ye, and stie we to hem, for we siyen the lond ful riche and plenteuous; nyle ye be necgligent, nil ye ceesse, go we, and haue it in possessioun;

10 And whenever you shall go, you shall come in upon a people secure, and the land [is] extensive, for God has given it into your hand; a place where there is no lack of anything that the earth affords.

no trauel schal be; we schulen entre to sikir men, in to a largeste cuntrey; and the Lord schal bitake to vs a place, wher ynne is not pouert of ony thing of tho that ben brouyt forth in erthe.

11 And there departed thence of the families of Dan, from Saraa and from Esthaol, six hundred men, girded with weapons of war.

Therfor sixe hundrid men gird with armeris of batel yeden forth `of the kynrede of Dan, that is, fro Saraa and Escahol.

12 And they went up, and encamped in Cariathiarim in Juda; therefore it was called in that place the camp of Dan, until this day: behold, [it is] behind Cariathiarim.

And thei stieden, and dwelliden in Cariathiarym of Juda, which place took fro that tyme the name of Castels of Dan, and is bihyndis the bak of Cariathiarym.

13 And they went on thence to the mount of Ephraim, and came to the house of Michaias.

Fro thennus thei passiden in to the hil of Effraym; and whanne thei hadden come to the hows of Mychas, the fyue men,

14 And the five men who went to spy out the land of Laisa answered, and said to their brethren, You know that there is in this place an ephod, and theraphin, and a graven and a molten image; and now consider what you shall do.

that weren sent bifore to biholde the lond of Lachis, seiden to her other britheren, Ye knowen, that ephod, and theraphyn, and a grauun ymage and yotun is in these housis; se ye what plesith you.

15 And they turned aside there, and went into the house of the young man, the Levite, [even] into the house of Michaias, and asked him how he was.

And whanne thei hadden bowid a litil, thei entriden in to the hows of the yong dekene, that was in the hows of Mychas, and thei gretten hym with pesible wordis.

16 And the six hundred men of the sons of Dan who were girded with their weapons of war stood by the door of the gate.

Forsothe sixe hundrid men stoden bifore the dore, so as thei weren armed. And thei, that entriden in to the `hows of the yong man, enforsiden to take awey the grauun ymage, and the ephod, and theraphin, and the yotun ymage; and the preest stood bifore the dore,

17 And the five men who went to spy out the land went up, and entered into the house of Michaias, and the priest stood.

while sixe hundrid strongeste men abideden not fer.

18 And they took the graven image, and the ephod, and the theraphin, and the molten image; and the priest said to them, What are you doing?

Therfor thei that entriden token the grauun ymage, ephod, and idols, and the yotun ymage; to whiche the preest seide, What doen ye?

19 And they said to him, Be silent, lay your hand upon your mouth, and come with us, and be to us a father and a priest: [is it] better for you to be the priest of the house of one man, or to be the priest of a tribe and house for a family of Israel?

To whom thei answeriden, Be thou stille, and putte the fyngur on thi mouth, and come with vs, that we haue thee fadir and preest. What is betere to thee, that thou be preest in the hows of o man, whether in o lynage and meynee in Israel?

20 And the heart of the priest was glad, and he took the ephod, and the theraphin, and the graven image, and the molten image, and went in the midst of the people.

And whanne he hadde herd this, he assentide to `the wordis of hem, and he took the ephod, and ydols, and the grauun ymage, and yede forth with hem.

21 So they turned and departed, and put their children and their property and their baggage before them.

And whanne thei yeden, and hadden maad the litle children, and werk beestis, and al thing that was preciouse, to go bifor hem;

22 They went some distance from the house of Michaias, and, behold, Michaias and the men in the houses near Michaias' house, cried out, and overtook the children of Dan.

and whanne thei weren now fer fro `the hows of Mychas, men that dwelliden in the housis of Mychas, crieden togidere, and sueden,

23 And the children of Dan turned their face, and said to Michaias, What is the matter with you that you have cried out?

and bigunnun to crye `aftir the bak. Whiche whanne thei hadden biholde, seiden to Mychas, What wolt thou to thee? whi criest thou?

24 And Michaias said, Because you have taken my graven image which I made, and my priest, and are gone; and what have I remaining? and what [is] this [that] you say to me, Why cry you?

Which answeride, Ye han take awey my goddis whiche Y made to me, and the preest, and alle thingis whiche Y haue; and ye seien, What is to thee?

25 And the children of Dan said to him, Let not your voice be heard with us, lest angry men run upon you, and take away your life, and the lives of your house.

And the sones of Dan seiden to hym, Be war, lest thou speke more to vs, and men styrid in soule come to thee, and thou perische with al thin hows.

26 And the children of Dan went their way; and Michaias saw that they were stronger than himself, and he returned to his house.

And so thei yeden forth in the iourney bigunnun. Forsothe Mychas siy, that thei weren strongere than he, and turnede ayen in to his hows.

27 And the children of Dan took what Michaias had made, and the priest that he had, and they came to Laisa, to a people quiet and secure; and they struck them with the edge of the sword, and burnt the city with fire.

Forsothe sixe hundrid men token the preest, and the thingis whiche we biforseiden, and camen in to Lachis to the puple restynge and sikur; and thei smytiden hem bi the scharpnesse of swerd, and bitoken the citee to brennyng,

28 And there was no deliverer, because [the city] is far from the Sidonians, and they have no intercourse with men, and it [is] in the valley of the house of Raab; and they built the city, and lived in it.

while no man outirli yaf help, for thei dwelliden fer fro Sydon, and hadden not ony thing of felouschipe and cause with ony of men. Forsothe the citee was set in the cuntrei of Roob; which citee thei bildiden eft, and dwelliden ther ynne;

29 And they called the name of the city Dan, after the name of Dan their father, who was born to Israel; and the name of the city was Ulamais before.

while the name of the citee was clepid Dan, bi the name of her fadir, whom Israel hadde gendrid, which citee was seid Lachis bifore.

30 And the children of Dan set up the graven image for themselves; and Jonathan son of Gerson son of Manasse, he and his sons were priests to the tribe of Dan till the time of the carrying away of the nation.

And `thei settiden there the grauun ymage, and Jonathas, sone of Jerson, sone of Moises, and `Jonathas sones, preestis, in the lynage of Dan, til in to the dai of her caitifte.

31 And they set up for themselves the graven image which Michaias made, all the days that the house of God was in Selom; and it was so in those days [that] there was no king in Israel.

And the idol of Mychas dwellide at hem, in al the tyme `in which the hows of God was in Silo. In tho daies was no kyng in Israel.