Judges 18

1 At that time Israel didn't have a king. The tribe of Dan was looking for territory where they could live, because up until then they hadn't gained possession of the land granted to them among the tribes of Israel.

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.

2 So the Danites chose from among them five leading men from Zorah and Eshtaol to scout out the land and explore it. “Go and explore the land,” they told them. When the men came to the hill country of Ephraim, they arrived at Micah's house where they spent the night.

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,

3 While they were there, they recognized the young Levite's accent, so they went to him and asked him, “So who brought you here, and what are you doing in this place? Why are you here?”

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?

4 “Micah arranged things for me, and he hired me as his priest,” he told them.

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

5 “Please ask the Lord for us so we can find out if our journey will be successful,” they asked him.

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

6 “Go in peace,” the priest replied. “The journey you are taking is being observed by the Lord.”

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

7 The five men left and went to the town of Laish. They observed that the people there lived in safety, and followed the customs of the Sidonians. The people were unsuspecting and confident of their security, at home in a productive land. They didn't have a strong ruler, they lived a long way from the Sidonians, and had no other allies to help them.

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.

8 The men returned to Zorah and Eshtaol, their relatives asked them, “What did you…?”

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

9 “Come on, let's go and attack them!” the men interrupted. “We've surveyed the land, and it's excellent! Aren't you going to do something? Don't put off going there and occupying the land!

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.

10 When you get there you'll find the people are unsuspecting and the land is extensive. God has given you a place where there's no shortage of anything!”

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.

11 So six hundred Danite armed men left Zorah and Eshtaol, ready to attack.

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

12 En route they camped at Kiriath-jearim in Judah. That's why the place west of Kiriath-jearim is called the Camp of Dan to this very day.

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.

13 Then they left from there and went into the hill country of Ephraim and came to Micah's house.

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

14 Then the five men who had gone to scout out the land of Laish told the other tribesmen, “Do you realize that here in these houses there's an ephod, household gods, and a carved idol, an image made with molten silver? So you know what you should do.”

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.

15 The five men left the road and went to where the young Levite was living in Micah's home to ask how he was.

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.

16 The six hundred Danite armed men stood at the entrance by the gate.

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.

17 The five men went inside and took the carved idol, the ephod, the household idols, and the image made with molten silver. The priest was standing by the gate with the six hundred armed men.

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

18 When the priest saw them taking all the religious objects from Micah's home, he asked them, “What are you doing?”

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?

19 “Be quiet! Don't say anything! Come with us, and you can be our ‘father’ and priest. Wouldn't it be better for you if instead of being a priest for just one man's household that you were the priest of an Israelite tribe and family?”

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?

20 This seemed like a good idea to the priest and he left with them. Carrying the ephod, the household idols, and the image made with molten silver, he marched with the people all around him.

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.

21 They continued their journey, putting their children, livestock, and possessions ahead of them.

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

22 The Danites were already quite a way from Micah's home when men from Micah's village caught up with them,

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.

23 shouting at them. The Danites turned around to face them and asked Micah, “What's the matter with you? Why call out these men to come after us?”

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

24 “You stole the gods I made, and my priest too, and then left. What have you left me with? How can you ask me, ‘What's the matter with you?’”

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?

25 “Don't complain to us!” Danites replied. “Otherwise some hot-tempered people here might attack you and you and your family will lose your lives!”

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.

26 The Danites carried on their way. Micah saw that they were too strong for him to fight so he turned around and went back home.

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

27 So the Danites took with them the idols that Micah had made, as well as his priest. They attacked Laish with its peaceful and unsuspecting people, killed them with swords, and burned down the town.

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.

28 No one could save them because they were a long way from Sidon and had no other allies to help them. The town was in the valley belonging to Beth-rehob. The Danites rebuilt the city and lived there.

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.

29 They renamed the city Dan after their forefather, the son of Israel. Laish was its former name.

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.

30 The Danites erected the carved idol to worship, and Jonathan, son of Gershom, son of Moses, and his sons became priests for the tribe of Dan until the time when the people went into captivity from the land.

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.

31 They worshiped the carved idol that Micah had made the whole time God's Temple was at Shiloh.

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.