Judges 18

1 At that time the Israelis had no king. Also at that time, the tribe of Dan was still searching for some land where they could live. The other Israeli tribes had [been able to] ([capture/take possession of]) [the] land that had been allotted to them, but the tribe of Dan had not been able to do that.

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.

2 So they chose five soldiers from their clans, men who lived in Zorah and Eshtaol [cities], to go through the land and explore it [and try to find some land where their tribe could live]. They came to Micah’s house in the hilly area where the tribe of Ephraim lived, and they stayed there that night.

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.

3 While they were in his house and they heard the young man who had become Micah’s priest talking, they recognized from (his accent/the way that he talked) [that he was from the southern part of Israel]. So they went to him and asked him, “Who brought you here? What are you doing here? Why did you come here?”

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?”

4 He told them the things that Micah had done for him. And he said, “Micah (has hired me/is paying me to work for him), and I have become his priest.”

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

5 So they said to him, “Please ask God if we will succeed [in what we are trying to do] on this journey.”

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

6 The young man replied, “Things will go well for you. Yahweh will go with you on this journey.”

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

7 [The next day] the five men left. When they came to Laish [city], they saw that the people there lived safely, like the people in Sidon [city] did. The people there thought that they were safe/protected [from any enemies], and they had plenty of [good fertile] land. They lived very far from the people of Sidon, [so the people of Sidon would not be able to help defend/protect them]. They had no other (allies/groups nearby that would help them in battles).

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.

8 When those five men returned to Zorah and Eshtaol, their relatives asked them “What did you find out?”

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

9 They replied, “We have found some land, and it is very good. We should go and attack the people [who live there]. Why are you staying here and doing nothing [RHQ]? Do not wait any longer! We should go immediately and take possession of that land!

“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!

10 When you go there, you will see that there is plenty of land, and it has everything [that we will need]. The people there are not expecting anyone to attack them. Surely God is giving that land to us.”

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!”

11 So 600 men from the tribe of Dan left Zorah and Eshtaol, carrying their weapons.

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

12 On their way they set up their tents near Kiriath-Jearim [city] in [the area where the tribe of] Judah [lives]. That is why the area west of Kiriath-Jearim was named ‘Camp of Dan’, and that is still its name.

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.

13 From there, they went to the hilly area where the tribe of Ephraim lives. And they arrived at Micah’s house.

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

14 The five men who had explored the land near Laish said to their fellow Israelis, “Do you know that in one of these houses there is a sacred vest, several idols, and a statue? [We think that] you know what you should do.” [RHQ]

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.”

15 So they went to the house where the man from the tribe of Levi lived, which was the house where Micah lived, and they greeted the young man from the tribe of Levi [who had become Micah’s priest].

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

16 The 600 men of the tribe of Dan stood outside the gate of the house, carrying their weapons.

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

17 The five men who had explored the land went into Micah’s house, and took all the idols, the sacred vest, and the statue. While they did that, the 600 men stood outside the gate, [talking] with the priest.

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.

18 When the priest saw them bringing out the idols and the sacred vest and the statue, he said to them, “What are you doing?”

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

19 They replied, “Be quiet! Do not say anything! You come with us and be [like] a father to us and a priest for us. Is it better for you to [stay here and] be a priest for the people in the house of one man, or to be a priest for a clan, and a priest for a whole tribe of Israelis?” [RHQ]

“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?”

20 The priest liked what they were suggesting. So he took the sacred vest and the idols, and he [prepared to] go with the men from the tribe of Dan.

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.

21 They all put their little children and their animals and everything else that they owned in front of them.

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

22 After they had gone a little distance from Micah’s house, Micah [saw what was happening. He] quickly summoned the men who lived near him, and they ran and caught up with the men from the tribe of Dan.

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

23 They shouted at them. The men of the tribe of Dan turned around and said to Micah, “What is the problem? Why have you gathered these men [to pursue us]?”

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?”

24 Micah shouted, “You took the silver idols that were made for me! You also took my priest! I do not have anything left [RHQ]! So why do you ask me, ‘What is the problem?’”

“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?’”

25 The men from the tribe of Dan replied, “You should not shout loudly like that! One of our angry men might attack you and kill you and your family!”

“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!”

26 Then the men from the tribe of Dan continued walking. Micah realized that there was a very large group of them, [so that it would be useless for him to try to fight them]. So he turned around and went home.

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.

27 The men of the tribe of Dan were carrying the things that had been made for Micah, and they also took his priest, and they continued traveling to Laish. They attacked the people who were peacefully living there, and killed them with their swords, and then they burned everything in the city.

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.

28 Laish was far from [the city of] Sidon, [so the people of Sidon could not rescue the people of Laish]. And the people of Laish had no other allies. Laish was in a valley near Beth-Rehob [town]. The people of the tribe of Dan rebuilt the city and started to live there.

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.

29 They gave to the city a [new] name, Dan, in honor of their ancestor Dan, who was one of the sons of Jacob.

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

30 The people of the tribe of Dan set up [in the city] the idols [that had been made for Micah]. Jonathan, who was the son of Gershom and the grandson of Moses, was appointed to be their priest. His descendants continued to be priests until the Israelis were captured and taken [to Assyria].

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.

31 After the people of the tribe of Dan set up the idols that had been made for Micah, [they worshiped those idols, even though] the Sacred Tent [where they had been commanded to worship] God, was at Shiloh.

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