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.

Pada masa itu di Israel tidak ada raja. Suku Dan masih mencari-cari daerah untuk menjadi wilayah mereka, sebab mereka belum juga mendapat tanah bersama suku-suku lainnya di dalam bangsa 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.

Karena itu mereka memilih lima orang yang gagah dari antara semua kaum dalam suku mereka yang tinggal di Zora dan Esytaol, lalu memberi tugas kepada kelima orang itu untuk menyelidiki negeri itu. Maka berangkatlah orang-orang itu, dan tiba di daerah pegunungan di wilayah Efraim. Di sana mereka menginap di rumah Mikha.

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?”

Ketika hendak memasuki rumah itu mereka mendengar pemuda Lewi itu berbicara, dan mereka mengenali logatnya. Jadi, mereka mendatangi dia dan bertanya, "Mengapa kau di sini? Apa urusanmu? Siapa yang membawamu?"

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.”

Orang muda itu menjawab, "Saya di sini karena Mikha. Dialah yang mengangkat saya menjadi imamnya, dan memberi gaji kepada saya."

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

Lalu kata mereka kepadanya, "Kalau begitu, tolong tanyakan kepada Allah apakah perjalanan kami ini akan berhasil atau tidak."

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

Jawab imam itu, "Jangan khawatir. TUHAN telah merestui perjalanan kalian ini."

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).

Setelah itu berangkatlah kelima orang itu lalu pergi ke Lais. Di situ mereka memperhatikan penduduknya. Nyatalah bahwa cara hidup penduduk Lais itu seperti cara hidup bangsa Sidon. Walaupun mereka terpencil, dan jauh dari bangsa Sidon, mereka hidup aman dan tentram, tidak mempunyai musuh, makmur, serta tidak kurang sesuatu apa pun.

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

Ketika kelima orang itu kembali kepada orang-orang sesukunya di Zora dan Esytaol, mereka diminta memberikan laporan.

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!

Mereka pun berkata, "Mari kita menyerang Lais. Kami sudah ke sana, dan melihat bahwa tanahnya baik, luas dan makmur, segalanya ada. Jangan tetap saja di sini dan tidak berbuat apa-apa. Cepatlah ke sana dan merebut negeri itu. Kalian akan mendapati bahwa penduduknya sama sekali tidak menyangka akan diserang. Kami yakin Allah telah memberikan negeri itu kepada kalian."

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.”

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

Karena itu, berangkatlah dari Zora dan Esytaol 600 orang suku Dan. Dengan senjata lengkap,

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.

mereka pergi ke bagian barat Kiryat-Yearim di wilayah Yehuda lalu berkemah di situ. Itulah sebabnya tempat itu masih dinamakan Perkemahan Dan.

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

Dari sana mereka berjalan terus ke daerah pegunungan Efraim sampai ke rumah Mikha.

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]

Kelima orang mata-mata yang dahulu diutus itu berkata kepada kawan-kawannya, "Tahukah kalian bahwa di salah satu rumah ini ada patung yang berlapis perak? Ada juga patung-patung lain dan efod. Coba pikirkan apa yang harus kita buat."

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].

Lalu mereka pergi ke rumah Mikha, tempat pemuda Lewi itu tinggal, dan menanyakan keadaannya.

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

Pada waktu itu keenam ratus prajurit suku Dan, yang bersenjata lengkap itu, sedang berdiri di depan pintu gerbang.

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.

Kelima mata-mata itu langsung masuk ke dalam rumah, lalu mengambil patung kayu yang berlapis perak itu bersama dengan patung-patung lainnya, dan efod. Pemuda Lewi itu sedang berdiri dengan keenam ratus prajurit itu di pintu gerbang.

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?”

Ketika kelima orang itu masuk ke rumah Mikha dan mengambil efod serta patung-patung berhala itu, pemuda Lewi itu bertanya, "Apa ini yang kalian lakukan?"

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]

Mereka menjawab, "Diam! Jangan bertanya. Ikut saja dengan kami, nanti engkau menjadi imam dan penasihat kami. Daripada menjadi imam untuk satu keluarga saja, lebih baik menjadi imam untuk satu suku!"

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.

Pemuda Lewi itu senang dengan saran itu. Jadi, ia mengambil efod dan patung-patung berhala itu lalu ikut dengan mereka.

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

Kemudian rombongan itu meneruskan perjalanan mereka, didahului oleh anak-anak, ternak dan barang-barang mereka.

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.

Ketika mereka sudah jauh, Mikha memanggil tetangga-tetangganya lalu bersama-sama mengejar orang-orang suku Dan itu. Setelah dekat dengan mereka,

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]?”

Mikha dan orang-orangnya itu berteriak-teriak kepada mereka. Orang-orang suku Dan itu menoleh dan bertanya kepada Mikha, "Ada apa? Mengapa datang dengan begitu banyak orang?"

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?’”

Mikha menjawab, "Kamu melarikan patung-patung saya dan imamnya, sehingga saya tidak mempunyai apa-apa lagi, lalu kamu berkata, 'Ada apa!'"

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!”

Kata orang-orang suku Dan itu, "Lebih baik tutup mulut; jangan sampai orang-orang ini menjadi marah lalu menyerang engkau. Nanti engkau dan seluruh keluargamu mati."

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.

Setelah mengatakan demikian, orang-orang suku Dan itu meneruskan perjalanan mereka. Mikha melihat bahwa mereka jauh lebih kuat dari dia, karena itu ia membalik lalu pulang.

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.

Sesudah orang-orang suku Dan itu melarikan imam itu serta barang-barang ibadat buatan Mikha itu, mereka pergi menyerang Lais, kota yang penduduknya hidup aman dan tentram. (Kota itu berada dalam satu lembah dengan kota Bet-Rehob). Orang-orang Dan itu membunuh seluruh penduduk Lais lalu membakar kota itu. Tidak ada yang datang menolong orang-orang Lais itu karena tempat mereka terpencil dan jauh dari Sidon. Setelah itu orang-orang Dan membangun kembali kota itu kemudian tinggal di sana.

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.

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

Nama kota itu mereka ganti menjadi Dan, menurut nama bapak leluhur mereka, yaitu Dan, anak Yakub.

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].

Patung berhala yang mereka bawa itu, mereka dirikan di kota itu lalu mengangkat Yonatan, anak Gersom, cucu Musa, menjadi imam mereka. Keturunan Gersom ini tetap menjadi imam suku Dan itu sampai masa umat Israel diangkut dan dibuang ke negeri lain.

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.

Patung berhala buatan Mikha itu tetap di Lais selama Kemah Tuhan berada di Silo.