Judges 18

1 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.

In those days [there was] no king in Israel: and in those days the tribe of the Danites sought them an inheritance to dwell in; for unto that day [all their] inheritance had not fallen unto them among the tribes of Israel.

2 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.

And the children of Dan sent of their family five men from their coasts, men of valour, from Zorah, and from Eshtaol, to spy out the land, and to search it; and they said unto them, Go, search the land: who when they came to mount Ephraim, to the house of Micah, they lodged there.

3 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?

When they [were] by the house of Micah, they knew the voice of the young man the Levite: and they turned in thither, and said unto him, Who brought thee hither? and what makest thou in this [place]? and what hast thou here?

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

And he said unto them, Thus and thus dealeth Micah with me, and hath hired me, and I am his priest.

5 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.

And they said unto him, Ask counsel, we pray thee, of God, that we may know whether our way which we go shall be prosperous.

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

And the priest said unto them, Go in peace: before the LORD [is] your way wherein ye go.

7 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.

Then the five men departed, and came to Laish, and saw the people that [were] therein, how they dwelt careless, after the manner of the Zidonians, quiet and secure; and [there was] no magistrate in the land, that might put [them] to shame in [any] thing; and they [were] far from the Zidonians, and had no business with [any] man.

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

And they came unto their brethren to Zorah and Eshtaol: and their brethren said unto them, What [say] ye?

9 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;

And they said, Arise, that we may go up against them: for we have seen the land, and, behold, it [is] very good: and [are] ye still? be not slothful to go, [and] to enter to possess the land.

10 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.

When ye go, ye shall come unto a people secure, and to a large land: for God hath given it into your hands; a place where [there is] no want of any thing that [is] in the earth.

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

And there went from thence of the family of the Danites, out of Zorah and out of Eshtaol, six hundred men appointed with weapons of war.

12 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.

And they went up, and pitched in Kirjath-jearim, in Judah: wherefore they called that place Mahaneh-dan unto this day: behold, [it is] behind Kirjath-jearim.

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

And they passed thence unto mount Ephraim, and came unto the house of Micah.

14 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.

Then answered the five men that went to spy out the country of Laish, and said unto their brethren, Do ye know that there is in these houses an ephod, and teraphim, and a graven image, and a molten image? now therefore consider what ye have to do.

15 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.

And they turned thitherward, and came to the house of the young man the Levite, [even] unto the house of Micah, and saluted him.

16 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,

And the six hundred men appointed with their weapons of war, which [were] of the children of Dan, stood by the entering of the gate.

17 while sixe hundrid strongeste men abideden not fer.

And the five men that went to spy out the land went up, [and] came in thither, [and] took the graven image, and the ephod, and the teraphim, and the molten image: and the priest stood in the entering of the gate with the six hundred men [that were] appointed with weapons of war.

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

And these went into Micah’s house, and fetched the carved image, the ephod, and the teraphim, and the molten image. Then said the priest unto them, What do ye?

19 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?

And they said unto him, Hold thy peace, lay thine hand upon thy mouth, and go with us, and be to us a father and a priest: [is it] better for thee to be a priest unto the house of one man, or that thou be a priest unto a tribe and a family in Israel?

20 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.

And the priest’s heart was glad, and he took the ephod, and the teraphim, and the graven image, and went in the midst of the people.

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

So they turned and departed, and put the little ones and the cattle and the carriage before them.

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

[And] when they were a good way from the house of Micah, the men that [were] in the houses near to Micah’s house were gathered together, and overtook the children of Dan.

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

And they cried unto the children of Dan. And they turned their faces, and said unto Micah, What aileth thee, that thou comest with such a company?

24 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?

And he said, Ye have taken away my gods which I made, and the priest, and ye are gone away: and what have I more? and what [is] this [that] ye say unto me, What aileth thee?

25 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.

And the children of Dan said unto him, Let not thy voice be heard among us, lest angry fellows run upon thee, and thou lose thy life, with the lives of thy household.

26 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.

And the children of Dan went their way: and when Micah saw that they [were] too strong for him, he turned and went back unto his house.

27 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,

And they took [the things] which Micah had made, and the priest which he had, and came unto Laish, unto a people [that were] at quiet and secure: and they smote them with the edge of the sword, and burnt the city with fire.

28 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;

And [there was] no deliverer, because it [was] far from Zidon, and they had no business with [any] man; and it was in the valley that [lieth] by Beth-rehob. And they built a city, and dwelt therein.

29 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.

And they called the name of the city Dan, after the name of Dan their father, who was born unto Israel: howbeit the name of the city [was] Laish at the first.

30 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.

And the children of Dan set up the graven image: and Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of Manasseh, he and his sons were priests to the tribe of Dan until the day of the captivity of the land.

31 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.

And they set them up Micah’s graven image, which he made, all the time that the house of God was in Shiloh.