Κριταί 18
1 ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις οὐκ ἦν βασιλεὺς ἐν Ισραηλ καὶ ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις ἡ φυλὴ Δαν ἐζήτει αὑτῇ κληρονομίαν κατοικῆσαι ὅτι οὐκ ἐνέπεσεν αὐτῇ ἕως τῆς ἡμέρας ἐκείνης ἐν μέσῳ φυλῶν Ισραηλ κληρονομία
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.
2 καὶ ἀπέστειλαν οἱ υἱοὶ Δαν ἀπὸ δήμων αὐτῶν πέντε ἄνδρας υἱοὺς δυνάμεως ἀπὸ Σαραα καὶ ἀπὸ Εσθαολ τοῦ κατασκέψασθαι τὴν γῆν καὶ ἐξιχνιάσαι αὐτὴν καὶ εἶπαν πρὸς αὐτούς πορεύεσθε καὶ ἐξιχνιάσατε τὴν γῆν καὶ ἦλθον ἕως ὄρους Εφραιμ ἕως οἴκου Μιχαια καὶ ηὐλίσθησαν ἐκεῖ
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.
3 αὐτοὶ ἐν οἴκῳ Μιχαια καὶ αὐτοὶ ἐπέγνωσαν τὴν φωνὴν τοῦ νεανίσκου τοῦ Λευίτου καὶ ἐξέκλιναν ἐκεῖ καὶ εἶπαν αὐτῷ τίς ἤνεγκέν σε ὧδε καὶ τί σὺ ποιεῖς ἐν τῷ τόπῳ τούτῳ καὶ τί σοι ὧδε
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?”
4 καὶ εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτούς οὕτως καὶ οὕτως ἐποίησέν μοι Μιχαιας καὶ ἐμισθώσατό με καὶ ἐγενόμην αὐτῷ εἰς ἱερέα
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.”
5 καὶ εἶπαν αὐτῷ ἐρώτησον δὴ ἐν τῷ θεῷ καὶ γνωσόμεθα εἰ εὐοδωθήσεται ἡ ὁδὸς ἡμῶν ἐν ᾗ ἡμεῖς πορευόμεθα ἐν αὐτῇ
So they said to him, “Please ask God if we will succeed [in what we are trying to do] on this journey.”
6 καὶ εἶπεν αὐτοῖς ὁ ἱερεύς πορεύεσθε ἐν εἰρήνῃ ἐνώπιον κυρίου ἡ ὁδὸς ὑμῶν ἐν ᾗ πορεύεσθε ἐν αὐτῇ
The young man replied, “Things will go well for you. Yahweh will go with you on this journey.”
7 καὶ ἐπορεύθησαν οἱ πέντε ἄνδρες καὶ ἦλθον εἰς Λαισα καὶ εἶδαν τὸν λαὸν τὸν ἐν μέσῳ αὐτῆς καθήμενον ἐπ’ ἐλπίδι ὡς κρίσις Σιδωνίων ἡσυχάζουσα καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν διατρέπων ἢ καταισχύνων λόγον ἐν τῇ γῇ κληρονόμος ἐκπιέζων θησαυροῦ καὶ μακράν εἰσιν Σιδωνίων καὶ λόγον οὐκ ἔχουσιν πρὸς ἄνθρωπον
[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).
8 καὶ ἦλθον οἱ πέντε ἄνδρες πρὸς τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς αὐτῶν εἰς Σαραα καὶ Εσθαολ καὶ εἶπον τοῖς ἀδελφοῖς αὐτῶν τί ὑμεῖς κάθησθε
When those five men returned to Zorah and Eshtaol, their relatives asked them “What did you find out?”
9 καὶ εἶπαν ἀνάστητε καὶ ἀναβῶμεν ἐπ’ αὐτούς ὅτι εἴδομεν τὴν γῆν καὶ ἰδοὺ ἀγαθὴ σφόδρα καὶ ὑμεῖς ἡσυχάζετε μὴ ὀκνήσητε τοῦ πορευθῆναι καὶ εἰσελθεῖν τοῦ κληρονομῆσαι τὴν γῆν
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!
10 καὶ ἡνίκα ἂν ἔλθητε εἰσελεύσεσθε πρὸς λαὸν ἐπ’ ἐλπίδι καὶ ἡ γῆ πλατεῖα ὅτι ἔδωκεν αὐτὴν ὁ θεὸς ἐν χειρὶ ὑμῶν τόπος ὅπου οὐκ ἔστιν ἐκεῖ ὑστέρημα παντὸς ῥήματος τῶν ἐν τῇ γῇ
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 καὶ ἀπῆραν ἐκεῖθεν ἀπὸ δήμων τοῦ Δαν ἀπὸ Σαραα καὶ ἀπὸ Εσθαολ ἑξακόσιοι ἄνδρες ἐζωσμένοι σκεύη παρατάξεως
So 600 men from the tribe of Dan left Zorah and Eshtaol, carrying their weapons.
12 καὶ ἀνέβησαν καὶ παρενέβαλον ἐν Καριαθιαριμ ἐν Ιουδα διὰ τοῦτο ἐκλήθη ἐν ἐκείνῳ τῷ τόπῳ παρεμβολὴ Δαν ἕως τῆς ἡμέρας ταύτης ἰδοὺ ὀπίσω Καριαθιαριμ
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.
13 καὶ παρῆλθον ἐκεῖθεν ὄρος Εφραιμ καὶ ἦλθον ἕως οἴκου Μιχαια
From there, they went to the hilly area where the tribe of Ephraim lives. And they arrived at Micah’s house.
14 καὶ ἀπεκρίθησαν οἱ πέντε ἄνδρες οἱ πεπορευμένοι κατασκέψασθαι τὴν γῆν Λαισα καὶ εἶπαν πρὸς τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς αὐτῶν ἔγνωτε ὅτι ἔστιν ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ τούτῳ εφωδ καὶ θεραφιν καὶ γλυπτὸν καὶ χωνευτόν καὶ νῦν γνῶτε ὅ τι ποιήσετε
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]
15 καὶ ἐξέκλιναν ἐκεῖ καὶ εἰσῆλθον εἰς τὸν οἶκον τοῦ νεανίσκου τοῦ Λευίτου οἶκον Μιχαια καὶ ἠρώτησαν αὐτὸν εἰς εἰρήνην
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].
16 καὶ οἱ ἑξακόσιοι ἄνδρες οἱ ἀνεζωσμένοι τὰ σκεύη τῆς παρατάξεως αὐτῶν ἑστῶτες παρὰ θύρας τῆς πύλης οἱ ἐκ τῶν υἱῶν Δαν
The 600 men of the tribe of Dan stood outside the gate of the house, carrying their weapons.
17 καὶ ἀνέβησαν οἱ πέντε ἄνδρες οἱ πορευθέντες κατασκέψασθαι τὴν γῆν
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.
18 καὶ εἰσῆλθον ἐκεῖ εἰς οἶκον Μιχαια καὶ ὁ ἱερεὺς ἑστώς καὶ ἔλαβον τὸ γλυπτὸν καὶ τὸ εφωδ καὶ τὸ θεραφιν καὶ τὸ χωνευτόν καὶ εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτοὺς ὁ ἱερεύς τί ὑμεῖς ποιεῖτε
When the priest saw them bringing out the idols and the sacred vest and the statue, he said to them, “What are you doing?”
19 καὶ εἶπαν αὐτῷ κώφευσον ἐπίθες τὴν χεῖρά σου ἐπὶ τὸ στόμα σου καὶ δεῦρο μεθ’ ἡμῶν καὶ γενοῦ ἡμῖν εἰς πατέρα καὶ εἰς ἱερέα μὴ ἀγαθὸν εἶναί σε ἱερέα οἴκου ἀνδρὸς ἑνὸς ἢ γενέσθαι σε ἱερέα φυλῆς καὶ οἴκου εἰς δῆμον Ισραηλ
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]
20 καὶ ἠγαθύνθη ἡ καρδία τοῦ ἱερέως καὶ ἔλαβεν τὸ εφωδ καὶ τὸ θεραφιν καὶ τὸ γλυπτὸν καὶ τὸ χωνευτὸν καὶ ἦλθεν ἐν μέσῳ τοῦ λαοῦ
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.
21 καὶ ἐπέστρεψαν καὶ ἀπῆλθαν καὶ ἔθηκαν τὰ τέκνα καὶ τὴν κτῆσιν καὶ τὸ βάρος ἔμπροσθεν αὐτῶν
They all put their little children and their animals and everything else that they owned in front of them.
22 αὐτοὶ ἐμάκρυναν ἀπὸ οἴκου Μιχαια καὶ ἰδοὺ Μιχαιας καὶ οἱ ἄνδρες οἱ ἐν ταῖς οἰκίαις ταῖς μετὰ οἴκου Μιχαια ἐβόησαν καὶ κατελάβοντο τοὺς υἱοὺς Δαν
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.
23 καὶ ἐπέστρεψαν τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτῶν υἱοὶ Δαν καὶ εἶπαν τῷ Μιχαια τί ἐστίν σοι ὅτι ἐβόησας
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]?”
24 καὶ εἶπεν Μιχαιας ὅτι τὸ γλυπτόν μου ὃ ἐποίησα ἐλάβετε καὶ τὸν ἱερέα καὶ ἐπορεύθητε καὶ τί ἐμοὶ ἔτι καὶ τί τοῦτο λέγετε πρός με τί κράζεις
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?’”
25 καὶ εἶπον πρὸς αὐτὸν οἱ υἱοὶ Δαν μὴ ἀκουσθήτω δὴ φωνή σου μεθ’ ἡμῶν μήποτε συναντήσωσιν ἐν ἡμῖν ἄνδρες πικροὶ ψυχῇ καὶ προσθήσουσιν ψυχὴν καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν τοῦ οἴκου σου
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!”
26 καὶ ἐπορεύθησαν οἱ υἱοὶ Δαν εἰς ὁδὸν αὐτῶν καὶ εἶδεν Μιχαιας ὅτι δυνατώτεροί εἰσιν ὑπὲρ αὐτόν καὶ ἐπόστρεψεν εἰς τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ
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.
27 καὶ οἱ υἱοὶ Δαν ἔλαβον ὃ ἐποίησεν Μιχαιας καὶ τὸν ἱερέα ὃς ἦν αὐτῷ καὶ ἦλθον ἐπὶ Λαισα ἐπὶ λαὸν ἡσυχάζοντα καὶ πεποιθότα ἐπ’ ἐλπίδι καὶ ἐπάταξαν αὐτοὺς ἐν στόματι ῥομφαίας καὶ τὴν πόλιν ἐνέπρησαν ἐν πυρί
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.
28 καὶ οὐκ ἦν ὁ ῥυόμενος ὅτι μακράν ἐστιν ἀπὸ Σιδωνίων καὶ λόγος οὐκ ἔστιν αὐτοῖς μετὰ ἀνθρώπου καὶ αὐτὴ ἐν τῇ κοιλάδι τοῦ οἴκου Ρααβ καὶ ᾠκοδόμησαν τὴν πόλιν καὶ κατεσκήνωσαν ἐν αὐτῇ
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 καὶ ἐκάλεσαν τὸ ὄνομα τῆς πόλεως Δαν ἐν ὀνόματι Δαν πατρὸς αὐτῶν ὃς ἐτέχθη τῷ Ισραηλ καὶ Ουλαμαις τὸ ὄνομα τῆς πόλεως τὸ πρότερον
They gave to the city a [new] name, Dan, in honor of their ancestor Dan, who was one of the sons of Jacob.
30 καὶ ἔστησαν ἑαυτοῖς οἱ υἱοὶ Δαν τὸ γλυπτόν καὶ Ιωναθαμ υἱὸς Γηρσομ υἱὸς Μανασση αὐτὸς καὶ οἱ υἱοὶ αὐτοῦ ἦσαν ἱερεῖς τῇ φυλῇ Δαν ἕως ἡμέρας ἀποικίας τῆς γῆς
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].
31 καὶ ἔθηκαν αὐτοῖς τὸ γλυπτόν ὃ ἐποίησεν Μιχαιας πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας ἃς ἦν ὁ οἶκος τοῦ θεοῦ ἐν Σηλωμ
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.
