Judges 18
Micah and the
Danites |
1 |
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.
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2 |
And the children of Dan sent of their
family five men from their coasts, men of valor, from Zorah, and
from Eshta'ol, to spy out the land, and to search it; and they said
unto them, Go, search the land: who when they came to mount
E'phra-im, to the house of Micah, they lodged there.
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3 |
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?
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4 |
And he said unto them, Thus and thus
dealeth Micah with me, and hath hired me, and I am his
priest.
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5 |
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.
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6 |
And the priest said unto them, Go in
peace: before the LORD is your way
wherein ye go.
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7 |
Then the five men departed, and came to
La'ish, and saw the people that were therein, how they dwelt
careless, after the manner of the Zido'ni-ans, 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 Zido'ni-ans, and had no business with any man.
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8 |
And they came unto their brethren to
Zorah and Eshta'ol: and their brethren said unto them, What say ye?
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9 |
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.
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10 |
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.
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11 |
And there went from thence of the
family of the Danites, out of Zorah and out of Eshta'ol, six hundred
men appointed with weapons of war.
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12 |
And they went up, and pitched in
Kir'jath-je'arim, in Judah: wherefore they called that place
Ma'haneh-dan unto this day: behold, it is behind
Kir'jath-je'arim.
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13 |
And they passed thence unto mount
E'phra-im, and came unto the house of Micah.
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14 |
Then answered the five men that went to
spy out the country of La'ish, 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.
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15 |
And they turned thitherward, and came to
the house of the young man the Levite, even unto the house of
Micah, and saluted him.
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16 |
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.
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17 |
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.
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18 |
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?
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19 |
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?
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20 |
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.
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21 |
So they turned and departed, and put
the little ones and the cattle and the carriage before
them.
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22 |
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.
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23 |
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?
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24 |
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?
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25 |
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.
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26 |
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.
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27 |
And they took the things which
Micah had made, and the priest which he had, and came unto La'ish,
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.
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28 |
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-re'hob. And they built a city, and dwelt therein.
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29 |
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 La'ish at the
first.
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30 |
And the children of Dan set up the graven
image: and Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of Manas'seh, he
and his sons were priests to the tribe of Dan until the day of the
captivity of the land.
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31 |
And they set them up Micah's graven
image, which he made, all the time that the house of God was in
Shiloh.
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