Judges Chapter 18
King James Version (KJV)
Other Translations
asv (asv) - eBible.org engASV USFM
1
And Manoah arose, and went after his wife, and came to the man, and said unto him, Art thou the man that spakest unto the woman? And he said, I am.
2
And Manoah said, Now let thy words come to pass: what shall be the ordering of the child, and
3
how shall we do unto him?
4
And the angel of Jehovah said unto Manoah, Of all that I said unto the woman let her beware.
5
She may not eat of anything that cometh of the vine, neither let her drink wine or strong drink, nor eat any unclean thing; all that I commanded her let her observe.
6
And Manoah said unto the angel of Jehovah, I pray thee, let us detain thee, that we may make ready a kid for thee.
7
And the angel of Jehovah said unto Manoah, Though thou detain me, I will not eat of thy bread; and if thou wilt make ready a burnt-offering, thou must offer it unto Jehovah. For Manoah knew not that he was the angel of Jehovah.
8
And Manoah said unto the angel of Jehovah, What is thy name, that, when thy words come to pass, we may do thee honor?
9
And the angel of Jehovah said unto him, Wherefore askest thou after my name, seeing it is wonderful?
10
So Manoah took the kid with the meal-offering, and offered it upon the rock unto Jehovah: and
11
the angel did wondrously, and Manoah and his wife looked on.
12
For it came to pass, when the flame went up toward heaven from off the altar, that the angel of Jehovah ascended in the flame of the altar: and Manoah and his wife looked on; and they fell on their faces to the ground.
13
But the angel of Jehovah did no more appear to Manoah or to his wife. Then Manoah knew that he was the angel of Jehovah.
14
And Manoah said unto his wife, We shall surely die, because we have seen God.
15
But his wife said unto him, If Jehovah were pleased to kill us, he would not have received a burnt-offering and a meal-offering at our hand, neither would he have showed us all these things, nor would at this time have told such things as these.
16
And the woman bare a son, and called his name Samson: and the child grew, and Jehovah blessed him.
17
And the Spirit of Jehovah began to move him in Mahaneh-dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.
18
And Samson went down to Timnah, and saw a woman in Timnah of the daughters of the Philistines.
19
And he came up, and told his father and his mother, and said, I have seen a woman in Timnah of the daughters of the Philistines: now therefore get her for me to wife.
20
Then his father and his mother said unto him, Is there never a woman among the daughters of thy brethren, or among all my people, that thou goest to take a wife of the uncircumcised Philistines? And Samson said unto his father, Get her for me; for she pleaseth me well.
21
But his father and his mother knew not that it was of Jehovah; for he sought an occasion against the Philistines. Now at that time the Philistines had rule over Israel.
22
Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnah, and came to the vineyards of Timnah: and, behold, a young lion roared against him.
23
And the Spirit of Jehovah came mightily upon him, and he rent him as he would have rent a kid; and he had nothing in his hand: but he told not his father or his mother what he had done.
24
And he went down, and talked with the woman, and she pleased Samson well.
25
And after a while he returned to take her; and he turned aside to see the carcass of the lion: and, behold, there was a swarm of bees in the body of the lion, and honey.
26
And he took it into his hands, and went on, eating as he went; and he came to his father and mother, and gave unto them, and they did eat: but he told them not that he had taken the honey out of the body of the lion.
27
And his father went down unto the woman: and Samson made there a feast; for so used the young men to do.
28
And it came to pass, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him.
29
And Samson said unto them, Let me now put forth a riddle unto you: if ye can declare it unto me within the seven days of the feast, and find it out, then I will give you thirty linen garments and thirty changes of raiment;
30
but if ye cannot declare it unto me, then shall ye give me thirty linen garments and thirty changes of raiment. And they said unto him, Put forth thy riddle, that we may hear it.
31
And he said unto them,
darby (darby) - eBible.org Darby 1890 plaintext
1
In those days there was no king in Israel, and in those days the tribe of the Danites sought for themselves an inheritance to dwell in; for to that day [their lot] had not fallen to them for inheritance among the tribes of Israel.
2
And the children of Dan sent of their family five men of their whole number, men of valour, from Zoreah and from Eshtaol, to spy out the land, and to examine it; and they said to them, Go, examine the land. And they came to the hill-country of Ephraim, to the house of Micah, and lodged there.
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 to him, Who brought thee hither? and what doest thou in this [place]? and what hast thou here?
4
And he said to them, Thus and thus has Micah done to me; and he has hired me, and I am his priest.
5
And they said to him, Inquire, we pray thee, ofGod, that we may know whether our way on which we go shall be prosperous.
6
And the priest said to them, Go in peace: before Jehovah is your way on which ye go.
7
And the five men departed, and came to Laish; and they saw the people that were therein, dwelling securely, after the manner of the Zidonians, quiet and secure; and no one was in the land who possessed authority, that might put [them] to shame in anything; and they were far from the Zidonians, and had nothing to do with [any] man.
8
— And they came to their brethren at Zoreah and Eshtaol. And their brethren said to them, What [say] ye?
9
And they said, Arise, and let us go up against them; for we have seen the land, and behold, it is very good; and ye are still! Be not slothful to go, to enter to take possession of the land.
10
When ye go in, ye shall come to a people secure, and the land is spacious in every direction; forGod has given it into your hands; [it is] a place where there is no want of anything that is on the earth.
11
And there went from thence of the family of the Danites, out of Zoreah and out of Eshtaol, six hundred men girded with weapons of war.
12
And they went up and encamped in Kirjath-jearim, in Judah; therefore they call that place Mahaneh-Dan to this day: behold, it is behind Kirjath-jearim.
13
And they passed thence to mount Ephraim, and came to the house of Micah.
14
Then the five men that had gone to spy out the country of Laish spoke and said to their brethren, Do ye know that there is in these houses an ephod, and teraphim, and a graven image, and a molten image? And now ye know what to do.
15
And they turned thither, and came to the house of the young man the Levite, the house of Micah, and inquired after his welfare.
16
And the six hundred men of the children of Dan, girded with their weapons of war, stood at the entrance of the gate.
17
And the five men that had gone to spy out the land went up, entered in thither, [and] took the graven image, and the ephod, and the teraphim, and the molten image; and the priest stood at the entrance of the gate with the six hundred men that were girded with weapons of war.
18
And these came into Micah's house, and took the carved image, the ephod, and the teraphim, and the molten image. And the priest said to them, What do ye?
19
And they said to him, Hold thy peace, lay thy 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 for the house of one man, or to be priest for a tribe and a family in Israel?
20
Then 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 they turned and departed, and put the little ones and the cattle and the baggage before them.
22
They were already far from the house of Micah, when the men that were in the houses near to Micah's house were gathered together, and overtook the children of Dan.
23
And they cried to the children of Dan. And they turned their faces, and said to Micah, What aileth thee, that thou comest with such a company?
24
And he said, Ye have taken away mygods which I made, and the priest, and ye are gone away; and what have I more? and what is this that ye say to me, What aileth thee?
25
And the children of Dan said to him, Let not thy voice be heard among us, lest men of exasperated spirit run upon you, and thou lose thy life and the lives of thy household.
26
And the children of Dan went their way; and Micah saw that they were too strong for him, and he turned and went back to his house.
27
And they took that which Micah had made, and the priest that he had had, and came upon Laish, upon a people quiet and secure; and they smote them with the edge of the sword, and burned the city with fire.
28
And there was no deliverer, for it was far from Zidon, and they had nothing to do with [any] man; and it [lay] in the valley that is by Beth-rehob. And they built the city and dwelt therein.
29
And they called the name of the city Dan, after the name of Dan their father, who was born to Israel; howbeit Laish was the name of the city at the first.
30
And the children of Dan set up the graven image; and Jehonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of Moses; he and his sons were priests to the tribe of Dan until the day of the captivity of the land.
31
And they set up for themselves Micah's graven image, which he had made, all the time that the house ofGod was in Shiloh.
lxxbrent (lxxbrent) - Septuagint (Brenton 1851) eBible USFM
1
In those days there was no king in Israel; and in those days the tribe of Dan sought for itself an inheritance to inhabit, because no inheritance had fallen to it until that day in the midst of the tribes of the children of Israel.
2
And the sons of Dan sent from their families five men of valour, from Saraa and from Esthaol, to spy out the land and to search it; and they said to them, Go and search out the land. And they came as far as the mount of Ephraim to the house of Michaias and they lodged there,
3
in the house of Michaias, and they recognised the voice of the young man the Levite, and turned in thither; and said to him, Who brought thee in hither? and what doest thou in this place? and what hast thou here?
4
And he said to them, Thus and thus did Michaias to me, and he hired me, and I became his priest.
5
And they said to him, Enquire now of God, and we shall know whether our way will prosper, on which we are going.
6
And the priest said to them, Go in peace; your way in which ye go, [is] before the Lord.
7
And the five men went on, and came to Laisa; and they saw the people in the midst of it dwelling securely, at ease as [is] the manner of the Sidonians, and there is no one perverting or shaming a matter in the land, no heir extorting treasures; and they are far from the Sidonians, and they have no intercourse with any one.
8
And the five men came to their brethren to Saraa and Esthaol, and said to their brethren, Why sit ye here [idle]?
9
And they said, Arise, and let us go up against them, for we have seen the land, and, behold, [it is] very good, yet ye are still: delay not to go, and to enter in to possess the land.
10
And whensoever ye shall go, ye shall come in upon a people secure, and the land [is] extensive, for God has given it into your hand; a place where there is no want of anything that the earth affords.
11
And there departed thence of the families of Dan, from Saraa and from Esthaol, six hundred men, girded with weapons of war.
12
And they went up, and encamped in Cariathiarim in Juda; therefore it was called in that place the camp of Dan, until this day: behold, [it is] behind Cariathiarim.
13
And they went on thence to the mount of Ephraim, and came to the house of Michaias.
14
And the five men who went to spy out the land of Laisa answered, and said to their brethren, Ye know that there is in this place an ephod, and theraphin, and a graven and a molten image; and now consider what ye shall do.
15
And they turned aside there, and went into the house of the young man, the Levite, [even] into the house of Michaias, and asked him how he was.
16
And the six hundred men of the sons of Dan who were girded with their weapons of war stood by the door of the gate.
17
And the five men who went to spy out the land went up, and entered into the house of Michaias, and the priest stood.
18
And they took the graven image, and the ephod, and the theraphin, and the molten image; and the priest said to them, What are ye doing?
19
And they said to him, Be silent, lay thine hand upon thy mouth, and come with us, and be to us a father and a priest: [is it] better for thee to be the priest of the house of one man, or to be the priest of a tribe and house for a family of Israel?
20
And the heart of the priest was glad, and he took the ephod, and the theraphin, and the graven image, and the molten image, and went in the midst of the people.
21
So they turned and departed, and put their children and their property and their baggage before them.
22
They went some distance from the house of Michaias, and, behold, Michaias and the men in the houses near Michaias' house, cried out, and overtook the children of Dan.
23
And the children of Dan turned their face, and said to Michaias, What is the matter with thee that thou hast cried out?
24
And Michaias said, Because ye have taken my graven image which I made, and my priest, and are gone; and what have I remaining? and what [is] this [that] ye say to me, Why criest thou?
25
And the children of Dan said to him, Let not thy voice be heard with us, lest angry men run upon thee, and take away thy life, and the lives of thy house.
26
And the children of Dan went their way; and Michaias saw that they were stronger than himself, and he returned to his house.
27
And the children of Dan took what Michaias had made, and the priest that he had, and they came to Laisa, to a people quiet and secure; and they smote them with the edge of the sword, and burnt the city with fire.
28
And there was no deliverer, because [the city] is far from the Sidonians, and they have no intercourse with men, and it [is] in the valley of the house of Raab; and they built the city, and dwelt in it.
29
And they called the name of the city Dan, after the name of Dan their father, who was born to Israel; and the name of the city was Ulamais before.
30
And the children of Dan set up the graven image for themselves; and Jonathan son of Gerson son of Manasse, he and his sons were priests to the tribe of Dan till the time of the carrying away of the nation.
31
And they set up for themselves the graven image which Michaias made, all the days that the house of God was in Selom; and it was so in those days [that] there was no king in Israel.
vul1914 (vul1914) - Vulgate 1914 UTF-8 (sacredbible.org)
1
In diebus illis non erat rex in Israel, et tribus Dan quærebat possessionem sibi, ut habitaret in ea: usque ad illum enim diem inter ceteras tribus sortem non acceperat.
2
Miserunt ergo filii Dan, stirpis et familiæ suæ quinque viros fortissimos de Saraa et Esthaol, ut explorarent terram, et diligenter inspicerent: dixeruntque eis: Ite, et considerate terram. Qui cum pergentes venissent in montem Ephraim, et intrassent domum Michæ, requieverunt ibi:
3
et agnoscentes vocem adolescentis Levitæ, utentesque illius diversorio, dixerunt ad eum: Quis te huc adducit? quid hic agis? quam ob causam huc venire voluisti?
4
Qui respondit eis: Hæc, et hæc præstitit mihi Michas, et me mercede conduxit ut sim ei sacerdos.
5
Rogaverunt autem eum ut consuleret Dominum, ut scire possent an prospero itinere pergerent, et res haberet effectum.
6
Qui respondit eis: Ite in pace: Dominus respicit viam vestram, et iter quo pergitis.
7
Euntes igitur quinque viri venerunt Lais: videruntque populum habitantem in ea absque ullo timore, iuxta consuetudinem Sidoniorum, securum et quietum, nullo ei penitus resistente, magnarumque opum, et procul a Sidone atque a cunctis hominibus separatum.
8
Reversique ad fratres suos in Saraa et Esthaol, et quid egissent sciscitantibus responderunt:
9
Surgite, ascendamus ad eos: vidimus enim terram valde opulentam et uberem: nolite negligere, nolite cessare. eamus, et possideamus eam, nullus erit labor.
10
Intrabimus ad securos, in regionem latissimam, tradetque nobis Dominus locum, in quo nullius rei est penuria eorum, quæ gignuntur in terra.
11
Profecti igitur sunt de cognatione Dan, id est, de Saraa et Esthaol sexcenti viri accincti armis bellicis,
12
ascendentesque manserunt in Cariathiarim Iudæ: qui locus ex eo tempore Castrorum Dan, nomen accepit, et est post tergum Cariathiarim.
13
Inde transierunt in montem Ephraim. Cumque venissent ad domum Michæ,
14
dixerunt quinque viri, qui prius missi fuerant ad considerandam Terram Lais, ceteris fratribus suis: Nostis quod in domibus istis sit ephod, et theraphim, et sculptile, atque conflatile: videte quid vobis placeat.
15
Et cum paululum declinassent, ingressi sunt domum adolescentis Levitæ, qui erat in domo Michæ: salutaveruntque eum verbis pacificis.
16
Sexcenti autem viri ita ut erant armati, stabant ante ostium.
17
At illi, qui ingressi fuerant domum iuvenis, sculptile, et ephod, et theraphim, atque conflatile tollere nitebantur, et sacerdos stabat ante ostium, sexcentis viris fortissimis haud procul expectantibus.
18
Tulerunt igitur qui intraverant sculptile, ephod, et idola, atque conflatile. Quibus dixit sacerdos: Quid facitis?
19
Cui responderunt: Tace, et pone digitum super os tuum: venique nobiscum, ut habeamus te patrem, ac sacerdotem. Quid tibi melius est, ut sis sacerdos in domo unius viri, an in una tribu et familia in Israel?
20
Quod cum audisset, acquievit sermonibus eorum, et tulit ephod, et idola, ac sculptile, et profectus est cum eis.
21
Qui cum pergerent, et ante se ire fecissent parvulos ac iumenta, et omne quod erat pretiosum,
22
et iam a domo Michæ essent procul, viri qui habitabant in ædibus Michæ conclamantes secuti sunt,
23
et post tergum clamare cœperunt. Qui cum respexissent, dixerunt ad Micham: Quid tibi vis? cur clamas?
24
Qui respondit: Deos meos, quos mihi feci, tulistis, et sacerdotem, et omnia quæ habeo, et dicitis: Quid tibi est?
25
Dixeruntque ei filii Dan: Cave ne ultra loquaris ad nos, et veniant ad te viri animo concitati, et ipse cum omni domo tua pereas.
26
Et sic cœpto itinere perrexerunt. Videns autem Michas, quod fortiores se essent, reversus est in domum suam.
27
Sexcenti autem viri tulerunt sacerdotem, et quæ supra diximus: veneruntque in Lais ad populum quiescentem atque securum, et percusserunt eos in ore gladii: urbemque incendio tradiderunt,
28
nullo penitus ferente præsidium, eo quod procul habitarent a Sidone, et cum nullo hominum haberent quidquam societatis ac negotii. Erat autem civitas sita in regione Rohob: quam rursum extruentes habitaverunt in ea,
29
vocato nomine civitatis Dan iuxta vocabulum patris sui, quem genuerat Israel, quæ prius Lais dicebatur.
30
Posueruntque sibi sculptile, et Ionathan filium Gersam filii Moysi, ac filios eius sacerdotes in tribu Dan, usque ad diem captivitatis suæ.
31
Mansitque apud eos idolum Michæ omni tempore, quo fuit domus Dei in Silo. in diebus illis non erat rex in Israel.
web (web) - WorldEnglish.Bible — CC0 modern update of ASV
1
In those days there was no king in Israel. In those days the tribe of the Danites sought an inheritance to dwell in; for to that day, their inheritance had not fallen to them among the tribes of Israel.
2
The children of Dan sent five men of their family from their whole number, men of valor, from Zorah and from Eshtaol, to spy out the land and to search it. They said to them, “Go, explore the land!†They came to the hill country of Ephraim, to the house of Micah, and lodged there.
3
When they were by the house of Micah, they knew the voice of the young man the Levite; so they went over there and said to him, “Who brought you here? What do you do in this place? What do you have here?â€
4
He said to them, “Thus and thus has Micah dealt with me, and he has hired me, and I have become his priest.â€
5
They said to him, “Please ask counsel of God, that we may know whether our way which we go shall be prosperous.â€
6
The priest said to them, “Go in peace. Your way in which you go is before the LORD.â€
7
Then the five men departed and came to Laish and saw the people who were there, how they lived in safety, in the way of the Sidonians, quiet and secure; for there was no one in the land possessing authority, that might put them to shame in anything, and they were far from the Sidonians, and had no dealings with anyone else.
8
They came to their brothers at Zorah and Eshtaol; and their brothers asked them, “What do you say?â€
9
They said, “Arise, and let’s go up against them; for we have seen the land, and behold, it is very good. Do you stand still? Don’t be slothful to go and to enter in to possess the land.
10
When you go, you will come to an unsuspecting people, and the land is large; for God has given it into your hand, a place where there is no lack of anything that is in the earth.â€
11
The family of the Danites set out from Zorah and Eshtaol with six hundred men armed with weapons of war.
12
They went up and encamped in Kiriath Jearim in Judah. Therefore they call that place Mahaneh Dan to this day. Behold, it is behind Kiriath Jearim.
13
They passed from there to the hill country of Ephraim, and came to the house of Micah.
14
Then the five men who went to spy out the country of Laish answered and said to their brothers, “Do you know that there is in these houses an ephod, and teraphim, and a carved image, and a molten image? Now therefore consider what you have to do.â€
15
They went over there and came to the house of the young Levite man, even to the house of Micah, and asked him how he was doing.
16
The six hundred men armed with their weapons of war, who were of the children of Dan, stood by the entrance of the gate.
17
The five men who went to spy out the land went up, and came in there, and took the engraved image, the ephod, the teraphim, and the molten image; and the priest stood by the entrance of the gate with the six hundred men armed with weapons of war.
18
When these went into Micah’s house, and took the engraved image, the ephod, the teraphim, and the molten image, the priest said to them, “What are you doing?â€
19
They said to him, “Hold your peace, put your hand on your mouth, and go with us. Be a father and a priest to us. Is it better for you to be priest to the house of one man, or to be priest to a tribe and a family in Israel?â€
20
The priest’s heart was glad, and he took the ephod, the teraphim, and the engraved image, and went with the people.
21
So they turned and departed, and put the little ones, the livestock, and the goods before them.
22
When they were a good way from the house of Micah, the men who were in the houses near Micah’s house gathered together and overtook the children of Dan.
23
As they called to the children of Dan, they turned their faces, and said to Micah, “What ails you, that you come with such a company?â€
24
He said, “You have taken away my gods which I made, and the priest, and have gone away! What more do I have? How can you ask me, ‘What ails you?’â€
25
The children of Dan said to him, “Don’t let your voice be heard among us, lest angry fellows fall on you, and you lose your life, with the lives of your household.â€
26
The children of Dan went their way; and when Micah saw that they were too strong for him, he turned and went back to his house.
27
They took that which Micah had made, and the priest whom he had, and came to Laish, to a people quiet and unsuspecting, and struck them with the edge of the sword; then they burned the city with fire.
28
There was no deliverer, because it was far from Sidon, and they had no dealings with anyone else; and it was in the valley that lies by Beth Rehob. They built the city and lived in it.
29
They called the name of the city Dan, after the name of Dan their father, who was born to Israel; however the name of the city used to be Laish.
30
The children of Dan set up for themselves the engraved image; and Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of Moses, and his sons were priests to the tribe of the Danites until the day of the captivity of the land.
31
So they set up for themselves Micah’s engraved image which he made, and it remained all the time that God’s house was in Shiloh.
ylt (ylt) - Bible.com YLT98 plain UTF-8
1
In those days there is no king in Israel, and in those days the tribe of the Danite is seeking for itself an inheritance to inhabit, for <FI>that<Fi> hath not fallen to it unto that day in the midst of the tribes of Israel by inheritance.
2
And the sons of Dan send, out of their family, five men of them, men, sons of valour, from Zorah, and from Eshtaol, to traverse the land, and to search it, and they say unto them, `Go, search the land;' and they come into the hill-country of Ephraim, unto the house of Micah, and lodge there.
3
They <FI>are<Fi> with the household of Micah, and they have discerned the voice of the young man, the Levite, and turn aside there, and say to him, `Who hath brought thee hither? and what art thou doing in this <FI>place?<Fi> and what to thee here?'
4
And he saith unto them, `Thus and thus hath Micah done to me; and he hireth me, and I am to him for a priest.'
5
And they say to him, `Ask, we pray thee, at God, and we know whether our way is prosperous on which we are going.'
6
And the priest saith to them, `Go in peace; over-against Jehovah <FI>is<Fi> your way in which ye go.'
7
And the five men go, and come in to Laish, and see the people which <FI>is<Fi> in its midst, dwelling confidently, according to the custom of Zidonians, quiet and confident; and there is none putting to shame in the land in <FI>any<Fi> thing, possessing restraint, and they <FI>are<Fi> far off from the Zidonians, and have no word with <FI>any<Fi> man.
8
And they come in unto their brethren, at Zorah and Eshtaol, and their brethren say to them, `What--ye?'
9
And they say, `Rise, and we go up against them, for we have seen the land, and lo, very good; and ye are keeping silent! be not slothful to go--to enter to possess the land.
10
When ye go, ye come in unto a people confident, and the land <FI>is<Fi> large on both hands, for God hath given it into your hand, a place where there is no lack of anything which <FI>is<Fi> in the land.'
11
And there journey thence, of the family of the Danite, from Zorah, and from Eshtaol, six hundred men girded with weapons of war.
12
And they go up and encamp in Kirjath-Jearim, in Judah, therefore they have called that place, `Camp of Dan,' till this day; lo, behind Kirjath-Jearim.
13
And they pass over thence <FI>to<Fi> the hill-country of Ephraim, and come in unto the house of Micah.
14
And the five men, those going to traverse the land of Laish, answer and say unto their brethren, `Have ye known that there is in these houses an ephod, and teraphim, and graven image, and molten image? and now, know what ye do.'
15
And they turn aside thither, and come in unto the house of the young man the Levite, the house of Micah, and ask of him of welfare, --
16
(and the six hundred men girded with their weapons of war, who <FI>are<Fi> of the sons of Dan, are standing at the opening of the gate), --
17
yea, the five men, those going to traverse the land, go up--they have come in thither--they have taken the graven image, and the ephod, and the teraphim, and the molten image--and the priest is standing at the opening of the gate, and the six hundred men who are girded with weapons of war--
18
yea, these have entered the house of Micah, and take the graven image, the ephod, and the teraphim, and the molten image; and the priest saith unto them, `What are ye doing?'
19
and they say to him, `Keep silent, lay thy hand on thy mouth, and go with us, and be to us for a father and for a priest: is it better thy being a priest to the house of one man, or thy being priest to a tribe and to a family in Israel?'
20
And the heart of the priest is glad, and he taketh the ephod, and the teraphim, and the graven image, and goeth into the midst of the people,
21
and they turn and go, and put the infants, and the cattle, and the baggage, before them.
22
They have been far off from the house of Micah--and the men who <FI>are<Fi> in the houses which <FI>are<Fi> near the house of Micah have been called together, and overtake the sons of Dan,
23
and call unto the sons of Dan, and they turn round their faces, and say to Micah, `What--to thee that thou hast been called together?'
24
And he saith, `My gods which I made ye have taken, and the priest, and ye go; and what to me more? and what <FI>is<Fi> this ye say unto me, What--to thee!'
25
And the sons of Dan say unto him, `Let not thy voice be heard with us, lest men bitter in soul fall upon you, and thou hast gathered thy life, and the life of thy household;'
26
and the sons of Dan go on their way, and Micah seeth that they are stronger than he, and turneth, and goeth back unto his house.
27
And they have taken that which Micah had made, and the priest whom he had, and come in against Laish, against a people quiet and confident, and smite them by the mouth of the sword, and the city have burnt with fire,
28
and there is no deliverer, for it <FI>is<Fi> far off from Zidon, and they have no word with <FI>any<Fi> man, and it <FI>is<Fi> in the valley which <FI>is<Fi> by Beth-Rehob; and they build the city, and dwell in it,
29
and call the name of the city Dan, by the name of Dan their father, who was born to Israel; and yet Laish <FI>is<Fi> the name of the city at the first.
30
And the sons of Dan raise up for themselves the graven image, and Jonathan son of Gershom, son of Manasseh, he and his sons have been priests to the tribe of the Danite, till the day of the removal of <FI>the people<Fi> of the land.
31
And they appoint for them the graven image of Micah, which he had made, all the days of the house of God being in Shiloh.
Explanations by Age Level
Explain Like I'm 5
A long, long time ago, there was nothing at all - no earth, no sky, no animals, no people. It was all dark and empty. But God was there! God is so powerful that He can make anything just by speaking. So God said "Let there be light!" and BOOM! There was light everywhere! God saw that the light was beautiful and good. He called the light "day" and the darkness "night." This was the very first day when God started making our wonderful world!
Explain Like I'm 10
Before anything existed - no planets, stars, or life - God decided to create the universe. The earth started out as a dark, empty place covered with water. But God's Spirit was there, ready to bring order and beauty to everything. When God spoke and said "Let there be light," light immediately appeared because God's words have incredible power. God looked at the light and was pleased with what He had made. He organized time by separating light (day) from darkness (night), creating the first 24-hour period. This shows us that God is organized and purposeful in everything He does.
Explain Like I'm 15
Genesis 1:1-5 establishes fundamental theological truths about God and creation. The Hebrew word "bara" (created) indicates creation from nothing (ex nihilo), demonstrating God's absolute sovereignty and power. The phrase "without form and void" (tohu wa-bohu) describes a state of chaos that God transforms into order. The Spirit of God "hovering" or "brooding" over the waters suggests active, caring involvement in creation. The creation of light before the sun (created on day 4) indicates that God Himself is the ultimate source of light and energy. The establishment of day and night creates the framework of time, showing that God operates within orderly patterns while transcending them. This passage refutes both atheistic materialism and pantheism, establishing that God is both transcendent (separate from creation) and immanent (actively involved in it).