| English Standard Version | NET Bible |
| 1In those days there was no king in Israel. And in those days the tribe of the people of Dan was seeking for itself an inheritance to dwell in, for until then no inheritance among the tribes of Israel had fallen to them. | 1In those days Israel had no king. And in those days the Danite tribe was looking for a place to settle, because at that time they did not yet have a place to call their own among the tribes of Israel. |
| 2So the people of Dan sent five able men from the whole number of their tribe, from Zorah and from Eshtaol, to spy out the land and to explore it. And they said to them, “Go and explore the land.” And they came to the hill country of Ephraim, to the house of Micah, and lodged there. | 2The Danites sent out from their whole tribe five representatives, capable men from Zorah and Eshtaol, to spy out the land and explore it. They said to them, "Go, explore the land." They came to the Ephraimite hill country and spent the night at Micah's house. |
| 3When they were by the house of Micah, they recognized the voice of the young Levite. And they turned aside and said to him, “Who brought you here? What are you doing in this place? What is your business here?” | 3As they approached Micah's house, they recognized the accent of the young Levite. So they stopped there and said to him, "Who brought you here? What are you doing in this place? What is your business here?" |
| 4And he said to them, “This is how Micah dealt with me: he has hired me, and I have become his priest.” | 4He told them what Micah had done for him, saying, "He hired me and I became his priest." |
| 5And they said to him, “Inquire of God, please, that we may know whether the journey on which we are setting out will succeed.” | 5They said to him, "Seek a divine oracle for us, so we can know if we will be successful on our mission." |
| 6And the priest said to them, “Go in peace. The journey on which you go is under the eye of the LORD.” | 6The priest said to them, "Go with confidence. The LORD will be with you on your mission." |
| 7Then the five men departed and came to Laish and saw the people who were there, how they lived in security, after the manner of the Sidonians, quiet and unsuspecting, lacking nothing that is in the earth and possessing wealth, and how they were far from the Sidonians and had no dealings with anyone. | 7So the five men journeyed on and arrived in Laish. They noticed that the people there were living securely, like the Sidonians do, undisturbed and unsuspecting. No conqueror was troubling them in any way. They lived far from the Sidonians and had no dealings with anyone. |
| 8And when they came to their brothers at Zorah and Eshtaol, their brothers said to them, “What do you report?” | 8When the Danites returned to their tribe in Zorah and Eshtaol, their kinsmen asked them, "How did it go?" |
| 9They said, “Arise, and let us go up against them, for we have seen the land, and behold, it is very good. And will you do nothing? Do not be slow to go, to enter in and possess the land. | 9They said, "Come on, let's attack them, for we saw their land and it is very good. You seem lethargic, but don't hesitate to invade and conquer the land. |
| 10As soon as you go, you will come to an unsuspecting people. The land is spacious, for God has given it into your hands, a place where there is no lack of anything that is in the earth.” | 10When you invade, you will encounter unsuspecting people. The land is wide! God is handing it over to you--a place that lacks nothing on earth!" |
| 11So 600 men of the tribe of Dan, armed with weapons of war, set out from Zorah and Eshtaol, | 11So six hundred Danites, fully armed, set out from Zorah and Eshtaol. |
| 12and went up and encamped at Kiriath-jearim in Judah. On this account that place is called Mahaneh-dan to this day; behold, it is west of Kiriath-jearim. | 12They went up and camped in Kiriath Jearim in Judah. (To this day that place is called Camp of Dan. It is west of Kiriath Jearim.) |
| 13And they passed on from there to the hill country of Ephraim, and came to the house of Micah. | 13From there they traveled through the Ephraimite hill country and arrived at Micah's house. |
| 14Then the five men who had gone to scout out the country of Laish said to their brothers, “Do you know that in these houses there are an ephod, household gods, a carved image, and a metal image? Now therefore consider what you will do.” | 14The five men who had gone to spy out the land of Laish said to their kinsmen, "Do you realize that inside these houses are an ephod, some personal idols, a carved image, and a metal image? Decide now what you want to do." |
| 15And they turned aside there and came to the house of the young Levite, at the home of Micah, and asked him about his welfare. | 15They stopped there, went inside the young Levite's house (which belonged to Micah), and asked him how he was doing. |
| 16Now the 600 men of the Danites, armed with their weapons of war, stood by the entrance of the gate. | 16Meanwhile the six hundred Danites, fully armed, stood at the entrance to the gate. |
| 17And the five men who had gone to scout out the land went up and entered and took the carved image, the ephod, the household gods, and the metal image, while the priest stood by the entrance of the gate with the 600 men armed with weapons of war. | 17The five men who had gone to spy out the land broke in and stole the carved image, the ephod, the personal idols, and the metal image, while the priest was standing at the entrance to the gate with the six hundred fully armed men. |
| 18And when these went into Micah’s house and took the carved image, the ephod, the household gods, and the metal image, the priest said to them, “What are you doing?” | 18When these men broke into Micah's house and stole the carved image, the ephod, the personal idols, and the metal image, the priest said to them, "What are you doing?" |
| 19And they said to him, “Keep quiet; put your hand on your mouth and come with us and be to us a father and a priest. Is it better for you to be priest to the house of one man, or to be priest to a tribe and clan in Israel?” | 19They said to him, "Shut up! Put your hand over your mouth and come with us! You can be our adviser and priest. Wouldn't it be better to be a priest for a whole Israelite tribe than for just one man's family?" |
| 20And the priest’s heart was glad. He took the ephod and the household gods and the carved image and went along with the people. | 20The priest was happy. He took the ephod, the personal idols, and the carved image and joined the group. |
| 21So they turned and departed, putting the little ones and the livestock and the goods in front of them. | 21They turned and went on their way, but they walked behind the children, the cattle, and their possessions. |
| 22When they had gone a distance from the home of Micah, the men who were in the houses near Micah’s house were called out, and they overtook the people of Dan. | 22After they had gone a good distance from Micah's house, Micah's neighbors gathered together and caught up with the Danites. |
| 23And they shouted to the people of Dan, who turned around and said to Micah, “What is the matter with you, that you come with such a company?” | 23When they called out to the Danites, the Danites turned around and said to Micah, "Why have you gathered together?" |
| 24And he said, “You take my gods that I made and the priest, and go away, and what have I left? How then do you ask me, ‘What is the matter with you?’” | 24He said, "You stole my gods that I made, as well as this priest, and then went away. What do I have left? How can you have the audacity to say to me, 'What do you want?'" |
| 25And the people of Dan said to him, “Do not let your voice be heard among us, lest angry fellows fall upon you, and you lose your life with the lives of your household.” | 25The Danites said to him, "Don't say another word to us, or some very angry men will attack you, and you and your family will die." |
| 26Then the people of Dan went their way. And when Micah saw that they were too strong for him, he turned and went back to his home. | 26The Danites went on their way; when Micah realized they were too strong to resist, he turned around and went home. |
| 27But the people of Dan took what Micah had made, and the priest who belonged to him, and they came to Laish, to a people quiet and unsuspecting, and struck them with the edge of the sword and burned the city with fire. | 27Now the Danites took what Micah had made, as well as his priest, and came to Laish, where the people were undisturbed and unsuspecting. They struck them down with the sword and burned the city. |
| 28And there was no deliverer because it was far from Sidon, and they had no dealings with anyone. It was in the valley that belongs to Beth-rehob. Then they rebuilt the city and lived in it. | 28No one came to the rescue because the city was far from Sidon and they had no dealings with anyone. The city was in a valley near Beth Rehob. The Danites rebuilt the city and occupied it. |
| 29And they named the city Dan, after the name of Dan their ancestor, who was born to Israel; but the name of the city was Laish at the first. | 29They named it Dan after their ancestor, who was one of Israel's sons. But the city's name used to be Laish. |
| 30And the people of Dan set up the carved image for themselves, and Jonathan the son of Gershom, son of Moses, and his sons were priests to the tribe of the Danites until the day of the captivity of the land. | 30The Danites worshiped the carved image. Jonathan, descendant of Gershom, son of Moses, and his descendants served as priests for the tribe of Dan until the time of the exile. |
| 31So they set up Micah’s carved image that he made, as long as the house of God was at Shiloh. | 31They worshiped Micah's carved image the whole time God's authorized shrine was in Shiloh. |
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