Judges 18

NEW JERUSALEM	CATHOLIC PUBLIC DOMAIN
1 In those days there was no king in Israel. Now in those days the tribe of Dan was in search of aterritory to live in, for until then no territory had fallen to them among the tribes of Israel.	1 In those days, there was no king in Israel. And the tribe of Dan sought a possession for themselves, so that they might live in it. For even to that day, they had not received their lot among the other tribes.
2 From their clan the Danites sent five brave men from Zorah and Eshtaol to reconnoitre the country andexplore it. They said to them, 'Go and explore the country.' The five men came to the highlands of Ephraim, asfar as Micah's house, and spent the night there.	2 Therefore, the sons of Dan sent five very strong men, of their stock and family, from Zorah and Eshtaol, so that they might explore the land and diligently inspect it. And they said to them, “Go, and consider the land.” And after traveling, they arrived at mount Ephraim, and they entered into the house of Micah. There they rested.
3 When they were near Micah's house, they recognised the voice of the young Levite and, going nearer,said to him, 'Who brought you here? What are you doing here? What is keeping you here?'	3 And they recognized the speech of the youth who was a Levite. And while making use of an inn with him, they said to him: “Who brought you here? What are you doing here? For what reason did you want to come here?”
4 He replied, 'Micah has made certain arrangements with me. He pays me a wage and I act as hispriest.'	4 And he answered them, “Micah has offered me one thing and another, and he has paid me wages, so that I may be his priest.”
5 They replied, 'Then consult God, so that we may know whether the journey we are on wil lead tosuccess.'	5 Then they begged him to consult the Lord, so that they might be able to know whether the journey they undertook would be prosperous, and whether the matter would have success.
6 The priest replied, 'Go in peace; Yahweh is watching over your journey.'	6 And he responded to them, “Go in peace. The Lord looks with favor on your path, and on the journey that you have undertaken.”
7 The five men then left and, arriving at Laish, saw that the people living there had an untroubledexistence, according to the customs of the Sidonians, peaceful and trusting, that there was no lack or shortageof any sort in the territory, that they were a long way away from the Sidonians and that they had no contact withthe Aramaeans.	7 And so the five men, going on, arrived at Laish. And they saw the people, living in it without any fear, according to the custom of the Sidonians, secure and peaceful, having hardly anyone to oppose them, and with great wealth, and living separately, far from Sidon and from all men.
8 They then went back to their brothers at Zorah and Eshtaol and, when the latter asked them, 'Whathave you to report?'	8 And they returned to their brothers at Zorah and Eshtaol, who questioned them as to what they had done. And they responded:
9 they said, 'Up! we must go against them, since we have looked at the country and it is excellent,though you take no action! Waste no time in setting out and taking possession of the country.	9 “Rise up. Let us ascend to them. For we have seen that the land is very wealthy and fruitful. Do not delay; do not refrain. Let us go out and possess it. There will be no difficulty.
10 When you get there, you wil find a trusting people. The country is wide, and God has put it at yourmercy. It is a place where there is no lack of anything on earth.'	10 We shall enter to those who dwell securely, in a very wide region, and the Lord will deliver the place to us, a place in which there is no lack of anything that grows upon the earth.”
11 From these places, consequently, from the clan of Danites at Zorah and Eshtaol, six hundred men setout equipped for war.	11 And so, those of the kindred of Dan set out, that is, six hundred men from Zorah and Eshtaol, girded with the weapons of warfare.
12 They went up and camped at Kiriath-Jearim in Judah; and for this reason the place is stil cal ed theCamp of Dan today. It lies to the west of Kiriath-Jearim.	12 And going up, they stayed at Kiriath-jearim of Judah. And so the place, from that time, received the name the Camp of Dan, and it is behind the back of Kiriath-jearim.
13 From there they entered the highlands of Ephraim and came to Micah's house.	13 From there, they crossed over to mount Ephraim. And when they had arrived at the house of Micah,
14 The five men who had been to reconnoitre the country then spoke to their brothers. 'Do you know',they said, 'that in these houses there is an ephod, some domestic images, a carved statue and an idol cast inmetal? So now work out what you have got to do!'	14 the five men, who before had been sent to consider the land of Laish, said to the rest of their brothers: “You know that in these houses there is an ephod and theraphim, and a molten idol and a graven image. Consider what it may please you to do.”
15 So, turning off the road, they went to the young Levite's dwelling, to Micah's house, and greeted himpeaceful y.	15 And when they had turned aside a little, they entered the house of the Levite youth, who was in the house of Micah. And they greeted him with peaceful words.
16 While the six hundred men of the Danites, equipped for war, stood at the threshold of the gate,	16 Now the six hundred men, who were all armed, were standing before the door.
17 the five who had been to reconnoitre the country went on into the house and took the carved statue,the ephod, the domestic images and the idol cast in metal; meanwhile the priest remained at the threshold of thegate with the six hundred men equipped for war.	17 But those who had entered the house of the youth strove to take away the graven image, and the ephod, and the theraphim, and the molten idol. But the priest was standing in front of the door, with the six hundred very strong men waiting not far away.
18 These men, having entered Micah's house, took the carved statue, the ephod, the domestic imagesand the idol cast in metal. The priest, however, said, 'What are you doing?'	18 And so, those who had entered took away the graven image, the ephod, and the theraphim, and the molten idol. And the priest said to them, “What are you doing?”
19 'Be quiet,' they replied. 'Put your hand over your mouth and come with us, and become our father andpriest. Are you better off as domestic priest to one man, or as priest to a tribe and clan in Israel?'	19 And they responded to him: “Be silent and place your finger over your mouth. And come with us, so that we may have you as a father as well as a priest. For which is better for you: to be a priest in the house of one man, or in one tribe and family in Israel?”
20 The priest was delighted; he took the ephod, the domestic images and the carved statue, and wentoff among the people.	20 And when he had heard this, he agreed to their words. And he took the ephod, and the idols, and the graven image, and he set out with them.
21 Resuming their original line of march, they set off, having put the women, children, livestock andbaggage out in front.	21 And while traveling, they had also sent the children, and the cattle, and all that was valuable to go ahead of them.
22 They had gone some distance from Micah's house, when the people living in the houses near Micah'shouse raised the alarm and set off in pursuit of the Danites.	22 And when they were far from the house of Micah, the men who were living in the houses of Micah, crying out together, followed them.
23 As they shouted after the Danites, the latter, turning about, said to Micah, 'What is the matter withyou, that you are shouting like this?'	23 And they began to shout behind their backs. And when they had looked back, they said to Micah: “What do you want? Why are you crying out?”
24 He replied, 'You have taken away my god, which I have had made, and the priest as wel . You aregoing away, and what have I got left? And now you ask me, "What is the matter?" '	24 And he responded: “You have taken away my gods, which I made for myself, and the priest, and all that I have. And do you say, ‘What is it that you want?’ ”
25 The Danites said, 'Let us hear no more from you, or quick-tempered men may set about you, and thismight cost you your life and the lives of your family!'	25 And the sons of Dan said to him, “Take care that you no longer speak to us, otherwise men with a mind for violence may overwhelm you, and you yourself would perish with all your house.”
26 So the Danites went on their way; and Micah, seeing that they were the stronger, turned and wenthome.	26 And so, they continued on the journey that they had begun. But Micah, seeing that they were stronger than he was, returned to his house.
27 So, having taken the god made by Micah, and the priest who had been his, the Danites marched onLaish, on a peaceful and trusting people. They put it to the sword and they burned down the town.	27 Now the six hundred men took the priest, and the things we stated above, and they went to Laish, to a people quiet and secure, and they struck them down with the edge of the sword. And they burned the city with fire.
28 There was no one to come to the rescue, since it was a long way from Sidon and had no contact withthe Aramaeans. It lay in the valley running towards Beth-Rehob. They rebuilt the town and settled in it	28 For no one at all sent reinforcements, because they lived far away from Sidon, and they had no association or business with any man. Now the city was situated in the region of Rehob. And building it up again, they lived in it,
29 and cal ed it Dan, from the name of Dan their ancestor who had been born to Israel; original y,however, the town had been called Laish.	29 calling the name of the city Dan, according to the name of their father, who had been born of Israel, though before it was called Laish.
30 The Danites erected the carved statue for themselves. Jonathan son of Gershom, son of Moses, andhis sons after him were priests for the tribe of Dan til the day when the inhabitants of the country were carriedaway into exile.	30 And they established for themselves the graven image. And Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of Moses, with his sons, were priests in the tribe of Dan, even until the day of their captivity.
31 The carved statue made by Micah they instal ed for their own use, and there it stayed as long as thehouse of God remained at Shiloh.	31 And the idol of Micah remained with them during the entire time that the house of God was in Shiloh. In those days, there was no king in Israel.