Judges 18:16 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Now the 600 men of the Danites, armed with their weapons of war, stood by the entrance of the gate.

NIV: The six hundred Danites, armed for battle, stood at the entrance of the gate.

NASB: Meanwhile, the six hundred men armed with their weapons of war, who were of the sons of Dan, were positioned at the entrance of the gate.

CSB: The six hundred Danite men were standing by the entrance of the city gate, armed with their weapons of war.

NLT: As the 600 armed warriors from the tribe of Dan stood at the entrance of the gate,

KJV: 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.

NKJV: The six hundred men armed with their weapons of war, who were of the children of Dan, stood by the entrance of the gate.

Scouts sent from the tribe of Dan had passed through Micah's home (Judges 17:1–5, 13) on a previous occasion (Judges 18:1–6). Then, they were on their way to find territory for their tribe in northern Israel. They found an unsuspecting group of Sidonians in a perfect spot for small tribe of Israelites looking for a home. They are now on their way to attack those people and take their town (Judges 18:11–13).

As they make their way back, the five Danites are not alone. They come as part of a small army: six hundred armed warriors who now stand outside the gates of Micah's property. This is a deliberate show of force. Not long before, the five men had made not-at-all subtle references to Micah's wealth in the form of his religious artifacts (Judges 18:14–15). It's clear these men have come to take what they want from Micah before continuing north.

Judges 18:14–31 describes how the migrating people of the tribe of Dan steal from Micah (Judges 18:1–5). They take his collection of expensive idols and religious totems. His hired Levite priest accepts the Danites' invitation to come along with the raiders. Micah and his neighbors desperately chase, but the Danite forces are too large to risk attacking. The Danites arrive at Laish, in the north, and slaughter its peaceful, unprepared Sidonian occupants. They take possession of the town, rename it Dan, and establish a nexus of false worship.

The people of the tribe of Dan want to relocate because they failed to take their allotted territory in the Promised Land. They send five scouts to find land. The men stop at Micah's home (Judges 17:1–5, 13) and meet his priest before continuing north. They find Laish and realize it's a soft, vulnerable, peaceful town. A six hundred-man army and their families stop at Micah's home to steal his house gods and hired priest. When they arrive at Laish, the Danites slaughter the Sidonians living there, burn the city, rebuild it, and move in. Dan becomes a center of false worship.

In the prior chapter, Micah hires a personal cleric for his family religion. Judges 18 describes how he loses all his religious objects and that priest to raiders from the tribe of Dan. That convoy continues north to their target, the town of Laish. This town was selected, in part, for being helpless against attackers. The raiders rename the city "Dan." The people and the priest establish a center for false worship which lasts for centuries. Joshua 19:40–48 describes how Dan moved from their allotted land into this unapproved territory (Joshua 17).

The Book of Judges describes Israel's history from the death of Joshua to shortly before Israel's first king, Saul. Israel fails to complete God's command to purge the wicked Canaanites from the land (Deuteronomy 7:1–5; 9:4). This results in a centuries-long cycle where Israel falls into sin and is oppressed by local enemies. After each oppression, God sends a civil-military leader, labeled using a Hebrew word loosely translated into English as "judge." These appointed rescuers would free Israel from enemy control and govern for a certain time. After each judge's death, the cycle of sin and oppression begins again. This continues until the people of Israel choose a king, during the ministry of the prophet-and-judge Samuel (1 Samuel 1—7).

Accessed 4/29/2024 7:50:53 PM