2tnHeb “because there had not fallen to them by that day in the midst of the tribes of Israel an inheritance.”
3tnHeb “The Danites sent from their tribe five men, from their borders.”
4tnHeb “men, sons of strength.”
5tnHeb “They came to the Ephraimite hill country, to Micah’s house, and spent the night there.”
6tn Or “When they were near.”
7tnHeb “voice.” This probably means that “his speech was Judahite [i.e., southern] like their own, not Israelite [i.e., northern]” (R. G. Boling, Judges [AB], 263).
8tnHeb “turned aside.”
9tnHeb “What [is there] to you here?”
10tnHeb “He said to them, ‘Such and such Micah has done for me.’” Though the statement is introduced and presented, at least in part, as a direct quotation (note especially “for me”), the phrase “such and such” appears to be the narrator’s condensed version of what the Levite really said.
11tnHeb “Ask God.”
12tnHeb “so we can know if our way on which we are going will be successful.”
13tnHeb “in peace.”
14tnHeb “In front of the LORD is your way in which you are going.”
15tn Or “went.”
16tnHeb “who were in its midst.”
17tnHeb “according to the custom of the Sidonians.”
18tnHeb “and there was no one humiliating anything in the land, one taking possession [by] force.”
19tcHeb “and a thing there was not to them with men.” Codex Alexandrinus (A) of the LXX and Symmachus read “Syria” here rather than the MT’s “men.” This reading presupposes a Hebrew Vorlage אֲרָם (’aram, “Aram,” i.e., Arameans) rather than the MT reading אָדָם (’adam). This reading is possibly to be preferred over the MT.
20tnHeb “They came to their brothers.”
21tnHeb “brothers.”
22tnHeb “What you?”
23tnHeb “Arise, and let us go up against them.”
24tc Codex Alexandrinus (A) of the LXX adds “we entered and walked around in the land as far as Laish and.”
25tnHeb “But you are inactive.”
26tn Or “be lazy.”
27tnHeb “to go”; “to enter”; “to possess.”
28tnHeb “When you enter.”
29tnHeb “you will come to.”
30tnHeb “broad of hands,” an idiom meaning “wide on both sides.”
31tnHeb “a place where there is no lack of anything that is in the earth.”
32tnHeb “They journeyed from there, from the tribe of the Danites, from Zorah and from Eshtaol, six hundred men, equipped with weapons of war.”
33tn Or “Mahaneh Dan”; the Hebrew term “Mahaneh” means “camp [of].” Many English versions retain the transliterated Hebrew expression, but cf. CEV “Dan’s Camp.”
34tnHeb “behind.”
35tc Codex Alexandrinus (A) of the LXX lacks the phrase “of Laish.”
36tnHeb “brothers.”
37tnHeb “turned aside.”
38tnHeb “Micah’s house.”
39tnHeb “they asked him concerning peace.”
40tnHeb “And the six hundred men, equipped with the weapons of war…from the sons of Dan.”
41tnHeb “went up, went in there, took.”
42tnHeb “six hundred men, equipped with the weapons of war.”
43tnHeb “These went into Micah’s house and took.”
44tn See the note on the word “adviser” in 17:10.
45tnHeb “Is it better for you to be priest for the house of one man or for you to be priest for a tribe, for a clan in Israel?”
46tnHeb “and went into the midst of the people.”
47tnHeb “They turned and went and put the children, the cattle, and the possessions in front of them.”
48tnHeb “the men who were in the houses near Micah’s house.”
49tnHeb “they”; the referent (the Danites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
50tnHeb “What is this you say to me, ‘What to you?’”
51tnHeb “bitter in spirit.” This phrase is used in 2 Sam 17:8 of David and his warriors, who are compared to a bear robbed of her cubs.
52tnHeb “and you will gather up your life and the life of your house.”
53tnHeb “saw.”
54tnHeb “they were stronger than he.”
55tnHeb “they”; the referent (the Danites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
56tn The Hebrew adds “with fire.” This has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons, because it is redundant in English.
57tnHeb “it.” The Hebrew pronoun is feminine singular here, referring to the “city” (a grammatically feminine singular noun) mentioned in v. 27.
58map For location see Map1-A1; JP3-F3; JP4-F3.
59tnHeb “and a thing there was not to them with men.”
60tnHeb “it.” The Hebrew pronoun is feminine singular here, referring to the “city” (a grammatically feminine singular noun) mentioned in v. 27.
61tnHeb “They”; the referent (the Danites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
62tnHeb “They called the name of the city Dan, after the name of Dan their father, who had been born to Israel.”
63tnHeb “erected for themselves.”
64tnHeb “son.”
65tc Several ancient textual witnesses, including some LXX mss and the Vulgate, support the reading “Moses” (מֹשֶׁה, mosheh) here. Many Hebrew mss have a nun (נ) suspended above the name between the first two letters (מנשׁה), suggesting the name Manasseh (מְנַשֶּׁה, m˙nasheh). This is probably a scribal attempt to protect Moses’ reputation. For discussion, see G. F. Moore, Judges (ICC), 401-2.