[ Judges Chapter 17 ]
1 And there was a man of mount Ephraim, whose name was Micah.
2 And he said unto his mother, The eleven hundred shekels of silver that were
taken from thee, about which thou cursedst, and spakest of also in mine ears,
behold, the silver is with me, I took it. And his mother said, Blessed be thou
of the LORD, my son.
3 And when he had restored the eleven hundred shekels of silver to his mother,
his mother said, I had wholly dedicated the silver unto the LORD from my hand
for my son, to make a graven image and a molten image: now therefore I will
restore it unto thee.
4 Yet he restored the money unto his mother, and his mother took two hundred
shekels of silver, and gave them to the founder, who made thereof a graven image
and a molten image: and they were in the house of Micah.
5 And the man Micah had an house of gods, and made an ephod, and teraphim, and
consecrated one of his sons, who became his priest.
6 In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was
right in his own eyes.
7 And there was a young man out of Bethlehemjudah of the family of Judah, who
was a Levite, and he sojourned there.
8 And the man departed out of the city from Bethlehemjudah to sojourn where he
could find a place: and he came to mount Ephraim to the house of Micah, as he
journeyed.
9 And Micah said unto him, Whence comest thou? And he said unto him, I am a
Levite of Bethlehemjudah, and I go to sojourn where I may find a place.
10 And Micah said unto him, Dwell with me, and be unto me a father and a priest,
and I will give thee ten shekels of silver by the year, and a suit of apparel,
and thy victuals. So the Levite went in.
11 And the Levite was content to dwell with the man, and the young man was unto
him as one of his sons.
12 And Micah consecrated the Levite, and the young man became his priest, and
was in the house of Micah.
13 Then said Micah, Now know I that the LORD will do me good, seeing I have a
Levite to my priest.
[ Judges Chapter 18 ]
1 In those days there was no king in Israel: and in those days the tribe of the
Danites sought them an inheritance to dwell in, for unto that day all their
inheritance had not fallen unto them among the tribes of Israel.
2 And the children of Dan sent of their family five men from their coasts, men
of valour, from Zorah, and from Eshtaol, to spy out the land, and to search it,
and they said unto them, Go, search the land: who when they came to mount
Ephraim, to the house of Micah, they 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 unto him, Who brought thee hither?
and what makest thou in this place? and what hast thou here?
4 And he said unto them, Thus and thus dealeth Micah with me, and hath hired me,
and I am his priest.
5 And they said unto him, Ask counsel, we pray thee, of God, that we may know
whether our way which we go shall be prosperous.
6 And the priest said unto them, Go in peace: before the LORD is your way
wherein ye go.
7 Then the five men departed, and came to Laish, and saw the people that were
therein, how they dwelt careless, after the manner of the Zidonians, quiet and
secure, and there was no magistrate in the land, that might put them to shame in
any thing, and they were far from the Zidonians, and had no business with any
man.
8 And they came unto their brethren to Zorah and Eshtaol: and their brethren
said unto them, What say ye?
9 And they said, Arise, that we may go up against them: for we have seen the
land, and, behold, it is very good: and are ye still? be not slothful to go, and
to enter to possess the land.
10 When ye go, ye shall come unto a people secure, and to a large land: for God
hath given it into your hands, a place where there is no want of any thing that
is in the earth.
11 And there went from thence of the family of the Danites, out of Zorah and out
of Eshtaol, six hundred men appointed with weapons of war.
12 And they went up, and pitched in Kirjathjearim, in Judah: wherefore they
called that place Mahanehdan unto this day: behold, it is behind Kirjathjearim.
13 And they passed thence unto mount Ephraim, and came unto the house of Micah.
14 Then answered the five men that went to spy out the country of Laish, and
said unto their brethren, Do ye know that there is in these houses an ephod, and
teraphim, and a graven image, and a molten image? now therefore consider what ye
have to do.
15 And they turned thitherward, and came to the house of the young man the
Levite, even unto the house of Micah, and saluted him.
16 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.
17 And the five men that went to spy out the land went up, and came in thither,
and took the graven image, and the ephod, and the teraphim, and the molten
image: and the priest stood in the entering of the gate with the six hundred men
that were appointed with weapons of war.
18 And these went into Micah's house, and fetched the carved image, the ephod,
and the teraphim, and the molten image. Then said the priest unto them, What do
ye?
19 And they said unto him, Hold thy peace, lay thine 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 unto the house of one man, or that thou be a priest unto a tribe and a
family in Israel?
20 And 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 So they turned and departed, and put the little ones and the cattle and the
carriage before them.
22 And when they were a good way from the house of Micah, 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 unto the children of Dan. And they turned their faces, and
said unto Micah, What aileth thee, that thou comest with such a company?
24 And he said, Ye have taken away my gods which I made, and the priest, and ye
are gone away: and what have I more? and what is this that ye say unto me, What
aileth thee?
25 And the children of Dan said unto him, Let not thy voice be heard among us,
lest angry fellows run upon thee, and thou lose thy life, with the lives of thy
household.
26 And the children of Dan went their way: and when Micah saw that they were too
strong for him, he turned and went back unto his house.
27 And they took the things which Micah had made, and the priest which he had,
and came unto Laish, unto a people that were at 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 it was far from Zidon, and they had no
business with any man, and it was in the valley that lieth by Bethrehob. And
they built a city, and dwelt therein.
29 And they called the name of the city Dan, after the name of Dan their father,
who was born unto Israel: howbeit the name of the city was Laish at the first.
30 And the children of Dan set up the graven image: and Jonathan, the son of
Gershom, the son of Manasseh, he and his sons were priests to the tribe of Dan
until the day of the captivity of the land.
31 And they set them up Micah's graven image, which he made, all the time that
the house of God was in Shiloh.
[ Judges Chapter 19 ]
1 And it came to pass in those days, when there was no king in Israel, that
there was a certain Levite sojourning on the side of mount Ephraim, who took to
him a concubine out of Bethlehemjudah.
2 And his concubine played the whore against him, and went away from him unto
her father's house to Bethlehemjudah, and was there four whole months.
3 And her husband arose, and went after her, to speak friendly unto her, and to
bring her again, having his servant with him, and a couple of asses: and she
brought him into her father's house: and when the father of the damsel saw him,
he rejoiced to meet him.
4 And his father in law, the damsel's father, retained him, and he abode with
him three days: so they did eat and drink, and lodged there.
5 And it came to pass on the fourth day, when they arose early in the morning,
that he rose up to depart: and the damsel's father said unto his son in law,
Comfort thine heart with a morsel of bread, and afterward go your way.
6 And they sat down, and did eat and drink both of them together: for the
damsel's father had said unto the man, Be content, I pray thee, and tarry all
night, and let thine heart be merry.
7 And when the man rose up to depart, his father in law urged him: therefore he
lodged there again.
8 And he arose early in the morning on the fifth day to depart, and the damsel's
father said, Comfort thine heart, I pray thee. And they tarried until afternoon,
and they did eat both of them.
9 And when the man rose up to depart, he, and his concubine, and his servant,
his father in law, the damsel's father, said unto him, Behold, now the day
draweth toward evening, I pray you tarry all night: behold, the day groweth to
an end, lodge here, that thine heart may be merry, and to morrow get you early
on your way, that thou mayest go home.
10 But the man would not tarry that night, but he rose up and departed, and came
over against Jebus, which is Jerusalem, and there were with him two asses
saddled, his concubine also was with him.
11 And when they were by Jebus, the day was far spent, and the servant said unto
his master, Come, I pray thee, and let us turn in into this city of the
Jebusites, and lodge in it.
12 And his master said unto him, We will not turn aside hither into the city of
a stranger, that is not of the children of Israel, we will pass over to Gibeah.
13 And he said unto his servant, Come, and let us draw near to one of these
places to lodge all night, in Gibeah, or in Ramah.
14 And they passed on and went their way, and the sun went down upon them when
they were by Gibeah, which belongeth to Benjamin.
15 And they turned aside thither, to go in and to lodge in Gibeah: and when he
went in, he sat him down in a street of the city: for there was no man that took
them into his house to lodging.
16 And, behold, there came an old man from his work out of the field at even,
which was also of mount Ephraim, and he sojourned in Gibeah: but the men of the
place were Benjamites.
17 And when he had lifted up his eyes, he saw a wayfaring man in the street of
the city: and the old man said, Whither goest thou? and whence comest thou?
18 And he said unto him, We are passing from Bethlehemjudah toward the side of
mount Ephraim, from thence am I: and I went to Bethlehemjudah, but I am now
going to the house of the LORD, and there is no man that receiveth me to house.
19 Yet there is both straw and provender for our asses, and there is bread and
wine also for me, and for thy handmaid, and for the young man which is with thy
servants: there is no want of any thing.
20 And the old man said, Peace be with thee, howsoever let all thy wants lie
upon me, only lodge not in the street.
21 So he brought him into his house, and gave provender unto the asses: and they
washed their feet, and did eat and drink.
22 Now as they were making their hearts merry, behold, the men of the city,
certain sons of Belial, beset the house round about, and beat at the door, and
spake to the master of the house, the old man, saying, Bring forth the man that
came into thine house, that we may know him.
23 And the man, the master of the house, went out unto them, and said unto them,
Nay, my brethren, nay, I pray you, do not so wickedly, seeing that this man is
come into mine house, do not this folly.
24 Behold, here is my daughter a maiden, and his concubine, them I will bring
out now, and humble ye them, and do with them what seemeth good unto you: but
unto this man do not so vile a thing.
25 But the men would not hearken to him: so the man took his concubine, and
brought her forth unto them, and they knew her, and abused her all the night
until the morning: and when the day began to spring, they let her go.
26 Then came the woman in the dawning of the day, and fell down at the door of
the man's house where her lord was, till it was light.
27 And her lord rose up in the morning, and opened the doors of the house, and
went out to go his way: and, behold, the woman his concubine was fallen down at
the door of the house, and her hands were upon the threshold.
28 And he said unto her, Up, and let us be going. But none answered. Then the
man took her up upon an ass, and the man rose up, and gat him unto his place.
29 And when he was come into his house, he took a knife, and laid hold on his
concubine, and divided her, together with her bones, into twelve pieces, and
sent her into all the coasts of Israel.
30 And it was so, that all that saw it said, There was no such deed done nor
seen from the day that the children of Israel came up out of the land of Egypt
unto this day: consider of it, take advice, and speak your minds.