Judges 18:1-31

In those days there was no king in Israel, and the tribe of Dan sought a territory to settle in. They still had no place to call their own among the tribes of Israel. So the Danites sent out from Zorah and from Eshtaol five of their valiant men to spy out the land, telling them, “Go, explore the land.” When they advanced to the hill country of Ephraim, they got as far as Micah’s house and camped near there. When they approached Micah’s house, they recognized the voice of the young Levite, so they went over to him and asked, “Why are you here? Who brought you here? What are you doing in this place?” He replied, “Micah helped me. He hired me, and I’ve become his priest.” Then they said to him, “Good! Please pray to God for us and find out if our mission will succeed.” The priest replied, “You have nothing to worry about. The eyes of YAHWEH are watching over your mission. You will succeed.” So the five spies went northward and came to Laish. They observed that the people were wealthy and living in security, after the manner of the Sidonians. Their quiet and carefree community lacked nothing. Furthermore, they lived far from the Sidonians and had no dealings with anyone, leaving them defenseless. When the spies returned to Zorah and Eshtaol from their expedition, they were asked, “What’s your report?” “Come on, let’s do this!” they replied. “Listen, we’ve seen the land, and it’s very good. Don’t just sit here wasting time; let’s go quickly and invade the land to conquer and possess it. When we arrive, we will encounter an unsuspecting people. The land is wide open and fruitful. God has indeed given it into your hand!” So six hundred Danites, fully armed for war, set out from Zorah and Eshtaol. They went up and camped west of Kiriath Jearim in Judah. (To this day that place is called The Camp of Dan.) From there they passed through the hill country of Ephraim until they arrived at the house of Micah. Then the five men who had explored the region of Laish remarked to their comrades, “Did you know there’s an ephod somewhere in these houses, and other idols and an idol overlaid with silver? So decide what you’ll do about it.” So they stopped there and came to Micah’s house where the young Levite lived, and they greeted him. While the six hundred fully armed Danites stationed themselves by the entrance of the gate, the five spies proceeded to enter and take the idol overlaid with silver, the ephod, and the other idols. Now the priest was standing with the six hundred fully armed men at the entrance of the gate. When he saw the men going into Micah’s house to take the idol overlaid with silver, the ephod, and the other idols, the priest said to them, “What are you doing?” They said to him, “Be quiet! Don’t say a word, just come with us and be our priest and a father to us all. Isn’t it better for you to be a priest representing an entire tribe of Israel rather than the house of only one man?” The offer pleased the priest and he accepted. He took all the idols and the ephod and joined the Danites. They resumed their journey with their children, their livestock, and their possessions going in front of them. When they had traveled a considerable distance from Micah’s home, Micah and his neighbors gathered and chased the Danites until they caught up with them. They shouted at the Danites, who turned around and answered Micah, “What’s your problem? Why have you come against us with such a company?” He replied, “Why did you take the gods that I made, kidnap my priest, and march off? What’s left for me now? How dare you ask me, ‘What’s my problem?’ ” The Danites retorted, “We don’t want to hear any more of your complaints lest some of our hot-tempered men here attack and kill you, your friends, and your household.” So the Danites went their way. When Micah realized that he was outnumbered, he turned around and went back home. The Danites, Micah’s priest, and all that Micah had made, came to Laish, a city of quiet and unsuspecting people. They slaughtered them and burned down their city. No one came to their rescue, because Laish was far from Sidon and they had no dealings with Aram. Laish was in the valley that belonged to Beth Rehob. The Danites rebuilt the city and lived in it. Although the city used to be called Laish, they named the city Dan after their ancestor Dan the Israelite. The Danites erected their own idol to worship. Jonathan son of Gershom, son of Moses, and his sons served as priests to the tribe of the Danites until the time the nation went into captivity. So they enshrined the idol Micah had made, and they made it their own even though the proper house of God stood at Shiloh.