Judges 18:1-10
1 In those days there was no king of Israel; and in those days the tribe of the Danites was seeking an inheritance for themselves to live in, for until that day an inheritance had not been allotted to them as a possession among the tribes of Israel.
2 So the sons of Dan sent from their family five men out of their whole number, valiant men from Zorah and Eshtaol, to spy out the land and to explore it; and they said to them, “Go, explore the land.” And they came to the hill country of Ephraim, to the house of Micah, and stayed overnight there.
3 When they were near the house of Micah, they recognized the voice of the young man, the Levite; and they turned aside there and said to him, “Who brought you here? And what are you doing in this place? And what do you have here?”
4 He said to them, “Micah has done this and that for me, and he has hired me and I have become his priest.”
5 Then they said to him, “Inquire of God, please, that we may know whether our way on which we are going will be successful.”
6 And the priest said to them, “Go in peace; your way in which you are going has the Lord’s approval.”
7 So the five men departed and came to Laish, and saw the people who were in it living in security, in the way of the Sidonians, quiet and unsuspecting; for there was no oppressive ruler humiliating them for anything in the land, and they were far from the Sidonians and had no dealings with anyone.
8 When they came back to their brothers at Zorah and Eshtaol, their brothers said to them, “What do you say?”
9 And they said, “Arise, and let’s go up against them; for we have seen the land, and behold, it is very good. And will you sit still? Do not hesitate to go, to enter, to take possession of the land.
10 When you enter, you will come to an unsuspecting people with a spacious land; for God has handed it over to you, a place where there is no lack of anything that is on the earth.”
Danite Spies
The inheritance of the tribe of Dan
While Judges chapter 17 describes personal apostasy, chapter 18 describes tribal apostasy. The phrase “In those days there was no king in Israel” appears again. When there is no leader to unify the nation and provide direction, it seems that the people fall into corruption. Regarding the tribe of Dan, it is mentioned that “until that day an inheritance had not been allotted to them.” This has the following implications: (1) During the time of Joshua, inheritance had already been assigned to the tribe of Dan (Josh. 19:40-48). (2) They were allotted the land along the Mediterranean coast, an area inhabited by the Philistines. Due to the Philistine presence, the tribe of Dan were unable to conquer that region. (3) As a result, they sent out a team of five men as spies to find an alternative land for their inheritance.
Micah’s house in the hill country of Ephraim
Five men stopped by the house of Micah in the hill country of Ephraim and there, met the young Levite. (1) It seems they had encountered this young man before, as they recognized him by his voice. (2) They learned that he was serving as a priest in Micah’s house. So, they asked him to inquire of God whether their journey would be successful. Despite the fact that they were near the city of Shiloh, where the Tabernacle was located, they ignored the option of going there and consulting God through the High Priest. (3) The priest’s response was, “Go in peace; your way in which you are going has the Lord’s approval.” This was such a hasty response. The five men continued northward and reached Laish (near the southern base of Mount Hermon). The inhabitants there lived peacefully, and the place seemed like an ideal target for conquest. They returned to their kinsmen with the report that Laish should be conquered. Reading up to this point, it may seem similar to the events of the conquest of Canaan in the book of Joshua, but the essence is completely different. The conquest of Canaan was a battle of faith, while the battle of the Danite was a result of unfaithfulness. If faith is without firm foundation, mistakes will expand without limit. Let us also examine the foundation of our own faith.
Today's prayer
Heavenly Father, allow me to fight the battles of faith, rather than suffer the consequences of unbelief. I pray in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.