Judges 1
New Living Translation
Judah and Simeon Conquer the Land
1 After the death of Joshua, the Israelites asked the Lord, “Which tribe should go first to attack the Canaanites?”
2 The Lord answered, “Judah, for I have given them victory over the land.”
3 The men of Judah said to their relatives from the tribe of Simeon, “Join with us to fight against the Canaanites living in the territory allotted to us. Then we will help you conquer your territory.” So the men of Simeon went with Judah.
4 When the men of Judah attacked, the Lord gave them victory over the Canaanites and Perizzites, and they killed 10,000 enemy warriors at the town of Bezek. 5 While at Bezek they encountered King Adoni-bezek and fought against him, and the Canaanites and Perizzites were defeated. 6 Adoni-bezek escaped, but the Israelites soon captured him and cut off his thumbs and big toes.
7 Adoni-bezek said, “I once had seventy kings with their thumbs and big toes cut off, eating scraps from under my table. Now God has paid me back for what I did to them.” They took him to Jerusalem, and he died there.
8 The men of Judah attacked Jerusalem and captured it, killing all its people and setting the city on fire. 9 Then they went down to fight the Canaanites living in the hill country, the Negev, and the western foothills.[a] 10 Judah marched against the Canaanites in Hebron (formerly called Kiriath-arba), defeating the forces of Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai.
11 From there they went to fight against the people living in the town of Debir (formerly called Kiriath-sepher). 12 Caleb said, “I will give my daughter Acsah in marriage to the one who attacks and captures Kiriath-sepher.” 13 Othniel, the son of Caleb’s younger brother, Kenaz, was the one who conquered it, so Acsah became Othniel’s wife.
14 When Acsah married Othniel, she urged him[b] to ask her father for a field. As she got down off her donkey, Caleb asked her, “What’s the matter?”
15 She said, “Let me have another gift. You have already given me land in the Negev; now please give me springs of water, too.” So Caleb gave her the upper and lower springs.
16 When the tribe of Judah left Jericho—the city of palms—the Kenites, who were descendants of Moses’ father-in-law, traveled with them into the wilderness of Judah. They settled among the people there, near the town of Arad in the Negev.
17 Then Judah joined with Simeon to fight against the Canaanites living in Zephath, and they completely destroyed[c] the town. So the town was named Hormah.[d] 18 In addition, Judah captured the towns of Gaza, Ashkelon, and Ekron, along with their surrounding territories.
Israel Fails to Conquer the Land
19 The Lord was with the people of Judah, and they took possession of the hill country. But they failed to drive out the people living in the plains, who had iron chariots. 20 The town of Hebron was given to Caleb as Moses had promised. And Caleb drove out the people living there, who were descendants of the three sons of Anak.
21 The tribe of Benjamin, however, failed to drive out the Jebusites, who were living in Jerusalem. So to this day the Jebusites live in Jerusalem among the people of Benjamin.
22 The descendants of Joseph attacked the town of Bethel, and the Lord was with them. 23 They sent men to scout out Bethel (formerly known as Luz). 24 They confronted a man coming out of the town and said to him, “Show us a way into the town, and we will have mercy on you.” 25 So he showed them a way in, and they killed everyone in the town except that man and his family. 26 Later the man moved to the land of the Hittites, where he built a town. He named it Luz, which is its name to this day.
27 The tribe of Manasseh failed to drive out the people living in Beth-shan,[e] Taanach, Dor, Ibleam, Megiddo, and all their surrounding settlements, because the Canaanites were determined to stay in that region. 28 When the Israelites grew stronger, they forced the Canaanites to work as slaves, but they never did drive them completely out of the land.
29 The tribe of Ephraim failed to drive out the Canaanites living in Gezer, so the Canaanites continued to live there among them.
30 The tribe of Zebulun failed to drive out the residents of Kitron and Nahalol, so the Canaanites continued to live among them. But the Canaanites were forced to work as slaves for the people of Zebulun.
31 The tribe of Asher failed to drive out the residents of Acco, Sidon, Ahlab, Aczib, Helbah, Aphik, and Rehob. 32 Instead, the people of Asher moved in among the Canaanites, who controlled the land, for they failed to drive them out.
33 Likewise, the tribe of Naphtali failed to drive out the residents of Beth-shemesh and Beth-anath. Instead, they moved in among the Canaanites, who controlled the land. Nevertheless, the people of Beth-shemesh and Beth-anath were forced to work as slaves for the people of Naphtali.
34 As for the tribe of Dan, the Amorites forced them back into the hill country and would not let them come down into the plains. 35 The Amorites were determined to stay in Mount Heres, Aijalon, and Shaalbim, but when the descendants of Joseph became stronger, they forced the Amorites to work as slaves. 36 The boundary of the Amorites ran from Scorpion Pass[f] to Sela and continued upward from there.
Footnotes
- 1:9 Hebrew the Shephelah.
- 1:14 Greek version and Latin Vulgate read he urged her.
- 1:17a The Hebrew term used here refers to the complete consecration of things or people to the Lord, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering.
- 1:17b Hormah means “destruction.”
- 1:27 Hebrew Beth-shean, a variant spelling of Beth-shan.
- 1:36 Hebrew Akrabbim.
Judges 1
Legacy Standard Bible
The Fight Against the Canaanites
1 Now it happened after the death of Joshua that the sons of Israel (A)asked of [a]Yahweh, saying, “Who shall go up first for us (B)against the Canaanites, to fight against them?” 2 And Yahweh said, “(C)Judah shall go up; behold, I have given the land into his hand.” 3 Then Judah said to Simeon his brother, “Come up with me into [b]the territory allotted me, that we may fight against the Canaanites; and [c]I in turn will go with you into [d]the territory allotted you.” So Simeon went with him. 4 So Judah went up, and (D)Yahweh gave the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hands, and they struck down 10,000 men at Bezek. 5 Then they found Adoni-bezek in Bezek and fought against him, and they struck down the Canaanites and the Perizzites. 6 But Adoni-bezek fled; and they pursued him and seized him and cut off his [e]thumbs and big toes. 7 And Adoni-bezek said, “Seventy kings with their thumbs and their big toes cut off used to gather up scraps under my table; (E)as I have done, so God has repaid me.” So they brought him to Jerusalem, and he died there.
8 Then the sons of Judah fought against (F)Jerusalem and captured it and struck it with the edge of the sword and set the city on fire. 9 And afterward the sons of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites living in the hill country and in the [f]Negev and in the [g]Shephelah. 10 (G)So Judah went against the Canaanites who lived in Hebron (now the name of Hebron formerly was Kiriath-arba); and they struck Sheshai and Ahiman and Talmai.
11 Then (H)from there he went against the inhabitants of Debir (now the name of Debir formerly was Kiriath-sepher). 12 And Caleb said, “The one who strikes Kiriath-sepher and captures it, I will even give him my daughter Achsah as a wife.” 13 (I)Then Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother, captured it; so he gave him his daughter Achsah as a wife. 14 Now (J)it happened that when she came to him, she enticed him to ask her father for the field. Then she alighted from [h]her donkey, and Caleb said to her, “What [i]do you want?” 15 And she said to him, “Give me a blessing, since you have given me the land of the [j]Negev, so you shall give me also springs of water.” So Caleb gave her the upper springs and the lower springs.
16 Now the sons of (K)the Kenite, Moses’ father-in-law, went up from the (L)city of palms with the sons of Judah, to the wilderness of Judah which is in the south of (M)Arad; and they went and lived with the people. 17 Then Judah went with Simeon his brother, and they struck the Canaanites living in Zephath and devoted it to destruction. So the name of the city was called (N)Hormah. 18 And Judah captured (O)Gaza with its territory and Ashkelon with its territory and Ekron with its territory. 19 Now Yahweh was with Judah, and they took possession of the hill country; but they could not dispossess the inhabitants of the valley because they had (P)iron chariots. 20 Then they gave Hebron to Caleb, (Q)as Moses had [k]promised; and he dispossessed from there (R)the three sons of Anak. 21 (S)But the sons of Benjamin did not dispossess the (T)Jebusites who lived in Jerusalem; so the Jebusites have lived with the sons of Benjamin in Jerusalem to this day.
22 Likewise the house of Joseph went up against Bethel, and Yahweh was with them. 23 And the house of Joseph spied out Bethel ((U)now the name of the city was formerly Luz). 24 Then the [l]spies saw a man coming out of the city, and they said to him, “Please show us the entrance to the city, and (V)we will treat you with lovingkindness.” 25 So he showed them the entrance to the city, and they struck the city with the edge of the sword, (W)but they let the man and all his family go free. 26 So the man went into the land of the Hittites and built a city and named it Luz [m]which is its name to this day.
Israel Fails to Complete the Conquest
27 (X)But Manasseh did not take possession of Beth-shean and its towns or Taanach and its towns or the inhabitants of Dor and its towns or the inhabitants of Ibleam and its towns or the inhabitants of Megiddo and its towns; so (Y)the Canaanites persisted to live in that land. 28 And it happened when Israel became strong, that they put the Canaanites to forced labor, but they did not dispossess them completely.
29 (Z)Also Ephraim did not dispossess the Canaanites who were living in Gezer; so the Canaanites lived in Gezer among them.
30 Zebulun did not dispossess the inhabitants of Kitron or the inhabitants of [n]Nahalol; so the Canaanites lived among them and became subject to forced labor.
31 Asher did not dispossess the inhabitants of Acco or the inhabitants of Sidon, or of Ahlab or of Achzib or of Helbah or of Aphik or of Rehob. 32 So the Asherites lived among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land; for they did not dispossess them.
33 Naphtali did not dispossess the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh or the inhabitants of Beth-anath, but lived among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land; and the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh and Beth-anath became forced labor for them.
34 Then the Amorites pressed the sons of Dan into the hill country, for they did not allow them to come down to the valley; 35 and the Amorites persisted in [o]living in Mount Heres, in Aijalon, and in Shaalbim; but the hand of the house of Joseph became heavy, and they became forced labor. 36 Now the border of the Amorites ran from the (AA)ascent of Akrabbim, from Sela and upward.
Footnotes
- Judges 1:1 The personal covenant name of God, a form of I AM WHO I AM, cf. Ex 3:14-15
- Judges 1:3 Lit my lot
- Judges 1:3 Lit I, even I
- Judges 1:3 Lit your lot
- Judges 1:6 Lit thumbs of his hands and his feet
- Judges 1:9 South country
- Judges 1:9 Or lowland
- Judges 1:14 Lit the
- Judges 1:14 Lit for yourself
- Judges 1:15 South country
- Judges 1:20 Lit spoken
- Judges 1:24 Lit the ones keeping watch
- Judges 1:26 Lit it
- Judges 1:30 Possibly same as Nahalal
- Judges 1:35 Lit dwelling
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