Judges 1
The Voice
Modern readers wrestle with the violence in the Old Testament. In the wake of events like the holocaust, when the Jews were slaughtered by the millions, many do not see God as a protecting God or as a God of might.
But in Judges we learn about a God who fights for His chosen people or empowers champions to protect them. This was certainly the way the people of God in the time of Judges thought about God, as defender and protector, and the way people in the ancient Middle East understood faith, worship, and divinity. But the Lord is different from all the other gods. He is jealous, so when His people abandon Him, all that power is turned against them in the form of invading armies. The Israelites have need of judges who can lead them in their military exploits and who can keep them faithful to the mighty God of Israel.
1 After Joshua died, the people of Israel asked a question of the Eternal One.
Israelites: So now who will lead us in our wars against the armies of Canaan?
Eternal One (to the leaders of Judah): 2 Judah will go and fight. See, I am giving the land into their hands.
3 The tribe of Judah enlisted support from the tribe of Simeon.
Tribe of Judah: If you will help us fight for the land we were given in Canaan, we will do the same for you.
The tribe of Simeon agreed to help them. 4-5 So Judah and her ally went up to fight against Adoni-bezek at the town of Bezek, and the Eternal gave them victory over the Canaanites and the Perizzites. They killed 10,000 of them at Bezek; 6 and although Adoni-bezek tried to escape, they caught him and cut off his thumbs and big toes, which rendered him useless for basically anything.
Adoni-bezek: 7 In my time, I cut the thumbs and toes off 70 kings and left them to scramble for scraps under my table. And now God has done the same to me.
They carried him away to Jerusalem, where he died.
8 Then the people of Judah attacked Jerusalem; and when they had captured it, they killed many, burned the city, and destroyed it. 9 After that the people of Judah swept down upon the Canaanites remaining in the highlands and in the lowlands and in the southern desert. 10 Judah campaigned against the Canaanites of Hebron (formerly Kiriath-arba), where they defeated Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai, 11 and then they went out in battle against the people of Debir (formerly Kiriath-sepher). 12 It was about this battle that Caleb had made a vow.
Caleb: Whoever attacks and captures Kiriath-sepher will receive my daughter Achsah as his wife.
13 Othniel, the son of Caleb’s younger brother, Kenaz, captured the city, so Caleb gave Othniel his daughter Achsah to marry. 14 When she came to Othniel, she persuaded him to ask her father for a field. As she dismounted from her donkey, Caleb approached her.
Caleb: What do you wish?
Achsah: 15 Here is what I would like as a wedding gift: since you have given me a place in the southern desert, also give me some springs of water.
And so Caleb gave her the upper and lower springs.
16 The people who descended from Moses’ father-in-law, Hobab the Kenite, went with the people of Judah from the city of palm trees into the wilderness of Judah, and they settled there with the people, the Amalekites, in the southern desert near Arad.
17 Then Judah and Simeon defeated the Canaanites who lived in Zephath and destroyed them completely, so their city was renamed Hormah, which means “destruction.” 18 Judah went on to take the cities of Gaza, Ashkelon, and Ekron and all the land surrounding them. 19 The Eternal was with Judah, and the tribe conquered all of the highlands. But those living in the plains had iron chariots, so Judah could not drive them out. 20 Caleb received the land of Hebron, as Moses had promised many years earlier, and he drove out the three sons of Anak. 21 The people of the tribe of Benjamin, however, did not drive the Jebusites out of Jerusalem, and the Jebusites live alongside the Benjaminites in Jerusalem to this very day.
22-23 The tribe of Joseph went up against Bethel (which was formerly known as Luz), and the Eternal supported them. They sent out spies 24 who intercepted a man leaving the city.
Spies: Show us the way into the city, and we’ll spare you.
25 He showed them the way, and they destroyed the city with swords; but as they had promised, they let the man and his family go. 26 This man went into the land of the Hittites, and there he established a city; he called it Luz, and that is still its name.
27-28 The tribe of Manasseh failed to drive out the people who lived in the cities and surrounding villages of Beth-shean, Taanach, Dor, Ibleam, and Megiddo. The Canaanites continued to live in those regions for they were determined to live there; but when the people of Israel grew strong, they made the Canaanites their slaves and did not completely drive them out.
29 So it was with the tribe of Ephraim, who did not drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer but lived among them.
30 Zebulun also did not drive out the people of Kitron or Nahalol, so these Canaanites lived among them and became their slaves.
31-32 Asher failed to drive out the people of Acco, Sidon, Ahlab, Achzib, Helbah, Aphik, and Rehob; instead, the tribe of Asher lived among the Canaanites who lived in the land.
33 Naphtali did not drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh or Beth-anath but lived among these Canaanites who lived in the land. They also became the slaves of Naphtali.
34 The Amorites pushed the tribe of Dan back into the hills and did not allow them to dwell in the valley. 35 The Amorites persisted in living on Mount Heres, in Aijalon, and in Shaalbim, but the tribe of Joseph overpowered them and forced them into labor. 36 In those days, the border of the Amorites ran from the heights of Akrabbim to Sela and beyond.
Judges 1
Common English Bible
The tribes and their military conflicts
1 After Joshua’s death, the Israelites asked the Lord, “Who should go up first to fight for us against the Canaanites?”
2 The Lord said, “The tribe of Judah will go up. I’ve handed over the land to them.”
3 So the tribe of Judah said to the tribe of Simeon, their brothers, “Come up with us into our territory, and let’s fight against the Canaanites. Then we’ll go with you into your territory too.” So Simeon went with them.
4 When Judah went up, the Lord handed them the Canaanites and Perizzites. They defeated ten thousand men at Bezek. 5 There they found Adoni-bezek at Bezek, fought against him, and defeated the Canaanites and Perizzites. 6 Adoni-bezek fled, but they chased after him, captured him, and cut off his thumbs and big toes. 7 He said, “Seventy kings with severed thumbs and big toes used to pick up scraps under my table, so God has paid me back exactly for what I did.” They brought him to Jerusalem, where he died. 8 The people of Judah fought against Jerusalem and captured it. They killed its people with their swords and set the city on fire.
9 Afterward, the people of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites who lived in the highlands, the southern plain,[a] and the western foothills.[b] 10 Judah moved against the Canaanites who lived in Hebron, known before as Kiriath-arba, and they defeated Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai. 11 From there they moved against those who lived in Debir, known before as Kiriath-sepher. 12 Caleb said, “I’ll give my daughter Achsah as a wife to the one who defeats and captures Kiriath-sepher.” 13 Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother, captured it; so Caleb gave him his daughter Achsah as a wife. 14 When she arrived, she convinced Othniel to ask her father for a certain piece of land. As she got down from her donkey, Caleb said to her, “What do you want?”
15 Achsah said to Caleb, “Give me a gift. Since you’ve given me land in the southern plain, give me springs of water.” So Caleb gave her the upper and lower springs.
16 The descendants of Moses’ father-in-law the Kenite went up with the people of Judah from Palm City into the Judean desert, which was in the southern plain near Arad. They went and lived with the Amalekites.[c] 17 Then the Judahites went with the Simeonites, their brothers, and they defeated the Canaanites who lived in Zephath, and they completely destroyed it. So the city was called Hormah.[d] 18 Judah also captured Gaza, Ashkelon, Ekron, and all their territories. 19 Thus the Lord was with the tribe of Judah, and they took possession of the highlands. However, they didn’t drive out those who lived in the plain because they had iron chariots. 20 They gave Hebron to Caleb, just as Moses had commanded, and they drove out from there the three sons of Anak. 21 But the people of Benjamin didn’t drive out the Jebusites who lived in Jerusalem. So the Jebusites still live with the people of Benjamin in Jerusalem today.
22 In the same way, Joseph’s household went up against Bethel, and the Lord was with them. 23 When they sent men to spy on Bethel, previously named Luz, 24 the spies saw a man coming out of the city, and they said to him, “Show us the way into the city, and we’ll be loyal to you in return.” 25 So he showed them the way into the city. They killed the city’s people with their swords, but they let that man and all his relatives go. 26 The man went to the land of the Hittites and built a city. He named it Luz, which is still its name today.
27 The tribe of Manasseh didn’t drive out the people in Beth-shean, Taanach, Dor, Ibleam, Megiddo, or any of their villages. The Canaanites were determined to live in that land. 28 When Israel became stronger they forced the Canaanites to work for them, but they didn’t completely drive them out. 29 The tribe of Ephraim didn’t drive out the Canaanites living in Gezer, so the Canaanites kept on living there with them.
30 The tribe of Zebulun didn’t drive out the people living in Kitron or Nahalol. These Canaanites lived with them but were forced to work for them. 31 The tribe of Asher didn’t drive out the people living in Acco, Sidon, Ahlab, Achzib, Helbah, Aphik, or Rehob. 32 The people of Asher settled among the Canaanites in the land because they couldn’t drive them out. 33 The tribe of Naphtali didn’t drive out the people living in Beth-shemesh or Beth-anath but settled among the Canaanites in the land. The people living in Beth-shemesh and Beth-anath were forced to work for them.
34 The Amorites pushed the people of Dan back into the highlands because they wouldn’t allow them to come down to the plain. 35 The Amorites were determined to live in Har-heres, Aijalon, and Shaalbim, but Joseph’s household became strong, and the Amorites were forced to work for them. 36 The border of the Amorites ran from the Akrabbim pass, from Sela, and upward.
Footnotes
- Judges 1:9 Heb negeb
- Judges 1:9 Heb shephelah
- Judges 1:16 LXX (cf 1 Sam 15:6); MT people
- Judges 1:17 Or destruction
Judges 1
King James Version
1 Now after the death of Joshua it came to pass, that the children of Israel asked the Lord, saying, Who shall go up for us against the Canaanites first, to fight against them?
2 And the Lord said, Judah shall go up: behold, I have delivered the land into his hand.
3 And Judah said unto Simeon his brother, Come up with me into my lot, that we may fight against the Canaanites; and I likewise will go with thee into thy lot. So Simeon went with him.
4 And Judah went up; and the Lord delivered the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hand: and they slew of them in Bezek ten thousand men.
5 And they found Adonibezek in Bezek: and they fought against him, and they slew the Canaanites and the Perizzites.
6 But Adonibezek fled; and they pursued after him, and caught him, and cut off his thumbs and his great toes.
7 And Adonibezek said, Threescore and ten kings, having their thumbs and their great toes cut off, gathered their meat under my table: as I have done, so God hath requited me. And they brought him to Jerusalem, and there he died.
8 Now the children of Judah had fought against Jerusalem, and had taken it, and smitten it with the edge of the sword, and set the city on fire.
9 And afterward the children of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites, that dwelt in the mountain, and in the south, and in the valley.
10 And Judah went against the Canaanites that dwelt in Hebron: (now the name of Hebron before was Kirjatharba:) and they slew Sheshai, and Ahiman, and Talmai.
11 And from thence he went against the inhabitants of Debir: and the name of Debir before was Kirjathsepher:
12 And Caleb said, He that smiteth Kirjathsepher, and taketh it, to him will I give Achsah my daughter to wife.
13 And Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother, took it: and he gave him Achsah his daughter to wife.
14 And it came to pass, when she came to him, that she moved him to ask of her father a field: and she lighted from off her ass; and Caleb said unto her, What wilt thou?
15 And she said unto him, Give me a blessing: for thou hast given me a south land; give me also springs of water. And Caleb gave her the upper springs and the nether springs.
16 And the children of the Kenite, Moses' father in law, went up out of the city of palm trees with the children of Judah into the wilderness of Judah, which lieth in the south of Arad; and they went and dwelt among the people.
17 And Judah went with Simeon his brother, and they slew the Canaanites that inhabited Zephath, and utterly destroyed it. And the name of the city was called Hormah.
18 Also Judah took Gaza with the coast thereof, and Askelon with the coast thereof, and Ekron with the coast thereof.
19 And the Lord was with Judah; and he drave out the inhabitants of the mountain; but could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley, because they had chariots of iron.
20 And they gave Hebron unto Caleb, as Moses said: and he expelled thence the three sons of Anak.
21 And the children of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites that inhabited Jerusalem; but the Jebusites dwell with the children of Benjamin in Jerusalem unto this day.
22 And the house of Joseph, they also went up against Bethel: and the Lord was with them.
23 And the house of Joseph sent to descry Bethel. (Now the name of the city before was Luz.)
24 And the spies saw a man come forth out of the city, and they said unto him, Shew us, we pray thee, the entrance into the city, and we will shew thee mercy.
25 And when he shewed them the entrance into the city, they smote the city with the edge of the sword; but they let go the man and all his family.
26 And the man went into the land of the Hittites, and built a city, and called the name thereof Luz: which is the name thereof unto this day.
27 Neither did Manasseh drive out the inhabitants of Bethshean and her towns, nor Taanach and her towns, nor the inhabitants of Dor and her towns, nor the inhabitants of Ibleam and her towns, nor the inhabitants of Megiddo and her towns: but the Canaanites would dwell in that land.
28 And it came to pass, when Israel was strong, that they put the Canaanites to tribute, and did not utterly drive them out.
29 Neither did Ephraim drive out the Canaanites that dwelt in Gezer; but the Canaanites dwelt in Gezer among them.
30 Neither did Zebulun drive out the inhabitants of Kitron, nor the inhabitants of Nahalol; but the Canaanites dwelt among them, and became tributaries.
31 Neither did Asher drive out the inhabitants of Accho, nor the inhabitants of Zidon, nor of Ahlab, nor of Achzib, nor of Helbah, nor of Aphik, nor of Rehob:
32 But the Asherites dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land: for they did not drive them out.
33 Neither did Naphtali drive out the inhabitants of Bethshemesh, nor the inhabitants of Bethanath; but he dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land: nevertheless the inhabitants of Bethshemesh and of Bethanath became tributaries unto them.
34 And the Amorites forced the children of Dan into the mountain: for they would not suffer them to come down to the valley:
35 But the Amorites would dwell in mount Heres in Aijalon, and in Shaalbim: yet the hand of the house of Joseph prevailed, so that they became tributaries.
36 And the coast of the Amorites was from the going up to Akrabbim, from the rock, and upward.
Judges 1
New King James Version
The Continuing Conquest of Canaan(A)
1 Now after the (B)death of Joshua it came to pass that the children of Israel (C)asked the Lord, saying, “Who shall be first to go up for us against the (D)Canaanites to fight against them?”
2 And the Lord said, (E)“Judah shall go up. Indeed I have delivered the land into his hand.”
3 So Judah said to (F)Simeon his brother, “Come up with me to my allotted territory, that we may fight against the Canaanites; and (G)I will likewise go with you to your allotted territory.” And Simeon went with him. 4 Then Judah went up, and the Lord delivered the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hand; and they killed ten thousand men at (H)Bezek. 5 And they found Adoni-Bezek in Bezek, and fought against him; and they defeated the Canaanites and the Perizzites. 6 Then Adoni-Bezek fled, and they pursued him and caught him and cut off his thumbs and big toes. 7 And Adoni-Bezek said, “Seventy kings with their thumbs and big toes cut off used to gather scraps under my table; (I)as I have done, so God has repaid me.” Then they brought him to Jerusalem, and there he died.
8 Now (J)the children of Judah fought against Jerusalem and took it; they struck it with the edge of the sword and set the city on fire. 9 (K)And afterward the children of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites who dwelt in the mountains, in the [a]South, and in the lowland. 10 Then Judah [b]went against the Canaanites who dwelt in (L)Hebron. (Now the name of Hebron was formerly (M)Kirjath Arba.) And they killed Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai.
11 (N)From there they went against the inhabitants of Debir. (The name of Debir was formerly Kirjath Sepher.)
12 (O)Then Caleb said, “Whoever attacks Kirjath Sepher and takes it, to him I will give my daughter Achsah as wife.” 13 And Othniel the son of Kenaz, (P)Caleb’s younger brother, took it; so he gave him his daughter Achsah as wife. 14 (Q)Now it happened, when she came to him, that [c]she urged him to ask her father for a field. And she dismounted from her donkey, and Caleb said to her, “What do you wish?” 15 So she said to him, (R)“Give me a blessing; since you have given me land in the South, give me also springs of water.”
And Caleb gave her the upper springs and the lower springs.
16 (S)Now the children of the Kenite, Moses’ father-in-law, went up (T)from the City of Palms with the children of Judah into the Wilderness of Judah, which lies in the South near (U)Arad; (V)and they went and dwelt among the people. 17 (W)And Judah went with his brother Simeon, and they attacked the Canaanites who inhabited Zephath, and utterly destroyed it. So the name of the city was called (X)Hormah. 18 Also Judah took (Y)Gaza with its territory, Ashkelon with its territory, and Ekron with its territory. 19 So the Lord was with Judah. And they drove out the mountaineers, but they could not drive out the inhabitants of the lowland, because they had (Z)chariots of iron. 20 (AA)And they gave Hebron to Caleb, as Moses had said. Then he [d]expelled from there the (AB)three sons of Anak. 21 (AC)But the children of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites who inhabited Jerusalem; so the Jebusites dwell with the children of Benjamin in Jerusalem to this day.
22 And the [e]house of Joseph also went up against Bethel, (AD)and the Lord was with them. 23 So the [f]house of Joseph (AE)sent men to spy out Bethel. (The name of the city was formerly (AF)Luz.) 24 And when the spies saw a man coming out of the city, they said to him, “Please show us the entrance to the city, and (AG)we will show you mercy.” 25 So he showed them the entrance to the city, and they struck the city with the edge of the sword; but they let the man and all his family go. 26 And the man went to the land of the Hittites, built a city, and called its name Luz, which is its name to this day.
Incomplete Conquest of the Land
27 (AH)However, Manasseh did not drive out the inhabitants of Beth Shean and its villages, or (AI)Taanach and its villages, or the inhabitants of (AJ)Dor and its villages, or the inhabitants of Ibleam and its villages, or the inhabitants of Megiddo and its villages; for the Canaanites were determined to dwell in that land. 28 And it came to pass, when Israel was strong, that they put the Canaanites [g]under tribute, but did not completely drive them out.
29 (AK)Nor did Ephraim drive out the Canaanites who dwelt in Gezer; so the Canaanites dwelt in Gezer among them.
30 Nor did (AL)Zebulun drive out the inhabitants of Kitron or the inhabitants of Nahalol; so the Canaanites dwelt among them, and [h]were put under tribute.
31 (AM)Nor did Asher drive out the inhabitants of Acco or the inhabitants of Sidon, or of Ahlab, Achzib, Helbah, Aphik, or Rehob. 32 So the Asherites (AN)dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land; for they did not drive them out.
33 (AO)Nor did Naphtali drive out the inhabitants of Beth Shemesh or the inhabitants of Beth Anath; but they dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land. Nevertheless the inhabitants of Beth Shemesh and Beth Anath were put under tribute to them.
34 And the Amorites forced the children of Dan into the mountains, for they would not allow them to come down to the valley; 35 and the Amorites were determined to dwell in Mount Heres, (AP)in Aijalon, and in [i]Shaalbim; yet when the strength of the house of Joseph became greater, they [j]were put under tribute.
36 Now the boundary of the Amorites was (AQ)from the Ascent of Akrabbim, from Sela, and upward.
Footnotes
- Judges 1:9 Heb. Negev, and so throughout the book
- Judges 1:10 attacked
- Judges 1:14 LXX, Vg. he urged her
- Judges 1:20 drove out from there
- Judges 1:22 family
- Judges 1:23 family
- Judges 1:28 to forced labor
- Judges 1:30 became forced laborers
- Judges 1:35 Shaalabbin, Josh. 19:42
- Judges 1:35 became forced laborers
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
