士師記 18:2-5 JCB

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers - Judges 18:2

(2) From their coasts.—Literally, their ends (Genesis 19:4; 1 Kings 12:31). Some explain it to mean “from their whole number.”Men of valour.—Literally, sons of force (Judges 21:10).To spy out the land.—As in Joshua 2:1.They came to mount Ephraim.—It would have been an easier journey to pass along the Shephelah, but that was mainly in the hands of the original inhabitants.To the house of Micah.—There is no necessity for the supposition that they did not actually lodge in the house, or, at any... read more

Charles John Ellicott

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers - Judges 18:3

(3) By the house of Micah.—Literally, with—i.e., lodging in it, as in Genesis 27:43.They knew the voice of the young man the Levite.—Again the narrative is too much compressed to enable us to fill up its details with any certainty. The youthful Jonathan had lived in Bethlehem. The grandson of Moses could not be wholly unknown. and at this time there was close intercourse between the tribes of Dan and Judah. Possibly, therefore they were personally acquainted with him; nor do they ask (as Micah... read more

Charles John Ellicott

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers - Judges 18:4

(4) Thus and thus.—Literally, according to this and according to that, as in 2 Samuel 11:25; 1 Kings 14:5.I am his priest.—See Judges 17:13. Similarly in the dearth of genuine priests Jeroboam was forced to make even Levites out of the lowest of the people (1 Kings 12:31). read more

Charles John Ellicott

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers - Judges 18:5

(5) Ask counsel . . . of God.—Doubtless Jonathan showed them the glittering ephod. There were no prophets of whom to inquire, as in 1 Kings 22:5; but their unauthorised inquiry was liable to the strong censure expressed in Isaiah 30:1, Hosea 4:12. They might have at least consulted the high priest Phinehas, or some other national representative. read more

William Nicoll

Expositor's Dictionary of Texts - Judges 18:1-31

Judges 18:3 'It, is a vain thought,' says Dinah Morris in Adam Bede, 'to flee from the work that God appoints us, for the sake of finding a greater blessing to our own souls, as if we could choose for ourselves where we shall find the fullness of the Divine Presence, instead of seeking it where alone it is to be found, in loving obedience.' Judges 18:7 A man's own safety is a god that sometimes makes very grim demands. George Eliot. Security, as commonly understood, is the state in which one... read more

William Nicoll

Expositor's Bible Commentary - Judges 18:1-31

THE STOLEN GODSJudges 17:1-13, Judges 18:1-31THE portion of the Book of Judges which begins with the seventeenth chapter and extends to the close is not in immediate connection with that which has gone before. We read {; Judges 18:30} that "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." But the proper reading is, "Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of Moses." It would seem that the renegade... read more

Arno Clemens Gaebelein

Arno Gaebelein's Annotated Bible - Judges 18:1-31

CHAPTER 18 The Danite Idolatry 1. The Danites seek an inheritance (Judges 18:1-12 ) 2. Their robbery (Judges 18:13-26 ) 3. Laish taken and idolatry consummated (Judges 18:27-31 ) The history of this chapter is closely linked with the preceding. The tribe of Dan had failed to take the God-given inheritance (Joshua 19:40-46 ). “The Amorites forced the children of Dan into the mountain: for they would not suffer them to come down to the valley” (Judges 1:34 ). Then in self-will, entirely... read more

John Calvin

Geneva Study Bible - Judges 18:2

18:2 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, {b} Go, search the land: who when they came to mount Ephraim, to the house of Micah, they lodged there.(b) For the portion which Joshua gave them, was not sufficient for all their tribe. read more

John Calvin

Geneva Study Bible - Judges 18:3

18:3 When they [were] by the house of Micah, they knew the {c} 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?(c) They knew by his speech that he was a stranger there. read more

James Gray

James Gray's Concise Bible Commentary - Judges 18:1-31

APPENDIX TO THE BOOK The chapters concluding the book detail certain incidents at various periods during the preceding history, when the whole nation was disordered and corrupt, and “every man did that which was right in his own eyes.” A MAN-MADE PRIEST (Judges 17:0 ) Chapter 17 tells of Micah who established his own imitation of the tabernacle. Of course it was contrary to the law and evinced ignorance and superstition, although the motive may not have been bad. ORIGIN OF THE CITY OF... read more

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers - Judges 18:2

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers - Judges 18:3

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers - Judges 18:4

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers - Judges 18:5

Expositor's Dictionary of Texts - Judges 18:1-31

Expositor's Bible Commentary - Judges 18:1-31

Arno Gaebelein's Annotated Bible - Judges 18:1-31

Geneva Study Bible - Judges 18:2

Geneva Study Bible - Judges 18:3

James Gray's Concise Bible Commentary - Judges 18:1-31

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