Scriptures

New Living Translation (NLT)

Judges 18
²⁸ There was no one to rescue the people, for they lived a great distance from Sidon and had no allies nearby. This happened in the valley near Beth-rehob. Then the people of the tribe of Dan rebuilt the town and lived there.
²⁹ They renamed the town Dan after their ancestor, Israel’s son, but it had originally been called Laish.
³⁰ Then they set up the carved image, and they appointed Jonathan son of Gershom, son of Moses, as their priest. This family continued as priests for the tribe of Dan until the Exile.
³¹ So Micah’s carved image was worshiped by the tribe of Dan as long as the Tabernacle of God remained at Shiloh.
Judges 19
¹ Now in those days Israel had no king. There was a man from the tribe of Levi living in a remote area of the hill country of Ephraim. One day he brought home a woman from Bethlehem in Judah to be his concubine.
² But she became angry with him and returned to her father’s home in Bethlehem. After about four months,
³ her husband set out for Bethlehem to speak personally to her and persuade her to come back. He took with him a servant and a pair of donkeys. When he arrived at her father’s house, her father saw him and welcomed him.
⁴ Her father urged him to stay awhile, so he stayed three days, eating, drinking, and sleeping there.
⁵ On the fourth day the man was up early, ready to leave, but the woman’s father said to his son-in-law, “Have something to eat before you go.”
⁶ So the two men sat down together and had something to eat and drink. Then the woman’s father said, “Please stay another night and enjoy yourself.”
⁷ The man got up to leave, but his father-in-law kept urging him to stay, so he finally gave in and stayed the night.