Judges 1
1
Judah Fights the Canaanites
1After Joshua died, the Israelites asked the Lord, “Who will be first to go and fight for us against the Canaanites?”
2The Lord said to them, “The tribe of Judah will go. I have handed the land over to them.”
3The men of Judah said to the men of Simeon, their relatives, “Come and help us fight the Canaanites for our land. If you do, we will go and help you fight for your land.” So the men of Simeon went with them.
4When Judah attacked, the Lord handed over the Canaanites and the Perizzites to them, and they defeated ten thousand men at the city of Bezek. 5There they found Adoni-Bezek, the ruler of the city, and fought him. The men of Judah defeated the Canaanites and the Perizzites, 6but Adoni-Bezek ran away. The men of Judah chased him, and when they caught him, they cut off his thumbs and big toes.
7Adoni-Bezek said, “Seventy kings whose thumbs and big toes had been cut off used to eat scraps that fell from my table. Now God has paid me back for what I did to them.” The men of Judah took Adoni-Bezek to Jerusalem, and he died there.
8Then the men of Judah fought against Jerusalem and captured it. They attacked with their swords and burned the city.
9Later, they went down to fight the Canaanites who lived in the mountains, in the dry country to the south, and in the western hills. 10The men of Judah went to fight against the Canaanites in the city of Hebron (which used to be called Kiriath Arba). And they defeated Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai.
Caleb and His Daughter
11Then they left there and went to fight against the people living in Debir. (In the past Debir had been called Kiriath Sepher.) 12Before attacking the city, Caleb said, “I will give Acsah, my daughter, as a wife to the man who attacks and captures the city of Kiriath Sepher.” 13Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother, captured the city, so Caleb gave his daughter Acsah to Othniel to be his wife. 14When Acsah came to Othniel, she told him to ask her father for a field. When she got down from her donkey, Caleb asked her, “What do you want?”
15Acsah answered him, “Do me a special favor. Since you have given me land in southern Canaan, also give me springs of water.” So Caleb gave her the upper and lower springs.
Fights with the Canaanites
16The Kenite people, who were from the family of Moses’ father-in-law, left Jericho, the city of palm trees. They went with the men of Judah to the Desert of Judah to live with them there in southern Judah near the city of Arad.
17The men of Judah and the men of Simeon, their relatives, defeated the Canaanites who lived in Zephath. They completely destroyed the city, so they called it Hormah. 18The men of Judah captured Gaza, Ashkelon, Ekron, and the lands around them.
19The Lord was with the men of Judah. They took the land in the mountains, but they could not force out the people living on the plain, because they had iron chariots. 20As Moses had promised, Hebron was given to Caleb, and Caleb forced out the three sons of Anak. 21But the people of Benjamin could not make the Jebusite people leave Jerusalem. Since that time the Jebusites have lived with the Benjaminites in Jerusalem.
22The men of Joseph went to fight against the city of Bethel, and the Lord was with them. 23They sent some spies to Bethel (which used to be called Luz). 24The spies saw a man coming out of the city and said to him, “Show us a way into the city, and we will be kind to you.” 25So the man showed them the way into the city. The men of Joseph attacked with swords the people in Bethel, but they let the man and his family go free. 26He went to the land where the Hittites lived and built a city. He named it Luz, which it is called even today.
27There were Canaanites living in the cities of Beth Shan, Taanach, Dor, Ibleam, Megiddo, and the small towns around them. The people of Manasseh did not force those people out of their towns, because the Canaanites were determined to stay there. 28Later, the Israelites grew strong and forced the Canaanites to work as slaves, but they did not make all the Canaanites leave their land. 29The people of Ephraim did not force out all of the Canaanites living in Gezer. So the Canaanites continued to live in Gezer with the people of Ephraim. 30The people of Zebulun did not force out the Canaanites living in the cities of Kitron and Nahalol. They stayed and lived with the people of Zebulun, but Zebulun made them work as slaves.
31The people of Asher did not force the Canaanites from the cities of Acco, Sidon, Ahlab, Aczib, Helbah, Aphek, and Rehob. 32Since the people of Asher did not force them out, the Canaanites continued to live with them. 33The people of Naphtali did not force out the people of the cities of Beth Shemesh and Beth Anath. So they continued to live with the Canaanites in those cities, and the Canaanites worked as slaves. 34The Amorites forced the Danites back into the mountains and would not let them come down to live in the plain. 35The Amorites were determined to stay in Mount Heres, Aijalon, and Shaalbim. But when the Israelites grew stronger, they made the Amorites work as slaves. 36The land of the Amorites was from Scorpion Pass to Sela and beyond.
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Judges 1: NCV
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The Holy Bible, New Century Version, Copyright © 2005 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.
Judges 1
1
1And it came to pass after the death of Joshua, that the children of Israel asked of the LORD, saying, Who shall go up for us first against the Canaanites, to fight against them? 2And the LORD said, Judah shall go up: behold, I have delivered the land into his hand. 3And 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. 4And Judah went up; and the LORD delivered the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hand: and they smote of them in Bezek ten thousand men. 5And they found Adoni-bezek in Bezek: and they fought against him, and they smote the Canaanites and the Perizzites. 6But Adoni-bezek fled; and they pursued after him, and caught him, and cut off his thumbs and his great toes. 7And Adoni-bezek 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 he died there. 8And the children of Judah fought against Jerusalem, and took it, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and set the city on fire.
9And afterward the children of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites that dwelt in the hill country, and in the South, and in the lowland. 10And Judah went against the Canaanites that dwelt in Hebron: (now the name of Hebron beforetime was Kiriath-arba:) and they smote Sheshai, and Ahiman, and Talmai. 11And from thence he went against the inhabitants of Debir. (Now the name of Debir beforetime was Kiriath-sepher.) 12And Caleb said, He that smiteth Kiriath-sepher, and taketh it, to him will I give Achsah my daughter to wife. 13And Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother, took it: and he gave him Achsah his daughter to wife. 14And it came to pass, when she came unto him, that she moved him to ask of her father a field: and she lighted down from off her ass; and Caleb said unto her, What wouldest thou? 15And she said unto him, Give me a blessing; for that thou hast set me in the land of the South, give me also springs of water. And Caleb gave her the upper springs and the nether springs. 16And the children of the Kenite, Moses' brother in law, went up out of the city of palm trees with the children of Judah into the wilderness of Judah, which is in the south of Arad; and they went and dwelt with the people. 17And Judah went with Simeon his brother, and they smote the Canaanites that inhabited Zephath, and utterly destroyed it. And the name of the city was called Hormah. 18Also Judah took Gaza with the border thereof, and Ashkelon with the border thereof, and Ekron with the border thereof. 19And the LORD was with Judah; and he drave out the inhabitants of the hill country; for he could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley, because they had chariots of iron. 20And they gave Hebron unto Caleb, as Moses had spoken: and he drave out thence the three sons of Anak.
21And the children of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites that inhabited Jerusalem: but the Jebusites dwelt with the children of Benjamin in Jerusalem, unto this day. 22And the house of Joseph, they also went up against Beth-el: and the LORD was with them. 23And the house of Joseph sent to spy out Beth-el. (Now the name of the city beforetime was Luz.) 24And the watchers 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 deal kindly with thee. 25And he shewed them the entrance into the city, and they smote the city with the edge of the sword; but they let the man go and all his family. 26And 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. 27And Manasseh did not drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shean and her towns, nor of 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. 28And it came to pass, when Israel was waxen strong, that they put the Canaanites to taskwork, and did not utterly drive them out. 29And Ephraim drave not out the Canaanites that dwelt in Gezer; but the Canaanites dwelt in Gezer among them. 30Zebulun drave not out the inhabitants of Kitron, nor the inhabitants of Nahalol; but the Canaanites dwelt among them, and became tributary. 31Asher drave not out the inhabitants of Acco, nor the inhabitants of Zidon, nor of Ahlab, nor of Achzib, nor of Helbah, nor of Aphik, nor of Rehob: 32but the Asherites dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land: for they did not drive them out. 33Naphtali drave not out the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh, nor the inhabitants of Beth-anath; but he dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land: nevertheless the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh and of Beth-anath became tributary unto them. 34And the Amorites forced the children of Dan into the hill country: for they would not suffer them to come down to the valley: 35but 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 tributary. 36And the border of the Amorites was from the ascent of Akrabbim, from the rock, and upward.
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