Amplified Bible
Judges 18:30
30The [tribe of] the sons of Dan set up the image [of silver-plated wood] for themselves; and Jonathan the son of Gershom, the son of Moses, and his sons were priests to the tribe of the Danites until the day of the captivity and exile from the land.
Judges 18:30 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And the children of Dan set up the graven image: and 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.
- New International Version (NIV)There the Danites set up for themselves the idol, and Jonathan son of Gershom, the son of Moses, and his sons were priests for the tribe of Dan until the time of the captivity of the land.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And the people of Dan set up the carved image for themselves, and Jonathan the son of Gershom, son of Moses, and his sons were priests to the tribe of the Danites until the day of the captivity of the land.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then the children of Dan set up for themselves the carved image; and Jonathan the son of Gershom, the son of Manasseh, and his sons were priests to the tribe of Dan until the day of the captivity of the land.
Context of Judges 18:30
28And there was no one to rescue them because it was far from Sidon and they had no dealings with anyone. It was in the valley which belongs to Beth-rehob. And they rebuilt the city and lived in it. 29They named the city Dan, after Dan their forefather who was born to Israel (Jacob); however, the original name of the city was Laish. The [tribe of] the sons of Dan set up the image [of silver-plated wood] for themselves; and Jonathan the son of Gershom, the son of Moses, and his sons were priests to the tribe of the Danites until the day of the captivity and exile from the land. 31So they set up for themselves Micah’s [silver-plated wooden] image which he had made, and kept it throughout the time that the house (tabernacle) of God was at Shiloh.
Read all of Judges 18Judges 18:30 word by word
וַיָּקִ֧ימוּ לָהֶ֛ם בְּנֵי־דָ֖ן אֶת־הַפָּ֑סֶל וִ֠יהוֹנָתָן בֶּן־גֵּרְשֹׁ֨ם בֶּן־מְנַשֶּׁ֜ה ה֣וּא וּבָנָ֗יו הָי֤וּ כֹהֲנִים֙ לְשֵׁ֣בֶט הַדָּנִ֔י עַד־י֖וֹם גְּל֥וֹת הָאָֽרֶץ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And the childrenבֵּןbên · son: descendant/peopleH1121
- of Danדָּןdân · DanH1835
- set upקוּםqûm · to arise: establishH6965
- the graven imageפֶּ֫סֶלpesel · idolH6459
- and Jonathanיְהוֹנָתָןyehônâthân · JonathanH3083
- the sonבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
- of Gershomגֵּרְשֹׁםgêreshôm · GershomH1647
- of Manassehמְנַשֶּׁהmenashsheh · MosesH4519
- were priestsכֹּהֵןkôhên · priestH3548
- to the tribeשֵׁ֫בֶטshêbeţ · tribeH7626
- of Danדָּנִיdânîy · DaniteH1839
- until the dayיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
- of the captivityגָּלָהgâlâh · to reveal: removeH1540
- of the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
Cross-references for Judges 18:30
- Exodus 20:4“You shall not make for yourself any idol, or any likeness (form, manifestation) of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth [as an object to worship].
- Leviticus 26:1‘You shall not make idols for yourselves, nor shall you erect an image, a sacred pillar or an obelisk, nor shall you place any figured stone in your land so that you may bow down to it; for I am the Lord your God.
- Deuteronomy 17:2“If there is discovered among you, within any of your cities, which the Lord your God is giving you, a man or a woman who does evil in the sight of the Lord your God, by transgressing (violating) His covenant,
- Deuteronomy 27:15‘Cursed is the man who makes a carved or cast image (idol), a repulsive thing to the Lord, the work of the hands of the artisan, and sets it up in secret.’ All the people shall answer and say, ‘Amen.’
- Deuteronomy 31:16The Lord said to Moses, “Behold, you are about to lie down [in death] with your fathers; and this people will arise and play the prostitute (commit apostasy) with the foreign gods [of the people] of the land, where they go to be among them. They will abandon (turn away from) Me and break My covenant which I have made with them.
- Psalms 105:44He gave them the lands of the nations [of Canaan], So that they would possess the fruits of those peoples’ labor,
- Judges 13:1Now Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord gave them into the hands of the Philistines for forty years.
- 1 Samuel 4:2The Philistines assembled in battle formation to meet Israel, and when the battle was over, Israel was defeated by the Philistines, who killed about four thousand men on the battlefield.
- Psalms 78:60So that He abandoned the tabernacle at Shiloh, The tent in which He had dwelled among men,
Commentaries on Judges 18:30
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 30The children of Dan set up the graven image - They erected a chapel, or temple, among themselves, as Micah had done before; having the same implements and the same priest. And Jonathan the son of Gershom - Either this was the name of the young Levite; or they had turned him off, and got this Jonathan in his place. The son Manasseh - Who this Manasseh was, none can tell; nor does the reading appear to be genuine. He could not be Manasseh the son of Joseph…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 30In the Hebrew text the name here rendered Manasseh is written MN)- SH. Without the “N” (nun) suspended over the line, the word may be read: Moses, whose son was Gershom Exodus 2:22, whose son or descendant Jonathan clearly was. The Masoretes, probably grieved that a descendant of Moses should have been implicated in idolatrous worship, adopted this expedient for disguising the fact without absolutely falsifying the text. The Vulgate has “Moses”, the…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 30The wandering Levite is now called Jonathan. He was a descendant of Moses through Gershom (Exodus 2:21–22). The exile traditionally began with the fall of the northern kingdom in 722 BC. Considering the reference to Shiloh (Judges 18:31), the exile of the Ark from Shiloh (1 Samuel 4–6) might be relevant.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 30-3130-31. the children of Dan set up the graven image--Their distance secluded them from the rest of the Israelites, and doubtless this, which was their apology for not going to Shiloh, was the cause of perpetuating idolatry among them for many generations.Read the comment
Topics related to Judges 18:30
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Judges 18
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- Darby Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
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