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Now there was a certain man from Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren and had no children.

And the Angel of the LORD appeared to the woman and said to her, "Indeed now, you are barren and have borne no children, but you shall conceive and bear a son.

So the children of Dan sent five men of their family from their territory, men of valor from Zorah and Eshtaol, to spy out the land and search it. They said to them, "Go, search the land." So they went to the mountains of Ephraim, to the house of Micah, and lodged there.

The six hundred men armed with their weapons of war, who were of the children of Dan, stood by the entrance of the gate.

When they were a good way from the house of Micah, the men who were in the houses near Micah's house gathered together and overtook the children of Dan.

And they called out to the children of Dan. So they turned around and said to Micah, "What ails you, that you have gathered such a company?"

And the children of Dan said to him, "Do not let your voice be heard among us, lest angry men fall upon you, and you lose your life, with the lives of your household!"

Then the children of Dan went their way. And when Micah saw that they were too strong for him, he turned and went back to his house.

Then the children of Dan set up for themselves the carved image; and Jonathan the son of Gershom, the son of Manasseh, [fn] and his sons were priests to the tribe of Dan until the day of the captivity of the land.

But his master said to him, "We will not turn aside here into a city of foreigners, who are not of the children of Israel; we will go on to Gibeah."

And so it was that all who saw it said, "No such deed has been done or seen from the day that the children of Israel came up from the land of Egypt until this day. Consider it, confer, and speak up!"

So all the children of Israel came out, from Dan to Beersheba, as well as from the land of Gilead, and the congregation gathered together as one man before the LORD at Mizpah.

(Now the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel had gone up to Mizpah.) Then the children of Israel said, "Tell us, how did this wicked deed happen?"

Look! All of you are children of Israel; give your advice and counsel here and now!"

Now therefore, deliver up the men, the perverted men [fn] who are in Gibeah, that we may put them to death and remove the evil from Israel!" But the children of Benjamin would not listen to the voice of their brethren, the children of Israel.

Instead, the children of Benjamin gathered together from their cities to Gibeah, to go to battle against the children of Israel.

And from their cities at that time the children of Benjamin numbered twenty-six thousand men who drew the sword, besides the inhabitants of Gibeah, who numbered seven hundred select men.

Then the children of Israel arose and went up to the house of God [fn] to inquire of God. They said, "Which of us shall go up first to battle against the children of Benjamin?" The Lord said, "Judah first!"

So the children of Israel rose in the morning and encamped against Gibeah.

Then the children of Benjamin came out of Gibeah, and on that day cut down to the ground twenty-two thousand men of the Israelites.