Judges 1

1After Joshua died, the Israelites asked the LORD, “Which of us should go up first to fight against the Canaanites?” 2The LORD answered, “Judah is to go up. I have handed the land over to them.” 3Judah said to his brother Simeon, “Come up with me into the territory allotted to me, and let us fight the Canaanites together. Then I will go with you into your territory.” So Simeon went with them. 4When Judah went up, the LORD handed the Canaanites and the Perizzites over to them, and they defeated 10,000 men at Bezek. 5They came upon Adoni-Bezek at Bezek and fought against him, and they defeated the Canaanites and the Perizzites. 6Adoni-Bezek ran away, but they chased him and caught him, and they cut off his thumbs and his big toes. 7Adoni-Bezek said, “Seventy kings, their thumbs and big toes cut off, used to pick up scraps under my table. God has paid me back for what I did.” They brought him to Jerusalem, and he died there.

8The men of Judah fought against Jerusalem and captured it. They struck it down with the sword and set the city on fire. 9After that the men of Judah went down to fight the Canaanites who lived in the hill country, the Negev and the foothills. 10Judah marched against the Canaanites who lived in Hebron, which used to be called Kiriath-arba, and they defeated Sheshai, Ahiman and Talmai. 11From there they went against the people who lived in Debir. Debir used to be called Kiriath-sepher. 12Caleb said, “I will give my daughter Achsah as a wife to the man who attacks Kiriath-sepher and captures it.” 13Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother, captured it, so Caleb gave him his daughter Achsah as his wife. 14When she came to Othniel, she urged him to ask her father for a field. As she got down from her donkey, Caleb asked her, “What do you want?” 15She answered, “Give me a gift. You have given me land in the Negev; now give me springs of water too.” Caleb then gave her the upper springs and the lower springs.

16The descendants of the Kenite, Moses’ father-in-law, went up with the people of Judah from the city of palm trees into the wilderness of Judah, in the Negev near Arad. They went and settled among the people. 17Then Judah went with his brother Simeon, and they defeated the Canaanites who lived in Zephath. They devoted the city to destruction, so it was named Hormah. 18Judah also captured Gaza, Ashkelon and Ekron, each with its surrounding territory. 19The LORD was with Judah, and they took the hill country for their own. But they could not drive out the people who lived on the plain, because those people had iron chariots. 20Hebron was given to Caleb, as Moses had promised, and he drove out the three sons of Anak from there. 21But the people of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites who lived in Jerusalem, and the Jebusites have lived there with the people of Benjamin to this day.

22The house of Joseph also went up against Bethel, and the LORD was with them. 23The house of Joseph sent men to spy out Bethel, which used to be called Luz. 24The spies saw a man coming out of the city. “Please show us a way into the city,” they said to him, “and we will show you faithful love.” 25So he showed them the way in, and they struck the city down with the sword, but they let the man and his whole clan go free. 26The man went off to the land of the Hittites, where he built a city and named it Luz. That is still its name today.

27But Manasseh did not drive out the people of Beth-shean, Taanach, Dor, Ibleam or Megiddo, or of the villages around them, because the Canaanites were determined to stay in that land. 28Later, when Israel had grown stronger, they made the Canaanites do forced labor, but they never drove them out completely.

29Ephraim did not drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer, so the Canaanites went on living among them there.

30Zebulun did not drive out the people living in Kitron or in Nahalol, so the Canaanites lived among them, though they were made to do forced labor.

31Asher did not drive out the people living in Acco or Sidon, or in Ahlab, Achzib, Helbah, Aphik or Rehob. 32So the Asherites lived among the Canaanites who lived in the land, because they did not drive them out.

33Naphtali did not drive out the people living in Beth-shemesh or Beth-anath, but lived among the Canaanites who lived in the land. The people of Beth-shemesh and Beth-anath were made to do forced labor for them.

34The Amorites forced the people of Dan back into the hill country and would not let them come down into the plain. 35The Amorites were determined to stay in Mount Heres, Aijalon and Shaalbim, but the house of Joseph pressed hard on them, and they were made to do forced labor. 36The border of the Amorites ran from the Ascent of Akrabbim, from Sela and on up.