📖 Judges — Chapter 1 (KJV)
Read the complete King James Version chapter below, then explore the passage sections, check what you remember, and keep your private study notes.
Scripture source: Project Gutenberg KJV, ebook 10.
Judges 1:1 RNow after the death of Joshua it came to pass, that the children of Israel asked the LORD, saying, Who shall go up for us against the Canaanites first, to fight against them?
Judges 1:2 And the LORD said, Judah shall go up: behold, I have delivered the land into his hand.
Judges 1:3 And Judah said unto Simeon his brother, Come up with me into my lot, that we may fight against the Canaanites; and RI likewise will go with thee into thy lot. So Simeon went with him.
Judges 1:4 And Judah went up; and the RLORD delivered the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hand: and they slew of them in Bezek ten thousand men.
Judges 1:5 And they found Adonibezek in Bezek: and they fought against him, and they slew the Canaanites and the Perizzites.
Judges 1:6 But Adonibezek fled; and they pursued after him, and caught him, and cut off his thumbs and his great toes.
Judges 1:7 And Adonibezek said, Threescore and ten kings, having Ttheir thumbs and their great toes cut off, Tgathered their meat under my table: Ras I have done, so God hath requited me. And they brought him to Jerusalem, and there he died.
Judges 1:8 Now the children of Judah had fought against Jerusalem, and had taken it, and smitten it with the edge of the sword, and set the city on fire.
Judges 1:9 And Rafterward the children of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites, that dwelt in the mountain, and in the south, and in the Tvalley.
Judges 1:10 And Judah went against the Canaanites that dwelt in Hebron: (now the name of Hebron before was Kirjatharba:) and they slew RSheshai, and Ahiman, and Talmai.
Judges 1:11 And from thence he went against the inhabitants of Debir: and the name of Debir before was Kirjathsepher:
Judges 1:12 RAnd Caleb said, He that smiteth Kirjathsepher, and taketh it, to him will I give Achsah my daughter to wife.
Judges 1:13 And Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother, took it: and he gave him Achsah his daughter to wife.
Judges 1:14 RAnd it came to pass, when she came to him, that she moved him to ask of her father a field: and she lighted from off her ass; and Caleb said unto her, What wilt thou?
Judges 1:15 And she said unto him, Give me Ra blessing: for thou hast given me a south land; give me also springs of water. And Caleb gave her the upper springs and the nether springs.
Judges 1:16 And the children of Rthe Kenite, Moses’ father in law, went up out of the city of palm trees with the children of Judah into the wilderness of Judah, which lieth in the south of Arad; and they went and dwelt among the people.
Judges 1:17 And Judah went with Simeon his brother, and they slew the Canaanites that inhabited RZephath, and utterly destroyed it. And the name of the city was called Hormah.
Judges 1:18 Also Judah took RGaza with the coast thereof, and Askelon with the coast thereof, and Ekron with the coast thereof.
Judges 1:19 And Rthe LORD was with Judah; and he Tdrave out the inhabitants of the mountain; but could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley, because they had chariots of iron.
Judges 1:20 And Rthey gave Hebron unto Caleb, as Moses said: and he expelled thence the three sons of Anak.
Judges 1:21 And the children of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites that inhabited Jerusalem; but the Jebusites dwell with the children of Benjamin in Jerusalem unto this day.
Judges 1:22 And Rthe house of Joseph, they also went up against Bethel: and the LORD was with them.
Judges 1:23 And the house of Joseph Rsent to descry Bethel. (Now the name of the city before was Luz.)
Judges 1:24 And the spies 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 Rwe will shew thee mercy.
Judges 1:25 And when he shewed them the entrance into the city, Rthey smote the city with the edge of the sword; but they let go the man and all his family.
Judges 1:26 And the man went into Rthe land of the Hittites, and built a city, and called the name thereof Luz: which is the name thereof unto this day.
Judges 1:27 Neither did RManasseh drive out the inhabitants of Bethshean and her towns, nor 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.
Judges 1:28 And it came to pass, when Israel was strong, that they put the Canaanites to tribute, and did not utterly drive them out.
Judges 1:29 Neither did Ephraim drive out the Canaanites that dwelt in Gezer; but the Canaanites dwelt in Gezer among them.
Judges 1:30 Neither did Zebulun drive out the inhabitants of Kitron, nor the inhabitants of RNahalol; but the Canaanites dwelt among them, and became tributaries.
Judges 1:31 Neither did RAsher drive out the inhabitants of Accho, nor the inhabitants of Zidon, nor of Ahlab, nor of Achzib, nor of Helbah, nor of Aphik, nor of Rehob:
Judges 1:32 But the Asherites dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land: for they did not drive them out.
Judges 1:33 Neither did RNaphtali drive out the inhabitants of Bethshemesh, nor the inhabitants of Bethanath; but he dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land: nevertheless the inhabitants of Bethshemesh and of Bethanath became tributaries unto them.
Judges 1:34 And the Amorites forced the children of Dan into the mountain: for they would not suffer them to come down to the valley:
Judges 1:35 But the Amorites would dwell in mount Heres in RAijalon, and in Shaalbim: yet the hand of the house of Joseph Tprevailed, so that they became tributaries.
Judges 1:36 And the coast of the Amorites was Rfrom Tthe going up to Akrabbim, from the rock, and upward.
📚 Study This Chapter
📖 What We’re Reading
Judges 1:1–8 — Judah goes first after Joshua's death
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
Israel asks the LORD which tribe should lead. Judah joins with Simeon and wins at Bezek. Adonibezek recognizes a correspondence between his earlier cruelty and what happens to him; the account reports violence without making every human action an example to imitate.
Key Truth: Seek God's direction rather than assuming past victories settle present decisions.
Check What You Remember
1. Which tribe was told to go first? (Judges 1:2)
Find it in Judges 1:2 (KJV).
2. Which tribe went with Judah? (Judges 1:3)
Find it in Judges 1:3 (KJV).
3. Where did Adonibezek die? (Judges 1:7)
Find it in Judges 1:7 (KJV).
📖 What We’re Reading
Judges 1:9–20 — Caleb's inheritance and Achsah's request
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
The account follows Judah's campaigns and Caleb's family. Othniel takes the city, and Achsah asks for springs to accompany her land. Judah's mountain victories appear alongside difficulty in the valley, where the inhabitants have iron chariots.
Key Truth: The chapter records both progress and unfinished work.
Check What You Remember
1. Who took Kirjathsepher? (Judges 1:13)
Find it in Judges 1:13 (KJV).
2. What did Achsah ask for in addition to land? (Judges 1:15)
Find it in Judges 1:15 (KJV).
3. Which city was given to Caleb? (Judges 1:20)
Find it in Judges 1:20 (KJV).
📖 What We’re Reading
Judges 1:21–36 — Tribes leave inhabitants in the land
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
The house of Joseph takes Bethel, but the chapter repeatedly records tribes failing to drive out inhabitants. Making people tributaries does not equal completing the earlier command. This unfinished settlement forms the background to the spiritual troubles that follow.
Key Truth: An account of partial success should also reckon honestly with what remains undone.
Check What You Remember
1. What was Bethel's earlier name? (Judges 1:23)
Find it in Judges 1:23 (KJV).
2. What did strong Israel impose instead of fully driving out the Canaanites? (Judges 1:28)
Find it in Judges 1:28 (KJV).
3. Which tribe was forced into the mountain? (Judges 1:34)
Find it in Judges 1:34 (KJV).
Related Scripture (KJV)
Joshua 23:13 — Joshua had warned of the consequences of leaving covenant obligations behind.
This related passage is selected for its connection with this chapter. It is separate from the chapter text.
Reflect and Apply
Where does this chapter distinguish a beginning made in dependence on God from work left unfinished? Record one observation without treating the warfare as a personal command today.
Advanced Questions and Answers
Study this chapter’s wording, patterns, contrasts, and meaning in greater depth.
1. How does Judah’s invitation to Simeon make their help reciprocal?
2. How does Adonibezek interpret what has happened to him?
3. How does Caleb’s action contrast with later accounts of remaining inhabitants?
4. What qualification is given concerning strong Israel’s treatment of Canaanites?
5. How do the Amorites restrict Dan’s settlement?
Notes
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