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16 The people who belonged to the Kenite clan were the descendants of the father-in-law of Moses. They left Jericho[a] with the people of Judah and settled near Arad in the Southern Desert of Judah not far from the Amalekites.[b]

17 Judah's army helped Simeon's army attack the Canaanites who lived at Zephath. They completely destroyed[c] the town and renamed it Hormah.[d]

18-19 The Lord helped the army of Judah capture Gaza, Ashkelon, Ekron, and the land near those towns. They also took the hill country. But the people who lived in the valleys had iron chariots, so Judah was not able to make them leave or to take their land.

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Footnotes

  1. 1.16 Jericho: The Hebrew text has “Town of Palm Trees,” another name for Jericho.
  2. 1.16 not far … Amalekites: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  3. 1.17 completely destroyed: The Hebrew word means that the town was given completely to the Lord, and since it could not be used for normal purposes anymore, it had to be destroyed.
  4. 1.17 Hormah: In Hebrew “Hormah” sounds like “completely destroyed.”

16 The descendants of Moses’ father-in-law,(A) the Kenite,(B) went up from the City of Palms[a](C) with the people of Judah to live among the inhabitants of the Desert of Judah in the Negev near Arad.(D)

17 Then the men of Judah went with the Simeonites(E) their fellow Israelites and attacked the Canaanites living in Zephath, and they totally destroyed[b] the city. Therefore it was called Hormah.[c](F) 18 Judah also took[d] Gaza,(G) Ashkelon(H) and Ekron—each city with its territory.

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Footnotes

  1. Judges 1:16 That is, Jericho
  2. Judges 1:17 The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them.
  3. Judges 1:17 Hormah means destruction.
  4. Judges 1:18 Hebrew; Septuagint Judah did not take