All Who are Lost, Wander
All Who are Lost, Wander
Judges 18:1-2a
In those days there was no king in Israel. And in those days the tribe of the people of Dan was seeking for itself an inheritance to dwell in, for until then no inheritance among the tribes of Israel had fallen to them. So the people of Dan sent five able men from the whole number of their tribe, from Zorah and from Eshtaol, to spy out the land and to explore it.
The above Scripture is a bit of a head-scratcher at first glance, since the wording seems to imply that the people of Dan had not been given an inheritance among their brothers, when Joshua 19:40-48 clearly detailed their allotment. Yet, Joshua 19:47 gives us a clue for resolving the seeming discrepancy: “When the territory of the people of Dan was lost to them, the people of Dan went up and fought against Leshem, and after capturing it and striking it with the sword they took possession of it and settled in it.” In that light, Judges 18 is a more detailed account of the conquest mentioned in Joshua 19:47. However, the question of how the Danites lost their land in the first place is still beguiling. Two options come to mind. Either they failed to obey Joshua at the outset, refusing to do the difficult work of foresting and farming and cultivating the high country, preferring instead to stay cozy in their tents in the valley; or, after acquiring the land, the leaders made an unrecorded breach of faith and were driven out by their pagan neighbors. Either way, the fact that they’re still wandering around in the hills looking for home is a bleak picture of their spiritual condition.
Friend, there may be no king in Israel during these days, but that’s not the reason these men are lost. In fact, Israel will be as idolatrous during the monarchial era to come, just as they were during the stewardship of Moses. So read Judges 18:1 not as a condition for this generation’s sin but as a consequence of it. Translate it to this: “In those days, men failed to honor the LORD as King and lived as sovereigns unto themselves.” That’s the heart of the matter. And friend, today, if we pursue our transient, earthly ambitions rather than the Kingdom of Heaven, we’ll look more like a band of roving, homeless wanderers than children of the King as well.