In the previous verse the destruction of Laish and the massacre of its entire population is described. Here irony gives way to sadness, as the storyteller pauses, giving even more details about the town’s defenselessness. The mention of the lack of a deliverer strikes an incredible note of despair.

And there was no deliverer: Up till now in Israel, God has always raised up a “judge” or deliverer to save his people (see, for example, verse 3.9). However, at this point in time, when everyone “did what was right in his own eyes” (verse 17.6), no heroes emerge to save those who suffer. The Hebrew waw conjunction rendered And may be omitted here (New Revised Standard Version, New International Version). Deliverer translates a participle of the key Hebrew verb natsal meaning “rescue” or “save [from a dangerous situation]” (see verse 6.9). In most languages it will be necessary to mention who is being saved; here it is the people of Laish. Good News Translation and Revised English Bible say “There was no one to save them.” Though it is possible to say “There was no one to defend them” or “There was no one to come to their rescue,” it seems important to keep the links between the various episodes in this book. Thus Revised Standard Version‘s rendering can be followed, since it brings to mind all the previous heroes in the book and underlines the absence of a “savior-judge” here.

The next three clauses give the reasons why this town was so vulnerable, introduced by the Hebrew particle ki rendered because. However, it is also possible that this particle is an emphatic marker here, which might be translated “indeed” or “in fact.”

It was far from Sidon: See verse 18.7. Help from the outside was not possible because the town of Laish was isolated. The pronoun it refers to Laish, which was far from Sidon, a large city whose soldiers could have come to the aid of this town, if it had been closer. For Sidon see verse 1.31. This clause should be translated as in verse 18.7. However, there is a slight difference here. In 18.7 the narrator says the people of Laish were secure “like” the people of Sidon. Here they are attacked because they are far from that city.

And they had no dealings with anyone: See verse 18.7. As there, New Revised Standard Version emends the Hebrew word for anyone (ʾadam) to read “Aram” (ʾaram). Revised English Bible and New Jerusalem Bible also follow this reading by saying “Arameans.” But Hebrew Old Testament Text Project recommends that translators follow the Hebrew text, as in RSV.

It was in the valley which belongs to Beth-rehob: This is the third clause that describes the isolation of Laish. In Hebrew this clause begins with the Hebrew waw conjunction (“and”), which Revised Standard Version omits here. The preceding conjunction because can be understood here, and may be expressed in some languages. The pronoun it refers to Laish. Was may be rendered “was located” (Contemporary English Version). The Hebrew word for valley comes from a root meaning “be deep,” but it is often used to refer to lowlands or cultivated areas (see verse 1.19, where it is rendered “plain”). Since Laish was in a valley, it was very vulnerable to attack. Towns in the mountainous regions were easily defended, while those in the valleys, especially those with little or no walls, were easy to conquer. Contemporary English Version adds the information that Laish “had no walls,” but the Hebrew text does not have this information. Which belongs to Beth-rehob is literally “which [was] to Beth-rehob,” which means the valley was near Beth-rehob. Beth-rehob is a place name meaning “house of Rehob.” Some scholars think it is a street name, while others think it might be the name of a market. However, in verse 2 Sam 10.6 it refers to a town near the Syrian border. Good News Translation runs the two Hebrew words of this name together, saying “Bethrehob,” but most versions keep a compound name here as Revised Standard Version has done.

And they rebuilt the city, and dwelt in it: After several clauses providing background information about Laish, this sentence brings the audience back to the story line. It seems to follow directly from the last part of verse 18.27. After the Danites killed all the inhabitants of Laish and burned the town to the ground, they rebuilt it to dwell in it themselves. In some languages the Hebrew waw conjunction rendered and can be expressed as “So.” The pronoun they refers to the Danites, rather than the people of Laish, and many languages will need to make this clear by saying “the Danites.” In some languages it might be helpful to repeat certain information, for example, “So, having burned the town [to the ground], the Danites rebuilt it….” To avoid backtracking and repetition, Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version combine 18.27-28. However, most languages will be able to handle the background comments, as they occur in the text. New International Version and New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh begin a new paragraph here in the middle of the verse, which is another way of handling this problem.

Rebuilt the city means the Danites built a new town on the same spot where Laish had formerly stood. Archaeologists have discovered that in ancient times building a new town on the ruins of another was a very common practice. We may say “built a new town” or “built another town there.”

Dwelt in it means the Danites stayed permanently in Laish (see comments on verse 18.1). Some languages may say “sat there” or “settled there.” This is a crucial clause. Earlier the Danites were unable to conquer the land allotted to them in the south of the country (verse 1.34). They then migrated north, looking for a spot to settle. Finally they found a place to live, but not before showing their real character. This narrative reveals they were both dishonest (verse 18.2) and cruel (verse 18.27), the latter being made clear by the way they “conquered” Laish, a peaceful and defenseless place.

Translators can reorder the clauses of this verse if necessary. Possible models are:

• There was no deliverer to save the people of Laish. They were a long way from Sidon, and had no contact with anyone.* The town lay defenseless in the valley near the town of Beth-rehob. So [having burned down the town,] the Danites rebuilt it and settled there.
* Some versions say “and they had no contact with those from Aram.”

• Laish was in the flat place near the town of Beth-rehob, far from Sidon. The people of Laish had no contact with anybody, so there was no one to come to their rescue. Having destroyed the town, the Danites rebuilt it and took up residence there.

Quoted with permission from Zogbo, Lynell and Ogden, Graham S. A Handbook on Judges. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2019. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .