And the house of Joseph sent to descry Bethel. (Now the name of the city before was Luz.)
Parallel translations
- WEB The house of Joseph sent to spy out Bethel. (The name of the city before that was Luz.)
- BSB They sent spies to Bethel (formerly known as Luz),
- NKJV So the house of Joseph sent men to spy out Bethel. (The name of the city was formerly Luz.)
- NASB The house of Joseph had men spy out Bethel (the name of the city previously was Luz).
- NLT They sent men to scout out Bethel (formerly known as Luz).
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
They send spies to reconnoiter Bethel, formerly called Luz. It matters as a prudent step in the campaign that leads to the city's fall.
Overview
The Joseph tribes scout Bethel before attacking, a wise and ordinary means within God's providence. The note of the older name Luz anchors the account historically. The verse shows that trusting God does not exclude careful planning in the work he gives.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Gen 28:19And he called the name of that place Bethel: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first.
- Gen 48:3And Jacob said unto Joseph, God Almighty appeared unto me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and blessed me,
- Gen 35:6So Jacob came to Luz, which is in the land of Canaan, that is, Bethel, he and all the people that were with him.
- Josh 2:1And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying, Go view the land, even Jericho. And they went, and came into an harlot’s house, named Rahab, and lodged there.
- Judg 18:2And the children of Dan sent of their family five men from their coasts, men of valour, from Zorah, and from Eshtaol, to spy out the land, and to search it; and they said unto them, Go, search the land: who when they came to mount Ephraim, to the house of Micah, they lodged there.
- Josh 7:2And Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is beside Bethaven, on the east side of Bethel, and spake unto them, saying, Go up and view the country. And the men went up and viewed Ai.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Israel's cycle of sin and rescue through flawed deliverers cries out for a Savior who never fails — the true and final Judge and Deliverer who saves his people not for a season but forever.
How Judges 1:23 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.