Judges 1:23

23 So the house of Joseph sent men to spy out Bethel. (The name of the city was formerly Luz.)

Judges 1:23 Meaning and Commentary

Judges 1:23

And the house of Joseph sent to descry Bethel
To reconnoitre the place, to observe its passes and avenues, which were most accessible, and to examine the walls of it, where they were weakest and least defended:

now the name of the city before [was] Luz;
which signifies a "nut"; perhaps it was so called from large numbers of nut trees which grew near it; the Jews suggest as if it was like a nut, no entrance into it but through a cave or some subterraneous passage, see ( Genesis 28:19 ) .

Judges 1:23 In-Context

21 But the children of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites who inhabited Jerusalem; so the Jebusites dwell with the children of Benjamin in Jerusalem to this day.

22 And the house of Joseph also went up against Bethel, and the Lord was with them.

23 So the house of Joseph sent men to spy out Bethel. (The name of the city was formerly Luz.)

24 And when the spies saw a man coming out of the city, they said to him, "Please show us the entrance to the city, and we will show you mercy."

25 So he showed them the entrance to the city, and they struck the city with the edge of the sword; but they let the man and all his family go.