The Idolatry of Micah and Dan (7): Idolatry Enshrined at Dan (Judges 18:27-31) by Rev. Angus Stewart
I. The Present
II. The Past
III. The Future
Prof. David J. Engelsma: “In this connection the identity of the young Levite is significant. Judges 18:30 tells us that he is ‘Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of Manasseh.’ The Hebrew text is intriguing both linguistically and historically. If the letter n is removed from the name Manasseh in Hebrew, what remains is the proper name Moses. By a device known as the ‘hanging nun’ (nun being the letter n in Hebrew), a copyist made plain that the n does not belong in the name. in fact, the young Levite is the grandson or great-grandson of Moses himself! This was so abhorrent to a copyist of scripture that he made the name read Manasseh, although making clear that in reality the Levite is a descendant of Moses” (Unfolding Covenant History, vol. 5, pp. 22-23).