Person
Dan
Mentioned in 63 verses across 16 books, first in Genesis 30:6. The verses below are the ones linked to this person (the Theographic dataset, with our sourced corrections).
In the Bible
All 63 verses, in Bible order. Text from the Berean Standard Bible; verse numbers follow the KJV.
Genesis
- Genesis 30:6
Then Rachel said, “God has vindicated me; He has heard my plea and given me a son.” So she named him Dan.
- Genesis 35:25
The sons of Rachel’s maidservant Bilhah were Dan and Naphtali.
- Genesis 46:23
The son of Dan: Hushim.
- Genesis 49:16
Dan shall provide justice for his people as one of the tribes of Israel.
- Genesis 49:17
He will be a snake by the road, a viper in the path that bites the horse’s heels so that its rider tumbles backward.
Exodus
- Exodus 1:4
Dan and Naphtali; Gad and Asher.
- Exodus 31:6
Moreover, I have selected Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, as his assistant. I have also given skill to all the craftsmen, that they may fashion all that I have commanded you:
- Exodus 35:34
And the LORD has given both him and Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, the ability to teach others.
- Exodus 38:23
With him was Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, an engraver, designer, and embroiderer in blue, purple, and scarlet yarn and fine linen.
Leviticus
- Leviticus 24:11
The son of the Israelite woman blasphemed the Name with a curse. So they brought him to Moses. (His mother’s name was Shelomith daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan.)
Numbers
- Numbers 1:12
from Dan, Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai;
- Numbers 1:38
From the sons of Dan, according to the records of their clans and families, counting the names of all those twenty years of age or older who could serve in the army,
- Numbers 1:39
those registered to the tribe of Dan numbered 62,700.
- Numbers 2:25
On the north side, the divisions of Dan are to camp under their standard: The leader of the Danites is Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai,
- Numbers 2:31
The total number of men in the camp of Dan is 157,600; they shall set out last, under their standards.”
- Numbers 7:66
On the tenth day Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai, the leader of the Danites, drew near.
- Numbers 10:25
Finally, the divisions of the camp of Dan set out under their standard, serving as the rear guard for all units, with Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai in command.
- Numbers 13:12
from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel son of Gemalli;
- Numbers 26:42
These were the descendants of Dan by their clans: The Shuhamite clan from Shuham. These were the clans of Dan.
- Numbers 34:22
Bukki son of Jogli, a leader from the tribe of Dan;
Deuteronomy
- Deuteronomy 27:13
And these tribes shall stand on Mount Ebal to deliver the curse: Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali.
- Deuteronomy 33:22
Concerning Dan he said: “Dan is a lion’s cub, leaping out of Bashan.”
- Deuteronomy 34:1
Then Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which faces Jericho. And the LORD showed him the whole land—from Gilead as far as Dan,
Joshua
- Joshua 19:40
The seventh lot came out for the clans of the tribe of Dan:
- Joshua 19:47
(Later, when the territory of the Danites was lost to them, they went up and fought against Leshem, captured it, and put it to the sword. So they took possession of Leshem, settled there, and renamed it after their father Dan.)
- Joshua 19:48
This was the inheritance of the clans of the tribe of Dan, including these cities and their villages.
- Joshua 21:5
The remaining descendants of Kohath received ten cities by lot from the tribes of Ephraim, Dan, and the half-tribe of Manasseh.
- Joshua 21:23
From the tribe of Dan they were given Elteke, Gibbethon,
Judges
- Judges 1:34
The Amorites forced the Danites into the hill country and did not allow them to come down into the plain.
- Judges 5:17
Gilead remained beyond the Jordan. Dan, why did you linger by the ships? Asher stayed at the coast and remained in his harbors.
- Judges 13:25
And the Spirit of the LORD began to stir him at Mahaneh-dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.
- Judges 18:2
So the Danites sent out five men from their clans, men of valor from Zorah and Eshtaol, to spy out the land and explore it. “Go and explore the land,” they told them. The men entered the hill country of Ephraim and came to the house of Micah, where they spent the night.
- Judges 18:16
The six hundred Danites stood at the entrance of the gate, armed with their weapons of war.
- Judges 18:22
After they were some distance from Micah’s house, the men in the houses near Micah’s house mobilized and overtook the Danites.
- Judges 18:23
When they called out after them, the Danites turned to face them and said to Micah, “What is the matter with you that you have called out such a company?”
- Judges 18:25
The Danites said to him, “Do not raise your voice against us, or angry men will attack you, and you and your family will lose your lives.”
- Judges 18:26
So the Danites went on their way, and Micah turned to go back home, because he saw that they were too strong for him.
- Judges 18:29
They named it Dan, after their forefather Dan, who was born to Israel—though the city was formerly named Laish.
- Judges 18:30
The Danites set up idols for themselves, and Jonathan son of Gershom, the son of Moses, and his sons were priests for the tribe of Dan until the day of the captivity of the land.
- Judges 20:1
Then all the Israelites from Dan to Beersheba and from the land of Gilead came out, and the congregation assembled as one man before the LORD at Mizpah.
1 Samuel
- 1 Samuel 3:20
So all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was confirmed as a prophet of the LORD.
2 Samuel
- 2 Samuel 3:10
to transfer the kingdom from the house of Saul and to establish the throne of David over Israel and Judah, from Dan to Beersheba.”
- 2 Samuel 17:11
Instead, I advise that all Israel from Dan to Beersheba—a multitude like the sand on the seashore—be gathered to you, and that you yourself lead them into battle.
- 2 Samuel 24:2
So the king said to Joab the commander of his army, who was with him, “Go now throughout the tribes of Israel from Dan to Beersheba and register the troops, so that I may know their number.”
- 2 Samuel 24:15
So the LORD sent a plague upon Israel from that morning until the appointed time, and seventy thousand of the people from Dan to Beersheba died.
1 Kings
- 1 Kings 4:25
Throughout the days of Solomon, Judah and Israel dwelt securely from Dan to Beersheba, each man under his own vine and his own fig tree.
- 1 Kings 12:29
One calf he set up in Bethel, and the other in Dan.
- 1 Kings 12:30
And this thing became a sin; the people walked as far as Dan to worship before one of the calves.
- 1 Kings 15:20
And Ben-hadad listened to King Asa and sent the commanders of his armies against the cities of Israel, conquering Ijon, Dan, Abel-beth-maacah, and the whole land of Naphtali, including the region of Chinnereth.
2 Kings
- 2 Kings 10:29
but he did not turn away from the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had caused Israel to commit—the worship of the golden calves at Bethel and Dan.
1 Chronicles
- 1 Chronicles 2:2
Dan, Joseph, Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher.
- 1 Chronicles 21:2
So David said to Joab and the commanders of the troops, “Go and count the Israelites from Beersheba to Dan and bring me a report, so that I may know their number.”
- 1 Chronicles 27:22
and over Dan was Azarel son of Jeroham. These were the leaders of the tribes of Israel.
2 Chronicles
- 2 Chronicles 2:14
He is the son of a woman from the daughters of Dan, and his father is a man of Tyre. He is skilled in work with gold and silver, bronze and iron, stone and wood, purple, blue, and crimson yarn, and fine linen. He is experienced in every kind of engraving and can execute any design that is given him. He will work with your craftsmen and with those of my lord, your father David.
- 2 Chronicles 16:4
And Ben-hadad listened to King Asa and sent the commanders of his armies against the cities of Israel, conquering Ijon, Dan, Abel-maim, and all the store cities of Naphtali.
- 2 Chronicles 30:5
So they established a decree to circulate a proclamation throughout Israel, from Beersheba to Dan, that the people should come to keep the Passover of the LORD, the God of Israel, in Jerusalem. For they had not observed it as a nation as prescribed.
Jeremiah
- Jeremiah 4:15
For a voice resounds from Dan, proclaiming disaster from the hills of Ephraim.
- Jeremiah 8:16
The snorting of enemy horses is heard from Dan. At the sound of the neighing of mighty steeds, the whole land quakes. They come to devour the land and everything in it, the city and all who dwell in it.
Ezekiel
- Ezekiel 27:19
and casks of wine from Izal for your wares. Wrought iron, cassia, and sweet cane were exchanged for your merchandise.
- Ezekiel 48:1
“Now these are the names of the tribes: At the northern frontier, Dan will have one portion bordering the road of Hethlon to Lebo-hamath and running on to Hazar-enan on the border of Damascus with Hamath to the north, and extending from the east side to the west side.
- Ezekiel 48:2
Asher will have one portion bordering the territory of Dan from east to west.
- Ezekiel 48:32
On the east side, which will be 4,500 cubits long, there will be three gates: the gate of Joseph, the gate of Benjamin, and the gate of Dan.
Amos
- Amos 8:14
Those who swear by the guilt of Samaria and say, ‘As surely as your god lives, O Dan,’ or, ‘As surely as the way of Beersheba lives’— they will fall, never to rise again.”
Events
Events the dataset lists Dan as taking part in. Dates follow its Ussher–Jones reckoning (one of several traditional counts), not established history.
- c. 1755 BCBirth of Dan
- c. 1728 BCJoseph sold to Egypt
- c. 1708 BC7 years of famine
- c. 1706 BCJoseph's brothers return to Egypt
Dictionary
From Easton’s Bible Dictionary (1897), as attached to this record by Theographic. The entry is for the name and can describe more than one person who bore it. Easton wrote in 1897, and some of his views are now debated.
Read Easton’s entry
The fifth son of Jacob. His mother was Bilhah, Rachel’s maid (Gen. 30:6, “God hath judged me”, Heb. dananni). The blessing pronounced on him by his father was, “Dan shall judge his people” (49:16), probably in allusion to the judgeship of Samson, who was of the tribe of Dan.
The tribe of Dan had their place in the march through the wilderness on the north side of the tabernacle (Num. 2:25, 31; 10:25). It was the last of the tribes to receive a portion in the Land of Promise. Its position and extent are described in Josh. 19:40-48.
The territory of Dan extended from the west of that of Ephraim and Benjamin to the sea. It was a small territory, but was very fertile. It included in it, among others, the cities of Lydda, Ekron, and Joppa, which formed its northern boundary. But this district was too limited. “Squeezed into the narrow strip between the mountains and the sea, its energies were great beyond its numbers.” Being pressed by the Amorites and the Philistines, whom they were unable to conquer, they longed for a wider space. They accordingly sent out five spies from two of their towns, who went north to the sources of the Jordan, and brought back a favourable report regarding that region. “Arise,” they said, “be not slothful to go, and to possess the land,” for it is “a place where there is no want of any thing that is in the earth” (Judg. 18:10). On receiving this report, 600 Danites girded on their weapons of war, and taking with them their wives and their children, marched to the foot of Hermon, and fought against Leshem, and took it from the Sidonians, and dwelt therein, and changed the name of the conquered town to Dan (Josh. 19:47). This new city of Dan became to them a new home, and was wont to be spoken of as the northern limit of Palestine, the length of which came to be denoted by the expression “from Dan to Beersheba”, i.e., about 144 miles.
“But like Lot under a similar temptation, they seem to have succumbed to the evil influences around them, and to have sunk down into a condition of semi-heathenism from which they never emerged. The mounds of ruins which mark the site of the city show that it covered a considerable extent of ground. But there remains no record of any noble deed wrought by the degenerate tribe. Their name disappears from the roll-book of the natural and the spiritual Israel.”, Manning’s Those Holy Fields.
This old border city was originally called Laish. Its modern name is Tell el-Kady, “Hill of the Judge.” It stands about four miles below Caesarea Philippi, in the midst of a region of surpassing richness and beauty.