The Meaning of Judges 18:5 Explained

Judges 18:5

KJV: And they said unto him, Ask counsel, we pray thee, of God, that we may know whether our way which we go shall be prosperous.

YLT: And they say to him, 'Ask, we pray thee, at God, and we know whether our way is prosperous on which we are going.'

Darby: And they said to him, "Inquire of God, we pray thee, that we may know whether the journey on which we are setting out will succeed."

ASV: And they said unto him, Ask counsel, we pray thee, of God, that we may know whether our way which we go shall be prosperous.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And they said  unto him, Ask counsel,  we pray thee, of God,  that we may know  whether our way  which we go  shall be prosperous. 

What does Judges 18:5 Mean?

Chapter Summary: Judges 18

1  The Danites send five men to seek out an inheritance
3  At the house of Micah they consult with Jonathan, and are encouraged
7  They search Laish, and bring back news of good hope
11  Six hundred men are sent to surprise it
16  In their way they rob Micah of his priest and his consecrated things
27  They win Laish, and call it Dan
30  They set up idolatry, wherein Jonathan inherits the priesthood

What do the individual words in Judges 18:5 mean?

So they said to him inquire please of God that we may know whether will be prosperous The journey on which we go upon
וַיֹּ֥אמְרוּ ל֖וֹ שְׁאַל־ נָ֣א בֵאלֹהִ֑ים וְנֵ֣דְעָ֔ה הֲתַצְלִ֣יחַ דַּרְכֵּ֔נוּ אֲשֶׁ֥ר אֲנַ֖חְנוּ הֹלְכִ֥ים עָלֶֽיהָ

וַיֹּ֥אמְרוּ  So  they  said 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
ל֖וֹ  to  him 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular
שְׁאַל־  inquire 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine singular
Root: שָׁאַל 
Sense: to ask, enquire, borrow, beg.
נָ֣א  please 
Parse: Interjection
Root: נָא  
Sense: I (we) pray, now, please.
בֵאלֹהִ֑ים  of  God 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine plural
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
וְנֵ֣דְעָ֔ה  that  we  may  know 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive imperfect Cohortative, first person common plural
Root: דָּעָה 
Sense: to know.
הֲתַצְלִ֣יחַ  whether  will  be  prosperous 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: צָלַח 
Sense: (Qal) to rush.
דַּרְכֵּ֔נוּ  The  journey 
Parse: Noun, common singular construct, first person common plural
Root: דֶּרֶךְ  
Sense: way, road, distance, journey, manner.
אֲשֶׁ֥ר  on  which 
Parse: Pronoun, relative
Root: אֲשֶׁר 
Sense: (relative part.).
הֹלְכִ֥ים  go 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine plural
Root: הָלַךְ  
Sense: to go, walk, come.
עָלֶֽיהָ  upon 
Parse: Preposition, third person feminine singular
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.