And the children of Dan said unto him, Let not thy voice be heard among us, lest angry fellows run upon thee, and thou lose thy life, with the lives of thy household.
The children of Dan said unto him, Let not thy voice be heard among us ... Both Micah and the Danites attached great importance to the possession of lifeless images as guaranteeing the power and favour of Yahweh: both thought that, by the forcible transfer of a little silver from one party to the other, the one had lost and the other had gained the surest means of prosperity. Finding his party, however, not a match for the Danites, Micah thought it prudent to desist, well knowing the rule which was then prevalent in the land, that
`They should take who had the power, And they should keep who could.'