Bible Figure
Dan
son of Jacob and founder of the Israelite Tribe of Dan
Dan was a son of Jacob and Bilhah, Rachel's servant, and the ancestor of the tribe of Dan.
Biography
Genesis 30 records Rachel giving Bilhah to Jacob and naming Bilhah's first son Dan in connection with God's judgment or vindication. Jacob's blessing compares Dan with a serpent by the road, while Moses' blessing compares the tribe with a lion's cub. Dan's descendants formed one of Israel's tribes. Their allotted territory proved difficult to secure, and part of the tribe later migrated north and captured Laish, renaming it Dan. Judges also records the tribe's involvement with Micah's idol and establishment of an unauthorized shrine.
Biblical Significance
Dan is significant as one of Jacob's sons and patriarch of an Israelite tribe. The tribe's later history combines military struggle, migration, and a troubling association with idolatrous worship.