Charles Ellicott Commentary Judges 18:7

"Then the five men departed, and came to Laish, and saw the people that were therein, how they dwelt in security, after the manner of the Sidonians, quiet and secure; for there was none in the land, possessing authority, that might put [them] to shame in anything, and they were far from the Sidonians, and had no dealings with any man." — Judges 18:7 (ASV)

Laish. It is called Leshem in Joshua 19:47 and is now called Tel el-Kadi, "the mound of the judge," possibly (though not probably) with some reference to the name of Dan (Genesis 49:16). It is four miles from Paneas and Caesarea Philippi and was the northernmost city of Palestine (Judges 20:1). As such, its name recurs in Isaiah 10:30, if our version is correct there.

It is sometimes called el-Leddan because it is at the source of the Leddan, the chief stream of the Jordan. The position of the town, on a round hill surrounded by trees, is very striking and fully supports the description of this chapter (Robinson, Bible Res. 3:392). The name "Dan" in Genesis 14:14 may have been altered from Laish at a later date (Ewald, Gesch. 1:73).

After the manner of the Zidonians—that is, in luxurious commercial ease. There can be little doubt that they were a colony from Zidon.

Quiet and secure ... There are three peculiarities in this clause:

1. Although the word for “people” (am) is masculine, the word for “dwelling” (yoshebeth) is feminine. This is perhaps because the writer had the word “city” in mind, just as αὐτὴν is feminine in Acts 27:14, though the word for “ship” was neuter, because the writer had ναῦς in mind.
2. The word for “careless” and the word for “secure” are from the same root and are tautological.
3. The clause “no magistrate,” etc., is curiously expressed.

It is difficult not to suppose that the text is in some way corrupt.

There was no magistrate ... This difficult clause seems to mean, "no one possessing wealth" (Septuagint: "heir of treasure") "among them doing harm in the land in any matter." The various versions differ widely from each other, and the text is almost certainly corrupt.

They were far from the Zidonians. As Josephus says, the town is a day’s journey distant from Zidon.

No business with any man. The reading of some manuscripts of the Septuagint, “They had no business with Syria,” arises from reading Aram for Adam.