Judges 17
1And there was a man of mount Ephraim, whose name was Micah.
2And he said unto his mother, The eleven hundred shekels of silver that were taken from thee, about which thou cursedst, and spakest of also in mine ears, behold, the silver is with me; I took it. And his mother said, Blessed be thou of the LORD, my son.
3And when he had restored the eleven hundred shekels of silver to his mother, his mother said, I had wholly dedicated the silver unto the LORD from my hand for my son, to make a graven image and a molten image: now therefore I will restore it unto thee.
4Yet he restored the money unto his mother; and his mother took two hundred shekels of silver, and gave them to the founder, who made thereof a graven image and a molten image: and they were in the house of Micah.
5And the man Micah had an house of gods, and made an ephod, and teraphim, and consecrated one of his sons, who became his priest.
6In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes.
7And there was a young man out of Bethlehemjudah of the family of Judah, who was a Levite, and he sojourned there.
8And the man departed out of the city from Bethlehemjudah to sojourn where he could find a place: and he came to mount Ephraim to the house of Micah, as he journeyed.
9And Micah said unto him, Whence comest thou? And he said unto him, I am a Levite of Bethlehemjudah, and I go to sojourn where I may find a place.
10And Micah said unto him, Dwell with me, and be unto me a father and a priest, and I will give thee ten shekels of silver by the year, and a suit of apparel, and thy victuals. So the Levite went in.
11And the Levite was content to dwell with the man; and the young man was unto him as one of his sons.
12And Micah consecrated the Levite; and the young man became his priest, and was in the house of Micah.
13Then said Micah, Now know I that the LORD will do me good, seeing I have a Levite to my priest.
Today's Scripture Meaning
The beginning of idolatry in Israel, Micah and his mother. (1-6) Micah hires a Levite to be his priest. (7-13)
Verses 1-6: What is related in this, and the rest of the chapters to the end of this book, was done soon after the death of Joshua: see chap. (Jdg 20:28). That it might appear how happy the nation was under the Judges, here is showed how unhappy they were when there was no Judge. The love of money made Micah so undutiful to his mother as to rob her, and made her so unkind to her son, as to curse him. Outward losses drive good people to their prayers, but bad people to their curses. This woman's silver was her god, before it was made into a graven or a molten image. Micah and his mother agreed to turn their money into a god, and set up idol worship in their family. See the cause of this corruption. Every man did that which was right in his own eyes, and then they soon did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord.
Verses 7-13: Micah thought it was a sign of God's favour to him and his images, that a Levite should come to his door. Thus those who please themselves with their own delusions, if Providence unexpectedly bring any thing to their hands that further them in their evil way, are apt from thence to think that God is pleased with them
Today's Scripture Application
Each day we walk through the Bible chapter by chapter making an application of our text to help us grow in the Lord. Many applications can be made from each day's text. Today we Continue in the book of Judges with Chapter 17 and we enter into the 3rd section of this book, The Moral Failure of Israel. We started in this book looking at the Military failure of Israel, then the Rescue of Israel by the Judges to transition to this section of the Book where Micah collects idols in the Idolatry in the tribe of Dan. Here we see a reoccurring theme stated in verse 6 where "every man did what was right in his own eyes" creating his own brand of religion. In making application we see that times have not changed. Man is still doing what is right in his own eyes and believing his own lies. God is clear on your only way to heaven and it is ONLY JESUS-CHRIST. It is not Christ plus something or minus something. Only Jesus-Christ can forgive your sins and make you acceptable in the Eyes of a Holy God. Your works, your gods, your manipulation of the truth of the Word of God will not be sufficient to satisfy the wrath of the Holy God of the Bible. How about you? Are you relying on Christ, and Christ alone, to forgive your sins and make a home in Heaven when you die? Let us learn form the life of Micah which reminds us that only Jesus Christ can forgive your sins.
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Sincerely, Dr. David Burnette
Director, The United States Bible Society, Inc.