Judges 17:1-6

DOUBLE APPENDIX Judges 17:1 to Judges 21:25

The Idolatry of Dan Judges 17:1 to Judges 18:31

Micah's Images Judges 17:1-6

And there was a man of mount Ephraim, whose name was Micah.
2 And 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.
3 And 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.
4 Yet 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.
5 And the man Micah had a house of gods, and made an ephod, and teraphim, and consecrated one of his sons, who became his priest.
6 In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes.

1.

Who was Micah? Judges 17:1

The word Micah is an abbreviation for Micaiah (Jeremiah 26:18). The name is interpreted by a question: Who is like the Lord? The name was given to a rather large group of men, there being at least eight men in the Old Testament who bore this name. The best-known man bearing this name is the prophet whose book is one of the Twelve. The Micah mentioned in this chapter of Judges is not further identified, but the account of his idolatrous worship is one of great importance.

2.

Where was Mount Ephraim? Judges 17:1

The land given to the tribe of Ephraim was largely composed of hill country. There were many smaller mountains within the border of this section of Palestine, but the northern part was especially hilly since the heights of Mount Carmel began to take their rise from the center of this land. On the northern border of the territory assigned to Ephraim were Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim. Somewhere in this hill country Micah and his mother had settled.

3.

In what way had Micah's mother uttered a curse? Judges 17:2

The Scripture is not clear as to the nature of the curse which was uttered by Micah's mother, but it appears on the surface that she had prayed for God to curse whoever had stolen her money. There is a possibility of her simply placing a ban on the money or in other words, having dedicated it to the service of God. When the money was restored to her, she said she had sanctified the silver to the Lord. In either case Micah realized he was encountering a possibility of being smitten of the Lord for having taken his mother's money. He had heard the curse which she uttered, and this frightened him into making a confession of his theft.

4.

Why did his mother pray for him to be blessed? Judges 17:2

When Micah made a confession of his theft, his mother prayed God to bless him. She saw in his confession a proof of his fear of God. More than this, his confession made possible her dedicating the silver to the Lord. When her son gave the money back to her, she was able to fulfill her intentions.

5.

What kind of image was made? Judges 17:4

Two different words are used in the Hebrew text to describe the idolatrous image. The first word pesel is used for an idolatrous image made either of metal or wood. The word massecah stands for something poured or cast. When this latter word is used in the singular, it generally refers to the calf cast by Aaron or Jeroboam. The two words used together probably describe a symbol of the Lord. Judging from the events at Mount Sinai, Micah's mother probably made an idol in the form of a calf to stand for the presence of the Lord. In Judges 18:17-18, the two words are not used together; and some think Micah's mother made two different objects. It is hard to imagine, however, that Micah's mother made two images of the Lord. For this reason it seems better to view this reference as signifying an image, pesel and a pedestal upon which it stoodthe massecah. In Judges 18:30-31 the pesel alone is mentioned. Likely it was probably an image of a bull similar to the golden calf which Aaron made at Sinai (Exodus 32:4) and the two golden calves which Jeroboam erected in Israel, one of which was set up in Dan (1 Kings 12:29).

6.

What was the house of gods? Judges 17:5

Micah's house of gods was a private shrine which he erected on his property. It was not another tabernacle or a forerunner of the temple. God had decreed only one sanctuary (Deuteronomy 12). Although the house of gods which Micah erected was largely for his own private use, it is possible that neighbors and friends came to the sanctuary of false worship erected by this well-to-do man. Thus the seeds of idolatry were scattered far and wide from this center of paganism.

7.

What was the ephod? Judges 17:5

The ephod was the garment worn by the priests. God had prescribed the attire for priests. Various articles of clothing were describedan ephod, a robe, a mitre, linen breeches and breast plate. The ephod was a short garment without sleeves and formed the basic article of clothing.

8.

What were the teraphim? Judges 17:5

Teraphim were small household gods. They are sometimes called penates. Rachel stole Laban's teraphim when she and Jacob fled from Haran (Genesis 31:19). These images were worshiped as the givers of earthly prosperity and as sources of divine knowledge. The form teraphim is the plural of the singular teraph.

9.

What was the meaning of the remark about no king? Judges 17:6

The author is dating the event as being prior to the time of writing, which was probably in the early days of the monarchy. The events which transpired in Chapter 17 did not necessarily follow those which are described in Chapter 16 of the book of Judges. That is to say, Micah's era was not later than that of Samson'S. Micah established his false worship some time during the period of the judges. More than likely it occurred early in the era and may be no less than a century after the false worship which erupted at Sinai was soundly denounced by Moses.

10.

What is the bearing of this regarding the date of the book? Judges 17:6

If the people were then becoming acquainted with the monarchy, it would help them make a comparison between their times and the early days. Throughout the last five Chapter s of the book of Judges we find constantly recurring references of a similar nature (Judges 18:1; Judges 19:1 and Judges 21:25). If Samuel were the author, he was evidently emphasizing the difference in the social climate under the judges as compared to that under the king. By the end of Saul's lifetime the people of Israel had been given ample opportunity to see the nature of a king. They had asked for a king to enable them to be like all the nations (1 Samuel 8:5). Most of the time commentators view this period as a time of near anarchy. We may be led to believe that it was also a time when the spiritual climate was very poor. Nevertheless the record says that every man did that which was right in his own eyes. It does not say that every man did what was wrong. Things could have been worse.