And there was a man of mount Ephraim, whose name was Micah.
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Judges 17
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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.
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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.
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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.
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And the man Micah had an house of gods, and made an ephod, and teraphim, and consecrated one of his sons, who became his priest.
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In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes.
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And there was a young man out of Bethlehemjudah of the family of Judah, who was a Levite, and he sojourned there.
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And 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.
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And 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.
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And 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.
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And the Levite was content to dwell with the man; and the young man was unto him as one of his sons.
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And Micah consecrated the Levite; and the young man became his priest, and was in the house of Micah.
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Then said Micah, Now know I that the LORD will do me good, seeing I have a Levite to my priest.
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Judges 17 Study & Commentary
Judges 17 describes the religious confusion of Micah, who steals money from his mother, returns it, and then uses it to make idols. He hires a wandering Levite to be his personal priest, mistakenly believing this will bring God’s blessing.
CONTEMPORARY APPLICATIONS
1. The Danger of Subjective Religion: Micah created a religion that suited his own preferences (v. 5). We must base our worship on God’s revealed Truth rather than our own feelings or traditions.2. Seeking God for Profit: Micah thought having a Levite would make God "do him good" (v. 13). We must guard against a "mercenary faith" that treats God as a means to personal gain.
3. Family Influence on Faith: The mother’s reaction to the theft led to the creation of an idol (v. 3). Parents must be careful that their responses to life’s issues do not lead their children into spiritual error.
