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Judges Chapter
Seventeen
Judges 17
Outlines
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO JUDGES 17
This
chapter relates the first rise of idolatry in Israel after the death of Joshua
which began in Mount Ephraim
occasioned by a sum of money stolen by a man from
his mother
which being restored
part was converted to an idolatrous use; two
images were made of it
Judges 17:1 and
there being no king in Israel to take cognizance of it
the idolatry took place
and continued
and afterwards spread
Judges 17:6
and
this idolater not only made one of his sons a priest
but took a Levite for
another
whom he hired by the year to serve him
Judges 17:7.
Judges 17:1 Now
there was a man from the mountains of Ephraim
whose name was Micah.
YLT
1And there is a man of the
hill-country of Ephraim
and his name [is] Micah
And there was a man of Mount Ephraim
.... This and
the four following chapters contain an history of facts
which were done not
after the death of Samson
as some have thought
and as they may seem at first
sight
by the order in which they are laid; but long before his time
and
indeed before any of the judges in Israel
when there was no king
judge
or
supreme governor among them
as appears from Judges 17:6 even
between the death of Joshua and the elders
and the first judge of Israel
Othniel; and so JosephusF5Antiqu. l. 5. c. 2. sect. 8
&c.
places them in his history
and the connection of them is with Judges 2:10 and so
accounts for the rise of idolatry in Israel
how it got into the tribe of Dan
and spread itself over all the tribes of Israel
Judges 2:11 which
brought on their servitude to Cushanrishathaim
in which time the Jewish
chronologyF6Seder Olam Rabba
c. 12. p. 33. places those events; but
they were certainly before that
for the idolatry they fell into was the cause
of it; yet could not be so early as the times of Joshua
and before his death;
because in his days
and the days of the elders
Israel served the Lord; the
reasons why they are postponed to the end of this book
and the account of them
given here
are
according to Dr. LightfootF7Works
vol. 1. p. 46.
that the reader observing how their state policy failed in the death of Samson
who was a Danite
might presently be showed God's justice in it
because their
religion had first failed among the Danites; that when he observes that 1100
pieces of silver were given by every Philistine prince for the ruin of Samson
Judges 16:5 he
might presently observe the 1100 pieces of silver that were given by Micah's
mother for the making of an idol
which ruined religion in Samson's tribe; that
the story of Micah
of the hill country of Ephraim
the first destroyer of
religion
and the story of Samuel
of the hill country of Ephraim
the first
reformer of religion
might be laid together somewhat near. That the facts
after related were so early done as has been observed
appears from the
following things; the priest of the idol Micah made was a grandson of Moses
Judges 18:30
the
Danites' seeking to enlarge their possessions
related in the same chapter
was
most probably as soon as they were driven into the mountains by the Amorites
Judges 1:34.
Mahanah Dan
from whence they marched
and had its name from their expedition
Judges 18:12 is
mentioned before in the history of Samson
Judges 13:25 and
therefore the expedition must be before his time. Phinehas
the son of Eleazar
was alive at the battle of Gibeah
Judges 20:28 and
Deborah speaks of the 40
000 Israelites slain by Benjamin at it
Judges 5:8. This
man with whom the idolatry began was of the tribe of Ephraim
and dwelt in the
mountainous part of it:
whose name was Micah; in the original it is
Micajehu
with part of the name Jehovah affixed to it
as Dr. LightfootF8Works
vol. 1. p. 45. remarks
till he set up his image
and thenceforward was called
Micah; but
according to Abarbinel
the former was his name while he was a
child
and in his youth
and with his mother
being a diminutive term
and when
he became a man be was called Micah
Judges 17:5.
Judges 17:2 2 And he said to his mother
“The eleven hundred shekels of silver that were taken from you
and on
which you put a curse
even saying it in my ears—here is the silver with
me; I took it.” And his mother said
“May you be blessed by the Lord
my son!”
YLT
2and he saith to his mother
`The eleven hundred silverlings which have been taken of thine
and [of which]
thou hast sworn
and also spoken in mine ears; lo
the silver [is] with me
I
have taken it;' and his mother saith
`Blessed [is] my son of Jehovah.'
And he said unto his mother
.... Who seems to have
been a widow
and an ancient woman since Micah had sons
and one of them at age
to become a priest:
the eleven hundred shekels of silver that were taken from thee: which were
taken away by stealth from her
though it may be rendered "taken to
thee"F9לקח לך
"captum est tibi"
Montanus
Junius & Tremellius. ; which she had
taken to herself out of the rest of her substance
and had separated and
devoted it to religious uses; but Jarchi and Kimchi interpret it as we do
and
which seems to be the best sense; of the value of this sum; see Gill on Judges 16:5 and
because the like sum is there offered
and was given to Delilah
hence some
have thought
as Jarchi relates
that this woman was Delilah; but
as he
observes
it is a mistake; for this woman lived long before the times of Samson
and Delilah:
about which thou cursedst; which when she perceived
was stolen from her
she fell into a passion
and cursed and swore
cursed the
thief that took it
whether of her own family or another; or adjured her son
that if he knew anything of it
that he would declare it
suspecting him of the
robbery; some think this refers to the oath she had made
that she would devote
the silver to a religious use:
and spakest of also in mine ears; of the sum how much it
was
and of the use she had designed it for; or rather the curse was delivered
in his hearing
and cut him to the heart
and wrought that conviction in him
that he could not retain the money any longer
not being able to bear his
mother's curse; though Abarbinel connects this with the following clause
"behold
the silver is with me"; as if the sense was
that she spake
in his ears
and charged him with the theft to his face; saying
verily the
silver is with thee
thou hast certainly taken it; upon which he confessed it
"I took it"; but the former sense seems best
that not being willing
to lie under his mother's curse
he owned that the money was in his hands
and
he had taken it from her:
and his mother said
blessed be thou of the Lord
my son; she reversed
the curse
and pronounced a blessing on him
or wished one to him
and that
without reproving him for his sin
rejoicing to hear of her money again.
Judges 17:3 3 So when he had returned
the eleven hundred shekels of silver to his mother
his mother said
“I
had wholly dedicated the silver from my hand to the Lord for my son
to
make a carved image and a molded image; now therefore
I will return it to
you.”
YLT
3And he giveth back the
eleven hundred silverlings to his mother
and his mother saith
`I had
certainly sanctified the silver to Jehovah
from my hand
for my son
to make a
graven image
and a molten image; and now
I give it back to thee.'
And when he had restored the eleven hundred shekels of silver to
his mother
.... The whole sum
having embezzled none of it:
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; this she had
done either before it was stolen
and it troubled her the more
and caused her
the rather to curse the man that had taken it; or after it was stolen
that if
it should be recovered again she would appropriate it to such an use; so
Abarbinel; and by the Lord
or Jehovah
she doubtless meant the true God; for
she had no intention to forsake him
but to worship him in and by these images
and which she designed for the use of her son and his family
that they might
not go so far as Shiloh to worship at the tabernacle there:
therefore I will restore it unto thee; for that use
and so gave him the money again
to be laid out in images
or to make images of
it.
Judges 17:4 4 Thus he returned the
silver to his mother. Then his mother took two hundred shekels of silver
and gave them to the silversmith
and he made it into a carved image and a
molded image; and they were in the house of Micah.
YLT
4And he giveth back the
money to his mother
and his mother taketh two hundred silverlings
and giveth
them to a refiner
and he maketh them a graven image
and a molten image
and
it is in the house of Micah.
Yet he restored the money unto his mother
.... Gave it
to her a second tithe
not as disapproving her idolatrous intention
as the
sequel shows
but being desirous to be entirely free of it
and not have his
mind disturbed with it as it had been
and that she might do with it as she
thought fit:
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; the other
nine hundred pieces she kept to herself
repenting of her vow
and being
unwilling to part with so much money for such an use; or else they were laid
out in an ephod
and teraphim
and what else were thought necessary for the
idolatrous worship they were about to set up; though Kimchi is of opinion
that
the two hundred shekels were what she gave the founder for making the images
and of the nine hundred the images were made; and indeed the images must be
very small ones
if made out of two hundred shekels of silver only; some have
thought there was but one image
called both molten and graven; because after
the silver was melted
and cast into a mould
it was fashioned with a graving
tool
as the golden calf was by Aaron; but they are manifestly distinguished
and represented as two
Judges 18:17 and
they were in the house of Micah; in an apartment in his house
peculiar for
them
as appears by the next verse; here they were put and continued.
Judges 17:5 5 The man Micah had a
shrine
and made an ephod and household idols;[a] and he
consecrated one of his sons
who became his priest.
YLT
5As to the man Micah
he
hath a house of gods
and he maketh an ephod
and teraphim
and consecrateth
the hand of one of his sons
and he is to him for a priest;
And the man Micah had an house of gods
.... Having
two images in it
besides teraphim
which were a sort of idols; and the Targum
is
an house of images
or idols; though it may be rendered "an house of
God"; a temple
a place for religious worship:
and made an ephod; a priestly garment
a linen one very
probably
not so rich an one with a breastplate to it as the high priest had
which was very costly. Ben Melech interprets it a girdle
and there was a
curious girdle of the ephod
with which it was girt; this may be here put for
the rest of the priestly garments which Micah provided:
and teraphim; which were a sort of household gods
like
the Lares and Penates of the Romans
and by which consultations were made; See
Gill on Hosea 3:3
Hosea 3:4
Zechariah 10:2
Micah proposed to have an oracle in his house
whereby he might consult the
Lord about future things
and not be at the trouble of going to the tabernacle
and consult there by Urim and Thummim; and the same some take the teraphim to
be:
and consecrated one of his sons
who became his priest; or
"filled the hand"F11וימלא את יד "et implevit
manum"
Montanus
V. L. of one of them; that is
with offerings
as Ben
Melech interprets it; in which way priests were initiated
and consecrated to
their office; see Exodus 28:41 or
as
Kimchi expresses it
he offered his offerings by the hand of one of his sons
and appointed him to be a priest
very probably his eldest son.
Judges 17:6 6 In those days there was
no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
YLT
6in those days there is no
king in Israel
each that which is right in his own eyes doth.
In those days there was no king in Israel
.... That is
no supreme magistrate
judge
or ruler
Joshua being dead and Caleb also
and
the elders contemporary with them; for what the Samaritan Chronicle saysF12Apud
Hottinger. Smegma Orient. p. 522. is without foundation
that Joshua a little
before his death cast a lot in the presence of the congregation
to know who
should govern after him
and the lot came to one Abel
of the tribe of Judah:
but every man did that which
was right in his own eyes; which accounts for the idolatry of Micah
there being no supreme magistrate to take cognizance of his sin
and restrain
him from it
or punish him for it according to the law of God.
Judges 17:7 7 Now there was a young man
from Bethlehem in Judah
of the family of Judah; he was a Levite
and
was staying there.
YLT
7And there is a young man of
Beth-Lehem-Judah
of the family of Judah
and he [is] a Levite
and he [is] a
sojourner there.
And there was a young man out of Bethlehemjudah
.... As there
were two Bethlehems
one in the tribe of Zebulun
Joshua 19:15 and
another in the tribe of Judah
the place here designed
Judah is added to it
to distinguish it from the other:
of the family of Judah: which refers either to
the young man
who was by his father's side a Levite
and by his mother's side
as Jarchi thinks
of the tribe of Judah
which seems very probable
though the
genealogies of families were not reckoned from the mother; wherefore he might
be so called because he had lived chiefly in the tribe of Judah
and
particularly at Bethlehem; but Kimchi
and several other Jewish commentators
refer this to the city of Bethlehem
that was of the tribe of Judah
family
being put for the tribe; or belonged to the children of Judah; though one would
think there was no need to have added this
since it was fully expressed before
by calling it Bethlehemjudah; the former sense therefore seems best:
who was a Levite; his father being
as before observed
of
that tribe
though his mother might be of the tribe of Judah: and he sojourned
there; that is
at Bethlehem; he was not a native
nor an inhabitant there
but
a sojourner
it not being a Levitical city.
Judges 17:8 8 The man departed from the
city of Bethlehem in Judah to stay wherever he could find a place. Then
he came to the mountains of Ephraim
to the house of Micah
as he journeyed.
YLT
8And the man goeth out of
the city
out of Beth-Lehem-Judah
to sojourn where he doth find
and cometh to
the hill-country of Ephraim
unto the house of Micah
to work his way.
And the man departed out of the city from Bethlehemjudah
to sojourn
where he could find a place
.... Either being a man that had a rambling head
and of an unsettled mind
and could not easily fix any where; or else there
being no supreme magistrate
to take care that the Levites had their due
maintenance
for which there was a sufficient provision made by law; and the
people being negligent of paying their tithes
there being none to oblige them
to it
and they indifferent to the true worship of God
and prone to idolatry;
this man was obliged to go abroad
and seek for a livelihood where he could get
it
and sojourn in a place the most convenient for him:
and he came to Mount Ephraim
to the house of Micah
as he
journeyed: not with a design to stay there
but called by the way
having
heard perhaps that Micah was both a wealthy and an hospitable man
and he also
might have heard of the new form of worship he had set up in his house.
Judges 17:9 9 And Micah said to him
“Where do you come from?” So he said to him
“I am a Levite from
Bethlehem in Judah
and I am on my way to find a place to stay.”
YLT
9And Micah saith to him
`Whence comest thou?' and he saith unto him
`A Levite [am] I
of
Beth-Lehem-Judah
and I am going to sojourn where I do find.'
And Micah said unto him
whence comest thou?.... For as he
might ask for a meal
or for a night's lodging
it was but natural to put such
a question to him
as from whence he came
and what was his business in these
parts? or whither he was going?
and he said unto him
I am a Levite of Bethlehemjudah; the tribe he
was of was Levi
and so a Levite by tribe and office
and the place he came
last from
and where he had sojourned awhile
was Bethlehem
a city in the
tribe of Judah:
and I go to sojourn where I may find a place; the most
convenient to abide in
where he could get a livelihood.
Judges 17:10 10 Micah said to him
“Dwell
with me
and be a father and a priest to me
and I will give you ten shekels
of silver per year
a suit of clothes
and your sustenance.” So the Levite went
in.
YLT
10And Micah saith to him
`Dwell with me
and be to me for a father and for a priest
and I give to thee
ten silverlings for the days
and a suit of garments
and thy sustenance;' and
the Levite goeth [in].
And Micah said unto him
dwell with me
.... Hearing
that he was a Levite
he thought him a fit man for his purpose
and would give
some credit to
and put a better face upon his new form of worship
and
therefore
without further inquiry after him and his character
invites him to
make his abode with him:
and be unto me a father and a priest; a father to
instruct him in the knowledge of divine things; so prophets were called
fathers
and their disciples their sons; and a priest to offer sacrifices for
him
and to consult before him by his teraphim upon occasion:
and I will give thee ten shekels of silver by the year; or yearly
which was but a small sum
a poor salary for a priest
at most amounting but to
twenty five shillings
and scarce so much:
and a suit of apparel; or "an order of
apparel"F13ערך בגדים
"irdinem vestimentorum"
Pagninus
Montanus
Muuster
Vatablus;
"demensum vestimentorum"
Tigurine version. ; such as was fit for one
of his rank and order as a priest to wear
so Jarchi and Abarbinel; or a couple
of garments
as the Targum and Septuagint
a double suit of apparel
according
to the order of the season
one for summer and another for winter
as Kimchi
and Ben Melech:
and thy victuals; his meat and drink:
so thy Levite went in; into his house
and it
looks as if the parley was made
and the bargain struck at the door
Micah
being at it as the Levite passed by
or came to it upon his knocking at it; he
went after his counsel and advice
as Jarchi
or to do his business
as Kimchi.
Judges 17:11 11 Then the Levite was
content to dwell with the man; and the young man became like one of his sons to
him.
YLT
11And the Levite is willing
to dwell with the man
and the young man is to him as one of his sons.
And the Levite was content to dwell with the man
.... To
continue with him; after he had made trial for some time
he liked his service
and his wages
and way of living; it was all agreeable to him:
and the young man was unto him as one of his sons; as dearly
beloved by him
and used as kindly and tenderly
as if he had been one of his
own children; so strong were the affections of Micah to him
and so well
pleased was he with his service.
Judges 17:12 12 So Micah consecrated the
Levite
and the young man became his priest
and lived in the house of Micah.
YLT
12And Micah consecrateth the
hand of the Levite
and the young man is to him for a priest
and he is in the
house of Micah
And Micah consecrated the Levite
.... Installed him into
and invested him with the priestly office; in like manner he had consecrated
his son before
by filling his hand with sacrifices; see Judges 17:5.
and the young man became his priest; and did the work and
office of one; this was a very daring piece of presumption in them both; in
Micah
to take upon him to consecrate a priest
who was himself of the tribe of
Ephraim; and in the young man
to suffer himself to be put into such an office
which did not belong to him
for though every priest was a Levite
or of the
tribe of Levi
yet every Levite had not a right to be a priest
only those who
were of the family of Aaron:
and was in the house of Micah; and continued there.
Judges 17:13 13 Then Micah said
“Now I
know that the Lord
will be good to me
since I have a Levite as priest!”
YLT
13and Micah saith
`Now I
have known that Jehovah doth good to me
for the Levite hath been to me for a
priest.'
Then said Micah
.... Within himself
pleased with what he
had done
and with what he engaged in:
now know I that the Lord will do me good; that I shall
enjoy his favour
be a happy man
and prosper; and by this it appears
that
notwithstanding the idolatry he had fallen into
he had not utterly forsaken
the Lord
but worshipped him in and by his images; there was a mixture of the
worship of God
and of the worship of images:
seeing I have a Levite to my priest; who was of the same
tribe the priests were
and so the nearest to them of any
and which he thought
would be acceptable to God
and an omen of good to himself.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)