Judges 17   [Judges 17:1] AND THERE WAS A MAN OF MOUNT EPHRAIM, WHOSE NAME WAS MICAH. MICAH: In Hebrew it says here that his name was "Micayahu" but everywhere else Scripture called him Micah. The name means "Who is like God?" He lived according to tradition (Sanhedrin 103) in Gareb which was a couple of miles away from Shiloh where the Tabernacle was in those days. Micah may have belonged to the Tribe of Ephraim since he dwelt in the land of Ephraim but we do not know for sure. [Judges 17:2] 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. <<BLESSED BE THOU OF THE LORD>>: Micah and his mother worshipped the God of Israel in a pagan kind of way and they may also have worshipped other gods as well. In those days a kind of anarchy prevailed, literacy was not very high, things were primitive and wild. The people had intermixed with Canaanites and learnt their ways. [Judges 17:3] 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.. [Judges 17:4] 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.. Micah had stolen 1100 silver shekels.  This was a lot of money in those days: We see below (Judges 17:10) that ten shekels a year was a considered sufficient yearly salary for a professional priest.   The mother of Micah had apparently cursed whoever took the money. Micah was frightened by the curse so he returned the shekels to his mother who blessed him in the name of the Almighty. She then gave the money back to Micah to make graven images with it. Again Micah refused and returned the silver to his Mum who took 200 pieces and made images. [Judges 17:5] 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. <<AN HOUSE OF GODS>>:  In Hebrew "Elohim" which can mean "gods" in the plural or "God" in the singular or even "judges" or "mighty men". Here it appears to mean "God". Micah had a kind of temple dedicated to the Almighty in which there were graven images and other pagan appurtenances. This shows that in those days the Israelites were practicing a paganized form of Hebraic religion. Micah himself was not a moral person as far we discern. This also coincides with archaeological findings.   [Judges 17:6] IN THOSE DAYS THERE WAS NO KING IN ISRAEL, BUT EVERY MAN DID THAT WHICH WAS RIGHT IN HIS OWN EYES. This was an undesirable state of affairs. The narrator (Samuel?) may be implying that they would have been better off under a monarchy.   [Judges 17:7] AND THERE WAS A YOUNG MAN OUT OF BETHLEHEM-JUDAH OF THE FAMILY OF JUDAH, WHO WAS A LEVITE, AND HE SOJOURNED THERE. He was a Levite whose traditional residence had been in Beth-Lehem which is in the Territory of  Judah to distinguish it from Beth-Lehem which was in the Galilee.   <<SOJOURNED THERE>>: Hebrew "Gar(sojourned)-Sham"(there) perhaps hinting at the name "Gershom". This priest together with the images were to be taken away by the Tribe of Dan and to serve in a sanctuary for the Danites. Later we learn  that <<JONATHAN, THE SON OF GERSHOM, THE SON OF MANASSEH, HE AND HIS SONS WERE PRIESTS TO THE TRIBE OF DAN>> (Judges 18:30) (S. Talmon, "Olan HaTaanach" Shoftim"). This Levitical "YOUNG MAN OUT OF BETHLEHEM" was either called Gershom and Jonathan was his son or he was called Jonathan and Gershom was his father. Where the verse says "THE SON OF MANASSEH" it actually is spelt in such a way as to indicate the "Son of Moses". He was a descendant of Moses as we will explain later. [Judges 17:8] AND THE MAN DEPARTED OUT OF THE CITY FROM BETHLEHEM-JUDAH TO SOJOURN WHERE HE COULD FIND A PLACE: AND HE CAME TO MOUNT EPHRAIM TO THE HOUSE OF MICAH, AS HE JOURNEYED. [Judges 17:9] AND MICAH SAID UNTO HIM, WHENCE COMEST THOU? AND HE SAID UNTO HIM, I AM A LEVITE OF BETHLEHEM-JUDAH, AND I GO TO SOJOURN WHERE I MAY FIND A PLACE.. [Judges 17:10] 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. [Judges 17:11] AND THE LEVITE WAS CONTENT TO DWELL WITH THE MAN; AND THE YOUNG MAN WAS UNTO HIM AS ONE OF HIS SONS. [Judges 17:12] AND MICAH CONSECRATED THE LEVITE; AND THE YOUNG MAN BECAME HIS PRIEST, AND WAS IN THE HOUSE OF MICAH.. [Judges 17:13] THEN SAID MICAH, NOW KNOW I THAT THE LORD WILL DO ME GOOD, SEEING I HAVE A LEVITE TO MY PRIEST. Judges Index HOme