Chapter 17
And there was a man of mount Ephraim, whose name was Micah.
A. M. 2585. B.C. 1419. An. Ex. Is. 72. there was. It is extremely difficult to fix the chronology of this and the following transactions. Some think them to be here in their natural order; others that they happened in the time of Joshua, or immediately after the ancients who outlived him. All that can be said with certainly is, that they happened when there was no king in Israel; that is, about the time of the judges, or in some time of the anarchy. (ver. 6.)
mount
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.
about, etc
Houbigant renders this, "and for which you put me to my oath."
cursedst
5:23 Deuteronomy 27:16 1 Samuel 14:24,28 26:19 Nehemiah 13:25 Jeremiah 48:10 Matthew 26:74 Romans 9:3 1 Corinthians 16:22
I took it
Blessed
Genesis 14:19 24:30,31 Exodus 20:7 Ruth 3:10 1 Samuel 23:21 Nehemiah 13:25 Psalms 10:3 2 John 1:11
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.
I had wholly
a graven image
Exodus 20:4,23 Leviticus 19:4 Deuteronomy 12:3 Psalms 115:4-8 Isaiah 40:18-25 44:9-20 Jeremiah 10:3-5,8 Habakkuk 2:18,19 John 16:2
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.
two hundred
Isaiah 46:6,7 Jeremiah 10:9,10
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
or, as baith Elohim may also signify, "a house of God."
18:24 Genesis 31:30 Ezra 1:7 Hosea 8:14
ephod
8:27 18:14 Exodus 28:4,15 1 Samuel 23:6
teraphim
Genesis 31:19,30 *marg:; Hosea 3:4
consecrated
Heb. filled the hand.
Exodus 29:9 1 Kings 12:31 13:33,34 Hebrews 5:4
his sons
In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes.
no king
18:1 19:1 21:3,25 Genesis 36:31 Deuteronomy 33:5
right
Deuteronomy 12:8 Psalms 12:4 Proverbs 12:15 14:12 16:2 Ecclesiastes 11:9 Jeremiah 44:16,17
And there was a young man out of Bethlehemjudah of the family of Judah, who was a Levite, and he sojourned there.
Beth-lehem-judah
19:1,2 Genesis 35:19 Joshua 19:15 Ruth 1:1,2 Micah 5:2 Matthew 2:1,5,6
of the family
That is, of the tribe of Judah by his mother; and of that of Levi by his father.
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.
departed
as he journeyed
Heb. in making his way.
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.
a father
11 18:19 Genesis 45:8 2 Kings 6:21 8:8,9 13:14 Job 29:16 Isaiah 22:21
I will give
18:20 1 Samuel 2:36 Ezekiel 13:19 Matthew 26:15 John 12:6 1 Timothy 6:10 1 Peter 5:2
a suit of apparel
or, a double suit, etc. Heb. an order of garments.
And Micah consecrated the Levite; and the young man became his priest, and was in the house of Micah.
consecrated
his priest
18:30 Numbers 16:5,8-10 1 Kings 12:31 13:33,34
Then said Micah, Now know I that the LORD will do me good, seeing I have a Levite to my priest.
Proverbs 14:12 Isaiah 44:20 66:3,4 Matthew 15:9,13 John 16:2 Acts 26:9 Romans 10:2,3