July 27, 2021
Please use the comment section on this page to share insights from today’s reading OR your own personal Bible reading.
Reading along with us in Judges? Here’s today’s reading:
Judges 17 (NIV)
Micah’s Idols
1Now a man named Micah from the hill country of Ephraim 2said to his mother, “The eleven hundred shekels of silver that were taken from you and about which I heard you utter a curse—I have that silver with me; I took it.”
This is an allegory of the people of Israel and some Christian believers in general. So much potential to conquer many things, to be victorious but because of foolishness and lawlessness, they die in vain.
Comment above is on Judges 16
So sad to see Micah’s disobedience and really Israel’s disobedience happening here.
First he steals from his mother and gives it back as she praises him for that almost ignoring the fact that he stole from her in the first place and then uses it to make an idol…ugh!
With that parental example Micah just spirals down further and even ends up with a priest-for-hire to legitimize all the idolatry he has been participating in. So far from God and what God wants for him!
Judges 17 and 18
Verse 6. Everyone did as they saw fit. Wow. Sounds familiar. Mankind hasn’t changed at all. But neither has God and HIS standards. Guess it’s a choice for everyone. Give in to your feelings and what everybody says is alright. Which leads to depravity and immortality. Or be lead by the truth which leads to peace snd joy. I’m going with plan B. !!!!
Syncretism is something that has challenged God’s people throughout history. It is the attempt to mix that which is false and not of God with those things that are true and of God. Making and worshiping idols and designating your own priest is bad, the levites and their service to the tabernacle is good. Micah should have known better, but if not the Levite should. But like the text says, it was a time when everyone did what was right in their own eyes. And that is what makes the book of judges very disappointing…..
Micah seems to be a few cards short of a full deck. A Levite?
Judges 17 – again idols
6In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit.
I found the beginning of this very confusing….who has the silver? I finally figured it out from context!
“In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.”
It seems that the judges really didn’t serve the purpose of keeping Israel walking with God either…just to deliver them from whatever horrible place they had gotten themselves into.