Judges 17

Micah’s Idolatry

1Now a man named Micah from the hill country of Ephraim 2said to his mother, “The eleven hundred shekels of silvera that were taken from you and about which I heard you utter a curse— I have the silver here with me; I took it.”

Then his mother said, “Blessed be my son by the LORD!”

3And when he had returned the eleven hundred shekels of silver to his mother, she said, “I wholly dedicate the silver to the LORD for my son’s benefit, to make a graven image and a molten idol. Therefore I will now return it to you.”

4So he returned the silver to his mother, and she took two hundred shekels of silverb and gave them to a silversmith, who made them into a graven image and a molten idol. And they were placed in the house of Micah.

5Now this man Micah had a shrine, and he made an ephod and some household idols, and ordainedc one of his sons as his priest. 6In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

7And there was a young Levite from Bethlehem in Judah who had been residing within the clan of Judah. 8This man left the city of Bethlehem in Judah to settle where he could find a place. And as he traveled, he came to Micah’s house in the hill country of Ephraim.

9“Where are you from?” Micah asked him.

“I am a Levite from Bethlehem in Judah,” he replied, “and I am on my way to settle wherever I can find a place.”

10“Stay with me,” Micah said to him, “and be my father and priest, and I will give you ten shekels of silverd per year, a suit of clothes, and your provisions.”

So the Levite went in 11and agreed to stay with him, and the young man became like a son to Micah.

12Micah ordained the Levite, and the young man became his priest and lived in his house. 13Then Micah said, “Now I know that the LORD will be good to me, because a Levite has become my priest.”