Annotations Upon the Historical Books Part 2, Judges · Chapter 17
CHAP. XVII.
Verſ. 1. ANd there was a man of mount Ephraim, &c.] All the particular paſſages related from hence to the end of this book, were certainly in the time of ſome of the forementioned Judges, & that not long too after the death of Joſhua, and not according to the order of time, as they are here inſerted, after the death of Samſon. Concerning which ſee the note upon verſ. 6.
Verſ. 2. And he ſaid unto his mother, The eleven hundred ſhekels of ſilver, that were taken from thee, about which thou curſedſt. &c.] To wit either by curſing thoſe that had ſtolen it, through the violence of her paſſion; or by adjuring thoſe ſhe ſpake to under a curſe to reveal what was become of it, if they knew any thing of it. Now the bitterneſſe of his mothers ſpirit in curſing thus, was doubtleſſe the greater, becauſe ſhe had ſuperſtitiouſly devoted it to a religious uſe, to wit, the making of images for her ſonne. But yet Micah mentions it as being touched in conſcience by way of aggravating his ſinne, & implying the reaſon why he could no longer detain it, In mine own hearing, ſaith he, thou didſt curſe thoſe that had taken thy ſilver from thee, or that did not diſcover where it was, yet wretch as I am, hitherto I have detained it, but no longer dare I lie under a mothers curſe, and therefore am I now come to confeſſe my ſinne, and to reſtore again the money to you.
And his mother ſaid, Bleſſed be thou of the Lord, my ſonne.] That is, free be thou from my curſe, my ſonne and mayſt thou be bleſſed of the Lord, and not curſed, becauſe thou haſt repented of this fact, and ſo ingeniouſly doſt offer to reſtore, what unadviſedly before thou hadſt taken away from me.
Verſ. 3. His mother ſaid, I had wholly dedicated the ſilver unto the Lord, &c.] Micahs mother here tells him, that ſhe had wholly dedicated the ſilver unto the Lord, Jehovah as it is in the Hebrew, and yet withall ſhe addes, that it was to make idols for him, to make a graven image and a molten image; whereby it is evident, that in theſe times, when many of the Iſraelites were become idolaters, yet they pretended and intended the worſhip of the true God in their idol-ſervice, not eſteeming thoſe dumb and dead images gods, but onelyonly repreſentations and remembrances of the true God. Some queſtion whether this which ſhe ſpake, of a graven image, and a molten image, was meant of two ſeverall images, that ſhe intended ſhould be made of her ſilver, one graven and another molten; or of one image which is called a graven and a molten image, onelyonly becauſe they did melt their ſilver, and caſt it into the form of an image, and then did afterwards poliſh and finiſh it with graving tools; but that two ſeverall images are here intended, is evident in the following chapter, verſ. 18. where it is plain that they are named ſeverally, And theſe went into Micahs houſe, and fetched the carved image, the ephod, and the Teraphim, and the molten image.
Verſ. 4. Yet he reſtored the money unto his mother.] Though ſhe now gave it him freely, yet he would not keep it, as fearing the diſquiet of his conſcience, if ſhe would beſtow it as ſhe vowed, ſhe might, but he would be ſure to rid his hands of it.
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, &c.] The other nine hundred ſhekels were therefore it ſeems laid out in providing an ephod and other ornaments for the prieſt in providing their teraphim, and whatſoever elſe was requiſite for the idolatrous worſhip o… the… falſe gods.
Verſ. 5. And the man Micah had an houſe of gods, &c.] That is, a chappel conſecrated to theſe ſuperſtitious devotions; and made an ephod, under which are comprehended all other garments for the prieſts; and teraphim, now theſe teraphim were a ſpeciall ſort of images, diſtinguiſhed by that name from all other ſorts of images: 2. Kings 23.24. Moreover the workers with familiar spirits, and the wizards, and the images, (the teraphim it is in the originall) and the idols, and all the abominations that were ſpied in the land of Judah, and in Jeruſalem, did Joſiah put away. It ſeems they had the ſhape of men: 1. Sam. 19.13. And Michael took an image and laid in the bed (for there alſo Michaels image is in the originall called teraphim) and that they made uſe of them as oracles, and received from them anſwers what to do in doubtfull caſes: Ezek. 21.21. The king of Babylon ſtood at the parting of the way, at the head of the two wayes, to uſe divination: he made his arrows bright he conſulted with images, or teraphim: Zach. 10.2. The idols (or teraphim) have ſpoken vanity, and the diviners have ſeen a lie, and have told falſe dreams: and it may well be, that this made the Danites enquire at Micahs houſe concerning the ſucceſſe of their journey.
Verſ. 6. In thoſe dayes there was no king in Iſrael, &c.] That is, in thoſe dayes when Micah did this before related: But when was this? The time is not expreſſely ſet down; ſome conceive this was done after Samſons death, and that therefore it is next related in the courſe of the hiſtory; but the moſt probable opinion is, that both this, and all that followeth to the end of this book, were done long before Samſons death, and are here onelyonly related apart by themſelves, that the ſtory of the Judges, the main thing intended in the former part of the book, might not be interrupted: firſt, becauſe it is not probable that the Danites being a populous …be, and ſtraitened in their dwelling, by reaſon of the Amorites ſo long before, Judg. 1.34. And the Amorites forced the children of Dan into the mountain, for they would not let them come into the valley; would ſtay ſo many years ere they would look out to enlarge their borders, which how they did, and how they ſtole away Micahs gods, is related in the following chapter But eſpecially becauſe in the warre of Iſrael againſt Benjamin (which is largely related in the three laſt chapters of this book) Phinehas miniſtred before the Lord, chap. 20.28. And Phinehas the ſonne of Eleazar, the ſonne of Aaron, ſtood before it in thoſe dayes, ſaying, Shall I yet again go out to battel againſt the children of Benjamin my brother, who killed Zimri and Cozbi, Numb. 25.7. above three hundred years before Samſons death: It ſeems therefore, either this was done immediately after the death of Joſhua, and thoſe elders, who all their time kept the people from revolting from God, Judg. 2.7. And the people ſerved the Lord all the dayes of Joſhua, and and all the dayes of the elders that outlived Joſhua; who had ſeen all the great works of the Lord which he did for Iſrael: and then the meaning of the words may be (there was no King in Iſrael) that there was no ordinary ſupreme magiſtrate, neither King nor Judge, to reſtrain the people from theſe wicked courſes, or elſe that it was done in the time of ſome of the Judges, that followed next after Joſhua; and then the meaning of the words muſt be, that in thoſe dayes there was no King in Iſrael; that is, no ſupreme Magiſtrate armed with ſuch ſovereigne authoritie, to puniſh offenders that tranſgreſſed the law, as the Kings afterwards had; the Judges rather governing the people by counſell, ſhewing them what was the law and will of God, then by the ſword of juſtice, at leaſt, in thoſe times of the Judges, when they were in ſubjection to thoſe neighbouring nations that tyranniſed over them.
Verſ. 7. And there was a young man out of Bethlehem-Judah, &c.] That is, Bethlehem in the tribe of Judah, (which was called Bethlehem Ephratah, Mich. 5.2.) to diſtinguiſh it from that Bethlehem which was in the tribe of Zebulun, Joſh. 19.15. But why is it ſaid in the next words that he was a Levite, and yet withall too of the familie of Judah? I anſwer, becauſe though he was a Levite, yet he was born and bred up amongſt them of the familie of Judah. It may be true which ſome conceive, that his father being a Levite, and ſojourning there, marryed a wife of the familie of Judah: but it is not uſuall in Scripture, to ſtyle men by the mothers familie, and therefore the meaning is, that there he had his birth and breeding: for which cauſe, he is alſo ſaid to have ſojourned there; becauſe he was not of that tribe, neither was Bethlehem one of the Levites cities, but there he lived as a ſtranger, as the Levites it ſeems did in many other places. Afterwards his name is expreſſed, and of what familie he was; to wit, that his name was Jonathan, and that he was the ſonne of Gerſhom, the ſonne of Manaſſeh.
Verſ. 8. And the man departed out of the city from Bethlehem-Judah, to ſojourn where he could find a place, &c.] This ſhews the corruptions of thoſe times; God had provided liberally for the tribe of Levi; but in theſe idolatrous times, the people had in a great meaſure forſaken the Tabernacle; and ſo their appointed maintenance of tythes, it ſeems, was not yielded them; for then this Levite needed not have wandered up and down, to procure means of livelyhood. See the like, Neh. 13.10, 11. And I perceived that the portion of the Levites had not been given them; for the Levites, and the ſingers that did the work, were fled every one to his field. Then I contended with the rulers, and ſaid, Why is the houſe of God forſaken? and I gathered them together, and put them in their places.
Verſ. 10. And Micah ſaid unto him, Dwell with me, and be unto me a father, and a prieſt, &c.] Though he had conſecrated his ſonne to execute the prieſts office, in his idolatrous chappel, yet becauſe he thought it would be a great honour to his idol-worſhip, to have one of the tribe of Levi to his prieſt; either he was content to put his ſonne out of that place, and to put in this Levite in his room; or elſe meant to joyn him with his ſonne; and ſo began to treat with him to this purpoſe. But yet obſervable it is, that though he promiſed to reverence this Levite as a father (notwithſtanding his youth) if he would be his prieſt, be unto me ſaith he a father and a prieſt: yet it was but a poore ſalarie that he tendered him for his ſervice. I will give thee ten ſhekels of ſilver by the yeare, and a ſuit of apparell, and thy victuals: eleven hundred ſhekels of ſilver were ſet apart, to make their idols, and the appurtenances thereto belonging, and yet ten ſhekels of ſilver were thought enough for the prieſts wages. Indeed had not the time when this was done been extremely corrupt, a Levite would never have proſtituted himſelf to ſuch a baſe ſervice, as to be a prieſt to their idol-dunghill-gods, and that too upon ſuch baſe terms; but hunger will ſnap at any thing, when there is no grace to reſtrain men; for ſo it follows in the next verſe, and the Levite was content to dwell with the man, &c.
Verſ. 11. And the young man was unto him as one of his ſonnes, &c.] Though he reverenced him as a father, as he had promiſed him before, verſ. 10, yet it is ſaid here, that the young man was unto him as one of his ſonnes, that is, he loved him, and uſed him as if he had been his own child.
Verſ. 13. Now I know that the Lord will do me good, ſeeing I have a Levite to my prieſt.] But how much he was deceived, the following chapter ſheweth.