Micah’s Descent into Idolatry

17 A man named Micah lived in the mountainous region^[a] of the territory of^[b] Ephraim. ² He told his mother, “Do you remember^[c] those 1,100 silver coins that were stolen from you and about which you uttered a curse when I could hear it? Well, I have the silver. I took it.”

So she replied, “May my son be blessed by the Lord.”

³ Her son gave back the 1,100 silver coins to his mother, and she said, “I’m totally giving this silver—from my hand to the Lord—so my son can make a carved image and a cast image. So I’m returning it to you.”

⁴ When he had returned the silver to his mother, his mother took 200 of the silver coins and handed them over to a silversmith. He crafted them into a carved image and into a cast image, and they were set up^[d] in Micah’s house. ⁵ This man Micah had his own shrine,^[e] had crafted his own ephod and some household idols,^[f] and had installed one of his sons as a priest.

⁶ Back in those days, Israel didn’t yet have a king, so each person did whatever seemed right in his own opinion.

⁷ A young male descendant of Levi happened to be visiting there from Bethlehem in the territory of^[g] Judah. ⁸ The man had left his city Bethlehem in Judah to live wherever he could. As he traveled along, he eventually arrived at Micah’s house in the mountainous region^[h] of Ephraim, looking for work.

⁹ Micah asked him, “Where did you come from?”

He replied, “I’m a descendant of Levi from Bethlehem in Judah, and I’m going to stay temporarily wherever I can find a place.”^[i]

¹⁰ So Micah replied, “Come live with me! You can be a spiritual father^[j] to me, as well as a priest. I’ll pay you ten silver coins a year, plus a priestly uniform^[k] and an income.” So the descendant of Levi moved in. ¹¹ The descendant of Levi agreed to live with the man, and the young man became like one of the family.^{[l] 12} Micah set up the descendant of Levi in ministry, and the young man became his priest while he lived in Micah’s house. ¹³ As for Micah, he kept saying, “Now I know the Lord will make me rich, because I have a descendant of Levi for a priest!”