Judges 17:11 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And the Levite was content to dwell with the man, and the young man became to him like one of his sons.

NIV: So the Levite agreed to live with him, and the young man became like one of his sons to him.

NASB: The Levite agreed to live with the man, and the young man became to him like one of his sons.

CSB: and agreed to stay with the man, and the young man became like one of his sons.

NLT: The Levite agreed to this, and the young man became like one of Micah’s sons.

KJV: And the Levite was content to dwell with the man; and the young man was unto him as one of his sons.

NKJV: Then the Levite was content to dwell with the man; and the young man became like one of his sons to him.

According to Exodus 32:25–29, the tribe of the Levites were dedicated to the service of the Lord by Moses when they stood with him against the worship of the golden calf by the people of Israel. At the time, that included purging idolatry and sin from the people of Israel by force. One purpose of the book of Judges is to show how far the Israelites had fallen from their original dedication to the Lord (Judges 2:16–19). Statements such as the one made in verse 6 show that Israel was not merely without a central government—they were spiritually lawless, not submitting to their rightful King, the Lord God (Judges 17:6).

Further examples of this spiritual decay are seen in Micah and the Levite. A young man from the tribe of Levi accepted a job offer from an idol-worshipper (Judges 17:1–5). Instead of serving the Lord, the Levite became Micah's personal family priest, including a household shrine which included objects of worship to many different gods. Rather than confronting Micah over this obvious disregard for the commands of the Lord, this Levite man is now said to be content. From a worldly perspective, this is a better situation than he had likely dared hope for. All his needs were provided, and he even became part of a family, like one of Micah's sons.

Worldly culture—both of Micah's era and of the modern world—would suggest this was a good thing. The typical attitude is something like saying, "What's so wrong with that? These spiritually open-minded people are happy doing their own thing. Just leave them alone. Why make a fuss?"

That attitude is exactly why God had repeatedly allowed Israel to fall under oppression by their enemies (Judges 2:16–19). He had rescued them from slavery (Exodus 6:6) and set them apart to be His one and only chosen people (Deuteronomy 14:2). He rightly wanted to be their only God. He wanted them to trust in Him alone. He wanted Israel to demonstrate dependence on Him by obeying His commands for life and worship. He wanted them to love Him with all their hearts, minds, and bodies (Deuteronomy 6:5).

However, fallen human beings want to do what feels right in our own eyes (Judges 17:6; Proverbs 14:12). That's what Micah and this Levite man are doing.

A man named Micah overhears his mother speaking a curse on whoever stole a hefty sum of money from her. He confesses that it was him so she attempts to replace her curse with a blessing from God. She has a carved religious object made from the silver for Micah, which he puts in his household shrine full of other idols and relics. A young Levite man comes to Micah's house, and Micah hires him as the personal family priest, convinced God will prosper him because of it. This demonstrates Israel's lack of spiritual commitment during the era of the judges.

Judges 17 marks a new direction for the book. Having completed the stories of the judges themselves, the focus shifts to everyday Israelites. A man confesses to stealing from his mother, and she donates the silver to make an idol. The man puts this in a shrine in his house along with other religious objects. He hires a Levite to be the family priest, which he assumes will guarantee blessings from God. The same priest will willingly leave with a group of raiders from the tribe of Dan (Judges 18). This leads to one the Bible's most disturbing stories, involving an abused woman whose fate sparks a civil war within Israel (Judges 19—20).

The Book of Judges describes Israel's history from the death of Joshua to shortly before Israel's first king, Saul. Israel fails to complete God's command to purge the wicked Canaanites from the land (Deuteronomy 7:1–5; 9:4). This results in a centuries-long cycle where Israel falls into sin and is oppressed by local enemies. After each oppression, God sends a civil-military leader, labeled using a Hebrew word loosely translated into English as "judge." These appointed rescuers would free Israel from enemy control and govern for a certain time. After each judge's death, the cycle of sin and oppression begins again. This continues until the people of Israel choose a king, during the ministry of the prophet-and-judge Samuel (1 Samuel 1—7).