Judges 17:11

17:11 So the Levite agreed to stay with the man; the young man was like a son to Micah. ¹ 

Judges 17:13

17:13 Micah said, “Now I know God will make me rich, ²  because I have this Levite as my priest.”

Judges 18:4

18:4 He told them what Micah had done for him, saying, ³  “He hired me and I became his priest.”

Judges 18:23

18:23 When they called out to the Danites, the Danites ⁴  turned around and said to Micah, “Why have you gathered together?”

Judges 18:31

18:31 They worshiped ⁵  Micah’s carved image ⁶  the whole time God’s authorized shrine ⁷  was in Shiloh.

Judges 17:5

17:5 Now this man Micah owned a shrine. ⁸  He made an ephod ⁹  and some personal idols and hired one of his sons to serve as a priest. ¹⁰ 

Judges 17:9-10

17:9 Micah said to him, “Where do you come from?” He replied, “I am a Levite from Bethlehem in Judah. I am looking for a new place to live.” ¹¹  17:10 Micah said to him, “Stay with me. Become my adviser ¹²  and priest. I will give you ten pieces of silver per year, plus clothes and food.” ¹³ 

Judges 18:15

18:15 They stopped ¹⁴  there, went inside the young Levite’s house (which belonged to Micah), ¹⁵  and asked him how he was doing. ¹⁶ 

Judges 18:26

18:26 The Danites went on their way; when Micah realized ¹⁷  they were too strong to resist, ¹⁸  he turned around and went home.

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¹ tn Heb “the young man became like one of his sons.”

² tn Heb “do good for me.”

³ tn Heb “He said to them, ‘Such and such Micah has done for me.’” Though the statement is introduced and presented, at least in part, as a direct quotation (note especially “for me”), the phrase “such and such” appears to be the narrator’s condensed version of what the Levite really said.

⁴ tn Heb “they”; the referent (the Danites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁵ tn Heb “they set up for themselves.”

⁶ tn Heb “the carved image that Micah had made.”

⁷ tn Heb “the house of God.”

⁸ tn Heb “house of God.”

⁹ sn Here an ephod probably refers to a priestly garment (cf. Exod 28:4-6).

¹⁰ tn Heb “and he filled the hand of one of his sons and he became his priest.”

¹¹ tn Heb “And I am going to reside in a place I can find.”

¹² tn Heb “father.” “Father” is here a title of honor that suggests the priest will give advice and protect the interests of the family, primarily by divining God’s will in matters, perhaps through the use of the ephod. (See R. G. Boling, Judges [AB], 257; also Gen 45:8, where Joseph, who was a diviner and interpreter of dreams, is called Pharaoh’s “father,” and 2 Kgs 6:21; 13:14, where a prophet is referred to as a “father.” Note also 2 Kgs 8:9, where a king identifies himself as a prophet’s “son.” One of a prophet’s main functions was to communicate divine oracles. Cf. 2 Kgs 8:9ff.; 13:14-19).

¹³ tn The Hebrew text expands with the phrase: “and the Levite went.” This only makes sense if taken with “to live” in the next verse. Apparently “the Levite went” and “the Levite agreed” are alternative readings which have been juxtaposed in the text.

¹⁴ tn Heb “turned aside.”

¹⁵ tn Heb “Micah’s house.”

¹⁶ tn Heb “they asked him concerning peace.”

¹⁷ tn Heb “saw.”

¹⁸ tn Heb “they were stronger than he.”