One of the strangest sections of the Bible has to be Judges 17-21. This is where we read the story of Micah and the Levite followed by the sick-and-twisted tale of the Benjamites' sodomy, the cutting up of a concubine, the war that ensued, and the unortodox efforts to secure wives for the 600 remaining men of the tribe of Benjamine. I'm not going to even attempt to explain all of this in one article. However, I would like to focus on one point in Judges 17.
Micah was an Israelite who lived during a time when "everyone did what was right in his own eyes" (Judges 17:6) rather than using God's law as the standard of right and wrong. And so it's not surprising that Micah turned to idolatry. Notice Judges 17:5 says...
"The man Micah had a shrine, and made an ephod and household idols; and he consecrated one of his sons, who became his priest."
Obviously, what Micah did was in violation of the Law of Moses. In the ten commandments, God clearly stated, "You shall not make for yourself a carved image..." (Ex. 20:4). There was nothing right about what Micah did, but that didn't keep Micah from feeling justified. Again, he did what was right in his own eyes.
However, whatever doubt that lingered in his mind was eradicated not long thereafter. According to the Law of Moses, only the Levites could serve as priests. Well, lo and behold, a levite stumbled upon Micah's homestead. Micah's son had been serving as priest, but his son was not a Levite. So Micah, having knowledge of the law, invited this Levite to become a priest in his self-made idolatrous religion. The Levite agreed, much to Micah's delight. Notice how he interpreted this...
"So Micah consecrated the Levite, and the young man became his priest, and lived in the house of Micah. Then Micah said, 'Now I know that the Lord will be good to me, since I have a Levite as priest" (Judges 17:12-13).
It appears that Micah saw this Levite as a blessing from the Lord, as proof-positive that he was acceptable to the God of Israel. After all, he had a Levite...a man that was qualified to serve as priest. And yet you and I both know that Micah was self-deluded. He wasn't right before God! He was an idol-worshiping, shrine-building thief who had little regard for God's law!
There is an important lesson to glean from this story.
I am a firm believer in providence. I can look back on my own life and see the unique circumstances that have led me to where I am today. Does God cause things to happen in our lives? Yes. Does God help us and bless us in our pursuit of the truth? Again, yes. God DOES work providentially to guide and direct us and IS active in our lives.
However, if Micah's story teaches us anything, it's that we have to be careful NOT to misinterpret a situation as a "sign" from God that He approves of us, or is guiding us in a certain direction. In other words, don't let circumstances in your life, as unique as they might be, take precendence over the plain teachings of God's word.
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