< Judges 17 >
1 Now a man named Micah from the hill country of Ephraim
And there is a man of the hill-country of Ephraim, and his name [is] Micah,
2 said to his mother, “The eleven hundred shekels of silver that were taken from you and about which I heard you utter a curse—I have the silver here with me; I took it.” Then his mother said, “Blessed be my son by the LORD!”
and he saith to his mother, 'The eleven hundred silverlings which have been taken of thine, and [of which] thou hast sworn, and also spoken in mine ears; lo, the silver [is] with me, I have taken it;' and his mother saith, 'Blessed [is] my son of Jehovah.'
3 And when he had returned the eleven hundred shekels of silver to his mother, she said, “I wholly dedicate the silver to the LORD for my son’s benefit, to make a graven image and a molten idol. Therefore I will now return it to you.”
And he giveth back the eleven hundred silverlings to his mother, and his mother saith, 'I had certainly sanctified the silver to Jehovah, from my hand, for my son, to make a graven image, and a molten image; and now, I give it back to thee.'
4 So he returned the silver to his mother, and she took two hundred shekels of silver and gave them to a silversmith, who made them into a graven image and a molten idol. And they were placed in the house of Micah.
And he giveth back the money to his mother, and his mother taketh two hundred silverlings, and giveth them to a refiner, and he maketh them a graven image, and a molten image, and it is in the house of Micah.
5 Now this man Micah had a shrine, and he made an ephod and some household idols, and ordained one of his sons as his priest.
As to the man Micah, he hath a house of gods, and he maketh an ephod, and teraphim, and consecrateth the hand of one of his sons, and he is to him for a priest;
6 In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
in those days there is no king in Israel, each that which is right in his own eyes doth.
7 And there was a young Levite from Bethlehem in Judah who had been residing within the clan of Judah.
And there is a young man of Beth-Lehem-Judah, of the family of Judah, and he [is] a Levite, and he [is] a sojourner there.
8 This man left the city of Bethlehem in Judah to settle where he could find a place. And as he traveled, he came to Micah’s house in the hill country of Ephraim.
And the man goeth out of the city, out of Beth-Lehem-Judah, to sojourn where he doth find, and cometh to the hill-country of Ephraim, unto the house of Micah, to work his way.
9 “Where are you from?” Micah asked him. “I am a Levite from Bethlehem in Judah,” he replied, “and I am on my way to settle wherever I can find a place.”
And Micah saith to him, 'Whence comest thou?' and he saith unto him, 'A Levite [am] I, of Beth-Lehem-Judah, and I am going to sojourn where I do find.'
10 “Stay with me,” Micah said to him, “and be my father and priest, and I will give you ten shekels of silver per year, a suit of clothes, and your provisions.” So the Levite went in
And Micah saith to him, 'Dwell with me, and be to me for a father and for a priest, and I give to thee ten silverlings for the days, and a suit of garments, and thy sustenance;' and the Levite goeth [in].
11 and agreed to stay with him, and the young man became like a son to Micah.
And the Levite is willing to dwell with the man, and the young man is to him as one of his sons.
12 Micah ordained the Levite, and the young man became his priest and lived in his house.
And Micah consecrateth the hand of the Levite, and the young man is to him for a priest, and he is in the house of Micah,
13 Then Micah said, “Now I know that the LORD will be good to me, because a Levite has become my priest.”
and Micah saith, 'Now I have known that Jehovah doth good to me, for the Levite hath been to me for a priest.'