Judges 17:1-4 And there was a man of mount Ephraim, whose name was Micah. And he said unto his mother, The eleven hundred shekels of silver that were taken from thee, about which thou cursedst and spakest of also in mine ears, behold, the silver is with me. I took it. And his mother said, Blessed be thou of the Lord, my son. And when he had restored the eleven hundred shekels of silver to his mother, his mother said, I had wholly dedicated the silver unto the Lord from my hand for my son, to make a graven image and a molten image. Now therefore I will restore it unto thee. Yet he restored the money unto his mother and his mother took two hundred shekels of silver and gave them to the founder, who made thereof a graven image and a molten image and they were in the house of Micah.

Judges 17:5 And the man Micah.(not the same Micah of whose name there is a book of the.Bible).had an house of Gods and made an ephod and teraphim and consecrated one of his sons, who became his priest. 

Judges 17:6 In those days there was no king in Israel.(no set down rules which humanity could follow in relationships with each other), but every man did that which was right.(Proverbs 14:12; Jeremiah 44:16,17).in his own eyes.

But the people wanted a king instead of their Creator (1Samuel 8:6,7) so that they could be like the nations around them:.1Samuel 8:19,20. What an odious part of human nature where some people just must have the latest gadget like all their friends and/or follow the latest fads and entertainment interests going around. Can you get much further away from spiritual disciplines than that? Probably, Ha ha!

Judges 18:1 In those days there was no king in Israel and in those days the tribe of the Danites.(the Danites came from Dan, one of the twelve sons of Jacob {Denmark means the mark of Dan}).sought them an inheritance to dwell in, for unto that day all their inheritance had not fallen unto them among the tribes of Israel.

Judges 18:2-4 And the children of Dan sent of their family five men from their coasts, men of valour, from Zorah and from Eshtaol, to spy out the land and to search it and they said unto them, Go, search the land, who when they came to mount Ephraim, to the house of Micah, they lodged there. When they were by the house of Micah, they knew the voice of a young man, the Levite and they turned in thither and said unto him, Who brought thee hither.(who brought you here)? and what do you make in this place.(what are you doing here)? and what have you here.(what's so special about this place that you are staying here)?

Judges 18:4-6 And he said unto them, Thus and thus deals Micah with me and has hired me and I am his priest. And they said unto him, Ask counsel, we pray thee, of God, that we may know whether our way which we go shall be prosperous. And the priest said unto them, Go in peace. Before the Lord is your way wherein you go.(God is with you in your purpose).

Judges 18:7 Then the five men departed and came to Laish and saw the people that were therein, how they dwelt careless.(original word is not 'careless' but rather, 'safely'), after the manner of the Zidonians, quiet and secure and there was no magistrate in the land, that might put them to shame in any thing.(they pretty well did as they pleased, had good conduct with each other, left others alone and avoided contact with most others).and they were far from the Zidonians and had no business with any man.

Judges 18:8,9 And they came unto their brethren to Zorah and Eshtaol and their brethren said unto them, What say you.(what did you find out?)? And they said, Arise, that we may go up against.(word 'against' not in original, simply means 'to go and see').them for we have seen the land and behold, it is very good and are you still.(are you going to come with us or stay here?)? be not slothful to go and to enter to possess the land.

Judges 18:10 When you go, you shall come unto a people secure and to a large land, for God has given it into your hands. It's a place where there is no want of any thing that is in the Earth.

Judges 18:11 And there went from thence of the family of the Danites.(they decided to join the five men), out of Zorah and out of Eshtaol, six hundred men appointed with weapons of war.

Judges 18:14 Then answered the five men that went to spy out the country of Laish and said unto their brethren, Do you know that there is in these houses an ephod and teraphim and a graven image and a molten image? now therefore consider what you have to do.

Judges 18:16 And the six hundred men appointed with their weapons of war, which were of the children of Dan, stood by the entering of the gate.

Judges 18:17 And the five men that went to spy out the land went up and came in thither and took the graven image and the ephod and the teraphim and the molten image. And the priest stood in the entering of the gate with the six hundred men that were appointed with weapons of war.

Judges 18:20 And the priest's heart was glad and he took the ephod and the teraphim and the graven image and went in the midst of the people.

Judges 18:30,31 And the children of Dan set up the graven image. And Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of Manasseh, he and his sons were priests to the tribe of Dan until the day of the captivity of the land. And they set them up Micah's graven image, which he made, all the time that the house of God was in Shiloh.
 

....continues to Chapter 19

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