Judges 18:21-31
21 Then they turned and left, and put the children, the livestock, and the valuables in front of them.
22 When they had distanced themselves from Micah’s house, the men who were in the houses near Micah’s house assembled by command and overtook the sons of Dan.
23 Then they called out to the sons of Dan, who turned around and said to Micah, “What is the matter with you, that you have assembled together?”
24 And he said, “You have taken my gods which I made, and the priest, and have gone away; what more do I have? So how can you say to me, ‘What is the matter with you?’ ”
25 Then the sons of Dan said to him, “Do not let your voice be heard among us, or else fierce men will attack you, and you will lose your life and the lives of your household.”
26 So the sons of Dan went on their way; and when Micah saw that they were too strong for him, he turned and went back to his house.
27 Then they took what Micah had made and the priest who had belonged to him, and came to Laish, to a people quiet and unsuspecting, and struck them with the edge of the sword; and they burned the city with fire.
28 And there was no one to save them, because it was far from Sidon and they had no dealings with anyone, and it was in the valley which is near Beth-rehob. So they rebuilt the city and lived in it.
29 And they named the city Dan, after the name of Dan their father who was born to Israel; however, the name of the city was previously Laish.
30 The sons of Dan set up for themselves the carved image; and Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of Manasseh, he and his sons were priests to the tribe of the Danites until the day of the captivity of the land.
31 So they set up for themselves Micah’s carved image which he had made, all the time that the house of God was in Shiloh.
The Conquest of Laish
Micah’s response
O how so many people do not fear God. No matter who it is, the one sows, will also reap. The righteousness of God will come, sooner or later. Therefore, we must learn to fear God. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding” (Prov. 9:10). Micah pursued the Danites who had taken the idols and the priest. Since the neighbors also joined in chasing after them, it is evident that many people actually visited the shrine in the house of Micah. They caught up with the Danites but were greatly outnumbered. They were threatened and had no choice but to retreat. In this, is God’s judgment against Micah’s sin. The idols Micah possessed were made from the silver he had stolen from his mother. Now, those very idols were stolen from him.
House of idols
The tribe of Dan attacks a peaceful and unsuspecting people, easily conquering Laish. They renamed it Dan, after their tribe’s name. This becomes the northernmost territory of the 12 tribes of Israel. They set up idols there. The likely built a house of worship and placed the idols there. These idols are the ones taken from Micah’s house. Later, when Israel splits into the Northern and Southern Kingdoms, King Jeroboam of the Northern Kingdom sets up golden calves in Dan and Bethel. Jeroboam placed a golden calf at the location where the tribe of Dan had set up idols. Did Micah learn anything from this incident? If he had turned back to the true God because of this, then this event would have been a blessing to him. The tribe of Dan was the one unfortunate. They thought acquiring the idols from Micah’s house was a blessing, but it wasn’t. They became a tribe bound by idol worship until the Northern Kingdom was destroyed by Assyria. Similar things can happen in our lives. When tragedy strikes, whether we can turn it into a blessing depends on how we hold it in our hearts.
Today's prayer
Heavenly Father, You discipline me to prepare me for greater things. Please help me to distance myself from idols. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen.