I noted previously that the tabernacle and the altar as the center of religious and communal life have disappeared. You no longer have to go there with your sacrifices for the Kohanite priests to carry out. Now it's official: you can rent your own priest and have your own personal altar and sacrifices. (To be fully explicated in the following chapter, but the story starts here in Judges 17.) Not only that, but remember the whole thing about idols and graven images? E.g.:
Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath. Exodus 20:4, Deuteronomy 5:8
Lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven image, the simultude of any figure, the likeness of male or female, The likeness of any beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged fowl that flieth in the air, The likeness of any thing that creepeth on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the waters beneath the earth. Deuteronomy 4:16-18
Take heed unto yourselves, lest ye forget ... and make you a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, which the Lord thy God hath forbidden thee. Deuteronomy 4:23
Cursed be the man that maketh any graven or molten image, an abomination unto the LORD, the work of the hands of the craftsman. Deuteronomy 27:15
Fuggedaboudit! Idols are just fine, encouraged in fact. I would also say the back story about the guy stealing from his mother and giving it back is weirdly elided, but whatever. BTW, this story will get a whole lot weirder, so be prepared.
17 Now a man named Micah from the hill country of Ephraim 2 said to his mother, “The eleven hundred shekels[a] of silver that were taken from you and about which I heard you utter a curse—I have that silver with me; I took it.”
Then his mother said, “The Lord bless you, my son!”
3 When he returned the eleven hundred shekels of silver to his mother, she said, “I solemnly consecrate my silver to the Lord for my son to make an image overlaid with silver. I will give it back to you.”
4 So after he returned the silver to his mother, she took two hundred shekels[b] of silver and gave them to a silversmith, who used them to make the idol. And it was put in Micah’s house.
5 Now this man Micah had a shrine, and he made an ephod and some household gods and installed one of his sons as his priest. 6 In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit.
7 A young Levite from Bethlehem in Judah, who had been living within the clan of Judah, 8 left that town in search of some other place to stay. On his way[c] he came to Micah’s house in the hill country of Ephraim.
9 Micah asked him, “Where are you from?”
“I’m a Levite from Bethlehem in Judah,” he said, “and I’m looking for a place to stay.”
10 Then Micah said to him, “Live with me and be my father and priest, and I’ll give you ten shekels[d] of silver a year, your clothes and your food.” 11 So the Levite agreed to live with him, and the young man became like one of his sons to him. 12 Then Micah installed the Levite, and the young man became his priest and lived in his house. 13 And Micah said, “Now I know that the Lord will be good to me, since this Levite has become my priest.”
Footnotes
- Judges 17:2 That is, about 28 pounds or about 13 kilograms
- Judges 17:4 That is, about 5 pounds or about 2.3 kilograms
- Judges 17:8 Or To carry on his profession
- Judges 17:10 That is, about 4 ounces or about 115 grams
3 comments:
Honestly, when it comes to the Hebrew Bible I get confused by the whole graven image thing. Is it prohibited to make an artwork, for instance? Or is it only prohibited if it’s used for worship?
Not to worry. The Talmudic interpretation is that it is only idols to be worshiped that are forbidden, Marc Chagall is fine.
Good thing. I love Chagall! One of the most compelling novels I’ve ever read is Chaim Potok’s “My Name Is Asher Lev.” It was also made into a play, which is quite faithful to the novel.
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