Judges 17:5

Judges 17:5 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the man Micah had an house of gods, and made an ephod, and teraphim, and consecrated one of his sons, who became his priest.
• New International Version (NIV)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.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And the man Micah had a shrine, and he made an ephod and household gods, and ordained one of his sons, who became his priest.
• New King James Version (NKJV)The man Micah had a shrine, and made an ephod and household idols; and he consecrated one of his sons, who became his priest.

Context of Judges 17:5

3He returned the eleven hundred pieces of silver to his mother, and she said, “I had truly dedicated the silver from my hand to the Lord for my son (in his name) to make an image [carved from wood and plated with silver] and a cast image [of solid silver]; so now, I will return it to you.” 4So when he returned the silver to his mother, she took two hundred pieces of silver and gave them to the silversmith who made of it an image [of silver-plated wood] and a cast image [of solid silver]; and they were in the house of Micah. Now the man Micah had a house of gods (shrine), and he made an ephod and teraphim and dedicated and installed one of his sons, who became his [personal] priest. 6In those days there was no king in Israel; every man did what was right in his own eyes. 7Now there was a young man from Bethlehem in Judah, from the family [of the tribe] of Judah, who was a Levite; and he was staying there [temporarily].

Judges 17:5 word by word

וְהָאִ֣ישׁ מִיכָ֔ה ל֖וֹ בֵּ֣ית אֱלֹהִ֑ים וַיַּ֤עַשׂ אֵפוֹד֙ וּתְרָפִ֔ים וַיְמַלֵּ֗א אֶת־יַ֤ד אַחַד֙ מִבָּנָ֔יו וַיְהִי־ל֖וֹ לְכֹהֵֽן׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And the manאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
• Micahמִיכָהmîykâh · MicahH4318
• had an houseבַּ֫יִתbayith · house: templeH1004
• of godsאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• and madeעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to makeH6213
• an ephodאֵפוֹד'êphôd 'êphôd · ephodH646
• and teraphimתְּרָפִיםterâphîym · teraphimH8655
• and consecratedיָדyâd · hand: donateH3027
• and consecratedמָלֵאmâlê' mâlâ' · to fillH4390
• oneאֶחָד'echâd · oneH259
• of his sonsבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
• who became his priestכֹּהֵןkôhên · priestH3548

Cross-references for Judges 17:5

• Judges 18:24He said, “You have taken away my gods which I have made, and the priest, and have gone away; what else do I have left? How can you say to me, ‘What is your reason?’ ”
• Genesis 31:30Now [I suppose] you felt you must go because you were homesick for your father’s house and family; but why did you steal my [household] gods?”
• Ezra 1:7Also King Cyrus brought out the articles of the house of the Lord, which Nebuchadnezzar had carried away from Jerusalem [when he captured that city] and had put in the house of his gods.
• Hosea 8:14For Israel has forgotten his Maker and built palaces [and pagan temples], And Judah has built many fortified cities; But I will send a fire upon their cities so that it may consume their palaces and fortresses.
• Judges 8:27Gideon made [all the golden earrings into] an ephod [a sacred, high priest’s garment], and put it in his city of Ophrah, and all Israel worshiped it as an idol there, and it became a trap for Gideon and his household.
• Judges 18:14Then the five men who had gone to scout the country of Laish said to their relatives, “Do you know that there are in these houses an ephod, teraphim, an image [of silver-plated wood], and a cast image [of solid silver]? Now therefore, consider what you should do.”
• Exodus 28:4These are the garments which they shall make: a breastpiece and an ephod [for the breastpiece] and a robe and a tunic of checkered work, a turban, and a sash. They shall make sacred garments for Aaron your brother and his sons, so that he may serve as a priest to Me.
• 1 Samuel 23:6When Abiathar the son of Ahimelech fled to David at Keilah, he came down with an ephod in his hand.
• Genesis 31:19When Laban had gone to shear his sheep, Rachel [went inside the house and] stole her father’s household gods.
• Hosea 3:4For the sons of Israel will remain for many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or [idolatrous] pillar, and without ephod or teraphim (household idols).
• Exodus 29:9And you shall wrap them with sashes, Aaron and his sons, and put the [ornamental] caps on them; and the priest’s office shall be theirs by a perpetual statute. So you shall ordain Aaron and his sons.
• 1 Kings 12:31And Jeroboam also made houses on high places, and he made priests from all people who were not of the sons (descendants) of Levi.
• 1 Kings 13:33After this event, Jeroboam [still] did not turn from his evil way, but again made priests for the high places from among all the people. He ordained anyone who was willing, so that there would be priests for the high places.
• Hebrews 5:4And besides, one does not appropriate for himself the honor [of being high priest], but he who is called by God, just as Aaron was.
• Exodus 24:5Then he sent young Israelite men, and they offered burnt offerings and sacrificed young bulls as peace offerings to the Lord.

Commentaries on Judges 17:5

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 5The man Micah had a house of gods - אלהים בית beith Elohim should, I think, be translated house or temple of God; for it is very likely that both the mother and the son intended no more than a private or domestic chapel, in which they proposed to set up the worship of the true God. Made an ephod - Perhaps the whole of this case may be stated thus: Micah built a house of God - a chapel in imitation of the sanctuary; he made a graven image representing the…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 5ephod: See study note on Judges 8:27. household idols: Compare Genesis 31:19–32; 2 Kings 23:24; Zechariah 10:2. The Bible criticizes the powerlessness of these personal gods. Micah making his son his personal priest was very unusual: The father was supposed to lead the family's religious activities (Deuteronomy 6:7; Job 1:5), only Aaron's descendants could be priests (Exodus 28:1–29:37; 30:30–33; 40:12–15), and priests served all of Israel, not just one…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 55. the man Micah had an house of gods--Hebrew, "a house of God"--a domestic chapel, a private religious establishment of his own. an ephod--(see on Ex 28:6). teraphim--tutelary gods of the household (see Ge 31:19 and see on Ge 31:26). consecrated one of his sons who became his priest--The assumption of the priestly office by any one out of the family of Aaron was a direct violation of the divine law (Nu 3:10; 16:17; De 21:5; He 5:4).Read the comment

Topics related to Judges 17:5

• Ephod
• Polytheism
• Teraphim

In the dictionaries

• Micah
• Idol
• Teraphim
• Thummim
• Bethlehem
• Consecrate; Consecration
• Ephod (1)
• Ezekiel
• Gods
• Images

Commentaries on Judges 17

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• Darby Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary