Juízes 18

Juízes 18

MacArthur comments that "This idolatrous priestly service continued until the captivity. This is most likely (1) the captivity of Israel by Assyria in 722 BC (2Ki 15:29; 2Ki 17:1-6) or possibly (2) the Philistine captivity of the Ark from Shiloh (see Jdg. 18:31) in 1 Sa4:11." (See context in The MacArthur Bible Commentary) F Duane Lindsey - "Many scholars refer this to either the Assyrian captivity of Israel in 722 BC. (2 Ki 17:6) or the captivity of the Galilean population under Tiglath-Pileser III in 733-732 b.c. (2 Ki15:29)." (See context in The Bible Knowledge Commentary) KJV Commentary: "Throughout its history, Dan was known as a center of idolatry and became a symbol of the apostate tribe of Israel. Thus, it is not named in Revelation 7 as one of the twelve tribes of the future kingdom. In the list that appears in the Apocalypse, the tribe of Levi appears in the inheritance in the place of Dan, and the tribe of Ephraim is referred to as the tribe of Joseph. Thus, in the irony of history, the tribe of Dan, which stole the Levite and the image from an Ephraimite, is replaced in the list of God’s people by those very tribes. It is not improper to suggest that the tribe of Dan is a type of Judas Iscariot, the apostate disciple (ED: INTERESTING BUT SOMEWHAT CONJECTURAL). It is certainly interesting to note that while we also normally speak of twelve apostles, in reality there were thirteen. Judas, the apostate disciple, corresponds to Dan, the apostate tribe, both of whom lose their true inheritance in the kingdom of God. (See context in King James Version Bible Commentary or borrow the online version KJV Bible Commentary) Keil and Delitzsch —After the rebuilding of Laish under the name of Dan, the Danites set up the pesel or image of Jehovah, which they had taken with them out of Micah’s house of God. “And Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of Moses, he and his sons were priests to the tribe of the Danites till the day of the captivity of the land.” As the Danites had taken the Levite whom Micah had engaged for his private worship with them to Dan, and had promised him the priesthood (Jdg 18:19, 27), Jonathan can hardly be any other than this Levite. He was a son of Gershom, the son of Moses (Ex. 2:22; 18:3; 1Chr 23:14, 15). (Judges 18 Commentary) Judges 18:31 So they set up for themselves Micah's graven image which he had made, all the time that the house of God was at Shiloh. all the time - Jdg 19:18 21:21 Jos 18:1 1Sa 1:3 4:4 Jer 7:12 Judges 18 Resources Related Passage: 1 Samuel 1:9 Then Hannah rose after eating and drinking in Shiloh. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat by the doorpost of the temple of the LORD. THE COUNTERFEIT IN DAN THE REAL IN SHILOH So they set up for themselves Micah's graven image (pesel) which he had made - It is worth noting who "gets the blame" for the idolatry - Micah! This was Micah's idol that worked like leaven in the tribe of Dan, corrupting the true worship of Jehovah. What a way to find a new home! The Danites kidnapped the hireling priest of the false religion and stole Micah's idols. Then they killed innocent people who were living in isolation which was a dangerous thing in that day. The climax came when they set up their own center of idolatrous worship, in open disobedience to the Word of God and God of the Word. The tribe of Dan were ironically living in a place where there was “no lack of anything that is on the earth” (Jdg 18:10); yet they lacked everything that God wanted to give them from heaven! Their false prosperity gave them false security that could not last. The account of Micah, Jonathan, and the Danites is more than a story from ancient history. It's a revelation of the wickedness of the human heart (Jer 17:9) and the hopelessness of human society without God. Our modern world has substituted idols for the true and living God and has devised its own humanistic religion, complete with "priests," experts who tell us that the Bible is wrong but their way is right. But neither their idols nor their priests have any power against the violence of the human heart. THOUGHT - This chapter is like a preview of coming attractions for America. The home, the ministry, and society are disintegrating before our eyes, and people do not want to hear the Word of Truth, even those in many churches! But whether they want it or not, the world must be told that Jesus Christ died for lost sinners, and that the power of Christ can transform hearts, homes, churches, and society if people will only trust Him. English preacher John Donne wrote "Christ beats His drum, but He does not press men. Christ is served with voluntaries." Are you available? All the time that the house of God was at Shiloh (Shiloh) - The house of God at this time would have been the Tabernacle of God and not a permanent building. This time phrase all the time emphasizes the persistence of the tribe of Dan's blatant idolatry when all the time there was a place where Jehovah was to be truly worshipped and to which they could have undertaken pilgrimage. The Danites were without excuse! So what if they had to travel many miles (circa 100 miles) to the house of God at Shiloh. If Yahweh is the Creator and Sustainer of everything (which He is), including the breath we breathe, is He not worthy of taking a journey to meet with Him in His house? That is rhetorical question of course! That the Danites set up their worship center of convenience says volumes about how far their hearts were from the true and living God. Warren