When Does Evil Triumph?
What happens when idolatry is present among God’s people? Evil Triumphs. People suffer, society suffers, and the weak and disadvantaged suffer. The book of Judges describes what happens when the sin of idolatry becomes tolerable, and the reoccurring hurt that corresponds to the normalization of idolatry. For this series of articles, we will begin with chapter 17.
Judges 17:1-6
We are introduced to a man named Micah whose actions would have a resounding effect on the people of not only his household, but also another tribe of Israel. It appears that Micah might have been a thief, or possibly he was an overbearing son; the text is ambiguous, but what happens next is the beginning of something awful. He restored the silver to his mother and she did something awkward, she proposed that she would dedicate the silver to Jehovah.
To dedicate something to the Lord is never a bad thing in itself. However, if we wish to dedicate something to our Lord, we must be sure that we are not violating any command God has given. Some have dedicated songs that teach false doctrines. Some have dedicated the playing of an instrument of music in worship which is not authorized in the New Testament. Some have dedicated acts of service to the God of Heaven, and they do not even know Him. Micah’s mother violated the word of God. “Thou shalt not make unto thee a graven image, nor any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth” (Ex 20:4).
One cannot force their desire onto God. That idea is the absolute opposite of what is written in the Psalms. “Delight thyself also in Jehovah; And he will give thee the desires of thy heart” (Psa 37:4). God’s giving is contingent on our delight in Jehovah. If we have our priorities right, we will know not only what God has commanded but what is forbidden. This comes from study of God’s commands, the examples in the Bible regarding context, and/or inferring how we live out God’s commands or approved examples. There were several people who could have stopped the making of the graven image and the molten image. If Micah’s mother would have remembered the Word, she would have known her intentions were forbidden. If Micah would have been of better character, he might of reasoned with his mother not to do the evil thing. If the founder would have refused to make the idol that was requested. As the old adage goes, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”
However, it was not as if Micah was inactive, its just the fact that he was wicked. Micah went further than even his mother who had made the graven image and molten image. The Bible tells us that this Micah had a house of Gods. It appears that he took these idols and simply added them to his collection of idols. Perhaps it was the piece that he had been waiting on as he proceeded to make an ephod ( a priestly garment). He additionally made teraphim (household gods). So, he not only continued to violate the command of having idols (see Exodus 20:3-5), he progressed further to the sin of creating his own priesthood.
Judges 17:7-13
We would be hopeful when a young Levite made his way from Bethlehem of Judah that he might put an end to the idol worship and false priests of Micah. Perhaps this Levite would utilize his dedication to persuade Micah to abandon his will worship and turn back to the true God of Israel. Yet, he did not. Micah made him an offer he could not refuse even though he should have. When Micah said come live here, I will feed you, clothe you, and pay you, the Levite could have rebuked his erring brother. When Micah made the absurd offer to this Levite to be a priest to his house, the Levite could have said no, but he did not. Why do good men fail to act? Perhaps it is because they are made an offer to make them known, wealthy, and powerful. Others are too comfortable with their present circumstances to ever push back against sin.
The Levite agreed and Micah, not Jehovah, consecrated him a priest for his house. The scripture says that the Levite was content to dwell with the man. The Levite was content to live in sin. Micah found that because the Levite agreed to live with him, Jehovah would do good to him since he now had a Levite to be his priest. This was false. If you start with a faulty foundation, you will have a building destined to fall.
We must remember what Jesus taught considering a weak foundation.
Every one therefore that heareth these words of mine, and doeth them, shall be likened unto a wise man, who built his house upon the rock: and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon the rock. And every one that heareth these words of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, who built his house upon the sand: and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and smote upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall thereof.
(Matt 7:24-27)
Micah’s mother had a poor foundation when she had the idols made. Micah himself had a poor foundation when he took those idols and placed them among his many others in his house. He built a false religion by appointing his sons as priests and later hired a rogue Levite to serve a pagan place of worship built on a poor foundation. When men fail to stand up and point out a problem in matters of faith, more people will suffer. We cannot allow evil to continue to go unchecked, especially in the household of faith. Let's turn back to Jehovah and correct error in the form of idols, false priests, and all other matters of error.
Grace and peace,
R.D. Beavers
