While reading the Book of Judges, one will pull their hair out. The scripture’s outrageousness never disappoints.
Even one brief passage is sufficient to make one go bald. Micah’s Graven Image Tale is an overflowing fountain of meshugas. Micah and his mother are barely digestible in one sitting. Accordingly, Micah’s tales are the subject of two posts.
Micah’s first tale begins with a morally uplifting moment. He confesses to stealing his mother’s money. This was done, however, only after she placed a curse upon the thief. For his mother, her son’s confession was cause to celebrate; she blessed her son to the Lord on account of his courage.
With the money returned, she does what anybody upstanding Israelite would do; she instructs her son to consecrate the money for the Lord. Her dedication, however, is to commission a graven image of the Master to be made. This idol was eventually placed in Micah’s house. Judges 17:1-6.
From a modern reader’s perspective, we first appreciate the story as a mere family instance; a family with an immoral son. Yet, when a curse is upon him, the son suddenly fears the Lord. Also, we are confronted with a mother who is not only willing to call off a curse, but is willing to make a 180 degree turn to praise her ne’er do well son. On top of it, she exhibits a lack of awareness that she is violating the tenets of the Ten Commandments. Commissioning the production of a graven image to celebrated the Lord is quite maddening. In the end, we have a household which worshipped to a graven image. [note: Scholars have suggested that this story may have been commentary concerning centralized worship.]
As a modern reader, we also can attempt to get into the author’s mindset. Without commentary- i
e. my embellishments to the tale- we wonder whether they are telling the tale with the knowledge that their audience is fully aware of the Torah and the Commandments? Is the tale intended to draw outrage? Is it possoble that the author simply intend to tell a tale of how individuals behaved during that period?
If we are inclined to believe that this passage was intended to “shock”, we can ascertain that the author was versed in the law. The nature and extent of the law, however, we do not know. Finally, from the text alone, we are left to speculate as to whether such conduct was actually practiced during this particular period. This may be an instance in which archeologists can provide some insight.
Be well!!
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