Joel M Bradshaw

1In those days there was no king in Israel. And in those days the tribe of the people of Dan was seeking for itself an inheritance to dwell in, for until then no inheritance among the tribes of Israel had fallen to them. 2So the people of Dan sent five able men from the whole number of their tribe, from Zorah and from Eshtaol, to spy out the land and to explore it. And they said to them, “Go and explore the land.” And they came to the hill country of Ephraim, to the house of Micah, and lodged there. 3When they were by the house of Micah, they recognized the voice of the young Levite. And they turned aside and said to him, “Who brought you here? What are you doing in this place? What is your business here?” 4And he said to them, “This is how Micah dealt with me: he has hired me, and I have become his priest.” 5And they said to him, “Inquire of God, please, that we may know whether the journey on which we are setting out will succeed.” 6And the priest said to them, “Go in peace. The journey on which you go is under the eye of the LORD.”–Judges 18

The book of Judges described a time when people were their own moral standard. We are therefore not surprised when characters acted as if God existed for them and their decisions.

Take the tribe of Dan. Easily the greatest failure from the conquest of Canaan led by Joshua.

The Amorites pressed the people of Dan back into the hill country, for they did not allow them to come down to the plain. (Judges 1:34)

So we have Dan searching for a land other than what they were originally allotted. And in their wanderings they hear a voice out of place. Something about the Levite’s accent must have given him away. Come to find out that like Dan, he had been wandering from the place he was originally given. And he was a Levite! One of God’s servants who might be able to put in a good word for them and their quest.

The news got even better: this Levite had been made a priest. Now Dan could get the affirmation they craved. So they asked him for a blessing and the Levite gave it. We are not surprised that the Danites would then hire him away from Micah and steal the household idols. They found a priest who would tell them what they wanted to hear.

There existed at the time a legitimate house of worship at the town of Shiloh. The tribe of Dan could have inquired of God there. Given what we know, the priests of God at Shiloh most likely would have given them a negative answer. For Dan’s quest was already out of bounds and it didn’t trust God. So Dan was in search of what they wanted to hear.

What the selfish heart wants to hear is that no matter what we do, God not only loves us but approves of us. We make our plans and then expect God to rubber-stamp them. So we search for Scriptures that reassure us no matter their original context. We long for preachers that tickle our ears with what we want to hear. We are not satisfied with the Bible or with what God expects of us.

My friends, may the people of Dan and the story of this Levite be a warning for us all against these selfish pursuits.–JMB