Worksheet - Judges 17 - 19

Apply 1 (mini lesson) From reading Judges 17 - 19 Study Questions:  1.  Samson died after being the judge over Israel for 20 years.  The remaining chapters of Judges show a very dark time in the history of Israel for their idolatry had led them so far from God that they were not even crying out for deliverance any longer, but settling in with the idolatry and heathen lifestyles of all around them.  A key repeated phrase for the remaining chapters of the book of Judges is first stated in Judges 17:6 - What does it say? According to Proverbs 14:12, what happens when we choose a path that looks right in our own eyes?  2.  We are told of a man named Micah who lived in the hill country of Ephraim.  He had stolen 1100 pieces of silver from his mother who cursed about it in front of him and then he confessed that he had stolen it. She blessed her son in the name of the Lord and yet dedicated some of the money to have a graven image and a molten image made by a silversmith for their idol worship. Micah also had a shrine (house) built to house the gods and made an ephod (apron) like the priests of Israel had worn and consecrated one of his sons to become his priest.    There are so many things wrong with this picture !!  We see stealing...idolatry...lying...cursing...mixed in with limited knowledge of the Lord and His ways.  What had God instructed Israel about in Leviticus 26:1 concerning these kind of things?  3.  A young man who was from the family of Judah, who was a Levite, was traveling through the land of Ephraim, looking for a place to stay and he came to the house of Micah.  Micah "hired" him to live there with them to be a father to him and a priest to him.  What would he "pay" him that was obviously from his mother's money jar?  Judges 17:10 - 4.  Once again, with limited knowledge of God's words and ways, Micah feels that just because he will have a "Levite" serving as priest now, his way will be "prosperous" (v.13).. but in reality, this is not the tabernacle of God where the priest was to perform his services ... and this was not a priest of the sons of Aaron, but we learn of his name and origin later and know that he would not have been from the house of priests...and these idols were forbidden by God.  What do the following verses tell us happen when we do not have the full and correct knowledge of God? Isaiah 5:13 - Hosea 4:6 - It's important that we "know" God through His own revelation to us through His prophets and apostles and that we "worship" Him according to His instructions, not our own.  It "matters" that we obey Him and not just use His Name as some formula and make Him into "our own image".  What will happen to those who never really know God, but claim to know Him, and yet still live a life of "lawlessness", according to Jesus? Matthew 7:21-23 - What kind of worshipers does God seek to have and truly bless? John 4:19-24 - It is easy to try and make God in "our own image" instead of submitting to Him as ones who are made in "His" image.  Amen? 5.  The tribe of the Danites were seeking an inheritance for themselves and had sent out five men from Zorah & Eshtaol, to spy out the land and search for a place.  They came to the hill country of Ephraim and to the house of Micah to lodge there.  They recognized the voice of the young man, the Levite, and asked him why he was there and what he was doing.  His words were:  "Micah hired me and I have become his priest."  Rather than realizing what was so wrong with this picture, the Danites just thought they also could get a word from the Lord for the desires they hoped to fulfill, so they asked him to inquire of God for them to know if the way they were going would be prosperous.  The man told them they had God's approval.  Should they trust his word to them?  Would you?  Why should they or why should you?  Can there be false priests, false prophets, or false teachers?  Yes, they are called "hirelings" because they do it for pay and not in obedience to God and His commandments. Have you ever heard a "presumptious prophet or prophecy" given as though the Lord Himself is speaking directly through a person to you?  I think those people should be very careful to act as though they are speaking directly from the Lord.  I am not saying they are "not", but I "am" saying that we should rely wholly on things spoken from the Bible alone to guide our lives by.    For me, if I sense the Lord wants me to share something with another, I don't "presume" that I have permission to say "Thus saith the Lord" to them ... instead, I go find the verse in the Bible that supports my thoughts and then I give them the actual "Word of God" and I don't have to worry that I have taken the Lord's Name presumptiously on my lips to them.  The events of their life can play out and God can lead them by His written word.  Amen? Look this verse up and give your thoughts about these things: Deuteronomy 18:20 - 22 - Even in our day, what do so many people want when they attend a church service or they are in the presence of hearing God's Word read or spoken of? 2 Timothy 4:1-4 - 6.  It is important to note that Dan 'did' get an inheritance from Joshua.  It's not that they didn't have an inheritance given them when the others got theirs, but rather that they did not hold on to their inheritance by faith and obedience, but compromised the Word of God and did not drive the enemy of the land out.  Later in time, they were driven out of their own land and became the servants of the Amorites.   Read about their God-given territory and why they were not living on it and enjoying the blessings of God from the verses below: Joshua 19:47-48 - Judges 1:34-36 - 7.  The five men departed Micah's home and came to Laish.  What did they find out about this place?  Judges 18:7-10 - 8.  The family of the Danites with 600 men armed with weapons of war set out to settle in the new area they had found and desired to have.  They passed through the hill country of Ephraim on their way and came by Micah's house.  What did they steal from his home and who did they take with them?  Judges 18:14-26 - 9.  They came upon the people of the city of Laish and overtook it, destroying it with fire.  They rebuilt the city, named it Dan, and lived there.  The people of Laish had lived quiet and secure lives and had no one to defend them because they thought they were in a safe place where they dwelt.  It is awful that Dan took their land and they did nothing to deserve that they take it from them in that way.  It was not part of the inheritance that God gave them through Joshua when they all entered the Promised Land.  What did the sons of Dan set up for themselves there and how long did they worship these idols?  Judges 18:30 - 10.  Where was the house of God at this time where they could go and have the ordained worship to God that He had commanded they do?  Judges 18:31 - 11.  In those same dark days, while there was no king in Israel, and every man did what was right in their 'own' eyes, we are told of a Levite and his concubine.  Explain from a Bible dictionary what a concubine was: 12.  This concubine was unfaithful to her legal husband and played the harlot, being gone from him for four months.  He arose to talk kindly to her and get her back.  His father-in-law was glad to see him and tried to get him to stay with him for as long as possible.  Finally, this Levite took his concubine and departed on a journey.  He did not want to stay in Jerusalem which was occupied by the Jebusites at the time, but thought it would be more hospitable to go to as far as Gilbeah where the sons of Israel were; the sons of Benjamin.  Surely they would be more hospitable to them.  However, they could not find a home that was willing to take them in.  They were about to stay in the city square on the street for the night when an old man came from working his field and noticed them.  He asked who they were and where they were from.  He told them he would take care of all of their needs if they would come stay at his house, but not to spend the night in the open square of the town.  What did the worthless fellows of this city want from the visiting man that had come to stay with the old man?  Judges 19:22 - This is so similiar to what happened in Sodom & Gomorrah with Lot.  The response to give a virgin daughter instead of the man is the same response that Lot gave if you know that account from Genesis 19:1-11 ... The old man offered these worthless fellows his virgin daughter and the Levite's concubine.  They would not listen to him, but he forced the man's concubine out to them and they abused her all night long and let her go at the approach of dawn.  She fell down at the doorway of the man's house where her master (husband) was.  When he came out ready to travel again, he found that she was dead.  He put her on the donkey and took her to his home. 13.  When he arrived home, what did he do to alert the other tribes in Israel of what had been done in the city of Gibeah among the sons of Benjamin? What did he want this to cause them all to do?  Judges 19:29-30 -    Apply 1:  What must Christians do to protect themselves and their families from the ungodly influence of today's "humanism" and "new age" idolatry and philosophies?   Read & comment on: Judges 17:6 - Judges 18:1 - Judges 18:30-31 - Judges 19:1 - Judges 21:25 - Compare and comment on: Proverbs 14:12 - Deuteronomy 4:15-20, 23-24 - Colossians 2:6-10 - Colossians 2:18-19 - 2 Timothy 2:15 - Romans 12:1,2 -   How can you apply this to your life? ...    Your summary of all of today's lesson:      Your prayer for today:       The purpose of the Apply 1 mini lesson is ..... to help you focus on at least "one" thing that you can apply to your life from the chapters read today.