Judges 18:24

Jdg 18:24 And he said, Ye have taken away my gods which I made, and the priest, and ye are gone away: and what have I more? and what [is] this [that] ye say unto me, What aileth thee?

Ver. 24. My gods which I made.] Goodly gods that were made by man, and could not save themselves from being stolen! See Isa 44:9. So the breaden god among the Papists: together with their images, those carpenters’ chips, as Mrs. Cotismore called them. {a}

And what have I more?] The Vulgate hath it, All that I have: that is, all that I make any account of. He reckoned all the rest of his goods as nothing, having lost his gods; and came forth to fight for them, velut pro aris et focis. This superstitious zealot shall rise up in judgment against our lukewarm Laodiceans, our neuter passive professors, that care not what becomes of true religion, - modo ferveat olla, so the pot boil. God hath many such cold friends now-a-days. {1Ki 18:21}

{a} Act. and Mon., 763.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Jdg 18:24. My gods which I made — Or, rather, my god, as the Hebrew word generally signifies, meaning the image, which he considered as a symbol of God’s presence with him; for he could not be so stupid as to think it to be the great Jehovah, who made heaven and earth, and whom he professed to worship, but merely as a medium through which he offered up his worship to him, as many of the heathen did. What have I more? — I value nothing I have in comparison of what you have taken away. Which zeal for idolatrous trash may shame multitudes that call themselves Christians, and yet value their worldly conveniences more than all the concerns of their own salvation. Is Micah thus fond of his false gods? And how ought we to be affected toward the true God? Let us reckon our communion with God our greatest gain; and the loss of God the sorest loss. Wo unto us, if He depart. For what have we more?

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

This declareth what opinion the idolaters have of their idols.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

Verse 24. Ye have taken away my gods] As Micah was a worshipper of the true God, as we have seen, he cannot mean any kind of idols by the word אלהי elohai here used. He undoubtedly means those representations of Divine things, and symbols of the Divine presence such as the teraphim, ephod, c. for they are all evidently included under the word elohai, which we translate my gods.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(24) My gods which I made.—He does not scruple to call the pesel and teraphim “gods” (his Elohim), any more than the idolater Laban had done (Gen_30:31). The expression seems to be intended to show scorn for Micah; and perhaps it is from missing this element that the LXX. soften it down into “my graven image,” and the Chaldee to “my fear.” “My gods which I made” would be a very ordinary expression for the Greeks, who called a sculptor a “god-maker” (theopoios), but was startling on the lips of an Israelite. Micah pathetically asks “What have I more?” but we may well hope that his present loss was his ultimate gain, and that he found the true God in place of the lost gods which he had made.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

24. my gods which I made] Cf. Gen_31:30 ff. E, a passage which shews several points of resemblance to the present. For my gods, Vulgate deos meos, we might render my God, offensive though the idea is to us; Micah was a worshipper of Jehovah, see on Jdg_17:5. The LXX paraphrases ‘my graven image.’

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And he said, ye have taken away my gods that I made,.... Meaning his graven and molten images, which he had made, or caused to be made, out of the silver his mother gave him, or however had paid for the making of; and though this might be an argument proving his right unto them, it was a very poor one in favour of their deity; and it is astonishing he should call them gods he knew the making of, and who could not save themselves from being stolen and carried off:

and the priest and ye are gone away; they had not only took away his gods, but the priest that sacrificed for him unto them, and assisted him in acts of devotion to them, or to God by them, and were gone off with both:

and what have I more? signifying, that all he had in the world, wife, children, and substance, were all nothing in comparison of these; there was nothing he so much valued as he did these, nor could he take any pleasure or comfort in anything, being deprived of them, so much was his heart set on them:

and what is this that ye say unto me, what aileth thee? what a question is this you ask, as if the injury done me was none at all, and that I had no reason to complain; that it was a trifling insignificant thing, worthy of no regard, when it was a matter of the greater moment and importance to him in life.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

So far was he besotted with superstition and idolatry, that he esteemed those gods which were man’s work. But he could not be so stupid as to think these were indeed the great Jehovah that made heaven and earth; but only a lower sort of gods, by whom, as mediators, he offered up his worship unto the true God, as it is manifest divers of the heathens did.

What have I more? I value nothing I have in comparison of what you have taken away. Which zeal for idolatrous trash may shame multitudes that call themselves Christians, and yet apparently value their worldly conveniences more than all the concerns even of the true religion, and of their own salvation.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

24. My gods — This language of Micah shows that, however earnest and deep was his desire to serve and please Jehovah, his sanctuary and images had already carried him far towards idolatry.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

My gods, or, as some render it, my god. But the plural is probably right, as Micah was thinking of the molten and graven images, and the teraphim, and called them gods, without perhaps meaning to imply that there was any God but Jehovah.

The lost gods.

Micah"s distress at the loss of his gods and priest may be regarded on two sides on the side of superstition and on that of genuine devotion.

I THE SUPERSTITIOUS SIDE OF MICAH"S DISTRESS.

1. The god that can be stolen must be no true God. Micah should have seen the folly of his idolatry in the catastrophe which had befallen him. If the idols could not protect their own shrine, what could they do for their owner"s home?

2. The man whose character is corrupt is worthless as a priest. Yet after the Levite had behaved in the vilest way Micah still felt the loss of him bitterly. This distress came from his superstitious belief in the efficacy of the residence of an official priest in his house, no matter what was the baseness of the man"s character or the emptiness of his services.

3. A religion which depends on any material things or human offices for its efficacy is foreign to the character of the spiritual worship of the true God. It was a mistake for Micah to suppose that he would lose the presence of God by losing the images which he had made, or the blessing of God by losing his priest. Nothing that is done to a man"s outside life can affect his religious blessings. God dwells in the shrine of the heart. No persecution can rob us of his presence. The Waldenses in their mountain cave had lost every earthly comfort, but they had not lost God. God"s blessings are not dependent on external ordinances, though these are the usual channels through which they flow. If we have no visible temple, altar, priest, or service, God can still bless us fully.

II THE NATURAL SIDE OF MICAH"S DISTRESS. There is much in it which speaks well for Micah. Micah is a religious man. To him the loss of what he believes to be the source of religious blessings is a great trouble. Are not they who can lose the real presence of God in their hearts without any feeling of compunction far more astray than this man with all his idolatry and superstition? God is the light and life of the soul. How strange then that any should live without him and yet not know that anything "aileth" them! But whatever a man makes into a god for himself will interest him deeply. If he makes a god of his money, his art, his child, the loss of his god will plunge him into the darkness of despair.

1. Since we are thus deeply affected by the object of our supreme devotion, let us see that this is no earthly thing which can be stolen or destroyed, but the true, eternal God who will never leave us.

2. God sometimes takes from us the earthly treasures of which we have made gods that we may see the mistake of our idolatry, and so learn to lift up our hearts to the ever-abiding presence. A.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

I made - So far was he besotted with superstition and idolatry, that he esteemed those gods, which were man's work. But he could not be so stupid, as to think these were indeed the great Jehovah that made heaven and earth; but only a lower sort of gods, by whom, as mediators, he offered up his worship to the true God, as divers of the Heathen did. What have I - I value nothing I have in comparison of what you have taken away. Which zeal for idolatrous trash may shame multitudes that call themselves Christians, and yet value their worldly conveniences more than all the concerns of their own salvation. Is Micah thus fond of his false gods? And how ought we to be affected toward the true God? Let us reckon our communion with God our greatest gain; and the loss of God the sorest loss. Wo unto us, if He depart! For what have we more.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

And when he replied, "Ye have taken away my gods which I made, and the priest, and have departed; what is there still to me (what have I left)? and how can ye say to me, What is to thee?" they ordered him to be silent, lest he should forfeit his life: "Let not thy voice be heard among us, lest men of savage disposition (נפשׁ מרי as in Sa2 17:8) should fall upon thee (vid., Jdg 15:12; Jdg 8:21, etc.), and thou shouldst not save thy life and that of thy household," i.e., shouldst bring death upon thyself and thy family. ואספתּה is also dependent upon פּן.

Keil & Delitzsch — Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1861–1891) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API. (Old Testament only.)

the gods that I made

Micah did not make his gods, rather the craftsman made them. AT: "the gods which I had made for me" or "the gods which a craftsman made for me" (See: Metonymy)

What else do I have left?

Micah asks this question to emphasize that he no longer has the things that are important to him. AT: "I have nothing left." or "You have taken everything that is important to me." (See: Rhetorical Question)

How can you ask me, 'What is bothering you?'

Micah asks this question to emphasize that the Danites definitely know what is bothering him. AT: "You know that I am greatly distressed!'" or "You know how much I am bothered by what you have done to me!'" (See: Rhetorical Question)

let us hear you say anything

The phrase "us hear you say" refers to the Danites hearing Micah speaking about what had happened, but it also includes if they are told by others that Micah had spoken about what had happened. AT: "let us find out that you have said anything" or "say anything about this" (See: Metonymy)

hear you say anything

The word "anything" refers to any information about the Danites coming to Micah's house and stealing his idols. This can be stated clearly. AT: "hear you say anything about this matter" or "hear you say anything about what has happened" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

you and your family will be killed

This can be stated in active form. AT: "kill you and your family" (See: Active or Passive)

went their way

This means that they continued on their journey. AT: "continued on their journey" or "continued travelling" (See: Idiom)

they were too strong for him

This refers to the Danites being too strong for Micah and his men to fight against. AT: "they were too strong for him and his men to fight" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

translationWords

false god

priest

people group

Dan

anger

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

What else do I have. What else remains for me?

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.