Judges

Judges 18: Made gods cannot save

Begin in prayer

Before we hear how the living God cannot be replaced by idols people make, let us come to Him together. Ask Him to expose our false hopes and to help us see Christ, who brings every kind of sinner back to God.

For this is even from Israel! The workman made it, and it is no God; indeed, the calf of Samaria shall be broken in pieces.

Hosea 8:6

Father in heaven, please open our eyes as we read Your Word. Please show us Jesus, who brings sinners to You. Turn our hearts from the things we make and trust in Your place. Make us more like Jesus. And please bless our family as we worship You together. In Jesus' name, Amen.

See where we're going

Dan's scouts seek land and ask Micah's Levite for counsel before finding the quiet, unsuspecting people of Laish. Six hundred armed Danites follow, take Micah's images and invite the glad priest to go with them. Micah protests that they have taken his gods and priest, but their threats and strength force him to return home. They kill Laish's people, burn and rebuild the city, and name it Dan. They set up the engraved image, and Jonathan, Moses' descendant, and his sons serve as priests until the captivity of the land. The image remains throughout the time God's house is at Shiloh.

As you read Judges 18, look for the answers:

Reflect together

Key truth

The living God cannot be replaced by idols that people make and steal.

The Danites seek land while Israel has no king, and their scouts stop at Micah's house. Back in Judges 1, the Amorites forced Dan into the hill country, and the tribe still has no land of its own (verse 1). They ask his priest for God's counsel, then find Laish quiet, secure and isolated from help. The six hundred armed men who follow take Micah's images and invite his priest to serve a whole tribe. He gladly goes with them, leaving Micah to protest that his gods and priest have been taken. The gods he made cannot protect themselves or the man who depends on them. Dan's men threaten him, destroy unsuspecting Laish and set up the stolen image in their new city. Jonathan, a descendant of Moses, and his sons serve this worship while God's house remains at Shiloh.

How does Judges 18 show us that the living God cannot be replaced by idols that people make and steal?

The Danites seek guidance at Micah's shrine.

Five scouts recognize the Levite's voice and ask him to seek God's counsel. He tells them to go in peace, and they find Laish quiet and secure (verses 3 to 7). Its distance from Sidon and lack of dealings with others leave it without a deliverer.

The idols fail the man who made them.

Dan's armed men take Micah's images, and his priest accepts their invitation to serve the tribe. Micah follows and complains that they have taken the gods he made (verses 17 to 24). Their threats and greater strength drive him home without the objects he trusted.

Dan spreads false worship while God's house stands at Shiloh.

The Danites kill the unsuspecting people of Laish, burn the city and rebuild it as Dan. They install the engraved image and a family of priests descended from Jonathan (verses 27 to 30). The image remains while God's house is in Shiloh, making their chosen worship a continuing departure from Him.

Memorise

You have taken away my gods which I made, and the priest, and have gone away! What more do I have?

Judges 18:24

Looking to Jesus in my life

Ask yourself in your heart, what hope would leave me helpless if someone took it away?

Micah cries, “You have taken away my gods which I made.” He has lost the objects on which his hopes depend. The living God is never an object people can manufacture, steal or carry away, and His people need Him instead of these false gods.

Jesus Christ came to bring idol worshipers and every kind of sinner back to God. At the cross He carried His people's guilt and endured God's judgment for them. He has paid their whole debt, so no further payment can be required. The grave could not keep Him, and He rose in victory to give life to those who trust Him.

Turn from your sins and trust Jesus Christ. Micah's gods could not even keep themselves from being stolen, but Jesus keeps everyone who trusts Him. Christ promises forgiveness to everyone who comes to Him. Put your hope in the living Savior and learn to serve the God who made you.

Parent's note

Tell your children that religious objects cannot save them. Please do not tell them they are saved just because they grew up in a Christian home. Explain how Dan destroys Laish and spreads Micah's idolatry in the new city. Call each child to turn from sin and trust Jesus, and pray that God would give them a new heart.

Pray together

Now please close your time together in prayer. Thank God for being the living God and giving a Savior who cannot be taken away, and bring the heart question to Him. Every child can pray, so let each one say a short prayer if they want to.

The rest of mankind, who were not killed with these plagues, didn’t repent of the works of their hands, that they wouldn’t worship demons, and the idols of gold, and of silver, and of brass, and of stone, and of wood; which can’t see, hear, or walk.

Revelation 9:20

Living God, please expose the false hopes we cling to. Bring us to trust Jesus and receive His forgiveness. Teach us to value You above the things we own and to worship You as Your Word commands. Amen.