1There was a man of the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Micah. (Jos 24:33; Jud 17:8; Jud 18:2)2And he said to his mother, “The 1,100 pieces of silver that were taken from you, about which you uttered a curse, and also spoke it in my ears, behold, the silver is with me; I took it.” And his mother said, “Blessed be my son by the Lord.” (Ru 3:10; 1Sa 15:13)3And he restored the 1,100 pieces of silver to his mother. And his mother said, “I dedicate the silver to the Lord from my hand for my son, to make a carved image and a metal image. Now therefore I will restore it to you.” (Ex 20:4; Le 19:4)4So when he restored the money to his mother, his mother took 200 pieces of silver and gave it to the silversmith, who made it into a carved image and a metal image. And it was in the house of Micah. (Isa 46:6)5And the man Micah had a shrine, and he made an ephod and household gods, and ordained[1] one of his sons, who became his priest. (Ge 31:19; Ex 28:6; Jud 8:27; Jud 17:12; Jud 18:14; Jud 18:17; 1Ki 13:33; Ho 3:4)6In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes. (De 12:8; Jud 18:1; Jud 19:1; Jud 21:25)7Now there was a young man of Bethlehem in Judah, of the family of Judah, who was a Levite, and he sojourned there. (Jud 19:1; Ru 1:1; Mic 5:2; Mt 2:1; Mt 2:5)8And the man departed from the town of Bethlehem in Judah to sojourn where he could find a place. And as he journeyed, he came to the hill country of Ephraim to the house of Micah. (Jos 24:33)9And Micah said to him, “Where do you come from?” And he said to him, “I am a Levite of Bethlehem in Judah, and I am going to sojourn where I may find a place.”10And Micah said to him, “Stay with me, and be to me a father and a priest, and I will give you ten pieces of silver a year and a suit of clothes and your living.” And the Levite went in. (Jud 18:19)11And the Levite was content to dwell with the man, and the young man became to him like one of his sons. (Ex 2:21)12And Micah ordained the Levite, and the young man became his priest, and was in the house of Micah. (Jud 17:5; Jud 18:30)13Then Micah said, “Now I know that the Lord will prosper me, because I have a Levite as priest.”
1در كوهستان افرايم مردی به نام ميخا زندگی میكرد.2روزی او به مادرش گفت: «آن هزار و صد مثقال نقرهای را كه فكر میكردی از تو دزديدهاند و من شنيدم كه دزدش را نفرين میكردی، نزد من است، من آن را برداشتهام.» مادرش گفت: «چون تو اعتراف كردی، خداوند تو را بركت خواهد داد.»3پس وی آن مقدار نقرهای را كه دزديده بود، به مادرش پس داد. مادرش گفت: «من اين نقره را وقف خداوند مینمايم و از آن يک بت نقرهای برای تو تهيه میكنم تا اين لعنت از تو دور شود.»4-5پس مادرش دويست مثقال از آن نقره را گرفته، پيش زرگر برد و دستور داد با آن بتی بسازد. بت ساخته شد و در خانهٔ ميخا گذاشته شد. ميخا در خانهاش علاوه بر بتهای متعدد، ايفود[1] نيز داشت. او يكی از پسرانش را به كاهنی بتخانهٔ خود تعيين نمود.6در آن زمان بنیاسرائيل پادشاهی نداشت و هر کس هر کاری را كه دلش میخواست انجام میداد.7-8يک روز جوانی از قبيلهٔ لاوی كه اهل بيتلحم يهودا بود شهر خود را ترک گفت تا جای مناسبی برای زندگی پيدا كند. در طول سفر به خانهٔ ميخا در كوهستان افرايم رسيد.9ميخا از او پرسيد: «اهل كجا هستی؟» او گفت: «من از قبيلهٔ لاوی و اهل بيتلحم يهودا هستم و میخواهم جای مناسبی برای سكونت پيدا كنم.»10-11ميخا گفت: «اگر بخواهی میتوانی پيش من بمانی و كاهن من باشی. ساليانه ده مثقال نقره، يک دست لباس و خوراک به تو خواهم داد.» آن لاوی جوان موافقت كرد و پيش او ماند. ميخا او را چون يكی از پسرانش میدانست12و وی را كاهن خود تعيين نمود و او در منزل ميخا سكونت گزيد.13ميخا گفت: «حال كه از قبيلهٔ لاوی كاهنی برای خود دارم، میدانم كه خداوند مرا بركت خواهد داد.»