John Gill's Bible Commentary Ver. 4. Yet he restored the money unto his mother , etc.] Gave it to her a second tithe, not as disapproving her idolatrous intention, as the sequel shows, but being desirous to be entirely free of it, and not have his mind disturbed with it as it had been, and that she might do with it as she thought fit: and his mother took two hundred shekels of silver, and gave them to the founder, who made thereof a graven image, and a molten image ; the other nine hundred pieces she kept to herself, repenting of her vow, and being unwilling to part with so much money for such an use; or else they were laid out in an ephod, and teraphim, and what else were thought necessary for the idolatrous worship they were about to set up; though Kimchi is of opinion, that the two hundred shekels were what she gave the founder for making the images, and of the nine hundred the images were made; and indeed the images must be very small ones, if made out of two hundred shekels of silver only; some have thought there was but one image, called both molten and graven; because after the silver was melted, and cast into a mould, it was fashioned with a graving tool, as the golden calf was by Aaron; but they are manifestly distinguished and represented as two, ( Judges 18:17,18) and they were in the house of Micah; in an apartment in his house, peculiar for them, as appears by the next verse; here they were put and continued.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 1-6 - What is related in this, and the rest of the chapters to the end of this book, was done soon after the death of Joshua: see chap. Ju 20:28. That it might appear how happy the nation was under the Judges here is showed how unhappy they were when there was no Judge. The love of money made Micah so undutiful to his mother as to rob her, and mad her so unkind to her son, as to curse him. Outward losses drive goo people to their prayers, but bad people to their curses. This woman' silver was her god, before it was made into a graven or a molten image Micah and his mother agreed to turn their money into a god, and set u idol worship in their family. See the cause of this corruption. Ever man did that which was right in his own eyes, and then they soon di that which was evil in the sight of the Lord.
Original Hebrew וישׁב7725 את853 הכסף3701 לאמו517 ותקח3947 אמו517 מאתים3967 כסף3701 ותתנהו5414 לצורף6884 ויעשׂהו6213 פסל6459 ומסכה4541 ויהי1961 בבית1004 מיכיהו׃4319
