Readings:
Judges 18
Psalm 109
Luke 21:25-38

Judges 18

Some families from the tribe of Dan were looking for land to settle in, and they come to the house of this Micah from the previous chapter. There they run into the Levite who’s acting as a priest for Micah and his family.

They ask if their mission is blessed by God and he gives them the a-ok and tells them it is. Despite the fact that the tribes are supposed to settle in the land they are allotted and this man is acting as a quasi pagan priest in a private household, all things not kosher so to speak. He’s in no position to send them on a mission from God, to bless their mission, or to speak on God’s behalf in any way.

They go home and return in force, and when they return to go on their raid they also stop at Micah’s home and steal the idols and liturgical items he’s had made. They tell the Levite to come with them and he happily jumps ship to be their priest.

The chapter closes with the comment that these idols were worshipped by the tribe of Dan, and this Levite and his sons continue on as priests for the tribe during the whole time that the tabernacle was in Shilo.

So the sins of Micah had a ripple effect, that eventually culminated in an entire tribe worshiping idols with an illicit priesthood among them for at least a half dozen generations. Our actions effect others, even if we can’t see them, or if it’s unintentional. We have to be mindful of that fact and always remember that as Christians we are ambassadors of Christ, so we must conduct ourselves as such.

Luke 21:25-38

Jesus gives them a few more signs to look for, and then segues into a short parable about how fig trees can show you what season is near, so too can the signs all around them. (See Question; Israel & The Fig Tree)

Jesus tells them that this generation will not pass away before these things take place. This is a major road block for those who read this chapter through a purely futuristic lens, because that generation has long passes but according to them these events have not yet taken place.

But if you read it in the context of what these people who Jesus is speaking with would understand it to mean, and as the original audience to whom Luke is writing, you’ll see that Jesus coming on the clouds is a allusion to the judgment meted out on Jerusalem in AD70. That being less than 40 years after the events of Holy Week, where this conversation is currently happening.

Tomorrow’s Readings:
Judges 19
Psalm 110
Luke 22:1-46