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Judges 17:9

Old Testament Historical ASV (1901)

What does Judges 17:9 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “And Micah said unto him, Whence comest thou? And he said unto him, I am a Levite of Beth-lehem-judah, and I go to sojourn where I may find [a place].” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

And Micah said unto him, Whence comest thou? And he said unto him, I am a Levite of Beth-lehem-judah, and I go to sojourn where I may find [a place].
Judges 17:9 — American Standard Version

Context — Judges 17

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
6In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.
7And there was a young man out of Beth-lehem-judah, of the family of Judah, who was a Levite; and he sojourned there.
8And the man departed out of the city, out of Beth-lehem-judah, to sojourn where he could find [a place], and he came to the hill-country of Ephraim to the house of Micah, as he journeyed.
9And Micah said unto him, Whence comest thou? And he said unto him, I am a Levite of Beth-lehem-judah, and I go to sojourn where I may find [a place].
10And Micah said unto him, Dwell with me, and be unto me a father and a priest, and I will give thee ten [pieces] of silver by the year, and a suit of apparel, and thy victuals. So the Levite went in.
11And the Levite was content to dwell with the man; and the young man was unto him as one of his sons.
12And Micah consecrated the Levite, and the young man became his priest, and was in the house of Micah.
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What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“And Micah said unto him, whence comest thou? etc.] For as he might ask for a meal, or for a night’s lodging, it was but natural to put such a question to him, as from whence he came, and what was his business in these parts? or whither he was going? and he said unto him, I am a Levite of Bethlehemjudah; the tribe he was of was Levi, and so a Levite by tribe and office, and the place he came last from, and where he had sojourned awhile, was Bethlehem, a city in the tribe of Judah: and I go to sojourn where I may find a place; the most convenient to abide in, where he could get a livelihood.”
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Related study paths

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Sources and verification