¶ And there was a man of mount² Ephraim, whose name was Micah.

And he said unto his mother, The eleven hundred shekels of silver that were taken from thee, about³ which thou cursedst⁴, and spakest of also in mine ears, behold, the silver is with me; I took it.⁵ And his mother said, Blessed⁶ be thou of the LORD, my son.

And when he had restored the eleven hundred shekels of silver to his mother, his mother said, I had wholly⁷ dedicated the silver unto the LORD from my hand for my son, to make a graven image⁸ and a molten image: now therefore I will restore it unto thee.

Yet he restored the money unto his mother; and his mother took two hundred⁹ shekels of silver, and gave them to the founder, who made thereof a graven image and a molten image: and they were in the house of Micah.

And the man Micah had an house of gods¹⁰, and made an ephod¹¹, and teraphim¹², and consecrated¹³ one of his sons¹⁴, who became his priest.

In those days there was no king¹⁵ in Israel, but every man did that which was right¹⁶ in his own eyes.

¶ And there was a young man out of Bethlehemjudah¹⁷ of the family¹⁸ of Judah, who was a Levite, and he sojourned there.

And the man departed¹⁹ out of the city from Bethlehemjudah to sojourn where he could find a place: and he came to mount Ephraim to the house of Micah, as he journeyed²⁰.

And Micah said unto him, Whence comest thou? And he said unto him, I am a Levite of Bethlehemjudah, and I go to sojourn where I may find a place.

¶ And Micah said unto him, Dwell with me, and be unto me a father²¹ and a priest, and I will give²² thee ten shekels of silver by the year, and a suit of apparel²³, and thy victuals. So the Levite went in.

And the Levite was content to dwell with the man; and the young man was unto him as one of his sons.

And Micah consecrated²⁴ the Levite; and the young man became his priest²⁵, and was in the house of Micah.

²⁶Then said Micah, Now know I that the LORD will do me good, seeing I have a Levite to my priest.