Micah’s words are very revealing. He had built up his religious life—he had his shrine, his tabernacle, his house of God
(Judges 17:5), and he added to it an idol, ephod, household gods, even a Levite priest, and concluded, Now I know that the Lord will prosper me
(Judges 17:13). His life revolved around these things.1 But man-made gods are not very loyal to their makers. His gods could be snatched away by a passing band of thieves. And his priest could be enticed by a higher salary. All that Micah had trusted in was now gone. His gods and priest have failed him. His anguish over the loss of his gods is clear: What have I left?
This, in a nutshell, catches the emptiness, foolishness, topsy-turviness of idolatry. Micah, himself a thief, has been robbed and betrayed, and without his idols and money and priest, he feels naked, completely empty of anything meaningful. What have I left?
24 And he said, “You take my gods that I made and the priest, and go away, and what have I left? How then do you ask me, ‘What is the matter with you?’”