Now there was a man of the hill country of Ephraim whose name was Micah.
Parallel translations
- WEB There was a man of the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Micah.
- KJV And there was a man of mount Ephraim, whose name was Micah.
- BSB Now a man named Micah from the hill country of Ephraim
- NKJV Now there was a man from the mountains of Ephraim, whose name was Micah.
- NLT There was a man named Micah, who lived in the hill country of Ephraim.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
A man named Micah from the hill country of Ephraim is introduced. He opens the book's closing section on Israel's spiritual decay.
Overview
This brief introduction begins the appendix to Judges (chs. 17-21), which illustrates the moral and religious chaos of the era rather than continuing the cycle of judges. Micah, an ordinary Ephraimite, becomes a case study in how far Israel's worship had drifted from God's law. The account exposes the root problem behind the period: a people doing as they pleased.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 4
- Judg 10:1After Abimelech, Tola the son of Puah, the son of Dodo, a man of Issachar, arose to save Israel. He lived in Shamir in the hill country of Ephraim.
- Josh 17:14–18The children of Joseph spoke to Joshua, saying, “Why have you given me just one lot and one part for an inheritance, since we are a numerous people, because Yahweh has blessed us so far?”
- Josh 15:9The border extended from the top of the mountain to the spring of the waters of Nephtoah, and went out to the cities of Mount Ephron; and the border extended to Baalah (also called Kiriath Jearim);
- Judg 18:2The children of Dan sent five men of their family from their whole number, men of valor, from Zorah, and from Eshtaol, to spy out the land, and to search it. They said to them, “Go, explore the land!” They came to the hill country of Ephraim, to the house of Micah, and lodged there.
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Israel's cycle of sin and rescue through flawed deliverers cries out for a Savior who never fails — the true and final Judge and Deliverer who saves his people not for a season but forever.
How Judges 17:1 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.