Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Judges 18:3
When they [were] by the house of Micah, they knew the voice of the young man the Levite: and they turned in thither, and said unto him, Who brought thee hither? and what makest thou in this [place]? and what hast thou here?
3. When they were by the house of Micah ] repeats what has just been said in Jdg 18:2; this verse must belong to the narrative of the young man the Levite Jdg 17:7; Jdg 17:11 b, 12 a. Before he made his home with Micah, the young Levite lived, if not at Beth-lehem (his connexion with Beth-lehem Jdg 17:7 is questioned by Moore), then in the neighbourhood of the Danite villages; hence the spies were acquainted with him. Transl. They were by the house of M., when they recognized: cf. 1Sa 9:11, 1Ki 14:17 b in Hebr.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
It does not follow that they had known him before, and recognized his voice, though it may be so. But the Hebrew equally bears the sense that they heard the voice of the Levite; and, attracted by it, went into the chapel Jdg 18:18 where Jonathan was. They were probably just starting on their journey, but were still within the court or precincts of Micahs house. Micah had evidently not told them of his house of God, and his Levite. Their questions indicate surprise.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 3. They knew the voice of the young man] They knew, by his dialect or mode of pronunciation, that he was not an Ephraimite. We have already seen (Jdg 12:6) that the Ephraimites could not pronounce certain letters. See the note there.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
They knew the voice of the young man; either,
1. By his manner of pronunciation, which was differing and distinguishable in several tribes, as appears from Jdg 12:6; Mar 14:70. Or,
2. By the celebration of some part of his office, which they, then lodging in the neighbourhood, might be invited to. Or rather,
3. By some acquaintance which some of them formerly had with him which they might have upon many occasions.
What makest thou in this place; this being not thy usual place, nor proper for thy employment?
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
When they were by the house of Micah,…. At their inn, which might be next to it, or as they were passing by it:
they knew the voice of the young man the Levite; who had been in their country, and they had been in his company and conversation, and they knew the tone of his voice when they heard it; a particular brogue he might have. Abarbinel conjectures, that he was singing to Micah’s idol, or multiplying his prayers before him:
and they turned in thither; into Micah’s house, and into the apartment where the young man was;
and said unto him, who brought thee hither? they knew he was of Bethlehemjudah; they inquire therefore how he came there, who sent for him, and by what means he was brought to that place:
and what makest thou in this place? they knew he was a Levite, and that such an one had no business to minister but at the tabernacle, and therefore they inquire what was his employment here: and what hast thou here? to support himself with, what he had for his maintenance, or how he lived.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
When they were at Micah’s house and recognised the voice of the young Levite, i.e., heard his voice, and perceived form his dialect that he was not a native of these mountains, they turned aside there, sc., from the road into the house, near to which they rested, and asked him, “ Who brought thee hither, and what doest thou at this place? what hast thou to do here? ” When he told them his history (“thus and thus,” lit. according to this and that; cf. 2Sa 11:25; 1Ki 14:5), they said to him, “ Ask God, we pray thee, that we may learn whether our way will be prosperous. ” , used for asking the will of God, as in Jdg 1:1, except that here the inquiry was made through the medium of the imitation of the ephod and the worship of an image. And he said to them, sc., after making inquiry of the divine oracle, “ Go in peace; straight before Jehovah is your way, ” i.e., it is known and well-pleasing to Him (vid., Pro 5:21; Jer 17:16).
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
(3) By the house of Micah.Literally, withi.e., lodging in it, as in Gen. 27:43.
They knew the voice of the young man the Levite.Again the narrative is too much compressed to enable us to fill up its details with any certainty. The youthful Jonathan had lived in Bethlehem. The grandson of Moses could not be wholly unknown. and at this time there was close intercourse between the tribes of Dan and Judah. Possibly, therefore they were personally acquainted with him; nor do they ask (as Micah had done), Whence cometh thou? They recognised his voice, possibly by some dialectic peculiarity, but more probably by hearing him performing in the upper room his service before the pesel. Cassel renders voice by sound, and refers it to the bells on the priestly dress, as in Exo. 28:35. We notice that Micah had been reticent about the ephod, &c., perhaps out of suspicion as to their intentions.
Turned in thither.Not necessarily into the house, but into the roomthe oratory (aedicula), or Beth-Elohim (Jdg. 17:5). It seems to have been a kind of spurious Shiloh.
What makest thou in this place?The accent of extreme surprise in their queries shows that they knew Jonathan, and did not expect to find a Judan Levite in Ephraim.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
3. They knew the voice of the young man They overheard his conversation, and, looking upon him, they at once recognised him as an old acquaintance. Most commentators understand that the Danites knew by his dialect or mode of pronunciation that he was not an Ephraimite, but the words they knew the voice are not adapted to convey such an idea, and the questions, Who brought thee hither? etc., are the natural language of old acquaintances that have unexpectedly met. And if this Levite was a grandson or great grandson of Moses, the lawgiver of Israel, as appears from Jdg 18:30, it is not strange at all that he was personally known to these Danites.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘ When they were by the house of Micah, they knew the voice of the young man the Levite, and they turned aside there, and said to him, “Who brought you here? And what are you doing in this place? And what have you here?” ’
This may explain why they obtained hospitality from Micah. It was because by some chance they personally knew the Levite, and he had spoken up for them. And on hearing his voice on their arrival, they recognised it, and went to renew their acquaintance. Or it may have been because they recognised the dialect or priestly accent and were intrigued as to what he was doing there, (but ‘voice’ would not naturally signify that). They wanted to know how he had got there, what he was doing there, and whether he had an advantageous position. He then probably introduced them to Micah who generously offered them hospitality. As so often in this type of literature something is described (Jdg 18:2 b) and then the more detailed explanation follows. This was their way of writing.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Jdg 18:3 When they [were] by the house of Micah, they knew the voice of the young man the Levite: and they turned in thither, and said unto him, Who brought thee hither? and what makest thou in this [place]? and what hast thou here?
Ver. 3. When they were by the house of Micah, ] sc., In or near unto the Levite’s lodging, which was adjoining to the chapel of those idols made by Micah. Jdg 18:14
They knew the voice of the young man.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
the young man. Compare Jdg 17:7.
makest = doest.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
they knew: They knew by his dialect or mode of pronunciation, that he was not an Ephraimite – see the parallel texts. Jdg 12:6, Gen 27:22, Mat 26:73
and what hast: Isa 22:16
Reciprocal: Jdg 18:13 – mount Ephraim Jdg 18:14 – in these Isa 52:5 – what
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
18:3 When they [were] by the house of Micah, they knew the {c} voice of the young man the Levite: and they turned in thither, and said unto him, Who brought thee hither? and what makest thou in this [place]? and what hast thou here?
(c) They knew by his speech that he was a stranger there.