The five men who had gone to scout out the land of Laish told their brothers, ‘Did you know that there are an ephod, household gods, and a carved image and a silver idol in these houses? Now think about what you should do.’
Gideon made an ephod from all this and put it in Ophrah, his home town. Then all Israel prostituted themselves by worshipping it there, and it became a snare to Gideon and his household.
Tie the sashes on Aaron and his sons and fasten headbands on them. The priesthood is to be theirs by a permanent statute. This is the way you will ordain Aaron and his sons.
‘You are to make an embroidered breastpiece for making decisions. Make it with the same workmanship as the ephod; make it of gold, of blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and of finely spun linen.
Israel has forgotten his Maker and built palaces; Judah has also multiplied fortified cities. I will send fire on their cities, and it will consume their citadels.
These are the garments that they must make: a breastpiece, an ephod, a robe, a specially woven tunic, a turban, and a sash. They are to make holy garments for your brother Aaron and his sons so that they may serve me as priests.
You are to appoint Aaron and his sons to carry out their priestly responsibilities, but any unauthorised person who comes near the sanctuary is to be put to death.’
So he returned the silver to his mother, and she took 2.5 kilograms of silver and gave it to a silversmith. He made it into a carved image and a silver idol, and it was in Micah’s house.
The Danites set up the carved image for themselves. Jonathan son of Gershom, son of Moses, and his sons were priests for the Danite tribe until the time of the exile from the land.
The woodworker stretches out a measuring line, he outlines it with a stylus; he shapes it with chisels and outlines it with a compass. He makes it according to a human form, like a beautiful person, to dwell in a temple.
For the king of Babylon stands at the split in the road, at the fork of the two roads, to practise divination: he shakes the arrows, consults the idols, and observes the liver.
Jeroboam made a festival in the eighth month on the fifteenth day of the month, like the festival in Judah. He offered sacrifices on the altar; he made this offering in Bethel to sacrifice to the calves he had made. He also stationed the priests in Bethel for the high places he had made.
‘This is what the Lord God says: Remove the turban, and take off the crown. Things will not remain as they are; exalt the lowly and bring down the exalted.