What Does Judges 18:4 Mean in the King James?
And he said unto them, Thus and thus dealeth Micah with me, and hath hired me, and I am his priest.
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
The Hebrew word for “hired” belongs to the same root family as “wages,” placing priesthood and employment in one line.
THE MEANING
The speaker describes his role through a transaction: Micah has dealt with him, hired him, and he is Micah’s priest. The word “priest” sits beside “hired me,” showing the sacred office within a paid relationship with a particular patron. The verse keeps both facts visible in the same sentence.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
The belief that a sacred title makes its holder independent of the person who pays him is undone here.
THE ROOT
וַיִּשְׂכְּרֵנִי
wayyiskereni
GROWS FROM
שכר
s-k-r
To hire or engage for wages.
The verb “hired me” comes from שכר, which also names wages or a worker hired for pay. The root keeps employment and compensation in one family, so the speaker’s priestly identity is explicitly attached to a paid arrangement.
ALSO GROWS
sakhir: A hired worker
שָׂכִיר
This branch makes the speaker’s employment status explicit: the priest is also someone engaged to serve for pay.
sakar: Wages or reward
שָׂכָר
This branch shows that the same root names the compensation tied to the act of hiring.
THE PATTERN
When sacred service is described in terms of gain, scripture makes the bond between office and material reward visible.
And Micah said unto him, Dwell with me, and be unto me a father and a priest, and I will give thee ten shekels of silver by the year, and a suit of apparel, and thy victuals. So the Levite went in.And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left in thine house shall come and crouch to him for a piece of silver and a morsel of bread, and shall say, Put me, I pray thee, into one of the priests’ offices, that I may eat a piece of bread.Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind;THE THREAD
And ye shall eat it in every place, ye and your households: for it is your reward for your service in the tabernacle of the congregation.The word translated “reward” belongs to the same שכר root family as “hath hired me” in Judges 18:4. The shared root links compensation with service, while the surrounding arrangement gives each verse its distinct meaning.
Read the SDV Bible.
Every verse has a Deep Dive in the app.
The iPhone Bible app with the Selah Decoded Version.
Does something in this reading look wrong? Tell us