Judges 18:1-5: a reflection

1In those days there was no king in Israel. In those days the tribe of the Danites sought an inheritance to dwell in; for to that day, their inheritance had not fallen to them among the tribes of Israel. 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. 3When they were by the house of Micah, they knew the voice of the young man the Levite; so they went over there and said to him, “Who brought you here? What do you do in this place? What do you have here?” 4He said to them, “Thus and thus has Micah dealt with me, and he has hired me, and I have become his priest.” 5They said to him, “Please ask counsel of God, that we may know whether our way which we go shall be prosperous.”

As the Danites go looking for land to settle, they come upon a young Levite serving as a household priest, and they ask him to inquire of God for them. Please ask counsel of God, they say, that we may know whether our way which we go shall be prosperous. But their request comes after they have already set their course; they are not truly seeking to know God's will, only wanting assurance that the way they have already chosen will succeed. They want a religious blessing on a decision already made, not genuine guidance that might redirect them. Their asking of counsel was really a seeking of endorsement for what they had already determined to do, a rubber-stamp for their own plans rather than an honest submission to God's will.

Notice what the Danites really wanted: not true guidance, but endorsement for a course already chosen. They asked the priest to inquire of God whether their way would prosper; but they had already set out on that way. They were not honestly seeking to know God's will, open to being redirected; they wanted assurance that their own plan would succeed, a religious blessing on a decision already made. This is a subtle danger: to use the forms of seeking God, of asking his counsel, while really only wanting him to endorse what we have already decided. Genuine seeking of God's will is open to being redirected; the Danites wanted a rubber-stamp. To ask God's counsel only for endorsement, not to truly submit to his will, is to seek assurance rather than guidance.

That is worth taking to heart, for we must beware of seeking God's blessing on what we have already decided, rather than truly seeking his will. We can go through the motions of seeking God's guidance, asking his counsel, while really only wanting him to endorse a course we have already chosen, as the Danites did. But genuine seeking of God's will is open to being redirected, not merely looking for a rubber-stamp on our own plans. Do not ask God's guidance only to have him bless what you have already decided; truly seek his will, open to being redirected, rather than seeking mere endorsement. Seek God's will honestly, open to being redirected, rather than seeking his blessing on a course you have already chosen, as the Danites asked counsel of God only for assurance that their own way would prosper; for it is a subtle danger to use the forms of seeking God while only wanting endorsement for our own plans, and genuine seeking of his will means coming open to his redirection, not merely looking for a rubber-stamp on decisions we have already made.

Lord, as the Danites go looking for land to settle, they come upon a young Levite serving as a household priest, and they ask him to inquire of God for them. Please ask counsel of God, they say, that we may know whether our way which we go shall be prosperous. But their request comes after they have already set their course; they are not truly seeking to know your will, only wanting assurance that the way they have already chosen will succeed. They want a religious blessing on a decision already made, not genuine guidance that might redirect them. Show me what the Danites really wanted: not true guidance, but endorsement for a course already chosen. They asked the priest to inquire of you whether their way would prosper; but they had already set out on that way. They were not honestly seeking to know your will, open to being redirected; they wanted assurance that their own plan would succeed. This is a subtle danger: to use the forms of seeking you, of asking your counsel, while really only wanting you to endorse what we have already decided. Genuine seeking of your will is open to being redirected. Take that to my heart, for I must beware of seeking your blessing on what I have already decided, rather than truly seeking your will. I can go through the motions of seeking your guidance, asking your counsel, while really only wanting you to endorse a course I have already chosen, as the Danites did. But genuine seeking of your will is open to being redirected. Keep me from asking your guidance only to have you bless what I have already decided; help me truly seek your will, Lord, open to being redirected, rather than seeking mere endorsement for my own plans.