Downward spiral - someone shout stop

Today I have been reading strange story in Judges 17 & 18 an account which started with something good but ended up with something disastrous.

It starts with one man's confession and ends up with the idolatry for a huge group of God's people.

Maybe just maybe if someone along the journey had stood up and said this is wrong the destination could have been so different. But instead we have a story of each selling out.

Son confesses to steeling, mum decides to make an idol out of the fact that he had confessed. (Think it is forgiveness we should be celebrating and glorifying not the act of repentance, good though that is.), Son sets up a shrine to the idol, a priest who should have known better puts his own comfort and well being first and joins the party, the leadership of the tribe of Dan asked for guidance from the misguided priest and then they brought their whole army to the false idol.

The pathway to disaster is paved with people who just kept quiet and went with the flow.

Sometimes silence is not an option.