“In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 17:6).
These were dark days in Israel when all authority had gone away, and there were none to take note of the departure into the depravity of idolatry and other sins so repulsive to God; and, consequently, there were none to speak against them and put a stop to them.
God was not pleased—and He is never pleased when people fail to listen to the teaching in His word and follow the standards He has commanded. God has given us standards for creating a relationship with Him, for worshiping Him, and for living the kind of morally responsible life He wants us to live.
In spite of God’s clarity in laying out these standards, every generation seems intent on defying Him and pushing His tolerance to the brink. To please God and secure an eternal resting place with Him, we must surely realize that every person cannot do what is right in his own eyes: we must do what is right in God’s eyes.