Introduction.
Miykayahu/Micah is a pre-Babylonian exile prophet addressing Judah. His name advertises the fact that the prophet received the word of God and was commissioned to proclaim it. So many of the prophets had the name of God (“el”) or of Jehovah (-yah) and Micah was no exception. His name means “who is like Jehovah?”
Little is known about the prophet Micah beyond his name and his place of origin. He was a rural resident (like Amos), removed from the centre of national politics and religion. But he was clearly chosen by Adonai to deliver a message of judgment to the princes and people of Judah.
He was born in the village of Moresheth Gath in the lowlands of Judah, near the region of Philistia, twenty-five miles southeast of Jerusalem.
Micah was a contemporary of Isaiah and Hosea. His career extended over the last third of the eighth century BC, during the reigns in Judah of Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah.
The Book of Micah centres on the threat to Judah of an Assyrian invasion. That threat was in existence from 730 BC culminating in Assyria’s unsuccessful siege of Jerusalem in 701 BC. Though Micah’s message was for Judah, he did predict the captivity of the northern kingdom in 721 BC.
By the eighth century BC the old agricultural system in Israel and Judah, with its fairly even distribution of wealth, was gradually being replaced by a greedy, materialistic and harsh society. The rich were getting richer and the poor getting poorer, and more numerous.
As the poor migrated to the cities, the cities became characterised by poverty and vice, alongside the riches of the upper classes who were increasingly arrogant towards the poor. Trade with pagan nations also brought into the land false religions (including Baalism) and lower morals.
The military victories of King Uzziah brought in wealth for some. The growing affluence saw Judah’s commercial and secular culture replace Adonai’s covenant ideal. There developed increasing callousness towards the weak and a blatant disregard for Adonai’s foundational laws.
Judges and lawmakers became involved in conspiracies, bribery and other corruption. Religious leaders were more concerned with making money than teaching word of Adonai. The wealthy learned to separate their worship from their everyday practice.
The holy and just God demands holiness and justice for and from all people. Thus, we see at this time, Micah’s indictment of social injustice and religious corruption. This renews the themes of the earlier prophet, Amos, and his contemporaries, Hosea (in the north) and Isaiah (in the south).
Micah addresses the disintegration of personal and social values in Judah. While at this time Assyria was the most obvious threat to Judah, Micah nevertheless predicted invasion by Babylon.
Primarily Micah brought a message of judgment to a people persistently pursuing evil. Nevertheless, his predictions of doom, because of the breaking of God’s law are interspersed with messages of hope because of Adonai’s unchanging covenant with their fathers. Through divine intervention, Adonai will bring both judgment on sinners and blessing on those who repent.
We will take five extracts to reflect the nature of the Book of Micah.
Chapter 3: 1 – 12. Wicked Rulers and Prophets.
“And I said, “Hear now, O heads of Jacob, and you rulers of the house of Israel; is it not for you to know justice? You who hate good and love evil; who strip the skin from My people, and the flesh from their bones; who also eat the flesh of My people, flay the skin from them, break their bones and chop them in pieces like meat for the pot, like flesh in the cauldron.”
Then they will cry to the Lord, but He will not hear them; He will even hide His face from them at that time, because they have been evil in their deeds.
Thus says the Lord concerning the prophets who make My people stray; who chant “Peace” while they chew with their teeth, but who prepare war against him who puts nothing in their mouths; therefore you shall have night without vision, and you shall have darkness without divination; the sun shall go down on the prophets, and the day shall be dark for them. So the seers shall be ashamed, and the diviners abashed; indeed they shall all cover their lips; for there is no answer from God.”
But truly I am full of power by the Spirit of the Lord, and justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgressions and to Israel his sin. Now hear this, you heads of the house of Jacob and rulers of the house of Israel, who abhor justice and pervert all equity, who build up Zion with bloodshed and Jerusalem with iniquity: her heads judge for a bribe; her priests teach for pay, and her prophets divine for money. Yet they lean on the Lord, and say, “Is not the Lord among us? No harm can come upon us.” Therefore because of you Zion shall be ploughed like a field, Jerusalem shall become heaps of ruins, and the mountain of the temple like the bare hills of the forest.”
Verse 1. The rulers of Adonai’s people are expected to emphasise justice. Justice is one of the key concepts of the law.
Deuteronomy 10: 17 – 18.
“For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality nor takes a bribe. He administers justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the stranger, giving him food and clothing.”
Perverting justice is strongly prohibited by Adonai, yet this is precisely what the leaders of Judah were doing. They had used their authority to destroy justice rather than establish it among the people.
Verses 2 and 3. Micah uses the image of barbaric cannibalism to describe the actions of the leaders against the people.
Verse 4. The Lord “will not hear” the “rulers of the house of Israel” when they call out to Him. Their wickedness is so great that last-minute, half-hearted repentance will not suffice.
Verses 5 – 7. Adonai’s judgment will come upon false prophets who proclaim “peace” because that is what the people want to hear and are willing to pay to hear. These people will have neither true prophetic insight nor help from the forbidden acts of “divination”.
Verse 8. Micah, unlike the false prophets, is “full of power by the Spirit of the Lord”. Being divinely empowered, he can judge the people and declare Adonai’s message.
Verses 9 – 11. All the ruling group of society are guilty of corruption: rulers judging for reward; priests teaching for hire; and prophets divining for money.
Yet many of the people were deceiving themselves about their position. They believed that they would not be affected by Adonai’s judgment because He Himself dwelt in the holy temple in Jerusalem. They refused to believe that Adonai might leave His holy temple because of the sinfulness of the people.
Verse 12. While the false prophets and the wicked rulers believed they were untouchable and that Mount Zion was inviolable, the prophet Micah announced that Jerusalem would “be ploughed like a field”, indicating complete devastation of the city. This of course is exactly what happened under the Babylonians.
From this extract we see that a holy and just God demands justice, mercy and uprightness from nations and individuals. Deliberate rebellion against Adonai’s will brings consequences sooner or late.
Our second extract shows Adonai’s mercy and longsuffering patience.
Chapter 6: 1 – 8.
“Hear now what the Lord says: “Arise, plead your case before the mountains, and let the hills hear your voice. Hear, O you mountains, the Lord’s complaint, and you strong foundations of the earth; for the Lord has a complaint against His people, and He will contend with Israel.
“O My people, what have I done to you? And how have I wearied you? Testify against Me. For I brought you up out of the land of Egypt, I redeemed you from the house of bondage; and I sent before you Moses, Aaron and Miriam. O My people, remember now what Balak king of Moab counselled, and what Balaam the son of Boer answered him, from Acacia Grove to Gilgal, that you may know the righteousness of God.”
With what shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before the High God? Shall I come before Him with burnt offerings, and calves a year old. Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God?”
Verses 1 and 2. Micah describes a courtroom-type situation. The Lord God is the fair-minded prosecutor. The prophet, Micah, is the lawyer for the plaintiff. The Lord calls on the people (the defendants) to “plead” their “case”. “The mountains” and “hills” were “witnesses” to the covenant that God made with His people: they were present at Sinai when the Lord made His covenant with Israel and when the Commandments were written and placed in the ark of the covenant as a permanent witness. If the people were silent before the “mountains”, the Lord Himself would speak against their sin.
Verse 3. The Lord pleads “What have I done to you?”. The Lord of course is entirely innocent of any misconduct towards His people.
Verses 4 and 5. The Lord kindly and tenderly recalls His many gracious acts towards them. God had faithfully kept all His promises to them. These included bringing the people from Egypt in the Exodus and His deliverance of Israel from the evils that Balak and Balaam had planned.
Verses 6 and 7. Micah asks how in the light of Adonai’s faithfulness toward them, could they possibly continue their hypocrisy by being outwardly religious, but inwardly sinful.
What Micah is looking for goes far beyond the demands of the law. Only an offering freely given is acceptable. Micah uses deliberate exaggerations (“thousands of rams”) to emphasis the necessity of the correct attitude in the true worship of God.
Verse 8. To please the Lord is to do as He commands. Biblical piety is true worship. “To walk humbly with the Lord” refers to the Lord’s gifts of the strength, courage and ability to exercise the virtues of godly living, to look on Him with adoring wonder, a sense of dependency and profound respect for His will, so that we may enjoy the privilege of addressing Him.
This extract demonstrates Adonai’s patience and mercy towards His people. He has the condescension to outline how He has kept His covenant with them and gives His people every opportunity to repent and return to Him.
As we have said, the Book of Micah is far from totally negative. Our next extracts concern Messiah’s Reign in Zion.
Chapter 4: 1 – 5.
“Now it shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow to it. Many shall come and say, “Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, and we shall walk in His paths.” For out of Zion the law shall go forth, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
He shall judge between many peoples, and rebuke strong nations afar off; they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.
But everyone shall sit under his vine and under his fig tree, and no one shall make them afraid; for the mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken. For all people walk each in the name of his god, but we will walk in the name of the Lord our God forever and ever.”
Verse 1. The use of the term “latter days” shows that Micah is talking about the end times. From impending doom, he has moved on to prophecy concerning the future millennial kingdom. Topographical changes have elevated the temple (“the mountain of the Lord’s house”) above the hills.
Verse 2. The peoples of the world (“many nations”) will come as a spontaneous “flow” to worship the “God of Jacob” in Jerusalem, from where Adonai will speak to all. “We will walk in His paths”: the people of the coming kingdom (as opposed to Micah’s contemporaries) will be obedient to Adonai.
Verse 3. Messiah will rule with a rod of iron and all weapons will be recycled into tools of production. “War” will finally be no more; not even a subject of study.
Verse 4. The “vine” and “fig tree” are symbols of peace and prosperity. “No one shall make them afraid”: fear, like war, will be a thing of the past.
Verse 5. The godly remnant of Israel will no longer pursue other gods but will walk after the true God.
In this extract, the blessings of the Lord Yeshua’s millennial reign are seen. Jerusalem will be exalted. Nations will come there to learn about the Lord. There will be world disarmament. Peace and security will prevail, and the Lord will be acknowledged by all His people.
Chapter 5: 2 – 5. More information concerning the coming Messiah.
““But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be ruler of Israel, whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting.”
Therefore He shall give them up, until the time that she who is in labour has given birth; then the remnant of His brethren shall return to the children of Israel. And He shall stand and feed his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord His God; and they shall abide, for now He shall be great to the ends of the earth; and this One shall be peace. When the Assyrian comes into the land, and when he treads in our palaces, then He will raise against him seven shepherds and eight princely men.”
Verse 2. “Bethlehem Ephrathah”: this terminology locates the village in a known region of Judah (Ephrathah was where Rachel died giving birth to Benjamin – Genesis 35: 16). Of course, this prophecy is fulfilled in the New Testament. Adonai’s hidden hand is there in major political events making it necessary for Mary to travel from Nazareth so that the Messiah should be born in the city of David.
Bethlehem, of course, means “house of bread” as this was a grain producing region. The name “Ephrathah” (meaning “fruitful”) differentiates the birthplace of David from a Galilean town of the same name.
The town of Bethlehem Ephrathah had vineyards and orchards, but it was small in size; yet it was given great honour. The birth of Messiah. His “going forth” would be like that of no other. He comes “from of old, from everlasting”. This speaks of God’s Incarnation in the person of the Lord Yeshua. It points to His millennial rule as King of kings.
Verse 3. This verse is a reference to the interval between Messiah’s rejection at His first coming and His second coming, during the time of the Gentiles when having rejected Messiah, Israel is under the domination of enemies.
The regathering of the “remnant of the brethren” did not occur at His first advent but will do at His second. “She who is in labour” refers to the nation of Israel. This metaphor refers to the deliverance of the nation in the end times; when the remnant will be able to delight in the coming of Messiah.
Verse 5. “And this One shall be peace”: Messiah the prince of peace. “When the Assyrian comes”: in Micah’s time, Assyria was the main threat to Israel and Judah. Micah uses that nation as a symbol of all Israel’s enemies and of Adonai’s final victory over each of them. The phrase, “seven shepherds and eight princely men” is an idiom for the full and sufficient number of leaders, more than enough for the task.
This extract demonstrates that Messiah is to be made great in the judgment hearts and understanding of mankind, a manifestation of God’s greatness. He who has always been revered in heaven, will be revered on earth.
In our final extract, Micah expresses his sorrow at Israel’s sin.
Chapter 7: 1 – 6.
“Woe is me! For I am like those who gather summer fruits, like those who glean vintage grapes; there is no cluster to eat of the first-ripe fruit which my soul desires. The faithful man has perished from the earth, and there is no one upright among men. They all lie in wait for blood; every man hunts his brother with a net.
That they may successfully do evil with both hands – the prince asks for gifts, the judge seeks a bribe, and the great man utters his evil desire; so they scheme together. The best of them is like a brier; the most upright is sharper than a thorn hedge; the day of your watchman and your punishment comes; now shall be their perplexity.
Do not trust in a friend; do not put your confidence in a companion; guard the doors of your mouth from her who lies in your bosom. For son dishonours father, daughter rises against her mother, daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; a man’s enemies are the men of his own household.”
Verses 1 and 2. Micah was very moved by the oracles of judgment that Adonai has delivered through him. For Micah the harvest was over. There was nothing around him but undesirable fruit. The “faithful man has perished”: the norms of society have broken down; everyone was out to destroy someone else. Violence and murder abound.
Verses 3 – 6. The people are pursuing evil with gusto. The leaders of the state were leading the way in evil; for taking bribes their “punishment” is near.
The phrase “the day of your watchman” refers to a time when people needed to be alert for the approach of an army; in this context it is judgment that is imminent.
There is no one people can depend on. In this sorry situation friends, neighbours and even family betray each other.
This is Micah’s very sad conclusion about the situation in the state of Judah in his time. We can sympathise with his views as we look around at our own society at this time. But Micah concludes with his belief that Israel will confess and repent and receive God’s forgiveness.
Chapter 7: 18 – 20.
“Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in mercy. He will again have compassion on us, and will subdue our iniquities. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. You will give truth to Jacob and mercy to Abraham, which you have sworn to our fathers from days of old.”
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and look for the return of Messiah.
Amen.