Introduction:
- Timeline of Isaiah, since contemporary of Isaiah
- 1447 The Exodus begins
- 1400 Conquest of Canaan completed
- 1043 Saul becomes king
- 931 Rehoboam becomes king of Israel and Judah; Jeroboam rebels; sets Up a rival kingdom in the north ...
- 790 Uzziah becomes co-regent of Judah
- 767 Uzziah becomes full king of Judah
- 764 Amos begins to prophesy
- 755 Hosea begins to prophesy
- 753 Zechariah becomes king of Israel
- 739 Uzziah dies; Isaiah begins to prophesy; Jotham becomes king of Judah
- 736 Micah begins to prophesy
- 735 Ahaz becomes king of Judah
- 722 Sargon II becomes king of Assyria Samaria falls; the ten tribes go into captivity
- 715 Hezekiah becomes king of Judah
- 701 Judah invaded by the Assyrians
- 686 Manasseh becomes king of Judah
- Micah prophesied during the reigns of the Judean kings Jotham (750-732 B.C.), Ahaz (732-715 B.C.), and Hezekiah (715-686 B.C.; 1:1). This made him a late eighth-century contemporary of Isaiah, who also ministered in the Southern Kingdom of Judah (cf. Isa. 1:1), and Amos and Hosea, who ministered in the Northern Kingdom of Israel (cf. Amos 1:1; Hos. 1:1). (Constable, 2008)
- Location: Judah, near Philistines
- His hometown and Lachish would have been fortified towns destroyed by the Assyrian invasion
- Theme or messages: Judgment, restoration, and a remnant, to be followed by world prominence during the reign of the Messiah (Constable, 2008)
- Lastly, Moresheth-gath lies directly on the international trade route, as do most of Israel and Judah. Israel was at the crossroads of civilization intentionally to serve as a witness, and failed in their task
Mic 1:1-5 The word of the Lord that came to Micah of Moresheth during the reigns of Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah — the vision he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.
2 Hear, O peoples, all of you,
listen, O earth and all who are in it,
that the Sovereign Lord may witness against you,
the Lord from his holy temple.
3 Look! The Lord is coming from his dwelling place;
he comes down and treads the high places of the earth.
4 The mountains melt beneath him
and the valleys split apart,
like wax before the fire,
like water rushing down a slope.
5 All this is because of Jacob's transgression,
because of the sins of the house of Israel.
What is Jacob's transgression?
Is it not Samaria?
What is Judah's high place?
Is it not Jerusalem? NIV
- What does verse 2 sound like or what might it remind a Jewish person of?
- It sounds like a court room or an official government announcement; divine lawsuit
- It is similar to Moses final words to the people
- Deut 31:26-32:1 "Take this Book of the Law and place it beside the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God. There it will remain as a witness against you. 27 For I know how rebellious and stiff-necked you are. If you have been rebellious against the Lord while I am still alive and with you, how much more will you rebel after I die! 28 Assemble before me all the elders of your tribes and all your officials, so that I can speak these words in their hearing and call heaven and earth to testify against them. 29 For I know that after my death you are sure to become utterly corrupt and to turn from the way I have commanded you. In days to come, disaster will fall upon you because you will do evil in the sight of the Lord and provoke him to anger by what your hands have made."
30 And Moses recited the words of this song from beginning to end in the hearing of the whole assembly of Israel:
32 Listen, O heavens, and I will speak; hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. NIV
- What is the intent of verses 3 and 4?
- Transcendent: philosophy in Kant's philosophical system, exceeding the limits of experience and therefore unknowable except hypothetically
- Immanent: describes God as existing in and extending into all parts of the created universe
- While God is above all and unknowable in entirety, he is knowable as a person, and he is involved in the lives of His people. He is not the watchmaker, who builds a watch, and then lets it run. On the other hand, he does allow the effects of sin to reign in the world. For the believer, he promises to work for the good of those who love him. Here, his involvement is directly related to the covenant
- Why is God pronouncing judgment?
- There seems to be a play on words since Jacob was renamed to Israel. Jacob was the named used during Jacob's rebellious days, whereas Israel was his title after he wrestled with God
- The result is because of Israel's sin, its breaking of the covenant. The early part of Micah's ministry was a time of wealth and prosperity (and forgetting God)
- Also, both capital's are identified with the sin. Samaria held one of the two specific high places (the sin of Jeroboam, son of Nebat, which is mentioned repeatedly). But, in God's words, Jerusalem might as well be a high place as well
Mic 1:6-7 "Therefore I will make Samaria a heap of rubble,
a place for planting vineyards.
I will pour her stones into the valley
and lay bare her foundations.
7 All her idols will be broken to pieces;
all her temple gifts will be burned with fire;
I will destroy all her images.
Since she gathered her gifts from the wages of prostitutes,
as the wages of prostitutes they will again be used." NIV
- What is the pronouncement for the Northern Kingdom's sin?
- Samaria would become a heap of rubble. This occurred in 722BC and apparently the foundations are still visible today
- Likely had not occurred yet, although the tone suggests Assyria had invaded (it could also be worded in a present future tense, see verse 9)
- Why burn the temple gifts?
- Looters could get the gold that way
- What is verse 7 saying?
- The worship of idols was Israel prostituting itself
- The money used for the gold and the idols will be used by the Assyrians for the same thing to their idols
- APPLICATION: This last verse reminds me of 1 Cor 3:11-15.
- 1 Cor 3:11-15 For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, 13 his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work. 14 If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. 15 If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames. NIV
- What am I building with my life? The verse describes the judgment of believers. Will my work survive to honor God. Nothing the Israelites (Samaria) did survive the fire because it was not done for good, and it would not be used for good later
Mic 1:8-9 Because of this I will weep and wail;
I will go about barefoot and naked.
I will howl like a jackal
and moan like an owl.
9 For her wound is incurable;
it has come to Judah.
It has reached the very gate of my people,
even to Jerusalem itself. NIV
- What do we see in Micah's preaching?
- He wasn't just telling others of their sin. It affected him personally
- He didn't stop others, because we can't stop sin. We can't make people believe in God. But he could weep for his people
- Ultimately, the punishment would reach Jerusalem. In 701BC, Sennacherib would attack the city. He would fail and lose 185000 men, but not before most of the towns of Judah, including Micah's are conquered
- It's possible that verse 9's present tense is only suggested of the present decision of God and not that Israel had been invaded
Mic 1:12-15 Those who live in Maroth writhe in pain,
waiting for relief,
because disaster has come from the Lord,
even to the gate of Jerusalem.
13 You who live in Lachish,
harness the team to the chariot.
You were the beginning of sin
to the Daughter of Zion,
for the transgressions of Israel
were found in you.
14 Therefore you will give parting gifts
to Moresheth Gath.
The town of Aczib will prove deceptive
to the kings of Israel.
15 I will bring a conqueror against you
who live in Mareshah.
He who is the glory of Israel
will come to Adullam. NIV
- There is a lot of wordplay in this section. It would had made more sense if you spoke biblical Hebrew. The author specifically chooses names of cities
- Maroth sounds like the word for bitterness. How does the bitter play in this verse?
- The would wait for relief, but it won't come. It is natural to become bitter, even at God. Forty-six towns in Judah would be defeated before Sennacherib would besiege Jerusalem in 701BC
- Lachish is known for horses, and sounds like the Hebrew word for team (rekesh) of horses. Why is Lachish singled out?
- Apparently, idol worship which had become a part of Judah, had started in Lachish. Maybe because she was a border town with the Philistines. Maybe because of the trade of horses with Egypt -- whatever the reason, it started in Lachish
- Judah will parting gifts to Moresheth Gath, as they leave they kingdom. Moresheth means inheritance. Much like bridal presents, the dowry, with which the Father sends the daughter away, so the inheritance is given to the conqueror
- Achzib, meaning winter brook would fail (would not provide the resource in time of need). Also, it would become deceitful (heb, akzab)
- Mareshar, which means possession or inheritance, will be taken possession of
- The name of Adullam suggested the memory of that cave, the refuge of the Patriarch David, the first of their line of kings, in extreme isolation and peril of his life. There, the refuge now of the remaining glory of Israel, its wealth, its trust, its boast-the foe should come. And so there only remained one common dirge for all. (from Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database Copyright © 1997, 2003, 2005, 2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.)
Mic 2:1-4 Woe to those who plan iniquity,
to those who plot evil on their beds!
At morning's light they carry it out
because it is in their power to do it.
2 They covet fields and seize them,
and houses, and take them.
They defraud a man of his home,
a fellowman of his inheritance.
3 Therefore, the Lord says:
"I am planning disaster against this people,
from which you cannot save yourselves.
You will no longer walk proudly,
for it will be a time of calamity.
4 In that day men will ridicule you;
they will taunt you with this mournful song:
'We are utterly ruined;
my people's possession is divided up.
He takes it from me!
He assigns our fields to traitors.'" NIV
- In verses 1 and 2, what is the sin of Judah?
- Evil schemes
- Abuse of power
- Covetousness (wanting what others have)
- Theft
- Ruining another's name for your own ambition
- How can these things be seen in a Christian's life
- Evil schemes: Gossip and getting back at another who has hurt you
- Abuse of power: Using position to thwart someone or for some gain
- Covetousness (wanting what others have): Same thing
- Theft: Hopefully not directly, but downloading software that you haven't bought or music or whatever
- Ruining another's name for your own ambition: Gossip
- What is the most terrifying aspect of verses 3 and 4?
- The decision has already been made and there is no going back
- What is the punishment?
- Calamity
- Utter ruin; total loss
- Become a taunt or joke. God gave Israel's possession to foreigners who neither knew God or cared about God
- APPLICATION: The sins of Israel are still the things which bother God today and hurt our witness of Him in the crossroad where God has placed each of us
Mic 2:6-11 "Do not prophesy," their prophets say.
"Do not prophesy about these things;
disgrace will not overtake us."
7 Should it be said, O house of Jacob:
"Is the Spirit of the Lord angry?
Does he do such things?"
"Do not my words do good
to him whose ways are upright?
8 Lately my people have risen up
like an enemy.
You strip off the rich robe
from those who pass by without a care,
like men returning from battle.
9 You drive the women of my people
from their pleasant homes.
You take away my blessing
from their children forever.
10 Get up, go away!
For this is not your resting place,
because it is defiled,
it is ruined, beyond all remedy.
11 If a liar and deceiver comes and says,
'I will prophesy for you plenty of wine and beer,'
he would be just the prophet for this people! NIV
- What are the people saying to Micah?
- Don’t prophesy hard things
- God would never do such a thing
- Tell us good things that encourage us and we want to hear
- What does God say?
- I will do good to the upright
- My people not only sin but run to their sin
- This is no longer a land of promise, a land of rest to this people
- APPLICATION: What are we more likely to do, run to sin or run to God? Too often it is the latter. Too often we don't want to hear a hard message. We've decided in the God we want to believe in and will not listen to what the word of God might really say. We need to repent and go back to the source, not what we want to hear
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