A verse by verse commentary on the book of Micah.

Background

Micah, who was from Judah, was a contemporary of Isaiah and Hosea.

There are seven Micah’s mentioned in Bible.

Micah means Who is like God / Who is like the Eternal (Michael [the archangel] means the same thing)

Written c. 735-715 bc (including the fall of Northern kingdom of the 10 tribes of Israel to the Assyrians 721-718 bc)

It is a message to Samaria and Jerusalem (capital cities of Israel and Judah)

Natural Outline

Three times in the book there is a call to action set off by the word “hear” (Micah 1:2; 3:1; 6:1) making for a apparent division of the prophecies.

Micah 1:2 Hear, all you peoples! Listen, O earth, and all that is in it! Let the Lord GOD be a witness against you, The Lord from His holy temple.

How His set apart people have gone astray – they will not get a free pass.

Micah 3:1 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?

Special indictment against the leadership – civil and religious. God has a plan and will eventually come and save them at His return

Micah 6:1 Hear now what the LORD says: “Arise, plead your case before the mountains, And let the hills hear your voice.

At the time of His salvation He will also mete out His judgment on the wicked.

Chapter 1

Micah 1:1 The word of the LORD that came to Micah of Moresheth in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.

Micah of Moresheth…

Jeremiah 26:17 Then certain of the elders of the land rose up and spoke to all the assembly of the people, saying:
Jeremiah 26:18 “Micah of Moresheth prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah, and spoke to all the people of Judah, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts: “Zion shall be plowed like a field, Jerusalem shall become heaps of ruins, And the mountain of the temple Like the bare hills of the forest.” ‘

Does not mention the name of the kings of Israel as they had become persona non grata (because of their pending captivity).

Samaria and Jerusalem… capital cities that are representative of the north and south kingdom but more specifically because it represented the leadership of those governing the respective tribes.

Ezekiel 23:4 Their names: Oholah the elder and Oholibah her sister; They were Mine, And they bore sons and daughters. As for their names, Samaria is Oholah, and Jerusalem is Oholibah.

Micah 1:2 Hear, all you peoples! Listen, O earth, and all that is in it! Let the Lord GOD be a witness against you, The Lord from His holy temple.

Micah 1:3 For behold, the LORD is coming out of His place; He will come down And tread on the high places of the earth.

Hear, all you peoples… this is directed to the everyone in the world; God is bringing to their attention the punishment that He is bringing upon His people. This is the flip side of their preferred status.

The Lord from His holy temple. For behold, the LORD is coming out of His place; He will come down… Psalms 11:4 The LORD is in His holy temple, The LORD’s throne is in heaven; His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men.

He is also speaking about His return to earth during the Day of the Lord when He return in power and might as King of kings and Lord of lords.

tread on… Isaiah 2; there very highest places shall all be below the lowest part of God – under His foot.

the high places… can refer to either good or bad places of worship, so the context is always necessary.

Micah 1:4 The mountains will melt under Him, And the valleys will split Like wax before the fire, Like waters poured down a steep place.

mountains… symbol of governments or nations (Daniel 2:35, Isaiah 2:1-3).

valleys… Zechariah 14:4 And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, Which faces Jerusalem on the east. And the Mount of Olives shall be split in two, From east to west, Making a very large valley; Half of the mountain shall move toward the north And half of it toward the south.

wax before the fire… I cannot think of any ordinary item that melts so easily and yet is solid at everyday temperatures. This is the connotation that Micah is trying to get across in regards to the amount of resistance that the sinful world will be able to put up to the return a Christ.

Like waters poured down a steep place…. continuation of this concept of no resistance.

Micah 1:5 All this is for the transgression of Jacob And for the sins of the house of Israel. What is the transgression of Jacob? Is it not Samaria? And what are the high places of Judah? Are they not Jerusalem?

Jacob…Israel… equating Jacob with all of Israel. [Samaria and Jerusalem].

What is the transgression of Jacob?… idolatry; false gods; false religion;

Hosea 7:1 “When I would have healed Israel, Then the iniquity of Ephraim was uncovered, And the wickedness of Samaria. For they have committed fraud; A thief comes in; A band of robbers takes spoil outside.

Narrowing it down from Israel to Ephraim to Samaria. Samaria was the capital of the northern Kingdom of Israel and was emblematic the leadership of the nation. Samaria was built by King Omri and he remained steeped in idolatry until it’s destruction some 30 years before the 10 tribes went into captivity in Assyria. Israel never lived correctly or to an acceptable level in God’s eyes.

Ezekiel 20:12 Moreover I also gave them My Sabbaths, to be a sign between them and Me, that they might know that I am the LORD who sanctifies them.
Ezekiel 20:13 Yet the house of Israel rebelled against Me in the wilderness; they did not walk in My statutes; they despised My judgments, ‘which, if a man does, he shall live by them’; and they greatly defiled My Sabbaths. Then I said I would pour out My fury on them in the wilderness, to consume them.

Ezekiel 20:16 because they despised My judgments and did not walk in My statutes, but profaned My Sabbaths; for their heart went after their idols.
Ezekiel 20:17 Nevertheless My eye spared them from destruction. I did not make an end of them in the wilderness.
Ezekiel 20:18 “But I said to their children in the wilderness, ‘Do not walk in the statutes of your fathers, nor observe their judgments, nor defile yourselves with their idols.
Ezekiel 20:19 I am the LORD your God: Walk in My statutes, keep My judgments, and do them;
Ezekiel 20:20 hallow My Sabbaths, and they will be a sign between Me and you, that you may know that I am the LORD your God.’
Ezekiel 20:23 Also I raised My hand in an oath to those in the wilderness, that I would scatter them among the Gentiles and disperse them throughout the countries,
Ezekiel 20:24 because they had not executed My judgments, but had despised My statutes, profaned My Sabbaths, and their eyes were fixed on their fathers’ idols.

Ezekiel 20:27 “Therefore, son of man, speak to the house of Israel, and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “In this too your fathers have blasphemed Me, by being unfaithful to Me.
Ezekiel 20:28 When I brought them into the land concerning which I had raised My hand in an oath to give them, and they saw all the high hills and all the thick trees, there they offered their sacrifices and provoked Me with their offerings. There they also sent up their sweet aroma and poured out their drink offerings.
Ezekiel 20:29 Then I said to them, ‘What is this high place to which you go?’ So its name is called Bamah to this day.” ‘
Ezekiel 20:30 Therefore say to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “Are you defiling yourselves in the manner of your fathers, and committing harlotry according to their abominations?
Ezekiel 20:31 For when you offer your gifts and make your sons pass through the fire, you defile yourselves with all your idols, even to this day. So shall I be inquired of by you, O house of Israel? As I live,” says the Lord GOD, “I will not be inquired of by you.

Samaria…

1 Kings 16:31 And it came to pass, as though it had been a trivial thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he took as wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Sidonians; and he went and served Baal and worshiped him.
1 Kings 16:32 Then he set up an altar for Baal in the temple of Baal, which he had built in Samaria.
1 Kings 16:33 And Ahab made a wooden image. Ahab did more to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him.

We cannot afford to minimize this by thinking how silly these people of ancient times made little wooden images and worshipped them. Today we as a nation are equally corrupt [idols: money, material, pleasures, own ways].

high places of Judah? Are they not Jerusalem…. they were headed in the same exact direction as the northern ten tribes: idolatry; false gods; false religion. This is Micah’s point here, Jerusalem is becoming a place where false worship practices were beginning.

Micah 1:6 “Therefore I will make Samaria a heap of ruins in the field, Places for planting a vineyard; I will pour down her stones into the valley, And I will uncover her foundations.

The city of Samaria will be demolished by God.

Micah 1:7 All her carved images shall be beaten to pieces, And all her pay as a harlot shall be burned with the fire; All her idols I will lay desolate, For she gathered it from the pay of a harlot, And they shall return to the pay of a harlot.”

All… Everything that is associated with the false temple worship will be taken away or destroyed.

her pay as a harlot…

Deuteronomy 23:17 “There shall be no ritual harlot of the daughters of Israel, or a perverted one of the sons of Israel. [female and male temple prostitutes].
Deuteronomy 23:18 You shall not bring the wages of a harlot or the price of a dog [the money they received for prostituting themselves] to the house of the LORD your God for any vowed offering, for both of these are an abomination to the LORD your God.

shall return to the pay of a harlot… the wages made prostituting will be taken from her and used to pay for other prostitutes.

Micah 1:8 Therefore I will wail and howl, I will go stripped and naked; I will make a wailing like the jackals And a mourning like the ostriches,

Micah doing this to imitate Judah and its grief and bereavement in the day of trouble.

Micah 1:9 For her wounds are incurable. For it has come to Judah; It has come to the gate of My people— To Jerusalem.

For her wounds are incurable… In speaking about the The Wickedness of Judah, Isaiah expounds on this concept:

Isaiah 1:2 Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth! For the LORD has spoken: “I have nourished and brought up children, And they have rebelled against Me;
Isaiah 1:3 The ox knows its owner And the donkey its master’s crib; But Israel does not know, My people do not consider.”
Isaiah 1:4 Alas, sinful nation, A people laden with iniquity, A brood of evildoers, Children who are corrupters! They have forsaken the LORD, They have provoked to anger The Holy One of Israel, They have turned away backward.
Isaiah 1:5 Why should you be stricken again? You will revolt more and more. The whole head is sick, And the whole heart faints.
Isaiah 1:6 From the sole of the foot even to the head, There is no soundness in it, But wounds and bruises and putrefying sores; They have not been closed or bound up, Or soothed with ointment.

For it has come to Judah… Like we have seen many times before, Judah is warned along side the northern tribes of Israel. Israel went into captivity over a hundred years before Judah did – so they knew what was in store for them! They were warned by written and spoken word and even by example.

Romans 11:17 And if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them, and with them became a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree,

Romans 11:19 You will say then, “Branches were broken off that I might be grafted in.”
Romans 11:20 Well said. Because of unbelief they were broken off, and you stand by faith. Do not be haughty, but fear.
Romans 11:21 For if God did not spare the natural branches, He may not spare you either.
Romans 11:22 Therefore consider the goodness and severity of God: on those who fell, severity; but toward you, goodness, if you continue in His goodness. Otherwise you also will be cut off.

So we can see how Micah is also a message to us today as well as the Gentiles and the physical nation of Israel who were supposed to be acting like God’s special and chosen people.

It has come to the gate of My people— To Jerusalem…. Prophecy about the invasion of Sennacherib into Judah c. 701 BC. The Assyrians, after coming down the coast, headquartered themselves in Lachish about 30 miles from Jerusalem. When attacked, Hezekiah successfully defended the capital at that time though according to Assyrian history many of the smaller cities of Judah fell to King Sennacherib and were deported back to Assyria with the northern tribes.

2 Kings 18:13 And in the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them.
2 Kings 18:14 Then Hezekiah king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria at Lachish, saying, “I have done wrong; turn away from me; whatever you impose on me I will pay.” And the king of Assyria assessed Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold.
2 Kings 18:15 So Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in the house of the LORD and in the treasuries of the king’s house.
2 Kings 18:16 At that time Hezekiah stripped the gold from the doors of the temple of the LORD, and from the pillars which Hezekiah king of Judah had overlaid, and gave it to the king of Assyria.
2 Kings 18:17 Then the king of Assyria sent the Tartan, the Rabsaris, and the Rabshakeh from Lachish, with a great army against Jerusalem, to King Hezekiah. And they went up and came to Jerusalem….

Play on Words

Prophesies what will happen to them [it is not good].

Micah 1:10 Tell it not in Gath, Weep not at all; In Beth Aphrah Roll yourself in the dust.

Tell it not in Gath…

2 Samuel 1:20 Tell it not in Gath, Proclaim it not in the streets of Ashkelon— Lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, Lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph.

Beth Aphrah – house of dust; Ophrah;

Ezekiel 27:30 They will make their voice heard because of you; They will cry bitterly and cast dust on their heads; They will roll about in ashes;
Ezekiel 27:31 They will shave themselves completely bald because of you, Gird themselves with sackcloth, And weep for you With bitterness of heart and bitter wailing.

A time of mourning and sorrow; and if Micah 1:6 is an indicator, then there will be plenty of dust around.

Micah 1:11 Pass by in naked shame, you inhabitant of Shaphir; The inhabitant of Zaanan does not go out. Beth Ezel mourns; Its place to stand is taken away from you.

Shaphir – glitter, it will no longer shine

Zaanan – to go forth

Beth Ezel – house of nearness now being taken far away

Micah 1:12 For the inhabitant of Maroth pined for good, But disaster came down from the LORD To the gate of Jerusalem.

Maroth – bitter; yearned for something pleasant.

Micah 1:13 O inhabitant of Lachish, Harness the chariot to the swift steeds (She was the beginning of sin to the daughter of Zion), For the transgressions of Israel were found in you.

Lachish – horse town; near the border of the northern kingdom, they seemingly were affected by the idolatry of the northern kingdom due to their proximity.

1 Corinthians 15:33 Do not be deceived: “Evil company corrupts good habits.”

swift steeds… translated dromedaries and mule elsewhere; not sure if the play on words is to say that you will not get away because you are using a beast of burden or if Micah is saying a fast horse and chariot will help you if you start running now.

She was the beginning of sin… Lachish was the first of the cities of Judah, to begin with the worship of false gods, just like Jeroboam had done in Israel.

For the transgressions of Israel were found in you…. Even though they were told and saw what happened to the other tribes of Israel, they would eventually succumb to the same sins themselves.

Micah 1:14 Therefore you shall give presents to Moresheth Gath; The houses of Achzib shall be a lie to the kings of Israel.

Moresheth… where Micah was from (Micah 1:1; Jeremiah 26:18).

presents… a dowry;

Moresheth Gath… inheritance.

The connotation here then is that because of the sinful direction that you are going, you will give up your inheritance as a dowry to those that you are getting in bed with.

houses of Achzib… houses of lying; Strong’s: (in the sense of a winter torrent which fails in summer); it would not yield what was expected of it or provide the relief hoped-for.

Micah 1:15 I will yet bring an heir to you, O inhabitant of Mareshah; The glory of Israel shall come to Adullam.

Mareshah – inheritance;

heir… also has the meaning of occupier or possessor/dispossessor.

Adullam… justice of the people.

glory of Israel… the Assyrians

2 Kings 18:13 And in the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them.

Micah 1:16 Make yourself bald and cut off your hair, Because of your precious children; Enlarge your baldness like an eagle, For they shall go from you into captivity.

bald…baldness… mourning and sorrow.

Because of your precious children…shall go from you into captivity…. in just over a hundred years, their descendants, those of the nation of Judah, went into captivity at the hand of the Babylonians.

Chapter 2

After speaking generally about the punishments coming upon them as a people, God, through Micah, now begins to address the problems more specifically. He begins with the civil leaders and their egregious sins, in particular against their own people.

Micah 2:1 Woe to those who devise iniquity, And work out evil on their beds! At morning light they practice it, Because it is in the power of their hand.

Their whole day was consumed with getting more! At night they would lie awake making plans to do evil, which they would execute first thing in the morning because they had the ability and civil authority to do it.

They were not thinking about the things that are true, noble, just, pure, lovely, reputable, virtuous, praiseworthy. (Philippians 4:8)

Micah 2:2 They covet fields and take them by violence, Also houses, and seize them. So they oppress a man and his house, A man and his inheritance.

As we go through this chapter, think how this is going on now, how the rich and powerful can oppress the average person, not to mention the ones are needy or destitute.

If it is not evident that they should not do this then:

covet…

Exodus 20:17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.”

his inheritance… Leviticus 25:23-28; Jubilee

Micah 2:3 Therefore thus says the LORD: “Behold, against this family I am devising disaster, From which you cannot remove your necks; Nor shall you walk haughtily, For this is an evil time.

this family… the one committing the atrocities of the previous verse.

devising disaster… it will mirror oppression and land grab that Micah/God is condemning.

cannot remove your necks… from the yokes of captivity that they will be in as a punishment for their flagrant trespasses against their neighbor, who is actually their brother.

Jeremiah 27:12 I also spoke to Zedekiah king of Judah according to all these words, saying, “Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live!

Micah 2:4 In that day one shall take up a proverb against you, And lament with a bitter lamentation, saying: ‘We are utterly destroyed! He has changed the heritage of my people; How He has removed it from me! To a turncoat He has divided our fields.’ “

In that day… last times

lament… of course, but now it is too late.

heritage… inheritance.

turncoat… from a word that mean someone who turns away from God. In this case the enemy who does not fear God.

Micah 2:5 Therefore you will have no one to determine boundaries by lot In the assembly of the LORD.

Joshua 18:4 Pick out from among you three men for each tribe, and I will send them; they shall rise and go through the land, survey it according to their inheritance, and come back to me.

Joshua 18:6 You shall therefore survey the land in seven parts and bring the survey here to me, that I may cast lots for you here before the LORD our God.

Joshua 18:10 Then Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the LORD, and there Joshua divided the land to the children of Israel according to their divisions.

Because of captivity they will not be able to determine their boundaries. When Judah initially went into captivity in Babylon, God told them to remain there and not rebel as a part of their punishment. So they had to be resigned to go wherever they were told to go.

Micah 2:6 “Do not prattle,” you say to those who prophesy. So they shall not prophesy to you; They shall not return insult for insult.

This is the lot of a prophet, to deliver a message that the people do not want to hear – it is not an enviable one. The people did not want to hear what the prophets of God had to say to them. So the people cast aspersions at them, but the prophets remain Godly and do reply in kind.

Micah 2:7 You who are named the house of Jacob: “Is the Spirit of the LORD restricted? Are these His doings? Do not My words do good To him who walks uprightly?

House of Jacob… Micah is speaking to both houses, Israel and Judah.

Is the Spirit of the LORD restricted… it will not be curtailed; has the connotation of grieved or discouraged. The answer to this rhetorical question is of course not, the will of God will be done.

My words do good … Deuteronomy 28: obedience brings blessings and in :15 vice versa. So in other words:

Genesis 4:7 If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.”

Micah 2:8 “Lately My people have risen up as an enemy— You pull off the robe with the garment From those who trust you, as they pass by, Like men returned from war.

risen up as an enemy… against both God and His people.

pull off the robe with the garment… the upper and lower or under parts leaving them naked.

who trust you, as they pass by, Like men returned from war… they turned away from war and thought they had come to a safe place only to be taken advantage of.

Micah 2:9 The women of My people you cast out From their pleasant houses; From their children You have taken away My glory forever.

Women… who do not have men to stand up for them, implying widows or their man being away – they took advantage of and kicked them out of their lovely homes.

From their children You have taken away My glory forever…. because of the impending enslavement, the children will not be afforded the same blessings from God.

Micah 2:10 “Arise and depart, For this is not your rest; Because it is defiled, it shall destroy, Yes, with utter destruction.

Arise and depart, For this is not your rest… God was going to take them out of the promised land which is what is referred to by “rest.”

Hebrews 3:8 DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS AS IN THE REBELLION, IN THE DAY OF TRIAL IN THE WILDERNESS,
Hebrews 3:9 WHERE YOUR FATHERS TESTED ME, TRIED ME, AND SAW MY WORKS FORTY YEARS.
Hebrews 3:10 THEREFORE I WAS ANGRY WITH THAT GENERATION, AND SAID, ‘THEY ALWAYS GO ASTRAY IN THEIR HEART, AND THEY HAVE NOT KNOWN MY WAYS.’
Hebrews 3:11 SO I SWORE IN MY WRATH, ‘THEY SHALL NOT ENTER MY REST.’ “

Because it is defiled… they polluted the land – the inheritance that God had given them and now it will no longer provide a respite from the world around them, but rather the devastation that comes with their sins.

Micah 2:11 If a man should walk in a false spirit And speak a lie, saying, ‘I will prophesy to you of wine and drink,’ Even he would be the prattler of this people.

Reminds me of: Isaiah 30:10 Who say to the seers, “Do not see,” And to the prophets, “Do not prophesy to us right things; Speak to us smooth things, prophesy deceits.

They had come to the point where they were not interested in the truth, just foolish and inconsequential talk.

Micah 2:12 “I will surely assemble all of you, O Jacob, I will surely gather the remnant of Israel; I will put them together like sheep of the fold, Like a flock in the midst of their pasture; They shall make a loud noise because of so many people.

I will surely assemble all of you, O Jacob… Israel did not return to the promised with Judah. After their captivity by the Assyrians, most of them fled north and west after their release.

This is pre-millennial. So we see the duality or in some senses the triality of the prophecies of this book. (Israel then Judah then both, though the first two even though they are separated by over 100 years still could be considered one since Micah has been referring to Jacob singularly in his prophesying).

What Micah is saying then, is that the same things will come upon the modern day nations of Judah and the 10 “lost” tribes of Israel

Isaiah 27:12 And it shall come to pass in that day That the LORD will thresh, From the channel of the River to the Brook of Egypt; And you will be gathered one by one, O you children of Israel.
Isaiah 27:13 So it shall be in that day: The great trumpet will be blown; (Matthew 24:31) They will come, who are about to perish in the land of Assyria, And they who are outcasts in the land of Egypt, And shall worship the LORD in the holy mount at Jerusalem.

They will both return at the same time in the future though:

Isaiah 11:11 It shall come to pass in that day That the Lord shall set His hand again the second time To recover the remnant of His people who are left, From Assyria and Egypt, From Pathros and Cush, From Elam and Shinar, From Hamath and the islands of the sea.
Isaiah 11:12 He will set up a banner for the nations, And will assemble the outcasts of Israel, And gather together the dispersed of Judah From the four corners of the earth.

They shall make a loud noise…

Jeremiah 31:7 For thus says the LORD: “Sing with gladness for Jacob, And shout among the chief of the nations; Proclaim, give praise, and say, ‘O LORD, save Your people, The remnant of Israel!’
Jeremiah 31:8 Behold, I will bring them from the north country, And gather them from the ends of the earth, Among them the blind and the lame, The woman with child And the one who labors with child, together; A great throng shall return there.
Jeremiah 31:9 They shall come with weeping, And with supplications I will lead them. I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters, In a straight way in which they shall not stumble; For I am a Father to Israel, And Ephraim is My firstborn.

Micah 2:13 The one who breaks open will come up before them; They will break out, Pass through the gate, And go out by it; Their king will pass before them, With the LORD at their head.”

It will be Christ at His return that will free them and lead them back to the land of Israel.

Jeremiah 23:7 “Therefore, behold, the days are coming,” says the LORD, “that they shall no longer say, ‘As the LORD lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of Egypt,’
Jeremiah 23:8 but, ‘As the LORD lives who brought up and led the descendants of the house of Israel from the north country and from all the countries where I had driven them.’ And they shall dwell in their own land.”

Micah 2:12 so many people…. it will make the first exodus pale in comparison:

Chapter 3

Micah 3:1 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?

Next natural section of the book: God is calling out the Prophets and Priests

Micah 3:2 You who hate good and love evil; Who strip the skin from My people, And the flesh from their bones;

Micah 3:3 Who also eat the flesh of My people, Flay their skin from them, Break their bones, And chop them in pieces Like meat for the pot, Like flesh in the caldron.”

who hate good and love evil… they were doing the opposite of what they were supposed be doing

strip…eat…flay…break…chop… figurative, it is not literal, it is: Like meat; Like flesh.

Micah 3:4 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.

Deuteronomy 31:17 Then My anger shall be aroused against them in that day, and I will forsake them (because they forsook God), and I will hide My face from them, and they shall be devoured. And many evils and troubles shall befall them, so that they will say in that day, ‘Have not these evils come upon us because our God is not among us?’
Deuteronomy 31:18 And I will surely hide My face in that day because of all the evil which they have done, in that they have turned to other gods.

Isaiah 59:1 Behold, the LORD’s hand is not shortened, That it cannot save; Nor His ear heavy, That it cannot hear.
Isaiah 59:2 But your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you, So that He will not hear.

There is no justice and truth, but rather evil and oppression as the rest of the verses in chapter 59 attest to.

Micah 3:5 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 into their mouths:

During the impending disaster that was prophesied to befall Jerusalem, there were those that falsely soothed the people by preaching a different story:

Jeremiah 6:13 “Because from the least of them even to the greatest of them, Everyone is given to covetousness; And from the prophet even to the priest, Everyone deals falsely.
Jeremiah 6:14 They have also healed the hurt of My people slightly, Saying, ‘Peace, peace!’ When there is no peace.

While they chew…nothing into their mouths…. to the people that are supporting them they continue to preach the smooth words, but to those that do not they go on the offensive against them and attack. So not only were they not preaching the truth, they were not feeding the flock.

Micah 3:6 “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.
Micah 3:7 So the seers shall be ashamed, And the diviners abashed; Indeed they shall all cover their lips; For there is no answer from God.”

There will be no more receiving of truth or revelation because God will be withholding from them because of their sins and evil ways.

Micah 3:8 But truly I am full of power by the Spirit of the LORD, And of justice and might, To declare to Jacob his transgression And to Israel his sin.

But… on the other hand Micah is being directed by God and will be resolute in telling them the verdict that has been pronounced upon them, even when it is not what they want to hear.

Isaiah 58:1 “Cry aloud, spare not; Lift up your voice like a trumpet; Tell My people their transgression, And the house of Jacob their sins.

Micah 3:9 Now hear this, You heads of the house of Jacob And rulers of the house of Israel, Who abhor justice And pervert all equity,

Summary of chapters 2-3.

The indictment of all the leadership of both houses continues by accusing them of not being fair.

Micah 3:10 Who build up Zion with bloodshed And Jerusalem with iniquity:

They have made this place wherein God is supposed to be their foundation and they have erected a legacy of wrongful death and evil morals.

Micah 3:11 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.”

Her heads … They had descended so far as to judge unrighteously, unfairly and ungodly for the sake of money. The priest and prophets were willing to become hirelings and say what the person wanted them to say.

lean on the LORD… in spite of their departure from doing what they were supposed to be doing, they continued to believe that God would continue to fulfill His side of the agreement – of course they were sorely mistaken as we see in the final verse of this chapter.

Exodus 19:5 Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine.

Exodus 23:22 But if you indeed obey His voice and do all that I speak, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries.

Micah 3:12 Therefore because of you Zion shall be plowed like a field, Jerusalem shall become heaps of ruins, And the mountain of the temple Like the bare hills of the forest.

What a contrast to the way that God had set them up on the Promised Land and it was not only because of the leadership but also because the people followed them:

Isaiah 9:13 For the people do not turn to Him who strikes them, Nor do they seek the LORD of hosts.
Isaiah 9:14 Therefore the LORD will cut off head and tail from Israel, Palm branch and bulrush in one day.
Isaiah 9:15 The elder and honorable, he is the head; The prophet who teaches lies, he is the tail.
Isaiah 9:16 For the leaders of this people cause them to err, And those who are led by them are destroyed.
Isaiah 9:17 Therefore the Lord will have no joy in their young men, Nor have mercy on their fatherless and widows; For everyone is a hypocrite and an evildoer, And every mouth speaks folly. For all this His anger is not turned away, But His hand is stretched out still.

Chapter 4

The Coming Restoration

Micah 4:1 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 peoples shall flow to it.

mountain of the LORD’s house… God’s kingdom

Daniel 2:35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together, and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; the wind carried them away so that no trace of them was found. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.

Daniel 2:44 And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.

Shall be established … exalted… it will be above all other nations, kingdoms and peoples.

Revelation 19:16 And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.

And peoples shall flow to it….

Psalms 22:27 All the ends of the world Shall remember and turn to the LORD, And all the families of the nations Shall worship before You.
Psalms 22:28 For the kingdom is the LORD’s, And He rules over the nations.
Psalms 22:29 All the prosperous of the earth Shall eat and worship; All those who go down to the dust Shall bow before Him, Even he who cannot keep himself alive.
Psalms 22:30 A posterity shall serve Him. It will be recounted of the Lord to the next generation,
Psalms 22:31 They will come and declare His righteousness to a people who will be born, That He has done this.

Micah 4:2 Many nations 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 will teach us His ways…paths…law…word… We should realize that this is being written in the Old Testament, yet it is what will be taught in the future at the return of Christ and during the 1000 year reign on Earth over all the nations, kingdoms and peoples? When Micah is saying this to his Israelite brothers, what law did they have in mind? It is the same law (these rules for regulating our life in the best possible way) that is still in effect today and will be in the future. They will be living by every word of God at that time. This is what the surrounding nations will want to hear and learn.

Zechariah 8:22 Yes, many peoples and strong nations Shall come to seek the LORD of hosts in Jerusalem, And to pray before the LORD.’
Zechariah 8:23 “Thus says the LORD of hosts: ‘In those days ten men from every language of the nations shall grasp the sleeve of a Jewish man, saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.” ‘ “

Micah 4:3 He shall judge between many peoples, And rebuke strong nations afar off; They shall beat their swords into plowshares, And their spears into pruning hooks; Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, Neither shall they learn war anymore.

He shall judge… contrasting it with the unrighteous judgment from previous chapter

Micah 3:11 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.”

rebuke strong nations…

Joel 3:1 “For behold, in those days and at that time, When I bring back the captives of Judah and Jerusalem,
Joel 3:2 I will also gather all nations, And bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; And I will enter into judgment with them there On account of My people, My heritage Israel, Whom they have scattered among the nations; They have also divided up My land.

beat their swords into plowshares… implements of war into productive tools

Isaiah 2:2 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 all nations shall flow to it.
Isaiah 2:3 Many people 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 shall go forth the law, And the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
Isaiah 2:4 He shall judge between the nations, And rebuke many people; They shall beat their swords into plowshares, And their spears into pruning hooks; Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, Neither shall they learn war anymore.
Isaiah 2:5 O house of Jacob, come and let us walk In the light of the LORD.

Neither shall they learn war anymore…. War and warlike behavior will not be taught at any level.

But then Micah adds:

Micah 4:4 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.

everyone shall sit under his… each will have his own property

sit under his vine and under his fig tree… hearkens back to a time as it looks forward; we see that then context is still the end time.

Zechariah 3:10 In that day,’ says the LORD of hosts, ‘Everyone will invite his neighbor Under his vine and under his fig tree.’ “

no one shall make them afraid…

1 Kings 4:25 And Judah and Israel dwelt safely, each man under his vine and his fig tree, from Dan as far as Beersheba, all the days of Solomon.

It gave the people something to look forward to, a hope for a time of peace and abundance without fear from anyone anywhere…can you imagine. (Even living in good areas today there are fears and concerns and you can never let your guard fully down.)

Micah 4:5 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.

No upper case in Hebrew, so this is supposed to be for clarification: god (elohim)

Many take it to mean that the heathen/gentiles will still be steeped in paganism BUT the people God will follow the true.

KJV Micah 4:5 For all people will walk every one in the name of his god, and we will walk in the name of the LORD our God for ever and ever.

The problem with the way that the NKJV has it is that the second part of the sentence is set up in opposition to the first. The KJV renders it correctly with the word “and.” So the two clauses are to better considered together and a continuation of the thought. In addition to this is, during the millennium there will not be the worship of false/pagan gods – it will not be allowed.

Zechariah 14:16 And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.

God’s plan is to bring many sons to glory making them brothers and sisters in the Family of God. Christ was the first born among many other brethren. We will be transformed into the image of God as a new and immortal spirit creation at resurrection.

[Becoming a Member of God’s Family]

As a part of our responsibilities, we will be given charge and rule cities;

Revelation 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.

Revelation 20:6 Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.

Luke 19:16 Then came the first, saying, ‘Master, your mina has earned ten minas.’
Luke 19:17 And he said to him, ‘Well done, good servant; because you were faithful in a very little, have authority over ten cities.’

For all people walk each in the name of his god…

Isaiah 30:20 And though the Lord gives you The bread of adversity and the water of affliction, Yet your teachers will not be moved into a corner anymore, But your eyes shall see your teachers.
Isaiah 30:21 Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” Whenever you turn to the right hand Or whenever you turn to the left.

The incredible meaning of this verse is that those living during the 1000 year reign of Christ on Earth will be under the specific leadership of a recently resurrected member of the God Family while everyone will be ultimately under the authority of the Father then Son.

Micah 4:6 “In that day,” says the LORD, “I will assemble the lame, I will gather the outcast And those whom I have afflicted;

This is how the 1000 year reign of Christ on Earth begins – with recovery of His people (through :8)

afflicted… punished

Micah 4:7 I will make the lame a remnant, And the outcast a strong nation; So the LORD will reign over them in Mount Zion From now on, even forever.

Remnant… those of His people that make it through the Great Tribulation and Day of the Lord.

outcast… restore them to their former ascendancy.

Micah 4:8 And you, O tower of the flock, The stronghold of the daughter of Zion, To you shall it come, Even the former dominion shall come, The kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem.”

tower of the flock… possible reference to David?

Micah 4:9 Now why do you cry aloud? Is there no king in your midst? Has your counselor perished? For pangs have seized you like a woman in labor.

Difficult times are coming (Micah 4:9-10);

Is there no king in your midst? Has your counselor perished?… They had these men to lead them, but it was not going to be enough – their trust should have been in God.

Dual in nature in light of the context of the end-time verses both before and after it.

Micah 4:10 Be in pain, and labor to bring forth, O daughter of Zion, Like a woman in birth pangs. For now you shall go forth from the city, You shall dwell in the field, And to Babylon you shall go. There you shall be delivered; There the LORD will redeem you From the hand of your enemies.

Be in pain… Like a woman in birth pangs.

to Babylon you shall go… Prophecy of captivity (~100 years later).

the LORD will redeem you From the hand of your enemies… God will not leave them there forever.

Micah 4:11 Now also many nations have gathered against you, Who say, “Let her be defiled, And let our eye look upon Zion.”

The enemies of God’s people will look upon them and think now is a good time take and advantage of them.

Micah 4:12 But they do not know the thoughts of the LORD, Nor do they understand His counsel; For He will gather them like sheaves to the threshing floor.

Zechariah 12:5 And the governors of Judah shall say in their heart, ‘The inhabitants of Jerusalem are my strength in the LORD of hosts, their God.’ (in contradiction to the way they were thinking in Micah 4:9)
Zechariah 12:6 In that day I will make the governors of Judah like a firepan in the woodpile, and like a fiery torch in the sheaves; they shall devour all the surrounding peoples on the right hand and on the left, but Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place—Jerusalem.

The leaders will recognize that God will use the people, BUT it is God that is doing it.

Their enemies will go up in smoke as we say today.

Micah 4:13 “Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion; For I will make your horn iron, And I will make your hooves bronze; You shall beat in pieces many peoples; I will consecrate their gain to the LORD, And their substance to the Lord of the whole earth.”

God will use His people to defeat those that come against Jerusalem. It seems likely to refer to Judah’s (and Israel’s) participation in defeating powers at the time of Christ’s return (see Zechariah 12:6; 14:14) possibly after the redeeming of the remnant from captivity.

horn… strength and power of their rule

Zechariah 14:14 Judah also will fight at Jerusalem. And the wealth of all the surrounding nations Shall be gathered together: Gold, silver, and apparel in great abundance.

Zechariah 12:3 And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it.
Zechariah 12:4 In that day,” says the LORD, “I will strike every horse with confusion, and its rider with madness; I will open My eyes on the house of Judah, and will strike every horse of the peoples with blindness.

States that Judah will fight at the time of the final battle, then seizing the spoil of the defeated enemies. Yet ultimate victory will come not through force of arms but through the awesome, supernatural intervention of Jesus Christ already mentioned.

Chapter 5

Micah 5:1 Now gather yourself in troops, O daughter of troops; He has laid siege against us; They will strike the judge of Israel with a rod on the cheek.

Appears most like a reference Babylonians/Chaldeans being allowed by God to now overtake Judah and also to Zedekiah being punished

Jeremiah 52:8 But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king, and they overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. All his army was scattered from him.
Jeremiah 52:9 So they took the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of Hamath, and he pronounced judgment on him.
Jeremiah 52:10 Then the king of Babylon killed the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes. And he killed all the princes of Judah in Riblah.
Jeremiah 52:11 He also put out the eyes of Zedekiah; and the king of Babylon bound him in bronze fetters, took him to Babylon, and put him in prison till the day of his death.

Micah 5:2 “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 in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting.”

But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah… This is a Messianic scripture foretelling the birthplace of Jesus. Ephrath was the ancient name of Bethlehem.

Genesis 35:19 So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).

Matthew 2:4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
Matthew 2:5 So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:
Matthew 2:6 ‘BUT YOU, BETHLEHEM, IN THE LAND OF JUDAH, ARE NOT THE LEAST AMONG THE RULERS OF JUDAH; FOR OUT OF YOU SHALL COME A RULER WHO WILL SHEPHERD MY PEOPLE ISRAEL.’ “

From everlasting… This can only refer to the Son of God.

John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:2 He was in the beginning with God.

Hebrews 7:3 without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, remains a priest continually.

Micah 5:3 Therefore He shall give them up, Until the time that she who is in labor has given birth; Then the remnant of His brethren Shall return to the children of Israel.

Therefore He shall give them up… Christ will give Jacob (Israel and Judah) to their enemies in the end-time.

she who is in labor… church.

has given birth… born again.

remnant of His brethren… the rest of the literal brothers of Christ.

Shall return… with Christ at His return.

to the children of Israel…. with them into the Millennium and promised land.

Micah 5:4 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;

He shall stand… Christ shall rule and govern them in the Millennial reign.

Revelation 11:17 saying: “We give You thanks, O Lord God Almighty, The One who is and who was and who is to come, Because You have taken Your great power and reigned.

Zechariah 14:9 And the LORD shall be King over all the earth. In that day it shall be “The LORD is one,” And His name one.

Micah 5:5 And this One shall be peace. When the Assyrian comes into our land, And when he treads in our palaces, Then we will raise against him Seven shepherds and eight princely men.

When the Assyrian comes into our land… This could be pointing to Judah repelling Assyria (Sennacherib) during its invasion of Israel, but it seems to be primarily referencing future events – it appears as though they will be in the land of Israel and then the Jews (seems to be speaking to them primarily here) will drive them out.

2 Thessalonians 2:3 Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition,
2 Thessalonians 2:4 who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.

Zechariah 14:2 For I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem; The city shall be taken, The houses rifled, And the women ravished. Half of the city shall go into captivity, But the remnant of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
Zechariah 14:3 Then the LORD will go forth And fight against those nations, As He fights in the day of battle.
Zechariah 14:4 And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, Which faces Jerusalem on the east. And the Mount of Olives shall be split in two, From east to west, Making a very large valley; Half of the mountain shall move toward the north And half of it toward the south.

Zechariah 14:14 Judah also will fight at Jerusalem. And the wealth of all the surrounding nations Shall be gathered together: Gold, silver, and apparel in great abundance.

Seven shepherds and eight princely men…. This could be a Hebrew expression of emphais: seven, “but wait there’s more” (eight). Also, even though they were few in number, they would prevail because God was with them and on their side.

Micah 5:6 They shall waste with the sword the land of Assyria, And the land of Nimrod at its entrances; Thus He shall deliver us from the Assyrian, When he comes into our land And when he treads within our borders.

Judah will not only escape the enslavement of Assyria, but with the help of God will kick them out of the Promised Land and resoundingly defeat them in their home land of Assyria

Micah 5:7 Then the remnant of Jacob Shall be in the midst of many peoples, Like dew from the LORD, Like showers on the grass, That tarry for no man Nor wait for the sons of men.

the remnant of Jacob… in this case it appears to be Judah (tribes of Judah Benjamin and Levi) though it could be both Israel and Judah since they are going to be scattered among many nations, he seems to be specifically addressing Judah at this time.

in the midst of many peoples… captivity.

Isaiah 11:11 It shall come to pass in that day That the Lord shall set His hand again the second time To recover the remnant of His people who are left, From Assyria and Egypt, From Pathros and Cush, From Elam and Shinar, From Hamath and the islands of the sea.
Isaiah 11:12 He will set up a banner for the nations, And will assemble the outcasts of Israel, And gather together the dispersed of Judah From the four corners of the earth.

Dew and showers… temporary nature of their stay in captivity as guided and orchestrated by God – of course not being subject to man.

Micah 5:8 And the remnant of Jacob Shall be among the Gentiles, In the midst of many peoples, Like a lion among the beasts of the forest, Like a young lion among flocks of sheep, Who, if he passes through, Both treads down and tears in pieces, And none can deliver.

Micah 5:9 Your hand shall be lifted against your adversaries, And all your enemies shall be cut off.

Judah will have retribution against their captors.

Micah 5:10 “And it shall be in that day,” says the LORD, “That I will cut off your horses from your midst And destroy your chariots.

Speaking to the Gentiles in the next step in the plan after the return of Christ.

Micah 5:15 And I will execute vengeance in anger and fury On the nations that have not heard.”

Micah 5:11 I will cut off the cities of your land And throw down all your strongholds.
Micah 5:12 I will cut off sorceries from your hand, And you shall have no soothsayers.
Micah 5:13 Your carved images I will also cut off, And your sacred pillars from your midst; You shall no more worship the work of your hands;
Micah 5:14 I will pluck your wooden images from your midst; Thus I will destroy your cities.

They were completely into false religion, but this will not be allowed after the return of Christ.

Micah 5:15 And I will execute vengeance in anger and fury On the nations that have not heard.”

It seems that the tools of vengeance (people – usually Gentiles) that God uses to punish His people always go astray or go too far and so God has to in turn chastise them.

Chapter 6

Repentance and turning from sin.

Micah 6:1 Hear now what the LORD says: “Arise, plead your case before the mountains, And let the hills hear your voice.

This is the third and final time that “hear” is used as a natural division in the book (see also Micah 1:2; 3:1)

plead your case… Why are you doing what you are doing? Taking it up like a court proceeding, because God has something against them:

mountains and hills… They will hear what you have to say, but then as we see they will witness against you:

Deuteronomy 30:19 I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live;

Micah 6:2 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.

the LORD has a complaint… the tenor of this chapter is reflected in this statement.

Here is the reason that I do not believe that the mountains and hills are kingdoms, nations or peoples:

strong foundations of the earth… This is also called on to hear like the mountains, except this terminology is used to show the power and work of God in creating the Earth in an inhabitable way for mankind to live upon it.

Israel… seems to be directed at the Northern kingdom of Israel. All things being equal, this being at the end of the book and it being chronological this would apply to the end time since Israel had already gone in captivity the first time. Even it is out of order this is the typical modus operandi of the Israelites as a whole – they would go astray and get punished and then start walking the straight and narrow. This is the case now and will be so in the future.

Micah 6:3 “O My people, what have I done to you? And how have I wearied you? Testify against Me.

God kept His end of the bargain; He hasn’t done anything wrong (and He lists many of the ways if which He done what He said He was going to do; also in the form of obvious rhetorical questions);

Micah 6:4 For I brought you up from the land of Egypt, I redeemed you from the house of bondage; And I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.

I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam…. God gave them Moses as their civil leader who brought the law of God to them; Aaron was the high priest; and Miriam a prophetess. None of them were perfect, but they were a good example of how to be leaders in their respective jobs. God gave His people, Israel, the best start possible.

Micah 6:5 O My people, remember now What Balak king of Moab counseled, And what Balaam the son of Beor answered him, From Acacia Grove to Gilgal, That you may know the righteousness of the LORD.”

Numbers 23:11 Then Balak said to Balaam, “What have you done to me? I took you to curse my enemies, and look, you have blessed them bountifully!”

Numbers 23:25 Then Balak said to Balaam, “Neither curse them at all, nor bless them at all!”

Numbers 24:10 Then Balak’s anger was aroused against Balaam, and he struck his hands together; and Balak said to Balaam, “I called you to curse my enemies, and look, you have bountifully blessed them these three times!

KJV: from Shittim unto Gilgal… Shittim is the plural of acacia tree, hence the grove in the NKJV. Here God is saying, Remember how many times I saved you between Acacia to Gilgal – and this was in spite of the things that you or others did:

Numbers 31:16 Look, these women caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to trespass against the LORD in the incident of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of the LORD.

Numbers 25:1 Now Israel remained in Acacia Grove, and the people began to commit harlotry with the women of Moab.
Numbers 25:2 They invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods.
Numbers 25:3 So Israel was joined to Baal of Peor, and the anger of the LORD was aroused against Israel.

Moses had struck the rock in Numbers 20 and would not be allowed to into the Promised Land, so God gave them another upright leader in Joshua. He took the Israelites over the Jordan river into Gilgal, where the covenant with God was renewed and they kept the Passover for the first time in the Land of Israel. This is God’s answer to the question in Micah 6:3 “what have I done to you? And how have I wearied you,” He has not done this to them, but rather He has done just the opposite and helped them at every turn.

What Does God Require

Micah 6:6 With what shall I come before the LORD, And bow myself before the High God? Shall I come before Him with burnt offerings, With calves a year old?
Micah 6:7 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?

Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression… They actually committed this most egregious sin on occasion that certain gentile nations did frequently. Of course that being said, in the US we have been sacrificing children, not to God but in the name of our own corrupt morality, by way of abortions.

2 Kings 16:3 But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel; indeed he made his son pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the nations whom the LORD had cast out from before the children of Israel.

Does God prefer sacrifices? It is important to understand this about God:

Psalms 40:6 Sacrifice and offering You did not desire; My ears You have opened. Burnt offering and sin offering You did not require.

Hebrews 10:5 Therefore, when He came into the world, He said: “SACRIFICE AND OFFERING YOU DID NOT DESIRE, BUT A BODY YOU HAVE PREPARED FOR ME.
Hebrews 10:6 IN BURNT OFFERINGS AND SACRIFICES FOR SIN YOU HAD NO PLEASURE.
Hebrews 10:7 THEN I SAID, ‘BEHOLD, I HAVE COME— IN THE VOLUME OF THE BOOK IT IS WRITTEN OF ME— TO DO YOUR WILL, O GOD.’ ”
Hebrews 10:8 Previously saying, “SACRIFICE AND OFFERING, BURNT OFFERINGS, AND OFFERINGS FOR SIN YOU DID NOT DESIRE, NOR HAD PLEASURE IN THEM” (which are offered according to the law),
Hebrews 10:9 then He said, “BEHOLD, I HAVE COME TO DO YOUR WILL, O GOD.” He takes away the first that He may establish the second.

Micah 6:8 He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God?

These are the more important things:

Matthew 23:23 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.

Judge yourself that what you are doing is according to the law of God; show grace to others in their walk with God; and keep the right perspective in your relationship with God.

Micah 6:9 The LORD’s voice cries to the city— Wisdom shall see Your name: “Hear the rod! Who has appointed it?

The LORD’s voice cries to the city… there continues to be a warning – it comes from the prophets, ministry, God’s messengers – all who are watchmen.

Ezekiel 33:2 “Son of man, speak to the children of your people, and say to them: ‘When I bring the sword upon a land, and the people of the land take a man from their territory and make him their watchman,
Ezekiel 33:3 when he sees the sword coming upon the land, if he blows the trumpet and warns the people,
Ezekiel 33:4 then whoever hears the sound of the trumpet and does not take warning, if the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be on his own head.
Ezekiel 33:5 He heard the sound of the trumpet, but did not take warning; his blood shall be upon himself. But he who takes warning will save his life.

Wisdom shall see Your name… So if you are wise or have wisdom, you will see God’s involvement.

“Hear the rod! Who has appointed it?… here is how the wise man would view it:

Job 5:17 “Behold, happy is the man whom God corrects; Therefore do not despise the chastening of the Almighty.

Job 10:2 I will say to God, ‘Do not condemn me; Show me why You contend with me.

Micah 6:10 Are there yet the treasures of wickedness In the house of the wicked, And the short measure that is an abomination?
Micah 6:11 Shall I count pure those with the wicked scales, And with the bag of deceitful weights?
Micah 6:12 For her rich men are full of violence, Her inhabitants have spoken lies, And their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.

This is not the way to get ahead, through deceit. God can bless if we live correctly.

Punishments for Disobedience

Micah 6:13 “Therefore I will also make you sick by striking you, By making you desolate because of your sins.
Micah 6:14 You shall eat, but not be satisfied; Hunger shall be in your midst. You may carry some away, but shall not save them; And what you do rescue I will give over to the sword.
Micah 6:15 “You shall sow, but not reap; You shall tread the olives, but not anoint yourselves with oil; And make sweet wine, but not drink wine.

Disease/Pestilence, Famine, war (foreshadows Revelation 6 and worse times in the future); Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28.

Leviticus 26:25 And I will bring a sword against you that will execute the vengeance of the covenant; when you are gathered together within your cities I will send pestilence among you; and you shall be delivered into the hand of the enemy.

Leviticus 26:26 When I have cut off your supply of bread, ten women shall bake your bread in one oven, and they shall bring back your bread by weight, and you shall eat and not be satisfied.

Cause and effect for disobedience:

Leviticus 26:14 ‘But if you do not obey Me, and do not observe all these commandments,
Leviticus 26:15 and if you despise My statutes, or if your soul abhors My judgments, so that you do not perform all My commandments, but break My covenant,

This is standard whether in ancient times, modern times or in the future.

Micah 6:16 For the statutes of Omri are kept; All the works of Ahab’s house are done; And you walk in their counsels, That I may make you a desolation, And your inhabitants a hissing. Therefore you shall bear the reproach of My people.”

statutes of Omri… walked in the ways of Jeroboam; my way not God’s:

1 Kings 16:25 Omri did evil in the eyes of the LORD, and did worse than all who were before him.

1 Kings 16:26 For he walked in all the ways of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in his sin by which he had made Israel sin, provoking the LORD God of Israel to anger with their idols.

…and what did Jereboam do:

1 Kings 14:7 Go, tell Jeroboam, ‘Thus says the LORD God of Israel: “Because I exalted you from among the people, and made you ruler over My people Israel,

1 Kings 14:9 but you have done more evil than all who were before you, for you have gone and made for yourself other gods and molded images to provoke Me to anger, and have cast Me behind your back—1 Kings 14:10 therefore behold! I will bring disaster on the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam every male in Israel, bond and free; I will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as one takes away refuse until it is all gone.

1 Kings 14:16 And He will give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, who sinned and who made Israel sin.”

1 Kings 12:28-32; 13:33-34; 14:9-10, 16

Chapter 7

Micah 7:1 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.

They were not fruitful.

Micah 7:2 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.

Will I find faith when I come? (Luke 18:8).

Micah 7:3 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.

with both hands… One is not enough.

bribes… Like the religious leaders, now we see it among civil leadership

Micah 3:11 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.”

Micah 7:4 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.

Watchman… The warnings that he has been giving them is coming to fruition;

Ezekiel 33:10 “Therefore you, O son of man, say to the house of Israel: ‘Thus you say, “If our transgressions and our sins lie upon us, and we pine away in them, how can we then live?” ‘
Ezekiel 33:11 Say to them: ‘As I live,’ says the Lord GOD, ‘I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn, turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?’

punishment… Micah 6:13–15 Disease/Pestilence, Famine, war and naturally death or enslavement.

Do not Trust Man

Micah 7:5 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 [wife].

Micah 7:6 For son dishonors 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.

Christ quotes this verse and expounds on it some:

Matthew 10:34 “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword.
Matthew 10:35 For I have come to ‘SET A MAN AGAINST HIS FATHER, A DAUGHTER AGAINST HER MOTHER, AND A DAUGHTER-IN-LAW AGAINST HER MOTHER-IN-LAW’;
Matthew 10:36 and ‘A MAN’S ENEMIES WILL BE THOSE OF HIS OWN HOUSEHOLD.’
Matthew 10:37 He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.
Matthew 10:38 And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.
Matthew 10:39 He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.

Waiting on the Salvation of the Lord

Micah 7:7 Therefore I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation; My God will hear me.

Micah 7:8 Do not rejoice over me, my enemy; When I fall, I will arise; When I sit in darkness, The LORD will be a light to me.

We can hope and wait on the Lord – we can always trust God. God can and will be there for us in times of trouble. Lamentations 3:24-26 Hope and quietly wait on the Lord

Micah 7:9 I will bear the indignation of the LORD, Because I have sinned against Him, Until He pleads my case And executes justice for me. He will bring me forth to the light; I will see His righteousness.

I have sinned against Him… Sin is ultimately against God because He is the one that commanded us not to do it in the first place.

I will bear the indignation of the LORD… so of course there are consequences for our sinning

Until He pleads my case And executes justice for me… in the beginning they/we were pleading our own case inadequately, unjustly and ineffectively, then God made a case against us to convict us and now here is the interesting part, after our punishment, admission of guilt and repentance, He is now on our side pleading our case.

Acts 3:19 Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord,

He forgives us our sins and blots them out as though they never were.

Micah 7:10 Then she who is my enemy will see, And shame will cover her who said to me, “Where is the LORD your God?” My eyes will see her; Now she will be trampled down Like mud in the streets.

she…her… appears to be all those that are troubling the people of God in the end-time; this would effectively be the beast power and Babylonian system – all of those that are participating in it.

Joel 2:17 Let the priests, who minister to the LORD, Weep between the porch and the altar; Let them say, “Spare Your people, O LORD, And do not give Your heritage to reproach, That the nations should rule over them. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’ ”
Joel 2:18 Then the LORD will be zealous for His land, And pity His people.
Joel 2:19 The LORD will answer and say to His people, “Behold, I will send you grain and new wine and oil, And you will be satisfied by them; I will no longer make you a reproach among the nations.
Joel 2:20 “But I will remove far from you the northern army, And will drive him away into a barren and desolate land, With his face toward the eastern sea And his back toward the western sea; His stench will come up, And his foul odor will rise, Because he has done monstrous things.”

Micah 7:11 In the day when your walls are to be built, In that day the decree shall go far and wide.

When God gathers and restores His people.

Micah 7:12 In that day they shall come to you From Assyria and the fortified cities, From the fortress to the River, From sea to sea, And mountain to mountain.

Egypt to Euphrates

Isaiah 11:11–12 It shall come to pass in that day That the Lord shall set His hand again the second time To recover the remnant of His people who are left, From Assyria and Egypt, From Pathros [either a part of Egypt, and/or India] and Cush [North Africa, Ethiopia, Sri Lanka and India], From Elam [Iran] and Shinar [that is the former Babylon, now Iraq], From Hamath [either a region in ancient Babylon, or a designation for Ham, whose descendants are now among the Egyptians, Arabs, Ethiopians, North Africans, the Palestinians and the Libyans] and the islands of the sea.” He will set up a banner for the nations, And will assemble the outcasts of Israel, And gather together the dispersed of Judah From the four corners of the earth….

Micah 7:13 Yet the land shall be desolate Because of those who dwell in it, And for the fruit of their deeds.

Devastation will come upon them for their evil works.

Micah 7:14 Shepherd Your people with Your staff, The flock of Your heritage, Who dwell solitarily in a woodland, In the midst of Carmel; Let them feed in Bashan and Gilead, As in days of old.

Praying for God to lead them out of the forest into the surrounding fields.

Let them feed in Bashan and Gilead… land in Israel known for rich and lush pastures

As in days of old… let them feed freely, God will protect them and look over them

Micah 7:15 “As in the days when you came out of the land of Egypt, I will show them wonders.”

Miracles will be done again to bring them out of captivity again.

Micah 7:16 The nations shall see and be ashamed of all their might; They shall put their hand over their mouth; Their ears shall be deaf.

They will finally fear God when they see what He does.

Micah 7:17 They shall lick the dust like a serpent; They shall crawl from their holes like snakes of the earth. They shall be afraid of the LORD our God, And shall fear because of You.

This will happen at the time of the second exodus.

For Day of Atonement for Jews

Micah 7:18 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.

Who is a God like You… This is the meaning of the name Micah.

pardoning iniquity… This is the answer to the sin question.

delights in mercy… is this the wrathful God? He wants to forgive us – because we have changed/repented.

Micah 7:19 He will again have compassion on us, And will subdue our iniquities. You will cast all our sins Into the depths of the sea.

Psalms 103:10 He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor punished us according to our iniquities.
Psalms 103:11 For as the heavens are high above the earth, So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;
Psalms 103:12 As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us.

Jeremiah 31:33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
Jeremiah 31:34 No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”

Micah 7:20 You will give truth to Jacob And mercy to Abraham, Which You have sworn to our fathers From days of old.

Ends with the message being for Jacob (both houses of Israel and Judah) on a very positive note, that there will be a time when the word of God will be written in their hearts, it will become a part of who and what they are and also a time of mercy and forgiveness and the washing away of sins.

God has to go through a process with us, where He gets our attention and convicts us of a better way AND in the end this is where it leads – a close and meaningful relationship with God as He promised.