Micah 5

Micah’s second message is at the heart of the book and focuses on Israel’s future. First, Micah rebuked the leaders of the nation for their sinful conduct, which God would judge (3:1–12), and he outlined the events that would usher in the promised kingdom (4:1—5:15). Knowing that God has such a glorious future planned for their nation should have motivated the leaders to turn from their sins and obey the Lord. “Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure” (1 John 3: niv). Alas, they didn’t even pay attention to the sermon!

God, men of truth, hating covetousness” (Ex. 18: nkjv). Micah’s contemporary Amos wrote, “Seek good and not evil, that you may live. … Hate evil, love good; establish justice in the gate” (Amos 5:14–15 nkjv; see Prov. 8:13). The city gate was the place where the elders met to settle disputes and make official decisions (Ruth 4:1ff.). If there was no justice in the cities, there could be no justice in the land.

The description of these rulers’ actions reminds you more of ravenous beasts than of human beings. Instead of being faithful shepherds who protected the flock (Mic. 2:12; 7:14), they attacked the sheep, skinned them alive, butchered them, chopped them up, and made stew out of them! But the day would come when these wolves in shepherd’s clothing would cry out for God’s mercy, but no mercy would be given. “Then my anger shall be kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide my face from them, and they shall be devoured” (Deut. 31:17).

Micah then turned to rebuke the false prophets (Mic. 3:5–8), whose lies made it easy for the corrupt officials to carry on their evil deeds. “An astonishing and horrible thing has been committed in the land: the prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule by their own power; and My people love to have it so” (Jer. 5:30–31 nkjv). When God is left out of human government, it’s easy for officials to use their authority selfishly to exploit the people.

As long as you gave them something to eat and drink (Mic. 2:11), the prophets would declare whatever kind of message you wanted to hear. Like the false prophets in Jeremiah’s day, they announced peace when war and desolation were just around the corner (Jer. 6:13–14; 8:10–11). But the time would come when these men who claimed to see the light would be shrouded in darkness, and everybody would know that they were counterfeits. They would cry out to the Lord, but He would not answer.

God’s true prophet is described in Micah 3:8: this prophet is filled with the Spirit, faithfully proclaiming God’s message and unafraid of what people might say or do. Micah fearlessly told the people their sins and warned them that judgment was coming, while the false prophets tickled the people’s ears and told them what they wanted to hear.

Few men are as pitiable as those who claim to have a call from God yet tailor their sermons to please others. Their first rule is “Don’t rock the boat”; their second is “Give people what they want.” But a true servant of God declares God’s message regardless of whether the people like it or not. He’d like to be a peacemaker, but sometimes he has to be a troublemaker. No wonder Jeremiah cried out, “Alas, my mother, that you gave me birth, a man with whom the whole land strives and contends!” (Jer. 15: niv)

Micah also addressed all the leaders of the land (Mic. 3:9–12)—the rulers, the priests, and the prophets— and accused them of numerous sins: committing injustice, distorting the truth, murdering innocent people, accepting bribes, and while doing these evil deeds, claiming to be serving the Lord! “We are depending on the Lord,” they said. “Is He not among us? Then nothing evil can happen to us.” It was hypocrisy of the worst kind.

Their ignorance of the Lord’s character and the terms of His covenant gave them this false confidence. “Since we’re Jews,” they reasoned, “God’s chosen people and sharers in His covenant, the Lord will never permit anything evil to happen to us. Even if we sin, He will never abandon us to the enemy.” Their thinking was not unlike that of people today who “profess that they know God; but in works they deny him” (Titus 1:16).

Any theology that makes it easy for us to sin is not biblical theology. Had the rulers, prophets, and priests read and pondered Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28—30, they would have discovered that the God of the covenant is a holy God who will not countenance high-handed sin. They would also have learned that the blessings of the covenant depended on their obeying the conditions of the covenant, and that God punishes His people when they disobey.

What would be the result of the leaders’ flouting God’s law? Their Holy City and temple would be destroyed, and thousands of Jewish people would be exiled to Babylon (Mic. 4:10). God would rather destroy the city and the beautiful temple than allow His people to defile His property by their sins. The destruction of Jerusalem in 606–586 is a reminder to God’s people that when God says, “Be holy, for I am holy,” He really means it!

“For the sins of her prophets, and the iniquities of her priests” (Lam. 4:13) the nation was defeated and the city and temple were destroyed. That’s why the prophet opened his message by rebuking the spiritual leaders of the land, not the unbelievers. If Micah were ministering among us today, he would probably visit denominational offices, pastors’ conferences, Bible colleges, and seminaries to warn Christian leaders that privilege brings responsibility and responsibility brings accountability.

Micah moved from the destruction of Jerusalem (606–586) to “the last days,” when there will be a new Jerusalem and a rebuilt temple at the heart of the righteous kingdom of Messiah. The period known as “the last days” began with the ministry of Christ (Heb. 1:1–2) and it climaxes with His return to establish His kingdom on earth. The Lord gave His people four wonderful promises.

A promised kingdom (4:1–8). The situation of the two little Jewish kingdoms was hopeless when Micah delivered his messages. Assyria was about to pounce on Israel and put an end to that nation, and then the Assyrian army would ravage Judah and almost take Jerusalem. When the outlook is grim, try the uplook. Thus the prophet encouraged the people to look ahead to what God had promised for His chosen people.

God promised that the nation would be united and the people returned to their land. Jerusalem would become the world’s most important city, the temple would be rebuilt, and the true worship of Jehovah would be restored (see Ezek. 40—48). Instead of the Gentile nations fighting the Jews, they would “stream” to Jerusalem to worship God and hear His Word. There would be peace among the nations because they would obey God’s truth, submit to the Messiah’s rule, and destroy their instruments of war.

Every Jewish family wanted to achieve what Micah described in 4:4: a pleasant home with a productive garden in a peaceful land (see 1 Kings 4:25; Isa. 36:16). But even more than peace and economic stability was the blessing of knowing the Lord and obeying Him (Mic. 4:5). This verse doesn’t refer to the future, because during the kingdom Age all the nations will worship Jehovah. It was an affirmation of faith on the part of the true believers, the remnant in the land: “The other nations may now be serving their own gods, which are false gods; but we will walk in the name of Jehovah, the true God, and obey Him alone.”

Though the remnant of Jews might be small, weak, and lame, God will gather them from all the nations and make a mighty army out of them (vv. 6–7a). Messiah will rule over them, and Jerusalem will become the glorious capital city for His kingdom. Jerusalem had once been David’s capital city, the shepherd–king who cared for the flock (Ps. 78:67–72), but after the death of Josiah, not one of his four successors was a godly man. Messiah, the Son of David, will one day reign from Jerusalem and care for His flock as a faithful Shepherd–King.

A promised deliverance (4:9–10). The city of Jerusalem is called “daughter of Zion” (cities are usually classified as feminine), a term of endearment that assured the people of God’s loving care no matter what might happen. But the city was in travail, like a woman with child, because the enemy had arrived and was capturing the people and taking them to Babylon. However, the exile wasn’t the end; for God will redeem a remnant and bring them back to the land.

Had the leaders listened to the prophet Jeremiah and peacefully surrendered to the Babylonians, they would have saved the city and the temple, but they resisted God’s will, and their city and temple were ruined. However, Jeremiah promised that the exile would last only seventy years, and then the remnant could return and rebuild the city and the temple.

A promised conquest (4:11–13). Once again, the prophet looked down the centuries to the end times and saw his people being attacked by many Gentile nations, all of them gloating over Israel because they are so sure of defeating the Jews (see Zech. 12:1–9; 14:1–11). The nations are sure of victory because they ignore Scripture and don’t know God’s plans for His people (Jer. 29:11).

Israel will look weak and defenseless, but the Lord will make their soldiers sharp threshing instruments to “harvest” the nations (Rev. 14:14–20). God will give them “horns” (a symbol of power) and “hoofs” so that they will have both power and speed as they attack their enemies. This great battle is usually called “the Battle of Armageddon,” although that phrase is not found in Scripture (Rev. 16:16; 19:17–21). When the battle is over, the victorious Jewish army will devote all the spoils to the service of the Lord.

A promised King (5:1–5a). Now Micah looks ahead to the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem. So many soldiers are encamped around Jerusalem that Micah calls her “the city [daughter] of troops.” When King Zedekiah and his officers see that their situation is hopeless, they try to escape, but the Babylonians catch up with them and capture them (2 Kings 25:1–7). Of course, they humiliate the king by striking him with a rod across his face. Then they kill his sons, put out his eyes, bind him, and take him to Babylon.

The fact that Micah 5: is in contrast to verse 1 (“But, thou, Bethlehem”) is another proof that verse 1 is not speaking about Jesus; for verses 2–5 definitely refer to Messiah. God selected the “little town of Bethlehem” as the place where the King of the Jews was to be born. It was this prophecy that the priests shared with the magi who came to Jerusalem looking for the King (Matt. 2:1–12).

Bethlehem (“house of bread”) has an interesting history. Jacob’s favorite wife, Rachel, died near Bethlehem when she gave birth to Benjamin, and she was buried nearby (Gen. 35:16–20). Matthew cites this when he reports the slaying of the innocent children by Herod (Matt. 2:16–18; see Jer. 31:15). In her pain, Rachel named her son Ben-oni, which means “son of my sorrow”; but Jacob renamed the boy, calling him Benjamin, “son of my right hand.” These two names remind us of our Lord’s suffering and glory, the cross and the throne at the Father’s right hand.

Ruth and Naomi came to Bethlehem; there Boaz fell in love with Ruth and married her. Ruth is an ancestor of the Messiah (Matt. 1:5). Of course, David was Bethlehem’s greatest son; and it was through David’s family that the promised Messiah would be born (2 Sam. 7; Matt. 1:1; Luke 1:26–27; Rom. 1:3). The Jews knew that their Messiah would come from Bethlehem (John 7:42).

In this prophecy, Micah reveals a number of important facts about the Messiah. To begin with, He is eternal God, for His “goings out are from old … from days of eternity” (see niv margin). Jesus stepped out of eternity into human history, sent by the Father to die for the sins of the world (1 John 4:14). But He is also truly a man, for He is born as a human child. We have here the miracle of the Incarnation (John 1:14).

You would think that the very Son of God would come to a great city like Athens or Jerusalem, but He chose to be born in a humble stable (or cave) in Bethlehem. But the day would come when He would be glorified and take His throne in heaven; and one day, He shall return to be Ruler over His people.

However, before He can stand as a Shepherd and care for His flock, His own people must reject Him. Between the cross and the kingdom Age, Israel will be “given up” by the Lord until the time when Jesus returns and the nation is “born” into her kingdom (see Isa. 66:8). This King will reign to the ends of the earth and will bring peace to all nations. Today, of course, Christ gives peace to all who will come to Him by faith (Matt. 11:28–30; Rom. 5:1).

Micah presented an encouraging scenario to the people, but they didn’t seem to grasp the significance; for if they had, they would have turned to the Lord in gratitude and repentance. Whenever a prophet foretold the future, it was to awaken the people to their responsibilities in the present. Bible prophecy isn’t entertainment for the curious; it’s encouragement for the serious.

As he continued to view the distant scene, Micah announced that Israel’s future enemies would be defeated (vv. 5b–6), the Jewish remnant would be blessed (vv. 7–9), and the nation would be purged of its sins (vv. 10–15).

The enemy defeated (Mic. 5:5b–6). “The Assyrian” named in verse 5 isn’t the Assyrian army of Micah’s day, for the Jews in that day certainly didn’t defeat Assyria and rule over her land. The Assyrians soundly defeated Israel, and the land of Israel was ruined. “The Assyrian” is another way of saying “the enemy,” and here it refers to Israel’s enemies in the last days when all nations will gather against her (Zech. 10:10–11; 12:9; 14:1–3).

The phrase “seven shepherds … eight leaders” is a way of saying “many shepherds, many leaders,” and is similar to the repeated statement of Amos “for three transgressions … and for four” (Amos 1:3, 6, 9, etc.). When the enemy attacks in the last days, God will raise up leaders to face the enemy, just as He had raised up the judges and heroes like David. But Micah makes it clear that God is the Deliverer who will enable Israel to defeat her enemies and rule over their lands. The “he” of Micah 5: is the “ruler” of verse 2.

The remnant blessed (vv. 7–9). Though small in number, the Jewish remnant of the last days will experience great help from the Lord as they face their enemies. Micah used two similes to illustrate this blessing: the refreshing dew from heaven and the conquering strength of the lion. God will enable His people to overcome like lions and then bring fruitfulness to the world like the dew that watered Israel’s crops (Ps. 133:3). Israel will triumph over her enemies through the power of the Lord.

The nation purged (vv. 10–15). In Micah’s day, both Israel and Judah were guilty of sins that violated God’s law and grieved God’s heart. Time after time, He had sent messengers to the people to denounce their sins and warn of impending judgment, but the people wouldn’t listen (2 Chron. 36:14–21). In the last days, Israel will return to her land in unbelief and practice these same sins. But God will purge the land and prepare them for a new life in the kingdom. They will see their Messiah, trust Him, and be saved (Zech. 12:10— 13:1).

God will destroy all their military defenses, the things that they trusted instead of trusting the Lord. He will end their traffic with demonic powers and eliminate all idolatry from the land (Zech. 13:2). Israel will now seek to please God and obey His law and not imitate the sins of the nations on which God will “take vengeance.”

God has not cast aside His people (Rom. 11:1); for today there is a believing remnant of Jews in the church. One day God will gather the unbelieving Jewish nation to their land, cause them to experience suffering, and then reveal Himself to them and give birth to a new nation. The prophets saw that day and tried to convey its message to the people of their day, but they wouldn’t listen.

Christians today look for Jesus to return to gather His people to Himself (1 Thess. 4:13–18) and then

A challenge message: trust the Lord establish His righteous kingdom. Peter assures us that