This description emphasises that Micah’s message came from God. It was ‘the *LORD’s message’. It was not ‘the *prophet’s message’. (Look at Isaiah 1:1-2; Jeremiah 1:1-2; Amos 1:1-3.) This message ‘came’ to Micah with great power. That was because the *LORD’s Spirit came into Micah. And the Spirit co... [ Continue Reading ]
MICAH SPEAKS A MESSAGE FROM GOD TO ALL THE NATIONS MICAH _LES PAINTER_ ABOUT THE BOOK OF MICAH ‘_People, the *LORD told you what goodness is. This is what the *LORD wants you to do. Be fair to other people. Love kindness. Live humbly with your God.’ (Micah 6:8)._ Here are some facts about who M... [ Continue Reading ]
Micah gives an order to all the people in Samaria and Jerusalem. The people in *Israel had a special relationship with God because they had made a *covenant with him. But they had not followed the rules in the *covenant. So God calls both *Israel and the other nations to a court of law. He asks them... [ Continue Reading ]
‘High places’ and ‘valleys’ describes all places everywhere. It may mean strong, important institutions. People in other nations met together on the high places. They prayed to their gods there. God had ordered King Hezekiah to destroy such places (2 Kings 18:1-6). People feel safe as long as God st... [ Continue Reading ]
Micah accuses ‘Jacob’ (the northern nation from Jacob’s family) and he accuses *Israel (all *Israel). He accuses them about *sin. The people have not obeyed the *covenant that God made with *Israel. They have not obeyed God’s commands. ‘Those in Samaria’ (the northern capital) here means the bad lea... [ Continue Reading ]
‘Therefore’ links the crime to the punishment. Samaria’s people prayed to images. This showed that they did not understand God or his laws. Their evil religion did not teach good behaviour. In fact, it caused evil behaviour. It showed that they understood the world in a wrong way. When people serve... [ Continue Reading ]
Micah weeps as he speaks God’s judgement. He feels as God feels. Micah has seen what will happen to Samaria. He knows that the situation is hopeless. There is no remedy for Samaria’s problems. God’s judgement is certain. Punishments from God must happen. A wicked enemy will overcome Samaria. This is... [ Continue Reading ]
Micah is thinking about the army from Assyria. It would soon come to Jerusalem. The towns that he mentions are close to Micah’s home town, Moresheth Gath (verse 14). Without those towns, Jerusalem would not be a capital any longer. The *Hebrew word for each town becomes a message about the future. G... [ Continue Reading ]
Shaphir is the name of a city. Shaphir means ‘beautiful’. Shaphir was a beautiful city. But its people will soon be prisoners. The *Assyrians will take its people away to another country. They will make its people walk through the streets. Then those people from Shaphir will be naked and so they wil... [ Continue Reading ]
Maroth means ‘bitter’. So Maroth is a town where the people are bitter. Bitter people need hope. They need to hope for something better. So the people in Maroth hope for something good. They hope for help and peace. But there is no help from Jerusalem’s people. Jerusalem is the city whose name means... [ Continue Reading ]
Lachish was an important town. It was the strongest place in the region. It was about 4 miles from Micah’s home. There was an army there. The army’s job was to defend the western hills. The men in the army used chariots and they used fast horses. A chariot was a very strong vehicle. They used a team... [ Continue Reading ]
In this message, the *Assyrians have defeated the people in Lachish. So the king must now pay money as gifts to the *Assyrians. Achzib is now under the *Assyrians’ control. Therefore, Judah’s rulers cannot receive taxes from the people in Achzib. Achzib means ‘cheat’. It was a wealthy town. There we... [ Continue Reading ]
‘People in Mareshah’. The *Hebrew words here sound like ‘someone who takes possession’. It means the person that wins a battle. The result will be that only a few people will live. It was like that earlier at the cave of Adullam. This statement about Adullam refers to David. He ran away from Saul. D... [ Continue Reading ]
God gives more orders. These orders are for the people in Jerusalem. The children, like their parents, are important people. Parents love their children. The *Assyrians will take the children away to a foreign country. It will be a time when the parents are sad. God tells them to cut off their hair.... [ Continue Reading ]