Read the Passage: Micah 1-2
Authorship and Date – Micah falls within the so-called minor prophets, yet this book is longer than many of the other books within this section of Scripture. Indeed, only the books of Hosea, Amos, and Zechariah are longer among the minor prophets. Micah identifies himself as the author of this book in the very first verse, and locates his ministry within the reigns of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah who ruled between 750–686 BC. This means that the prophet Micah was a contemporary of Hosea, Amos, Isaiah, and Jonah. Since Samaria had not yet fallen to Assyria (cf. Mic. 1:6), the opening chapter of this book was written before 722 BC. Note that six men in the Old Testament are named Micah, with the author of this book being identified and quoted apart from this book at Jer. 26:18. This makes Micah one of only six of the minor prophets who is mentioned by name outside of his own book. Micah does not give his genealogy nor identify his family, yet twice he does mentioned his hometown of Moresheth (cf. Mic. 1:1, 14). This small town was located in a rural agricultural area, roughly 25 miles southwest of Jerusalem.
Theme and Purpose – During the general timeframe when Micah prophesied to the people of Judah, the nation of Israel was captured by Assyria in 722 BC. Prior to Israel falling to Assyria, Ahaz had allied himself with the Assyrians in opposition to Syria and Israel. Judah, then, became a vassal state of Assyria. After Ahaz’s death, Hezekiah refused to pay tribute to Assyria, which resulted in the Assyrians being a looming threat to Judah. The general theme of this book is judgment for sin, with a sub-theme being the future restoration of God’s people. Just as Amos addressed the erosion of personal and social values in Israel, so Micah addressed the same sin in Judah. This book contains three separate cycles of prophetic addresses, each of which begins with an exhortation to “hear” (Mic. 1:1; 3:1; 6:1). Observe that each of these three cycles starts with prophecies of doom and ends with words of hope. The first two kings under whom Micah prophesied—Jotham (750–735 BC) and Ahaz (735–715 BC)—were not good, with Jotham being somewhat marginal and Ahaz being evil. Yet, Hezekiah’s reign (715–686 BC) was marked by a religious revival, which was surely encouraged by the writings and ministry of Micah.
Structure and Outline – The book of Micah is structured around three prophetic messages, and can be thematically outlined as follows:
- God’s Judgment (Mic. 1–2)
- God’s Deliverance (Mic. 3–5)
- God’s Righteousness (Mic. 6–7)
Looming Judgment (1:1–16)
Micah begins his book, and first prophetic cycle, by recording the kings under whom he ministered, as well as by mentioning his hometown of Moresheth. This city was southwest of Jerusalem near the Philistine city of Gath. In Mic. 1:2–7, God calls all peoples of the earth to witness His judgment upon Israel and Judah. Note that while Micah identifies himself with Judah, in Mic. 1:5 both Samaria and Jerusalem are mentioned, which shows that these prophecies were directed at both Israel and Judah. The fact that Micah himself would be impacted by the coming judgment is evident, as in Mic. 1:8 he personally discloses, “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.” Furthermore, observe that in this book Micah never explicitly calls the people to repent; rather, he describes God’s judgment as looming, soon, and inevitable.
Bitter Lament (2:1–11)
In the middle part of the first cycle of prophetic judgment, Micah moves from addressing sins against God, to confronting the people’s sins against one another. In this way, Micah is very similar to Amos, as he shows God’s concern for societal morality. For example, in Mic. 2:1–2 God mentions the sins of corruption, coveting, violence, oppression, and theft. Next, in Mic. 3:3–5 the inevitability of God’s judgment is cited, which caused the people to bitterly lament their spiritual condition and immediate future. Finally, in Mic. 2:6–11 God confronts the false prophets in the land. Micah writes that these evil seers would try to silence the true prophets (cf. Mic. 2:6) and then speak lies to the people (cf. Mic. 2:11). Yet, it seems the people welcomed this phenomena, for they desired to hear from those who would affirm their own sins. This process is cited elsewhere is Scripture (cf. Isa. 30:9–11; Jer. 5:30–31; 2 Tim. 4:3).
Promised Restoration (2:12–13)
Each of Micah’s three cycles of judgment ends with the hope of restoration. While the inevitability of the coming judgment would have been discouraging—especially to those who had not sold themselves out to sin—prophecies about the preservation of a remnant, a future restoration of the nation, and the coming of the Messiah would have given hope. Of the three cycles of judgment in Micah, the one has the shortest prophecy of restoration. Here at Mic. 2:12–13 God tells His people that He would surely gather together a faithful remnant in the future. In fact, Micah reports that this coming assembly would be so large that “they shall make a loud noise because of so many people” (Mic. 2:12). This news of a large future remnant would have encouraged the persecuted minority. Finally, in Mic. 2:13, God referred to a coming King who would lead the people with the Lord.
Application Questions:
- What do you know about the book of Micah? What verses, passages, or general topics from this book come to mind?
- Is it ever too late to repent (cf. Isa. 55:6–7; 2 Pet. 2:9)? Is there an implicit call to repent within Micah’s prophecies?
- Why do false prophets those who teach heresy oftentimes try to distort the truth, rather than outright reject the truth?
- Does the thought of God’s glorious future return encourage or discourage you? Do you often consider the second coming?
- Why does Micah never clearly call the people to repent? Why does Micah include promises of restoration?
