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MICAH

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Pacific Press Publishing Company · Mountain View, California · Jun 28, 1905

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 31, No. 26.

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MICAH.

By F. D. Starr

BY F. D. STARR.
SOMEWHAT over a century after Jonah preached to the Ninevites, Micah warned the people of Israel that, on account of their wickedness, their city would be destroyed, and Zion be plowed as a field. But the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem did not repent, and thus avert the coming judgment, as the inhabitants of Nineveh had done. Of the seven chapters into which this book is divided, each contains matters of deep interest.
Chapter one brings to our attention the soon-coming day of final retribution, in the following words: “Behold, the Lord cometh forth out of His place, and will come down, and tread upon the high places of the earth. And the mountains shall be molten under Him, and the valleys shall be cleft, as wax before the fire, and as the waters that are poured down a steep place.” This harmonizes with the predictions of other prophets of both the Old and New Testaments in regard to that great day, when every island and mountain are moved out of their places. The coming of the Lord is the sublime climax of the ages.
In chapter two, we have a very plain refutation of the somewhat popular assertion that every man is trying to do the best he can, that his intentions are good. The truth is, that many men study to do wrong; instead of doing the best they know how, they deliberately plan to do that which they know is a great perversion of right. The prophet declares: “Wo unto them that devise iniquity, and work evil upon their beds! when the morning is light they practise it, because it is in the power of their hand.” As Jeremiah says: “They have taught their tongue to speak lies, and weary themselves to commit iniquity.” Jer. 9:5.
The third chapter tells us the reason why Zion was to be plowed as a field: “They build up Zion with blood, and Jerusalem with iniquity. The heads thereof judge for reward, and the priests thereof teach for hire, and the prophets thereof divine for money; yet will they lean upon the Lord, and say, Is not the Lord among us? none evil can come upon us. Therefore shall Zion for your sake be plowed as a field,” etc. The destruction of Jerusalem did not come as an arbitrary judgment of the Lord, but as a logical consequence of a wrong course. Zion that was built up with blood must be plowed as a field.
Chapter four is a reiteration of Isaiah 2. The siren song of peace and safety, the declaration of the people that the art of war is to give way to the peaceful pursuits of agriculture, is here shown to be a feature of the age that shall just precede the time when the first dominion shall return to Him whose right it is. As Paul informs us, “When they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them.” 1 Thess. 5:3.
In chapter five, we have the very important and interesting prediction concerning the birthplace of our Saviour. Bethlehem is pointed out as the honored spot of the nativity. And there is probably no other place in the Bible where the pre-existence of Christ is more clearly indicated than in this chapter. His “goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.”
“Shall I give my first-born for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?” is the leading question of chapter six. What a volume is contained in the query here introduced! Heathen systems of religion will reply, Yes, Deity will be pleased with human sacrifices. The sacrifice of a first-born was indeed necessary, but whose first-born? that of the transgressor?—No, but that of Him against whom man has transgressed. Abraham even was told to spare his own son, but God “spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all.” Rom. 8:32. The Sacrifice has been provided, and now here is man’s part in the matter: “He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God.” Micah 6:8.
Chapter seven of Micah’s prophecy is of universal interest. It seems to be an outline of the history of the church down through the Christian age. Verse 1 would seem to find its fulfilment in our Lord’s experience as recorded in Matt. 21:18, 19. The application of the illustration in either case, is the decay of virtue among men. The conspiracy among the various leaders of the people is shown in verse 3: “The prince asketh, and the judge asketh for a reward; and the great man, he uttereth his mischievous desire; so they wrap it up.” The great men are defined in Jer. 5:5 to be those who know the way of the Lord, the religious teachers of the people. Thus, according to Micah’s prophecy, the executive and judicial departments of the government are combined with the ecclesiastical leaders of the people, to work mischief and oppression to the humble people of God. Micah 7:5, 6, finds its fulfilment, as explained by our Lord, in Matt. 10:35, 36; Matt. 12:52, 53, to the persecutions entailed upon the church, especially during the Dark Ages. “She that is mine enemy,” of verse 10, is no doubt the great enemy of the church described in Revelation 17, 18.
The gathering of God’s people, just before the close of human probation, is shown in verse 12. The desolation of the earth for one thousand years that immediately follows, is brought to view in verse 13. We see by verse 15, that the wonders and miracles wrought in Egypt at the deliverance of Israel, are to be equaled or exceeded in the wonders performed in the final deliverance of God’s people just before the coming of the Lord. The consternation of the nations, as depicted in verses 16, 17, is parallel with the description given in Rev. 6:15-17, as they call for the mountains and rocks to fall upon them. “Who is a God like unto Thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of His heritage?” Verse 18. God it is that passeth by the transgressions of the remnant of His people. His words to Israel on that fearful night when the death angel passed over the land, were:
“When I see the blood, I will pass over you.” Ex. 12:13. He passes over, or passes by, transgression. This will be completely fulfilled in connection with the closing work of our Lord in the heavenly sanctuary, when the sins of His people are finally and completely blotted from the books of record. “He delighteth in mercy.” What a glorious truth! Surely His true character is revealed to us through the scriptures of the prophets in a most vivid manner.
“He will subdue our iniquities.” Are you troubled at the thought that you can not subdue or conquer sin? He has triumphed over sin and death, and by His grace your sins may also be subdued. “This is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.” 1 John 5:4. The fulfilment of the glorious promise of redemption is found in the closing verse of this book: “Thou wilt perform the truth to Jacob, and the mercy to Abraham, which Thou hast sworn unto our fathers from the days of old.” Rapturous thought! Let us give more attention to the words of Micah, the Morasthite, than did ancient Israel.