Micah 5:1
Now gather thyself in troops, O daughter of troops: he hath laid siege against us: they shall smite the judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek. Now gather thyself in troops, O daughter of troops: he hath laid siege against us: they shall smite the judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek.
The judge of Israel named in the prophecy is Christ Himself. The striking of that Judge upon the cheek with a rod foretold the humiliation He would undergo in His manifestation to the world. It predicted the abuse He would suffer at the hands of men when He appeared among them.
The smiting must be read together with the promise joined to it of the Ruler to come forth from Bethlehem whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting. Together they shine as living light from God's eternal throne concerning Christ's eternal pre-existence. He is the divine Son, a distinct person yet one with the Father before the foundation of the world. In that same light is revealed the purpose of His appearing to a dark world.