Micah 7

Mic 7:1-20.

THE

UNIVERSALITY OF THE

CORRUPTION; THE

CHOSEN

REMNANT,

DRIVEN FROM

EVERY

HUMAN

CONFIDENCE,

TURNS TO

GOD;

TRIUMPHS BY

FAITH OVER

HER

ENEMIES;

IS

COMFORTED BY

GOD'S

PROMISES IN

ANSWER TO

PRAYER, AND BY THE

CONFUSION OF

HER

ENEMIES, AND

SO

BREAKS

FORTH INTO

PRAISES OF

GOD'S

CHARACTER.

1. I am as when, &c.--It is the same with me as with one seeking

fruits after the harvest, grapes after the vintage. "There is not a

cluster" to be found: no "first-ripe fruit" (or "early fig";

see on

Isa 28:4)

which "my soul desireth" [MAURER]. So I look in

vain for any good men left

(Mic 7:2).

2. The Hebrew expresses "one merciful and good in relation to

man," rather than to God.

is perished out of the earth--

(Ps 12:1).

3. That they may do evil with both hands earnestly--literally, "Their

hands are for evil that they may do it well" (that is, cleverly and

successfully).

the great man, he--emphatic repetition. As for the great man,

he no sooner has expressed his bad desire (literally, the "mischief"

or "lust of his soul"), than the venal judges are ready to wrest the

decision of the case according to his wish.

so they wrap it up--The Hebrew is used of intertwining

cords together. The "threefold cord is not quickly broken"

(Ec 4:12);

here the "prince," the "judge," and the "great man" are the three in

guilty complicity. "They wrap it up," namely, they conspire to carry

out the great man's desire at the sacrifice of justice.

4. as a brier--or thorn; pricking with injury all who come in

contact with them

(2Sa 23:6, 7;

Isa 55:13;

Eze 2:6).

the day of thy watchmen--the day foretold by thy (true) prophets, as

the time of "thy visitation" in wrath

[GROTIUS]. Or, "the day of thy

false prophets being punished"; they are specially threatened as

being not only blind themselves, but leading others blindfold

[CALVIN].

now--at the time foretold, "at that time"; the prophet transporting

himself into it.

perplexity--

(Isa 22:5).

They shall not know whither to turn.

5. Trust ye not in a friend--Faith is kept nowhere: all to a man are

treacherous

(Jer 9:2-6).

When justice is perverted by the great, faith nowhere is safe. So, in

gospel times of persecution, "a man's foes are they of his own

household"

(Mt 10:35, 36;

Lu 12:53).

guide--a counsellor [CALVIN]

able to help and advise (compare

Ps 118:8, 9; 146:3).

The head of your family, to whom all the members of the family

would naturally repair in emergencies. Similarly the Hebrew is

translated in

Jos 22:14

and "chief friends" in

Pr 16:28

[GROTIUS].

her that lieth in thy bosom--thy wife

(De 13:6).

6. son dishonoureth the father--The state of unnatural lawlessness in

all relations of life is here described which is to characterize the

last times, before Messiah comes to punish the ungodly and save Israel

(compare

Lu 21:16;

2Ti 3:1-3).

7. Therefore I will look unto the Lord--as if no one else were before

mine eyes. We must not only "look unto the Lord," but also "wait

for Him." Having no hope from man

(Mic 7:5, 6),

Micah speaks in the name of Israel, who herein, taught by chastisement

(Mic 7:4)

to feel her sin

(Mic 7:9),

casts herself on the Lord as her only hope," in patient waiting

(La 3:26).

She did so under the Babylonian captivity; she shall do so again

hereafter when the spirit of grace shall be poured on her

(Zec 12:10-13).

8. Rejoice not--at my fall.

when I fall, I shall arise--

(Ps 37:24;

Pr 24:16).

when I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light--Israel reasons as

her divine representative, Messiah, reasoned by faith in His hour of

darkness and desertion

(Isa 50:7, 8, 10).

Israel addresses Babylon, her triumphant foe (or Edom), as a

female; the type of her last and worst foes

(Ps 137:7, 8).

"Mine enemy," in Hebrew, is feminine.

9. bear--patiently.

the indignation of the Lord--His punishment inflicted on me

(La 3:39).

The true penitent "accepts the punishment of his iniquity"

(Le 26:41, 43);

they who murmur against God, do not yet know their guilt

(Job 40:4, 5).

execute judgment for me--against my foe. God's people plead guilty

before God; but, in respect to their human foes, they are innocent and

undeserving of their foes' injuries.

bring me forth to the light--to the temporal and spiritual redemption.

I shall behold his righteousness--His gracious faithfulness to His

promises

(Ps 103:17).

10. shame shall cover her--in seeing how utterly mistaken she was in

supposing that I was utterly ruined.

Where is . . . thy God--

(Ps 42:3, 10).

If He be "thy God," as thou sayest, let Him come now and deliver

thee. So as to Israel's representative, Messiah

(Mt 27:43).

mine eyes shall behold her--a just retribution in kind upon the foe

who had said, "Let our eye look upon Zion." Zion shall behold her

foe prostrate, not with the carnal joy of revenge, but with spiritual

joy in God's vindicating His own righteousness

(Isa 66:24;

Re 16:5-7).

shall she be trodden down--herself, who had trodden down me.

11. thy walls . . . be built--under Cyrus, after the seventy years'

captivity; and again, hereafter, when the Jews shall be restored

(Am 9:11;

Zec 12:6).

shall the decree be far removed--namely, thy tyrannical decree or

rule of Babylon shall be put away from thee, "the statutes that were not

good"

(Eze 20:25)

[CALVIN].

Ps 102:13-16;

Isa 9:4.

The Hebrew is against MAURER'S translation,

"the boundary of the city shall be far extended," so as to

contain the people flocking into it from all nations

(Mic 7:12;

Isa 49:20; 54:2).

12. In that day also--rather, an answer to the supposed question of

Zion, When shall my walls be built? "The day (of thy walls being built)

is the day when he (that is, many) shall come to thee from Assyria,"

&c. [LUDOVICUS

DE

DIEU]. The Assyrians (including the Babylonians) who

spoiled thee shall come.

and from the fortified cities--rather, to suit the parallelism,

"from Assyria even to Egypt." (Matzor may be so translated). So

Assyria and Egypt are contrasted in

Isa 19:23

[MAURER]. CALVIN agrees with

English Version, "from all fortified cities."

from the fortress even to the river--"from Egypt even to the

river" Euphrates (answering in parallelism to "Assyria")

[MAURER]. Compare

Isa 11:15, 16;

19:23-25; 27:13;

Ho 11:11;

Zec 10:10.

13. However glorious the prospect of restoration, the Jews are not to

forget the visitation on their "land" which is to intervene for the

"fruit of (evil caused by) their doings"

(compare

Pr 1:31;

Isa 3:10, 11;

Jer 21:14).

14. Feed thy people--Prayer of the prophet, in the name of his people

to God, which, as God fulfils believing prayer, is prophetical of what

God would do. When God is about to deliver His people, He stirs up

their friends to pray for them.

Feed--including the idea of both pastoral rule and care over His

people

(Mic 5:4,

Margin), regarded as a flock

(Ps 80:1; 100:3).

Our calamity must be fatal to the nation, unless Thou of Thy unmerited

grace, remembering Thy covenant with "Thine heritage"

(De 4:20; 7:6; 32:9),

shalt restore us.

thy rod--the shepherd's rod, wherewith He directs the flock

(Ps 23:4).

No longer the rod of punishment

(Mic 6:9).

which dwell solitarily in the wood, in . . .

Carmel--Let Thy people who have been dwelling as it were in a

solitude of woods (in the world, but not of it),

scattered among various nations, dwell in Carmel, that is, where there

are fruit-bearing lands and vineyards [CALVIN].

Rather, "which are about to dwell (that is, that they may dwell)

separate in the wood, in . . . Carmel" [MAURER], which are to be no longer mingled with the

heathen, but are to dwell as a distinct people in their own land. Micah

has here Balaam's prophecy in view (compare

Mic 6:5,

where also Balaam is referred to). "Lo, the people shall dwell

alone"

(Nu 23:9;

compare

De 33:28).

To "feed in the wood in Carmel," is to feed in the rich pastures among

its woods. To "sleep in the woods," is the image of most perfect

security

(Eze 34:25).

So that the Jews' "security," as well as their distinct

nationality, is here foretold. Also

Jer 49:31.

Bashan--famed for its cattle

(Ps 22:12;

Am 4:1).

Parallel to this passage is

Jer 50:19.

Bashan and Gilead, east of Jordan, were chosen by Reuben, Gad, and half

Manasseh, as abounding in pastures suited for their many cattle

(Nu 32:1-42;

De 3:12-17).

15. thy . . . him--both referring to Israel. So in

Mic 7:19

the person is changed from the first to the third, "us . . .

our . . . their." Jehovah here answers Micah's prayer in

Mic 7:14,

assuring him, that as He delivered His people from Egypt by miraculous

power, so He would again "show" it in their behalf

(Jer 16:14, 15).

16. shall see--the "marvellous things"

(Mic 7:15;

Isa 26:11).

confounded at all their might--having so suddenly proved unavailing:

that might wherewith they had thought that there is nothing which they

could not effect against God's people.

lay . . . hand upon . . . mouth--the gesture of silence

(Job 21:5; 40:4;

Ps 107:42;

Isa 52:15).

They shall be struck dumb at Israel's marvellous deliverance, and no

longer boast that God's people is destroyed.

ears . . . deaf--They shall stand astounded so as not to hear what

shall be said [GROTIUS]. Once they had eagerly drunk in all rumors as so

many messages of victories; but then they shall be afraid of hearing

them, because they continually fear new disasters, when they see the God

of Israel to be so powerful

[CALVIN]. They shall close their ears so as

not to be compelled to hear of Israel's successes.

17. lick the dust--in abject prostration as suppliants

(Ps 72:9;

compare

Isa 49:23; 65:25).

move out of their holes--As reptiles from their holes, they

shall come forth from their hiding-places, or fortresses

(Ps 18:45),

to give themselves up to the conquerors. More literally, "they shall

tremble from," that is, tremblingly come forth from their coverts.

like worms--reptiles or crawlers

(De 32:24).

they shall be afraid of the Lord--or, they shall in fear turn

with haste to the Lord. Thus the antithesis is brought out. They

shall tremble forth from their holes: they shall in trepidation

turn to the Lord for salvation (compare Note, see on

Ho 3:5,

and

Jer 33:9).

fear because of thee--shall fear Thee, Jehovah (and so fear Israel

as under Thy guardianship). There is a change here from speaking of God to speaking to God

[MAURER]. Or rather, "shall fear thee,

Israel" [HENDERSON].

18. Grateful at such unlooked-for grace being promised to Israel,

Micah breaks forth into praises of Jehovah.

passeth by the transgression--not conniving at it, but forgiving it;

leaving it unpunished, as a traveller passes by what he chooses not

to look into

(Pr 19:11).

Contrast

Am 7:8,

and "mark iniquities,"

Ps 130:3.

the remnant--who shall be permitted to survive the previous judgment:

the elect remnant of grace

(Mic 4:7; 5:3, 7, 8).

retaineth not . . . anger--

(Ps 103:9).

delighteth in mercy--God's forgiving is founded on His nature, which

delights in loving-kindness, and is averse from wrath.

19. turn again--to us, from having been turned away from us.

subdue our iniquities--literally, "tread under foot," as being hostile

and deadly to us. Without subjugation of our bad propensities, even

pardon could not give us peace. When God takes away the guilt of sin

that it may not condemn us, He takes away also the power of sin that it

may not rule us.

cast . . . into . . . depths of the sea--never to rise again to view,

buried out of sight in eternal oblivion: not merely at the shore side,

where they may rise again.

our . . . their--change of person. Micah in the first case identifying

himself and his sins with his people and their sins; in the second,

speaking of them and their sins.

20. perform the truth--the faithful promise.

to Jacob . . . Abraham--Thou shalt make good to their posterity the

promise made to the patriarchs. God's promises are called "mercy,"

because they flow slowly from grace; "truth," because they will be

surely performed

(Lu 1:72, 73;

1Th 5:24).

sworn unto our fathers--

(Ps 105:9, 10).

The promise to Abraham is in

Ge 12:2;

to Isaac, in

Ge 26:24;

to Jacob, in

Ge 28:13.

This unchangeable promise implied an engagement that the seed of the

patriarchs should never perish, and should be restored to their

inheritance as often as they turned wholly to God

(De 30:1, 2).

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