Minor Prophets · Old Testament
Micah
c. 735–700 BC
- Section
- Minor Prophets · Old Testament
- Events span
- c. 735–700 BC
- Written
- c. 700 BC
- Author
- Micah of Moresheth
Micah, a contemporary of Isaiah, denounces the corruption of both Israel and Judah (their crooked leaders, priests, and prophets) and warns of judgment. Yet he foretells a ruler to be born in Bethlehem and sums up true religion: “do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with thy God.”
Historical setting: Judah and the northern kingdom under Assyrian threat in the 8th century, Micah's ministry spanning Samaria's fall (722 BC).
Chronological placement: Prophesied c. 735–700 BC, overlapping Isaiah, before and around the fall of the northern kingdom.
Key themes
- Justice and mercy
- Judgment on corrupt leaders
- The ruler from Bethlehem
- True religion
- God's forgiveness
Key events
- Micah announces judgment on Samaria and Judah for their idolatry and injustice
- He condemns the leaders, priests, and prophets who exploit the people for gain
- In the last days the LORD's mountain will be exalted and nations will beat swords into plowshares
- A ruler of Israel will come out of Bethlehem, small among the clans of Judah
- "What doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly"
- God delights in mercy and will again have compassion, casting all sins into the sea
Key lessons
- God holds leaders especially accountable; he condemns the rulers, priests, and prophets who fleece the very people they were meant to serve. Micah 3:1–3
- God’s greatest promises can come from the smallest places; the ruler of Israel will be born in little Bethlehem, a pointer to Christ. Micah 5:2
- God delights in mercy; he does not stay angry forever, but pardons sin and casts it into the depths of the sea. Micah 7:18–19
“He hath shewed 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?”