Lesson 4: A Message from Micah

What Does the Lord Require?

Micah was from the small town of Moresheth in Judah. He preached from about 735 to 700 BC, under the reigns of Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah (2Ki 15-20; 2Ch 27-32). His contemporaries among the prophets included Amos, Hosea and Isaiah. Although each prophet had words for both kingdoms, Amos and Hosea were sent especially to the northern kingdom. Collectively, the preaching of these prophets spanned the years of about 760 to 700 BC.

Historical Setting

The eighth century BC began with both the northern and southern kingdoms of Israel in relatively peaceful and prosperous circumstances. The people traded goods, culture and religion with their pagan neighbors, feeling secure in continuing to give only ritualistic lip service in worship to their own Lord. By the end of the century the sins of the people in both kingdoms had caught up with them and God allowed only the southern kingdom of Judah to remain and that only as a vassal state to Assyria. Most people from the ten tribes in Samaria were carried into Assyrian captivity in 722, never to return. The Assyrians resettled foreigners and their foreign gods into Samaria to replace the Israelites. Some 136 years after the demise of Israel in 586 BC, Jerusalem would be destroyed by Babylon and the exile of Judah, Benjamin and remnants of the other tribes would begin.

Memorable Passages & Scriptural Connections to Micah

(1) When debating whether to put Jeremiah to death, the elders of Judah, (Jer 26:18 and context) quoted Mic 3:12 which gave support to the truth of Jeremiah’s prophecy about Jerusalem.
(2) In Matt 2:5-6, the chief priests and scribes referred to Mic 7:6 in correctly informing Herod that the Messiah was prophesied be born in Bethlehem.
(3) In Matt 10:34-37, Jesus quoted Micah 7:6 when explaining how his message would turn some family members against one another.
(4) Isaiah, who prophesied in the city of Jerusalem, may have been a mentor of his younger, rural contemporary, Micah. Compare the very familiar ‘beating their swords into plowshares’ parallel passages in Micah 4:1-5 and Isaiah 2:2-5. Picture these two inspired men finding encouragement in the faithfulness of one another.

Outline and Study Questions

Micah may be divided into three sections, each beginning with a phrase including ‘listen’ or ‘hear’. In each section look for three things:
(1) a list of sins;
(2) the punishment to come;
(3) the ultimate deliverance promised by God.

Section 1, Chapters 1-2, is addressed to all the people of both Samaria and Jerusalem. In 1:10-15, Micah describes the coming destruction by making a play upon the names of certain towns. All the double meanings, rhymes and contrasts are lost in translation. If he had been describing a coming invasion of the U.S., Micah might have made up a country song with lyrics like: ‘There will be a great blow in Chicago’, ‘Our enemies will corral us in Dallas’, ‘There will be great dismay in LA’, ‘Your capitol will be called Washington, Deceased’, ‘It will be kablooee in St. Louie’ and ‘No Show in Reno’. People might say, ‘I hate those dumb lines of Micah but I can’t get them out of my head!’

Question 1
What do our idols (created in our hearts and minds) have in common with the idols and the idol worship of that day?
Question 2
Put yourself in God’s place as a parent of prodigal children and compare your feelings of distress with those expressed by God in these passages.
Question 3
What messages do the false prophets of our day flaunt upon the public in America? Are they not very much like the lies described in Chapter 2?

Section 2, Chapters 3-5, is addressed to the leaders and rulers of the two countries.

Question 4
What problems among America’s religious and secular leaders are similar to those described in Micah 3:9-11?
Question 5
What passages point to the prophesied Babylonian captivity?
Question 6
What passages point to the time of Christ or to his second coming?

Section 3, Chapters 6-7 is addressed to God’s people, i.e., the greater nation of Israel. God’s profound displeasure with his people, expressed in the first of Chapter 6, is followed by a question framed by God himself on behalf of mankind! It is a question that perhaps every seeking person has at one time asked. Hear the pathos of this question in verses 6-7 of Chapter

Question 7
Discuss the questions posed by 6:6-7. CF, Job 7:17, Psa 8:4-6 Heb 2:6-8.
Question 8
How does the latter part of verse 7 reflect the idolatry that the Israelites had adopted from their neighbors? How might it contrast with the sacrifice that God had in mind to make for his people?

Now, hear God’s answer to the questions posed:

He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.
- Micah 6:8
-
This is a passage to memorize and contemplate regularly. It seems to contain, in one small kernel, the power to open a window of faith in one’s heart, showing a panoramic view of the perfection to which God is calling us.

Question 9
What does it mean to ‘walk humbly with your God’? Enoch is said to have ‘walked with God’, Gen 5:24.
Question 10
Enoch is said to have ‘pleased God’ in Heb 11:5. What two beliefs are necessary to please God according to Heb 11:6? Many people believe one, but few believe both. Why?
Question 11
What qualities of humility would you expect to see in a person who walks humbly with their God? Name some that should be absent.
Question 12
How might ‘walking humbly’ with God differ from ‘walking humbly’ without God (clearly, an agnostic or atheistic concept)?
Question 13
What are some practices commended by the world as being just and merciful that may not be constrained by humility to God?
Question 14
Does Micah 6:8 describe anyone that you have actually known?

Personal Reflection

The Pulaski Heights/Pleasant Valley congregation has been especially blessed by saints of such character - not sinless people but people who have ‘walked in the light’. Years ago I consciously associated two men with this verse (since then, there have been many others, both men and women). These two were quiet, gentle men - friendly, with easy smiles. Their speech was seasoned with respect and concern for others and there was never a critical or sarcastic word. One was rather high profile in the church: a teacher, preacher and song leader. The other, our next-door neighbor until his death, was quite the opposite with respect to church profile. Both had held responsible public service jobs with honesty and competence. Frank Kell and Chuck Carlisle are role models for practicing justice, loving mercy and walking humbly with their God. Two others are Tee Moss and Inez Stowers. You continue the list.

Question 15 Compare Micah 6:8 to Matt 23:23. There are three items in each. Which items in one verse correspond to those in the other?
Question 16 Compare both of the above passages, i.e., Micah 6:8 and Matt 23:23 to the ‘greatest commandments’ listed by Jesus in Matt 22:37-40.
Question 17 Consider the expressions of awe and hope with which this book closes in 7:18-20. How can we put into practice this scripture in our meditations to help us maintain an appropriate humility before our God? Compare Psalms 103:8-18.

Preparing this study has been a rewarding exercise for us. We hope you have found the questions and comments helpful. Thank you for being such a loving family and listening so kindly and patiently to us ‘seniors’.

- Robert (Bob) & Eleanor Walls

(Bob Walls has served as an elder at Pleasant Valley for over twenty years. He and Eleanor have been members of this church going back to 1967.)