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GOOD MORNING SIBLINGS!
Today’s readings are Micah 1-7, which is the entire book of Micah!
Read today’s Bible readings at BibleGateway by clicking here.
Rabbit Trails
I’m going to keep my notes short today as you may still be recovering from the novel I dropped yesterday. I feel for ya. It was almost as stressful for me to write as it is for us to digest.
Quick facts:
- Micah’s transliterated Hebrew name is Mikayahu or Mikhah. It means “Who is like YHWH?”
- Background: During the time of this book, Samaria was the capital of the Northern Kingdom of Israel and Jerusalem was the capital of the Southern Kingdom of Judah. Each of these cities had become hubs of sin for the people of Israel.
- This book contains a highly significant prophecy about our coming Messiah in chapter 5. We’ll cover that below.
Highlighted passages from the book of Micah:
We read in the first verse of Micah that this is another prophetic warning to Samaria and Jerusalem, which is essentially to the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. Goodness, how many prophets did YHWH send to warn His people? Now, reckon how many warnings He has sent us?
Micah 3:5 “Thus says YHWH concerning the prophets who lead my people astray…
Chapter 3 is all about dishonest rulers and prophets who claim to be coming in the name of YHWH but lead them away from His ways. Reminds me of Matthew 5:19 ” Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” I do not want to be found teaching people to relax the Father’s commandments. Remember, these are words straight from Yeshua’s mouth.
Micah chapter 4 is a great comfort to me and is very much in line with what we studied in Ezekiel when we began to rethink our concept of Heaven based on Biblical text versus what pop culture has taught us.
Speaking of pop culture, if you’re a fan of the broadway musical Hamilton, you’ll recognize Micah 4:4 from George Washington’s farewell song. ?
I have two favorite verses in chapter four:
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
to the house of the God of Jacob,
that he may teach us his ways
and that we may walk in his paths.” Micah 4:2
For all the peoples walk
each in the name of its god,
but we will walk in the name of the Lord our God
forever and ever. Micah 4:5
And now the significant prophecy of our Messiah:
But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,
who are too little to be among the clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me
one who is to be ruler in Israel,
whose coming forth is from of old,
from ancient days.
3 Therefore he shall give them up until the time
when she who is in labor has given birth;
then the rest of his brothers shall return
to the people of Israel.
4 And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord,
in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great
to the ends of the earth.
5 And he shall be their peace. – Micah 5:2-5
Micah 6:8 is part of a passage summing up what the Father requires of us. I wanna camp here a minute and put this in perspective.
He has told you, oh man, what is good; and what does YHWH require of you?
But to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? Micah 6:8
These three statements begin small and build upon one another, like stair steps which lead us to the Father.
•Justice: To do justice is to be a fair person, doing what is right.
•Kindness: To love kindness means that kindness is part of who you are and how you live your life.
Kindness is required for justice to be compassionate. Without kindness we can end up a skewed sense of justice that has no mercy or grace, like the mercy and grace the Father has with us.
•Walk Humbly: On top of this, if you are a person of justice and kindness, the source of these two things is the Father and you will want to walk after Him, ordering your life according to His ways in humble submission to His wisdom and teachings, realizing that His ways are far greater than our own.
So, you see, these three things are not three statements which nullify, make void, or give us an excuse to disregard the teachings and commandments of our Father.
Why do I point this out? Because folks have been always looking for the cliff notes to avoid having to read the book since the beginning of time, and in addition to that, they are looking for shortcuts or work arounds to having to follow all of YHWH’s commandments. Similar to how Messiah brilliantly summed up the ten commandments with just two, which in essence summed up the entire 613, these three behaviors are yet another bit of shorthand that point us back to the Father and the entirety of His teachings, commandments, and directives.
If we seek justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with our God, what will that look like?
It will look like obedience to the Father.
Make sure you read Micah 7:18-20 for much needed reminders of YHWH’s steadfastness. May we live in appreciation and praise in return.
And finally, I’ll end with this gem.
But as for me, I will look to YHWH; I will wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me. ~Micah 7:7
AMEN! He sees us. He hears us. He is answering our call!
Click here to get the Micah Focus SheetClick here to view the answer key
Test everything, hold tight to what is good.~ 1 Thess 5:21
We are saved by Grace alone: Obedience is not the root of our salvation, it is the fruit!
May YHWH bless the reading of His Word!