Micah 4:1-13
But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it. 2 And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. 3 And he shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. 4 But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid: for the mouth of the Lord of hosts hath spoken it. 5 For all people will walk every one in the name of his god, and we will walk in the name of the Lord our God for ever and ever. 6 In that day, saith the Lord, will I assemble her that halteth, and I will gather her that is driven out, and her that I have afflicted; 7 And I will make her that halted a remnant, and her that was cast far off a strong nation: and the Lord shall reign over them in mount Zion from henceforth, even for ever. 8 And thou, O tower of the flock, the strong hold of the daughter of Zion, unto thee shall it come, even the first dominion; the kingdom shall come to the daughter of Jerusalem. 9 Now why dost thou cry out aloud? is there no king in thee? is thy counsellor perished? for pangs have taken thee as a woman in travail. 10 Be in pain, and labour to bring forth, O daughter of Zion, like a woman in travail: for now shalt thou go forth out of the city, and thou shalt dwell in the field, and thou shalt go even to Babylon; there shalt thou be delivered; there the Lord shall redeem thee from the hand of thine enemies. 11 Now also many nations are gathered against thee, that say, Let her be defiled, and let our eye look upon Zion. 12 But they know not the thoughts of the Lord, neither understand they his counsel: for he shall gather them as the sheaves into the floor. 13 Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion: for I will make thine horn iron, and I will make thy hoofs brass: and thou shalt beat in pieces many people: and I will consecrate their gain unto the Lord, and their substance unto the Lord of the whole earth.
For all of the oracles of judgment that are found in the prophetic writings of the Old Testament, there are so many words of hope. The situation in Israel, much like the entire world in our day, seemed hopeless because Israel was a people that Hosea 11:7 describes as being “bent on backsliding.” They loved their sin and persisted in it despite all of God’s warnings sent to them through the prophets. As we read through those prophecies, like those found in Micah 1-3, we are left asking questions like What good can come from all this? and Why did God choose this people if He knew they were going to be so rebellious?” The answer is found in the rest of the book, beginning in Micah 4. Micah 4 is about hope. People mis-define hope in our world along the lines of wishful thinking. However, hope in Scripture is based upon the character and person of God and what He has promised. Hope is best understood as expectant waiting on the fulfillment of God’s promises (Romans 8:25). He is “the God of hope” (Romans 15:3). Psalm 130:5 says, “I wait for the Lord, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope.” Hope is not leaving things to chance or any kind of wishful thinking, it is very much about looking forward to God’s promises being fulfilled. God is, therefore, our only hope. Believers have a “living hope” (1 Peter 1:3) in the Lord Jesus Christ and have the expectant “hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27) because all of the promises of God find their “yea” and “amen” in Him (2 Corinthians 1:20). Micah 4 is about what God has promised to ultimately do with Israel and the world. It is about His good intentions for all of their sin and His discipline in their lives. It is about His plan to bring them peace, redemption, and victory.
The first promise that God makes to Judah through Micah is a promise of peace. Micah is privileged to look forward in time – beyond the Assyrian captivity of the northern kingdom of 722 BC, beyond the Babylonian captivity of Judah in 586 BC, and beyond Israel’s many years of being scattered and persecuted among the nations from that time on – to a future time of peace for His people. Micah sees a time when Mt. Zion will be the tallest mountain on earth and all of the nations will come and worship God there as God’s Word goes forth from Jerusalem (Micah 4:1-2). God promises to rule the entire world with absolute authority and command, but His rule will be marked by absolute peace (4:3-4). These same promises are found identically in Isaiah 2:1-4, and Zechariah 14:1-11 promises the same kind of peace for all of Israel saying, “and there shall be no more utter destruction; but Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited.” It is through Christ that God will rule the world “with a rod of iron” (Psalm 2:9). While the peace spoken of here is a physical and political peace, the spiritual aspect of it cannot be overlooked. When Christ came and died on the cross for sin, all who place their faith in Him have “peace with God” (Romans 5:1; Colossians 1:20; Ephesians 2:14). Isaiah wrote about this peace when He wrote, “the chastisement of our peace was upon Him and with His stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5). It is this peace that will ultimately mark and permeate this future kingdom of peace. It is the peace that comes from having one’s sin forgiven and cleansed by the blood of Jesus who propitiated the wrath of God for sin on the cross (Roman 3:25-26; 1 John 2:1-2). The only hope of Israel and the world today for peace is found in Christ. The world will never be at peace with each other until we are first at peace with God.
The second promise that God makes to Israel through Micah is the promise of redemption and restoration. The idea of the remnant being led by the Lord as a Shepherd leads sheep was first introduced in Micah 2:12-13, but here it describes who those sheep are. They are those that are “halteth” (lame), “driven out” (outcast), and “afflicted” (hurting/harmed). It is those that the world would not regard very highly. It is those who were “persecuted for righteousness’ sake” (Matthew 5:10-12). It is those who “labor (tired) and are heavy laden” who have come to the Lord for “rest” (Matthew 11:28-29). It is describing those who recognize their spiritual poverty and their sinfulness and have turned to Christ in repentance. It is those that Paul spoke of when he wrote, “For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called” (1 Corinthians 1:26). If we would have the choice to build our kingdom with people, we would pick the best, the brightest, the wealthiest, the educated, etc., but not God. He chooses those who acknowledge that they have nothing to offer, but repentance and faith. Martin Luther once said, “God created the world out of nothing. As long as you are not yet nothing, God cannot make something out of you.” The purpose of God’s discipline of Israel was so that they would humble themselves and acknowledge their need for His grace and mercy and acknowledge Him alone as their hope. In Christ, believers have “redemption through His blood” (Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 1:14). No matter how far we are from God, we can be reconciled and restored. His restoration is first in relationship with Him, but goes all the way to the future hope the believer has in the redemption of our bodies and the entire creation (Romans 8:18-25). God’s promise to Israel is that just as He brought their ancestors out of Egypt, He would redeem them in the future who would be scattered abroad among the nations. This work is being accomplished spiritually in the church as Jew and Gentile are brought near to God through the blood of Christ (Ephesians 2:13).
All that God promises ultimately culminates in the promise of absolute victory for His people. Micah speaks to the suffering of God’s people in verses 9-11 and the hopeless scene of Israel being surrounded by many nations. This spoke immanently to the Assyrian siege of Jerusalem in 701 BC, but also looks forward to a time when all the nations will come against Israel (Zechariah 14:2 – This must be after the Assyrian and Babylonian invasions because Zechariah wrote about it after they had already occurred). In both instances God will demonstrate His ultimate power and authority by delivering His people from their enemies. This victory, while literal, also serves as a reminder of the victory of God’s people over sin and death because of the death and resurrection of Christ (1 Corinthians 15:50-57). Christ delivers God’s people from the bondage of sin and death (Hebrews 2:14-15; Romans 8:2). He did so by being our perfect representative and overcoming both through His death and resurrection. His death and resurrection serve as the living hope for all believers of absolute victory over both sin and death. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:56-57, “The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” God’s law showed our sin and condemnation. Sin deserves eternal death (Romans 6:23), but God has set us free from both by providing righteousness and eternal life in Christ. True victory is not political. True victory is the victory that only God gives. It is life in His Son.
In our seemingly hopeless world, there is one message of hope. It is Christ Jesus. Micah 4 moves into Micah 5 where the great Christmas promise of a king being born in Bethlehem is made. Israel’s hope was not in national peace or worldly rulers. It would be found in a child to be born in Bethlehem, the Savior of the world. The hope of Israel and the world is Jesus. It is only in Christ that we can have peace with God, redemption from sin, and victory over sin and death. The promises of God are true and trustworthy because He is the One that made the promises. His Word is unbreakable. We have the only message of hope that a lost and dying world desperately needs. Do you truly have this hope? Will you extend it to others?