Title: Micah 3
Content Micah 3
1. There is a prophecy about the leadership of the country
“You chiefs of Jacob and rulers of the house of Israel” (verse 1).
The rulers of the people have a work to do. ① Doing justice ② Pursuing goodness ③ Caring for the people. However, they forgot God's basic will and acted differently.
(1) He hated justice.
(2) He liked evil.
This action included the harsh exploitation of the people.
① Peel off the white paper ② Remove the flesh from its bones ③ Eat the flesh ④ Put it in a pot and boil it and eat it (verse 3). This is not a literal act, but a way of exploiting the people and living in luxury.
When they are in trouble, they “cry out to the Lord” (v. 4), but the Lord “hides his face before them” (v. 4) and does not heed their appeal.
2. There are prophecies about false prophets
“The prophet who deceives my people cries for peace when they bite him, but he prepares war for him who fills his mouth with nothing” (verse 5).
They did not teach and preach the will and command of God, but rather followed the will of men. The characteristic of that false prophet is ⓛ If you fill your mouth with anything, you cry out for peace. So it makes it impossible to distinguish the signs of the time. ② On the other hand, if you do not fill your mouth with something, “we have prepared for war.” This has nothing to do with God's will.
These prophets are in the following condition:
(1) Even at night, we cannot see the ideal.
Not only did they lose their prophetic power and insight, but the day of Jehovah's judgment was “darkness and not light” (Amos 5:18).
(2) Even if you encounter darkness, you cannot do divination.
This makes them aware of the nature of the judgment that comes upon them.
(3) There is no answer from God.
So ① the seer is ashamed, ② the sorcerer is put to shame (v. 7).
(4) There is the status of a true prophet.
Contrary to the position of false prophets, true prophets receive power, justice, and talents “by the Spirit of the Lord” to make known Jacob's transgressions and Israel's sins to the people. This is different from the false prophet, who “crys for peace when he asks him” (v. 5).
3. There is an appeal from the prophet.
This is about the fate of Israel
“Therefore, because of you, Zion will be plowed like a field, Jerusalem will become heaps, and the mountain of the temple will be like a high place of grass” (verse 12).
Micah recapitulates what has been said before, and it begins with “I beg you, will you hear me?” (verse 9).
mentions “heads and rulers” and called them those who hate them with justice and pervert the formalities (verse 9).
They established ① Zion with blood ② Jerusalem as sin. Then, “Micah’s critics are “a chief judge who takes a bribe, a priest who gives instruction, and a prophet who gives divination (verse 11).
The characteristic of a false prophet is, “Is not the Lord among us? No calamity will come upon us” (verse 11).
Therefore, because of their sins, ① Zion becomes like a river, ② Jerusalem becomes a heap, and ③ the mountain of the sanctuary becomes like a high mountain in the forest.
Let the people know what kind of hardship the people are going through because of the leaders' sins