The warning of coming judgment is a common theme in the Bible. But only in a few places is this expressed as the land itself crying out because of the sins that have taken place on it (Isa. 33:9; Jer. 12:4, 23:10; Hos. 4:3, Joel 1:10; Zech. 12:12). Here in Micah, the land speaks directly to lament the tragedies it has suffered and those that were coming in the future.
Micah spoke shortly before the devastating Assyrian conquest of the northern kingdom of Israel. This northern kingdom, which had broken away after the time of Solomon, ruled the northern ten tribes for two hundred years. But almost immediately, it began a dangerous spiritual decline. Micah’s message came at a time of political turmoil: The northern kingdom had been ruled by five rulers in the space of twenty years. Two of these had ruled for less than a year, and three of them had gained the throne by murdering its former occupant. False prophets filled the land with false hope (Micah 3:5-7). And this spiritual and moral corruption was spreading south to Judah. But despite the judgment and destruction that Micah warns was coming, in the end God will restore his people.
The Lament of the Land is the climax and final chapter of the book of Micah (Micah 7):
[1]
Woe to me!
For I have become like the gatherings of summer fruit;
Like the gleanings of a grape harvest.
There is not a cluster of grapes to eat;
A first-ripe fig my soul desires.
The “gatherings of summer fruit” refer to the harvests of different kinds of fruit that take place in August and September in Israel. This is ordinarily considered a time of great abundance and joy. But from the point of view of the land itself, the once heavily laden trees and vines have all been laid bare; their bounty of fruit stripped away. The fields and orchards appear desolate and forlorn. No cluster of grapes remains hanging on the vines. The first-ripe figs of springtime, considered the tastiest of all, are nowhere to be found.
[2]
The godly one has perished from the land,
And the upright among man is not.
All of them lie in ambush for blood;
They hunt, each man his brother, with a net.
We now learn that the missing clusters of grapes and first-ripe figs are a poetic image of the lack of upright people in the land. The godly man is out of season. All now act as criminals, seeking to trap and hurt their fellows. This is a picture of the lawless conditions and political turmoil in the time of Micah.
[3]
With regard to evil, both palms do well:
The prince asks, even the judge, for a bribe,
And the great speaks out the desire of his soul,
And they weave it together.
One of these two “palms” of the hand is the prince (the king), who in those days also acted as a judge—here a corrupt judge. The other is the “great” (or wealthy, influential) man, who has the power to get whatever he wants. These two work together like a pair of malicious hands doing evil.
[4a]
The good one among them is like a briar;
The upright like a thorn bush.
Even the best of the people are like dangerous thorn bushes, the natural groundcover in much of Israel. Their thorns and barbs stick in your pants, socks, and shoes when you walk across the land. Some will even sting you.
[4b]
The day of your watchmen [Israel],
Your visitation, has come!
Now will their dismay be!
Because of the debased state of the nation, the day is upon Israel (“your” is masculine singular) when their watchmen will shout out the alarm, warning of an invading army. But this is not a random attack: it’s a visitation of God himself against a lawless nation.
[5]
Don’t trust in a companion.
Don’t confide in a friend.
From the one lying on your bosom
Guard the openings of your mouth.
The times are so dangerous that you can’t trust a friend or even a lover, but must watch carefully everything you say.
[6]
For son despises father,
Daughter has risen up against her mother;
Daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.
A man’s enemies are the men of his own household.
The situation is so bad that even within families, there are divisions and dangers. This verse was quoted by Jesus to deny that he came to bring peace on the earth (Matt. 10:34-36, Luke 12:51-53). Rather, he said, he came to bring division like that in the time of Micah; a division between those who accept and those who reject his offer of mercy from God.
[7]
Yet I, in YEHUAH* I will watch.
I will wait for the God of my salvation.
My God will hear me.
Yet in spite of all this, the land itself is faithfully looking to God to deliver it from the terrible judgment that is coming because of sin.
* The personal name of God (YHWH). Its pronunciation is uncertain, replaced with Adonai when reading by the Jewish people or by the Lord
or the LORD
in most Christian Bibles. This is one of several possible reconstructions. Click here for more on God’s name.
[8]
Do not rejoice over me, my enemy,
Though I have fallen, I have endured.
Though I sit in darkness,
YEHUAH is a light to me.
Though the land has fallen in defeat before an enemy, it’s able to endure a time of spiritual darkness because of the light of the Lord.
[9a]
The rage of YEHUAH I will bear,
For I have sinned against him,
Until he pleads my case
And executes my judgment.
Has the land itself committed sin? Or is this rather a sin by association with the sinners living on it (compare Gen. 6:11-12)? If so, the land has taken on itself the sins of others, an example of the innocent suffering for the wicked. This is the same idea that underlies the sacrificial system of Israel as well as the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. The land is willing to endure the punishment of the Lord because of the sins of its residents and to wait for God to bring deliverance.
[9b-10a]
He will lead me out to the light.
I will see his righteousness.
And my enemy will see it,
And shame will cover her—
In the end, God will surely deliver the land by his righteousness, just as he later delivered Jesus from death, and the enemy will see it and be ashamed.
[10b]
The one saying to me,
“Where is YEHUAH your God?”—
My eyes will look [in victory] at her.
The enemy mocks the land’s hope in God. But in the end, the land will prevail over its enemy.
[10c-11]
Then she will be a place of trampling,
Like mud in the streets.
A day to build your walls,
That day your border will be distant.
In that final victory, the enemy land will be trampled on in victory. As a result, she will have to return home to defend herself, moving her threatening border far away.
[12]
That day will be, yet to you [Israel] he [God] is coming
From Assyria and the cities of Matzor [Egypt]
And from Matzor and to the River [Euphrates]
And from sea to sea, and mountain to the mountain [Jerusalem].
Yes, the enemy will one day be defeated. But first “you” (Israel, masculine singular) are going to receive God’s judgment. This will come at the hand of the Assyrians. And this is exactly what happened: the Assyrians advanced first south to Egypt (poetically here called Matzor) and then back again, leaving desolation in their wake. “Sea to sea” is from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean Sea; “mountain to the mountain” is from the mountains of Assyria in the north to the holy mountain of Jerusalem in the south, which the Assyrians besieged in the lifetime of Micah. All this is a description of the actual extent of Assyrian aggression.
[13]
And the land will be a desolation
Because of those dwelling upon her
From the fruit of their deeds.
The land will be made desolate, in punishment for the sins of those living upon her.
[14a]
Shepherd your people [Lord] with your rod,
The flock of your possession,
The one dwelling alone in a wood
In the midst of Carmel.
The rod is a symbol of judgment, but also of the care of the shepherd who protects his flock from danger. This sometimes involves swatting them to get their attention: a small punishment to keep them from far greater danger. This protective care is compared to taking a flock of sheep and goats to the forest on top of Mt. Carmel. This was a place where people could retreat for safety in times of danger. It’s also a picture of the remnant that would survive the Assyrian onslaught.
[14b-15]
Let them graze Bashan and Gilead
As in days long past.
As in the days of your coming out of the land of Egypt,
I [God] will show him [Israel] extraordinary things.
Here the prophet appeals to God to let his people expand once again as far as Bashan (the Golan Heights) and Gilead, both up on the heights above the east bank of the Jordan River. These are areas that Israel had conquered in the time of Moses, when great miracles had taken place. In response, God speaks through the prophet, revealing that he will do great miracles again.
[16]
Nations will see and will be ashamed
Of all their might.
They will put their hand upon their mouth;
Their ears will be deaf.
The nations, despite their military power, will once again see God’s care of Israel, and be in awe.
[17]
They will lick up dust as the snake,
As the crawling things of the land.
They will come trembling from their fortresses
To YEHUAH our God.
They will be in dread and they will be afraid of you.
The nations will be in fear of Israel and will turn to the Lord.
[18a]
Who is a God like you,
Who forgives a transgression
And who overlooks a sin
For the remnant of his possession?
Who is like God, who forgives the sins of his people?
[18b-19a]
He has not kept his anger forever
For he delights in kindness.
He will repent; he will have compassion on us.
He will overcome our transgressions.
God will eventually have compassion on Israel, and forgive them for their sins.
[19b]
And you will cast into the depths of the sea
All their sins.
He will remove their sins completely from them.
[20]
You will give truth to Jacob,
Kindness to Abraham,
Which you swore to our fathers
From the days of old.
God will extend truth and kindness to Israel as he promised to the patriarchs of old.
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