Woe to those who devise wickedness
and work evil on their beds!
When the morning dawns, they perform it,
because it is in the power of their hand.
2 They covet fields and seize them,
and houses, and take them away;
they oppress a man and his house,
a man and his inheritance.
3 Therefore thus says the Lord:
behold, against this family I am devising disaster,
from which you cannot remove your necks,
and you shall not walk haughtily,
for it will be a time of disaster.
4 In that day they shall take up a taunt song against you
and moan bitterly,
and say, “We are utterly ruined;
he changes the portion of my people;
how he removes it from me!
To an apostate he allots our fields.”
5 Therefore you will have none to cast the line by lot
in the assembly of the Lord.
6 “Do not preach”—thus they preach—
“one should not preach of such things;
disgrace will not overtake us.”
7 Should this be said, O house of Jacob?
Has the Lord grown impatient?
Are these his deeds?
Do not my words do good
to him who walks uprightly?
8 But lately my people have risen up as an enemy;
you strip the rich robe from those who pass by trustingly
with no thought of war.
9 The women of my people you drive out
from their delightful houses;
from their young children you take away
my splendor forever.
10 Arise and go,
for this is no place to rest,
because of uncleanness that destroys
with a grievous destruction.
11 If a man should go about and utter wind and lies,
saying, “I will preach to you of wine and strong drink,”
he would be the preacher for this people!
12 I will surely assemble all of you, O Jacob;
I will gather the remnant of Israel;
I will set them together
like sheep in a fold,
like a flock in its pasture,
a noisy multitude of men.
13 He who opens the breach goes up before them;
they break through and pass the gate,
going out by it.
Their king passes on before them,
the Lord at their head. Micah 2 ESV
Micah 2
Woe to those who devise wickedness and work evil on their beds - A warning to the schemers, the people who would advance themselves upon another's misfortune, and author the misfortune to do so, that every step be upon the neck of their neighbor. You lay in bed dreaming of the time to pounce, looking for ways to work a broken system, hunting for dishonest gain. You plot, you hate, you worship yourself and rejoice at the sound of your neighbor's demise, cha-ching, that's all you hear.
…7In the twelfth year of King Xerxes, in the first month, the month of Nisan, the Pur (that is, the lot) was cast before Haman to determine a day and month. And the lot fell on the twelfth month, the month of Adar. 8Then Haman informed King Xerxes, “There is a certain people scattered and dispersed among the peoples of every province of your kingdom. Their laws are different from everyone else’s, and they do not obey the king’s laws. So it is not in the king’s best interest to tolerate them. 9If it pleases the king, let a decree be issued to destroy them, and I will deposit ten thousand talents of silver into the royal treasury to pay those who carry it out.”… Esther 3: 7-9
1For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. Rescue me, O LORD, from evil men. Protect me from men of violence, 2who devise evil in their hearts and stir up war all day long. 3They sharpen their tongues like snakes; the venom of vipers is on their lips. Selah… Psalm 140: 1-3
Because it's in the power of their hand - They plotted all night, convinced themselves that might makes right, that this is not a human being or at least not at my level. I want to do this, I crave the end, and so the means do not bother me so much; if I don't take advantage of this opportunity someone else will. If ability is the measure of whether something is right to do, then there is nothing wrong in all that is done. But, God has sent this prophet saying that your capital, your strength, your speed, your intellect, ability to justify it to yourself, appease your own mind, the fact that it doesn't make you feel bad, that none of that matters to God. He is saying that this is not the measure. Your personal beliefs, opinions, feelings, talent, how many and whoever else may agree with you, that's not the bar, God word is, and no matter how angry it makes you, no matter how much you want your own way, He will judge according to His. This prophet has brought you the mercy of hearing the truth, the opportunity to turn towards God and escape His eternal wrath. That you had the power in your hand to do evil means that you also had the means to do good, to seek justice, to protect the innocent.
…28But you did not even let me kiss my grandchildren and my daughters goodbye. Now you have done a foolish thing. 29 I have power to do you great harm, but last night the God of your father said to me, ‘Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.’ 30Now you have gone off because you long for your father’s house. But why have you stolen my gods?”… Genesis 31: 28-30
…26for the LORD will be your confidence and will keep your foot from the snare. 27Do not withhold good from the deserving when it is within your power to act. 28Do not tell your neighbor, “Come back tomorrow and I will provide”—when you already have the means.… Proverbs 3: 26-28
They covet fields and seize them - Now the prophet gives us examples of what is going on, and he says, "a man and his inheritance", so we need a little background to understand this; the Jews basically lived in a Theocracy which had laws passed down to them from God, even laws regarding property, real-estate. Allotments were given to families and the price of "buying", more like leasing a field, was based upon how far out you were from the year of Jubilee, because every 50 years all properties were returned to their original families. "Woe to men when they build house upon house", I have heard many a preacher talk about that verse and relate it to living in cities or apartments, building on top of ruins, but I think there is more still. One of the things that Jesus came after the Pharisees and other religious rulers for was cheating widows out of their houses and orphans from their inheritance.
…16You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. 17You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant or maidservant, or his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.” Exodus 20: 16-17
8Woe to you who add house to house and join field to field until no place is left and you live alone in the land. 9I heard the LORD of Hosts declare: “Surely many houses will become desolate, great mansions left unoccupied.… Isaiah 5: 8-9
…16He took up the cause of the poor and needy, and so it went well with him. Is this not what it means to know Me?” declares the LORD. 17“But your eyes and heart are set on nothing except your own dishonest gain, on shedding innocent blood, on practicing extortion and oppression.” 18Therefore this is what the LORD says concerning Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah: “They will not mourn for him: ‘Alas, my brother! Alas, my sister!’ They will not mourn for him: ‘Alas, my master! Alas, his splendor!’… Jeremiah 22: 16-18
Against this family I am devising disaster - They plotted against their neighbor as God had instructed them not to, so now those that plot have God planning against them. He says, "you shall not walk haughtily," pride allows men to see themselves above others, but a righteous Judge will now put you in your true place. The two greatest commandments, they have broken the first in that "if you love Me keep My commandments, feed my sheep," they have not obeyed God Who would prefer that over religious ritual. The breaking of the second proved they had not kept the first, for it is God Who gives the laws concerning our neighbors, that we love them as ourselves.
As John Calvin said "“It is the peculiar office of God…to render to each the measure of evil they have brought on others” This reminds one of See Jesus' teaching on "an eye for an eye" (Lex Talionis) (Mt 5:38-39-note)
In that day they shall take up a taunt song against you - These are the rich landowners that have plotted against the poor, amassed properties that God did not intend for them to keep, now they become the example of what not to do, a sarcastic song. God is coming in justice.
To an apostate He allots our fields - God takes away even that which was theirs under the law, their family allotment. Now they mourn as those whom they had defrauded, and they bitterly grit upon the song of kindergarteners, "oh you poor thing, it's not fair when it's you, but you didn't shed a tear for your neighbor." Now God is giving their lands to a foreigner or one of the apostates who helped the foreigners take the land, a traitor, as they were to their own.
…28The LORD will afflict you with madness, blindness, and confusion of mind, 29and at noon you will grope about like a blind man in the darkness. You will not prosper in your ways. Day after day you will be oppressed and plundered, with no one to save you. 30You will be pledged in marriage to a woman, but another man will violate her. You will build a house but will not live in it. You will plant a vineyard but will not enjoy its fruit.… Deuteronomy 28: 28-30
You will have none to cast the line by lot - You made others homeless by not honoring God's allotments of what He made, and so you have handed the same measure to yourself and your posterity. God is giving you the same respect you gave Him. We are doing it your way, but you are on the bad side of your planning now. You are reaping what you sewed.
…9So the men departed and went throughout the land, mapping it city by city into seven portions. Then they returned with the document to Joshua at the camp in Shiloh. 10And Joshua cast lots for them in the presence of the LORD at Shiloh, where he distributed the land to the Israelites according to their divisions. Joshua 18: 9-10
…60The temple servants and descendants of the servants of Solomon numbered 392 in all. 61The following came up from Tel-melah, Tel-harsha, Cherub, Addon, and Immer, but could not prove that their families were descended from Israel: 62the descendants of Delaiah, the descendants of Tobiah, and the descendants of Nekoda, 642 in all.… Nehemiah 7: 60-62
"Do not preach" - thus they preach - This is the apostate prophets', priests' and teachers' sermon, it is about Micah, they don't like his message. That is the world always, "don't say what I don't want to hear, that was mean, that made me feel bad about myself, Micha, you're not an encourager." They would rather be coddled and tickled to hell.
NET Note - “‘Do not foam at the mouth,’ they foam at the mouth.” The verb נָטַף (nataf) means “to drip.” When used of speech it probably has the nuance “to drivel, to foam at the mouth” (HALOT 694 s.v. נטף). The sinful people tell the LORD’s prophets not to “foam at the mouth,” which probably refers in a derogatory way to their impassioned style of delivery. But the LORD (who is probably still speaking here, see Mic 2:3) sarcastically refers to their (the false prophet's) impassioned exhortation as “foaming at the mouth.” - Precept Austin
"One should not preach of such things" - Don't say this is going to happen, that God is calling what we are engaged in sin, that He is coming to us in judgement, that we shall be disgraced. In every age there are those who call the truth hateful and try to silence the messenger. I know them, have been them, "oh, this church isn't my style, the pastor says things that make me uncomfortable, so I need to find something else, somewhere that I fit in better. All this talk of sin and judgment, I need a church that doesn't preach all the passages of scripture, a place that recognizes what a special sort of snowflake I am, where my opinion matters, my feelings count." Their message is that Micha needs to leave out the hard stuff, they don't want the whole counsel, but the problem is that God is the one giving it.
10Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent word to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, “Amos has conspired against you in the midst of the house of Israel. The land cannot bear all his words, 11for this is what Amos has said: ‘Jeroboam will die by the sword, and Israel will surely go into exile, away from their homeland.’ ”… Amos 7: 10-11
17The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” Let the one who hears say, “Come!” And let the one who is thirsty come, and the one who desires the water of life drink freely. 18I testify to everyone who hears the words of prophecy in this book: If anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. 19And if anyone takes away from the words of this book of prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and the holy city, which are described in this book.… Revelation 22: 17-19
…21The troops took sheep and cattle from the plunder, the best of the things devoted to destruction, in order to sacrifice them to the LORD your God at Gilgal.” 22But Samuel declared: “Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obedience to His voice? Behold, obedience is better than sacrifice, and attentiveness is better than the fat of rams. 23For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance is like the wickedness of idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He has rejected you as king.”… 1 Samuel 15: 21-23
You strip the rich robe from those who pass by trustingly - None of God's laws matter to them until they are on the windward side. They don't honor His word.
…26If you take your neighbor’s cloak as collateral, return it to him by sunset, 27because his cloak is the only covering he has for his body. What else will he sleep in? And if he cries out to Me, I will hear, for I am compassionate. 28You must not blaspheme God or curse the ruler of your people.… Exodus 22: 26-28
…17When he had come near to her, the woman asked, “Are you Joab?” “I am,” he replied. “Listen to the words of your servant,” she said. “I am listening,” he answered. 18Then the woman said, “Long ago they used to say, ‘Seek counsel at Abel,’ and that is how disputes were settled. 19I am among the peaceable and faithful in Israel, but you are trying to destroy a city that is a mother in Israel. Why would you swallow up the LORD’s inheritance?”… 2 Samuel 20: 17-19
…8Then the Israelites took 200,000 captives from their kinsmen—women, sons, and daughters. They also carried off a great deal of plunder and brought it to Samaria. 9But a prophet of the LORD named Oded was there, and he went out to meet the army that returned to Samaria. “Look,” he said to them, “because of His wrath against Judah, the LORD, the God of your fathers, has delivered them into your hand. But you have slaughtered them in a rage that reaches up to heaven. 10And now you intend to reduce to slavery the men and women of Judah and Jerusalem. But are you not also guilty before the LORD your God?… 2 Chronicles 28: 8-10
The women of my people you drive out from their delightful houses - They were predators when it came to the poor, defrauding the widows and orphans. When they took from these widows and left them destitute they often created the orphan, for the widow was either worked to death for their sakes or starved.
14 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation. Matthew 23: 14
…26If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not bridle his tongue, he deceives his heart and his religion is worthless. 27Pure and undefiled religion before our God and Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1: 26-27
…4Then the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will please the LORD, as in days of old and years gone by. 5“Then I will draw near to you for judgment. And I will be a swift witness against sorcerers and adulterers and perjurers, against oppressors of the widowed and fatherless, and against those who defraud laborers of their wages and deny justice to the foreigner but do not fear Me,” says the LORD of Hosts. Malachi 3: 4-5
He would be the preacher for this people - All he has to do is say empty things, clichés, and preach a message that encourages their excesses. "You're not greedy, when you steal it is really god just blessing you. Get drunk, get laid, whatever makes you happy, and if he doesn't then find another, if she doesn't then have her put away." You finally found the church and pastor you wanted, its a social, feel good sort of place, where worship is about entertaining you, and the preaching is more pragmatic, it helped you get a good deal on a car today. You learned that "teamwork makes the dream work." For small group this week we are going to blindfold ourselves, listen to an episode of Dr. Phil while we fall backwards and catch each other, now that's how we grow.
…21Then a spirit came forward, stood before the LORD, and said, ‘I will entice him.’ ‘By what means?’ asked the LORD. 22And he replied, ‘I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouths of all his prophets.’ ‘You will surely entice him and prevail,’ said the LORD. ‘Go and do it.’ 23So you see, the LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouths of all these prophets of yours, and the LORD has pronounced disaster against you.”… 1 Kings 22: 21-23
…13“Ah, Lord GOD!” I replied, “Look, the prophets are telling them, ‘You will not see the sword or suffer famine, but I will give you lasting peace in this place.’ ” 14“The prophets are prophesying lies in My name,” replied the LORD. “I did not send them or appoint them or speak to them. They are prophesying to you a false vision, a worthless divination, the futility and delusion of their own minds. 15Therefore this is what the LORD says about the prophets who prophesy in My name: I did not send them, yet they say, ‘No sword or famine will touch this land.’ By sword and famine these very prophets will meet their end!… Jeremiah 14: 13-15
…13“For from the least of them to the greatest, all are greedy for gain; from prophet to priest, all practice deceit. 14They dress the wound of My people with very little care, saying, ‘Peace, peace,’ when there is no peace at all. 15Are they ashamed of the abomination they have committed? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; when I punish them, they will collapse,” says the LORD.… Jeremiah 6: 13-15
I will gather the remnant of Israel - After all of this, there is still hope, and certainly we should see that He will have to do this, for they are toilsome without Him, yet without progress and always falling away. They need a Shepherd, a promised Redeemer, a Deliverer, and this is the direction in which Micah is headed, to point to Christ.
…7For this is what the LORD says: “Sing with joy for Jacob; shout for the foremost of the nations! Make your praises heard, and say, ‘O LORD, save Your people, the remnant of Israel!’ 8Behold, I will bring them from the land of the north and gather them from the farthest parts of the earth, including the blind and the lame, expectant mothers and women in labor. They will return as a great assembly! 9They will come with weeping, and by their supplication I will lead them; I will make them walk beside streams of waters, on a level path where they will not stumble. For I am Israel’s Father, and Ephraim is My firstborn.”… Jeremiah 31: 7-9
He, who opens the breach, goes up before them - The Way, He said He is the Way, and this is chilling, but in a good way, we don't base truth upon our feeling, but what wonderful feeling come in knowing the truth, that hope of Messiah's return.
John Phillips - The Messiah is the One who clears the way. Just as He marched ahead of His people when they came out of Egypt into the promised land, so He will march ahead of them in a coming day. He will clear out of their way the beast, the false prophet, and the massed armies of the world.
This Breaker can be none other than the Messiah Himself. It is He who will clear the way for the people to break out of their enemies’ cities, passing through as if there were no gates. This messianic interpretation can be confirmed by the fact that “the Breaker” is also referred to in Mic 2:13 as “their King” and “the LORD.” All of Israel’s blessings will be realized in the Messiah, our Lord Jesus Christ." - Precept Austin
MacArthur - Messiah will make ready the way, removing the obstacles which might hinder His remnant’s deliverance and return at the Second Advent (cf. Isa 11:15, 16; 52:12).
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