Micah 4

CHAPTER 4THEME: Prophecies of the last daysThe little prophecy of Micah could be compared to a Jewish day in that it goes from evening to morning. It opens in the darkness of nightthe first three chapters pronounce judgment, as we have seen: “Who is a God like unto thee” (Mic_7:18) in proclaiming future judgment for past sins? But even in the darkness of judgment there was a ray of light which broke through momentarily. Now we have come to a new section, in which Micah prophesies future glory. This we will see in chapters 4 and 5. There will also be a little judgment in this section, but in the main it is glorious light with every now and then a cloud passing across the brightness of the sun.

Micah 4:1

PROPHECIES OF THE LAST DAYSThis is a remarkable passage of Scripture and may sound familiar to you because it is similar to the second chapter of Isaiah. Micah, you may recall, was a contemporary of Isaiah, and through the years scholars have been trying to determine if Micah copied Isaiah or if Isaiah copied Micah. Candidly, I feel that such debate is a waste of time, because nobody has the answer to it. I would rather look at it this way: Since the Holy Spirit was the author, He was able to say the same things through Isaiah and through Micah; and the reason He said it twice was because of its importance. Therefore, we should look at this section very carefully. Notice that this fourth chapter opens with the little conjunction “but,” which is a connective that contrasts it to the last verse of chapter 3: “Therefore shall Zion for your sake be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of the forest.” “But in the last days.” Micah is moving now beyond the destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar and the destruction under Titus the Roman, and beyond all other destructions, to the last days. In the Old Testament, “the last days” is a technical term with a very definite meaning. Our Lord Jesus called it “the tribulation, the great one” (see Mat_24:21). We designate it as the Great Tribulation period, which begins “the last days.” Then after the Tribulation (which will be a brief period of approximately seven years), the Lord Jesus Christ will return to the earth. In fact, His coming will end the Tribulation period, and He Himself will establish His Kingdom upon the earth. So “the last days” embrace the Tribulation, the return of Christ to the earth, and the millennial Kingdom of Christ.

Therefore, when Micah says “in the last days,” he has moved out and beyond all local situations, and he is looking way down into the future. The darker it became in Israel, the brighter the future appeared. And that is true for all of us. I am told that if you go far enough down in a well, you can see the stars. And when Israel hit bottom, God let them see the stars, the light out yonder in the future. “The mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established in the top of the mountains.” The word mountain is used both literally and figuratively. Daniel uses it in a figurative way when he says, “Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth” (Dan_2:34-35). That stone pictures Christ who is coming. “The stone …became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.” The mountain Daniel is talking about is Christ’s Kingdom, which is to be established here upon the earth. That is the spiritual interpretation. We have no right to spiritualize a passage unless there is scriptural authority for doing so, and we do have it for this.

However, I would not want to rob it of its literal sense, because the fact is that the city of Jerusalem is located upon a hill. Not only does Scripture make that clear, but all you have to do is to take a look at it. Micah is talking about Jerusalem, as we shall see. And the millennial Kingdom will be centered there. Jerusalem will be the capital of the earth. “And people shall flow unto it.” The word flow indicates spontaneous movementfrom the desire in their hearts. Right nowas I am writing thisthe flow is in the opposite direction. However, the way world conditions are changing, it could be different by the time you read this. But the point is that this prophecy of Micah’s is not being fulfilled today and will not be fulfilled until the Messiah comes.

Micah 4:2

Here is another chapter, among the many chapters in the prophetic books of the Bible, which makes it clear that the present return of the Jews to the land of Israel is not a fulfillment of prophecy. In this day in which we live the nations of the world are not going to Jerusalem to hear from the Lord! Neither is the Word of the Lord going forth from Jerusalem. I could supply you with the names of several Christian missionaries in the city of Jerusalem who themselves are Jewish, but who have been persecuted for presenting Christ and the Word of God. Believe me, the Word of God is not flowing from Jerusalem! My friend, all the current sensationalism which declares that prophecy is being fulfilled in that land just produces an itch in what I call baby Christians. They want the bottle to be warm and sweet; and, therefore, it is nice to hear that we are seeing a fulfillment of prophecy, which means that the end is just around the corner. Some folk are even setting dates for our Lord’s return. Well, nobody knows. Although I think we are drawing near to the end, I have no inside information from the Lord to confirm it, and certainly there is nothing in His Word to confirm it. I wish these sensational speakers who major in prophecy would read all the prophecies throughout the Bible.

If they would do that, it would be quite obvious to them that prophecies like Micah gives us here are not now being fulfilled. The Word of God is not going out from Jerusalem today. For example, no Bible society is printing Bibles in Jerusalem and sending them out to the ends of the earth! To circulate the New Testament from that place would be utterly impossible. The Word of God is not going forth from Jerusalem as Micah said it would do. The wonderful prophecies in this chapter will be fulfilled during the millennial Kingdom when Christ Himself is reigning in Jerusalem.

Then the heads of the capitals of the worldBeijing, Berlin, London, Washingtonwill be going to Jerusalem to be taught by Christ Himself of His ways!

Micah 4:3

“And he shall judge among many people.” This again is the Lord Jesus Christ, the Messiah, when He returns to the earth the second time to reign. Imagine the nations of the world bringing their disputes to Him for arbitration! The things mentioned in this verse cannot come to pass until He does come. “They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks.” This verse appears on the building of the United Nations. Believe me, it doesn’t belong there! If those boys have beaten their swords into plowshares, it only means that they have a bigger instrument with which to beat each other over the head. And if they are turning their spears into pruninghooks, they are not using them to catch fish but to gouge other nations, especially those that are weaker than they are. This verse certainly is not being fulfilled by the United Nations! They are really knocking each other out there, and there is very little agreement. It will not be fulfilled until Christ comes. “Nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.” Obviously, we have not come to this position and will not until the Prince of Peace is ruling. Because He is not ruling in our day, we are not to beat our swords into plowshares; we are to keep our powder dry. This is not the time to disarm. Certainly everyone who wants peace would like to see our armaments cut back and our tax dollars going to something else, but as long as we are living in a big, bad worldnot of make-believe but of realitywe need to be armed. The Lord Jesus said, “…a strong man armed keepeth his palace …” (Luk_11:21). Does he keep it by turning the other cheek?

To read about turning the other cheek, you must read the Sermon on the Mount, and remember that it is the King who is speaking and He is referring to the time when He will be reigning upon the earth. When He is reigning, we can get rid of all our protection. We can even take the locks off our doorsbut until then I not only have one lock on my door, I have two locks. We are living in that kind of world. These prophecies that Micah is giving are not for the present hour; they are for the last days. Let’s put them in their proper context.

Micah 4:4

“They shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid.” Do you want to tell me that this verse is being fulfilled in Israel today? In our day they are absolutely afraid. Why? Because they are not there according to fulfilled prophecy. “For the mouth of the LORD of hosts hath spoken it.” God Himself has said this. God says that when He puts them in the land, they will live in peace and prosperity.

Micah 4:5

The American Standard Version has a much better translation of this verse: “For all the peoples walk every one in the name of his god; and we will walk in the name of Jehovah our God for ever and ever.” The thought is that in the past they walked after their own gods, but in the future they are going to walk in the name of Jehovah, our God.

Micah 4:6

“In that day” reminds us that He is still speaking of the millennial Kingdom. “Will I assemble her that halteth.” Who is this whom God describes as halting, driven out, and afflicted? It is the nation Israel. Notice that He says, “That I have afflicted.” It looks as if God takes the blame for that which has happened to the nation Israel. I had a conversation with a Jewish man in front of the King David Hotel in Jerusalem several years ago. He was one of the Jews who had come out of Nazi persecution alive, although he had spent time in a concentration camp. He said that he had become an atheist. He asked, “Where was God during the time of our trouble? Why didn’t He deliver us?” I told him, “To tell the truth, I think God was around. Maybe you would like to blame Him for the trouble you had.” He replied, “I certainly do. If there is a God, He would have responded to us.” I said, “No, because you folk had an opportunity to know Him and obey Him way ahead of the rest of us. When your nation had a knowledge of the living and true God, my ancestors were heathens. One tribe was in Germany, and the other tribe was in Scotland. They were dirty, filthy, ignorant pagans, but you had the light. Finally some of your people brought the light to my people, and I’m grateful for it. But God has made it very clear in your own writings, your own books, that when you have a knowledge of the true and living God, you cannot turn your back on Him without being punished.

If you will read your writings, you will find that not only can you blame Him for your trouble, but He is also not through with you as a nation. He intends to regather you. By that time you will have learned (and obviously you have not learned it yet) that this is God’s universe and that you cannot reject the knowledge of Himself that He has given you without suffering His judgment.” My friend, our own nation is coming to this same position and condition, and it alarms me. In this land of ours there is a growing ignorance of the Word of God. Even worse than that, the Word of God is being ridiculed and made light of. A comedian says, “The Devil made me do it.” This is simply not true. You don’t do evil because the Devil made you do it. You do evil because you have an old nature that is as mean and as alienated and as far from God as it can possibly be.

Also I hear it flippantly said, “I’ll tell God on you!” Well, of course, you don’t have to tell Him about somebody else’s sin. He already knows it, and He knows yours as well. My friend, we cannot make light of Him and reject Him without experiencing His judgment. In Micah’s day He took the blame for afflicting Israel, and He has not asked me to apologize for Him or to try to explain away that statement. This ought to serve as a warning to us as a nation.

Micah 4:7

“I will make her that halted a remnant.” Never throughout the long history of Israel did 100 percent of the nation worship God. Always only a remnant was faithful to Him. God always preserved a remnant. Actually, it was a remnant of those which came out of Egypt that entered the land. Practically the entire generation that came out of Egypt died in the wilderness. It was their children who entered the land.

God preserved a remnant. Even in Elijah’s day God had a faithful remnant. Elijah was very pessimistic. He cried, “Lord, I only am left” (see 1Ki_19:10). But God told him, “You aren’t the only one; I have seven thousand in these mountains who have not bowed the knee to Baal.” Because they were hiding from Ahab and Jezebel, Elijah didn’t know about them. (And I am of the opinion that in our day there are more believers than we think there are. There are many believers like those seven thousand.

Although we don’t hear about them, they are true believers.) Also, there was a remnant of believers at the coming of Christ; although the leaders of the nation rejected Him and had Him crucified, there was a remnant that received Him. Later, on the day of Pentecost, a great company turned to Christ; yet it was a remnant. It always has been a remnant. Coming down to our day, there is a remnant even in the church that bears His name. Although I have made the statement that I think there are more believers in our world than we realize, it is also true that in the church there is only a remnant of true believers in Christ. Many of us would be surprised if we knew how few church members were genuine believers even though they are quite active in Christian circles and in Christian service. Many people in our affluent society have become church members. We are living in a period that has produced a lot of pseudo-saints. They are not genuine by any means. They have not been born again. The Book of Hebrews makes it very clear that “…whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth …” (Heb_12:6).

And every son whom He receives, He is going to put through the fire. He is going to test him. If you have some metal which you think is gold, you can take it to the assayer’s office. He will put the metal under the heat so that you will find out whether what you have is gold or something else. And God puts the heat to those who are His own. The day of persecution is going to come to church members, and it will reveal quickly who are the true believers and who are not.

God has a remnant in the church today. Also in our day there is a remnant of believers among the people of Israelprobably more than we realize. In every nation there is a remnant of true believers, although they may not be identified with a local church. Unfortunately, the actions of some church members are shutting the door to a great many believers. Yet God always has His faithful remnant. The word remnant in Scripture is very important; don’t just rush over it. In Micah’s day God is saying that of the afflicted ones He will make a remnant; He will regather them and make them “a strong nation: and the LORD shall reign over them in mount Zion from henceforth, even for ever.”

Micah 4:8

“O tower of the flock, the strong hold of the daughter of Zion.” God is probably addressing the land itself, informing it that its former dominion under David and Solomon will be restored, the far greater Kingdom of the Messiah shall come. This has not happened yet; the Kingdom has not come. If the people of Israel are back in their land for anything, they are back there for the Great Tribulation period. The Kingdom is still in the far future.

Micah 4:9

THE NEAR FUTUREAt this point a cloud passes over the sun. A great many Bible scholars believe the next two verses refer to the Babylonian captivity. This is so specific that I feel it could refer to nothing else but the Babylonian captivity which was coming to the southern kingdom. When Micah directs his remarks to the “daughter of Zion,” he refers to the southern kingdom of Judah. The word that interests me here is travail. Frankly, I can’t speak about travail firsthand. One half of the human family does not know what it is to travail in birth. Only the women know about that. The only thing I know about birth pangs is what I saw my own wife go through and what I have been told by others. Birth pangs are frightful. They are something no person could bear for a long period of time. It has to be temporary. The picture Micah gives us here is that of Nebuchadnezzar taking Jerusalem. He came to that city three times, and the third time he destroyed the temple area, left it in wrack and ruin, leveled the city, and burned it. The suffering of the people of Judah is described as a woman in travail, a woman with birth pangs. This had to be a brief period or the nation would not have continued to exist. That kind of trouble could not go on forever because the people could not have endured it. It would have been too frightful, too terrible. For this same reason the Great Tribulation period must be brief. The Lord Jesus Christ made that clear: “And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened” (Mat_24:22). “Thou shalt go forth out of the city, and thou shalt dwell in the field, and thou shalt go even to Babylon.” When Nebuchadnezzar captured the city, the remaining inhabitants fled and tried to live in the fields. Eventually they were taken captive to Babylon. Let me call your attention to the fact that Micah in these two verses is looking beyond the Assyrian captivity of Israel to the later captivity of Judah by Babylon. However, in the next breath he predicts deliverance: “There shalt thou be delivered; there the LORD shall redeem thee from the hand of thine enemies.” Although they shall be captives in Babylon, God will deliver them from there. We know from history that God did deliver them by the hand of Cyrus (see Isa_44:28; 2Ch_36:22-23). The point that Micah is making here is that the travail and suffering of God’s people will end in joy.

Micah 4:11

THE DISTANT FUTURENow in this closing section Micah moves ahead to the far distant future, the time of the Great Tribulation and specifically to the final war, the War (not the battle) of Armageddon. “Many nations are gathered against thee"the mention of many nations makes it clear that Micah has moved away from the Babylonian invasion and is speaking of something else here. The many nations gathered against Jerusalem are mentioned by several other prophets. For example: Joel 3; Zechariah 12 and 14; Ezekiel 38 and 39 all refer to the War of Armageddon during the Great Tribulation period.

Micah 4:12

“They know not the thoughts of the LORD, neither understand they his counsel.” They do not know what God is going to do. They are coming against Israel blindly, unaware that God is bringing them there for judgment.

Micah 4:13

“Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion.” The nations of the world are as sheaves for the threshing floor, and Israel will do the threshing. Today Israel is a weak nation and absolutely dependent upon other nations, but in that day they are going to be dependent upon the Lord. Psa_75:6 says, “For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south.” Psa_75:7 goes on to say, “But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another.” In that day help for Israel will not come from the north (Russia), or from the south (Egypt), or from the west (Europe or the United States), or from the east (China and the Arab countries). Their help will come from the Lord who made heaven and earth. These final three verses look forward to the war which concludes the Great Tribulation period, the War of Armageddon.