Introduction

What is the Book of Micah About?

Read this 4-minute introduction to help you find your bearings in the Bible story, and be inspired to read Micah!

Videos
on Micah

Historical Context
of Micah

Accordion Content

Micah was a country preacher who lived in the days of Isaiah and Hosea. His home was about 20 miles south of Jerusalem in the town of Moresheth on the Philistine border. He was preaching there at the same time Isaiah was preaching in Jerusalem and Hosea was in Israel. Micah was a prophet of the common people and country life; Isaiah preached to the court in the city of Jerusalem. Micah knew his fellow country people well. Read what he says his real equipment is: “But as for me, I am filled with power, with the Spirit of the Lord, and with justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression, to Israel his sin” (Micah 3:8 NIV).

Micah prophesied concerning Samaria (the capital of Israel) and Jerusalem (the capital of Judah); and although the conditions were the same in both kingdoms, the burden of his prophecy was for Judah. The times in which he lived were difficult. Oppression was present within the kingdom, and foes were threatening from without. The kings Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah reigned during Micah’s day.

—Henrietta Mears

Source: This content is from What the Bible Is All About, written by Henrietta Mears. Copyright © 1953, 2011 by Gospel Light. Copyright assigned to Tyndale House Publishers, 2015. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, a division of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. 

From Bibles.net: Remember that the ultimate author of every book of the Bible is the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:21). He has written this book to equip you for life, to help you know the true God, and to give you hope (2 Timothy 3:16; Romans 15:4). The Holy Spirit wrote Micah for your good and to lead you into joy.

Micah prophesied during the reigns of the Judean kings Jotham (750–735 BC), Ahaz (735–715), and Hezekiah (715–687). This was about the same time as Hosea and Isaiah, though Micah may have served somewhat later. The length of Micah’s public activity may have been about 20 to 25 years. 

According to the first verse of the book, Micah’s prophetic ministry fell within the reigns of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah. The relevant background Scriptures covering that period are 2 Kings 15:32-20:21; 2 Chronicles 27-32; Isaiah 7; 20; 36-39.  

—Kenneth L. Barker 

Source: Barker, Kenneth L. Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah. The New American Commentary. Nashville, TN: B&H Publishing, 1998.

The Near East at the Time of Micah 

c. 740 BC

Micah prophesied to Israel and Judah from the time just before the fall of Samaria through the time of King Hezekiah of Judah. Micah saw the destruction of Israel by Assyria. He probably also saw the Lord’s dramatic rescue of Jerusalem from the Assyrians during Hezekiah’s reign.

Unless otherwise indicated, this content is adapted from the ESV Global Study Bible® (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright ©2012 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Books

Message Series
on Micah

Who Is a God Like You by David Sunday

In this 47-minute message, Pastor David Sunday helps us wonder at our God who delights to show mercy. In this comforting message, you will be moved by the great mercy of God revealed to us in Micah, and drawn to rejoice in God’s forgiveness extended to you. 

Listen to Micah On

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Micah Dictionary

As you read through Micah, you might come across words and ideas that are foreign to you. Here are a few definitions you will want to know! Note that this dictionary was created for the New International Version (NIV) Bible.

A powerful and aggressive nation, the most powerful Middle Eastern empire from the tenth century BC through most of the seventh century. Nineveh was the capital city. Assyria conquered Israel and took its inhabitants captive.

The capital city and the country that was one of the major political and cultural centers of the ancient world. The city of Babylon was located at the junction of the Euphrates River and major east-west caravan routes. For nearly 1,000 years, until the rise of Assyria in the ninth century BC, Babylon dominated much of the Middle East. Near the end of the seventh century BC, Babylon regained its independence and for nearly 100 years asserted its influence throughout the region and was a constant threat to the kingdom of Judah, finally resulting in the destruction of Jerusalem and the captivity of Judah’s leading citizens. Babylon was captured by the Persians in 539 BC and then continued to decline, until it was destroyed by the Greek army under Alexander the Great.

Wanting very much to have something that belongs to someone else.

A statue or other image of a god that is made by people and then worshiped as if it had the power of God. Idols are often made of wood, stone, or metal. Sometimes the Bible calls anything that takes the place of God in a person’s life an idol. God tells us not to worship idols but, rather, to worship only him.

Money, property, or traditions received from another person. Often a person receives an inheritance after another person’s death. The Bible tells us that everything that is God’s belongs to Jesus Christ. By his death on the cross, Jesus made it possible for us to share his inheritance with him.

The most important city of Bible times. Jerusalem was the capital of the united kingdom of Israel and the kingdom of Judah. The temple was built in Jerusalem, so many people traveled to the city to worship God. In 587 BC, Jerusalem was captured and mostly destroyed by Babylonian armies. The city was rebuilt when the Jews returned after 70 years of exile in Babylon. Jesus taught in the city of Jerusalem, was crucified outside the city wall, was buried near the city, and then rose again. The first Christian church began in Jerusalem after the Holy Spirit came to the believers there.

That which is right and fair. Most of the prophets in the Bible emphasized that God is just and that he wants his people to act justly. Many of the prophets’ warnings were given because the leaders and people were guilty of injustice (such as cheating others, especially the poor).

Showing more love or kindness to people than they expect or deserve.

Men and women in the Old and New Testaments chosen by God to tell his messages to people. Also refers to the seventeen Old Testament books written by prophets.

To buy back. In Bible times, a person could buy a slave and then set the slave free. The slave had been redeemed by the person who had paid the price and then given the slave freedom. The New Testament tells us that by dying, Jesus paid the price to buy us back and set us free from our slavery to sin.

A small part that is left. In the Old Testament, remnant usually refers to the few Israelite people who remained faithful worshipers of God after their exile in Babylon.

The permanent place in Jerusalem where the Jews worshiped God. The first temple was built by King Solomon and the people by following the instructions God had given Solomon’s father, King David. The temple was a very beautiful place. It was destroyed and rebuilt twice. In AD 64, the temple was destroyed again but was not rebuilt.

A sin; disobeying the law of God.

Very great anger.

(1) One of the hills on which the city of Jerusalem was built (Mount Zion). (2) The entire city of Jerusalem. (3) Another name for the nation of Israel. (4) Another name for heaven.

Dictionary Source

This content is from What the Bible Is All About, written by Henrietta Mears. Copyright © 1953, 2011 by Gospel Light. Copyright assigned to Tyndale House Publishers, 2015. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, a division of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. 

Tough Questions
from Micah

We have found answers to some tough questions that we anticipate may arise as you read Micah. We know we can’t answer every question you will have; therefore, we have written this article, so you know how to find answers for your kids: How Do I Answer Tough Questions About the Bible?

Insights about Micah

The following insights are from pastors and scholars who have spent significant time studying the book of Micah.

In his great grace…God sent the prophet Micah to confront their [Samaria and Judah] sin, warn them of judgment, and call them to repentance. Micah prophesied of the coming judgment, when God would abandon them (for a time) to the invading enemies of Assyria and Babylon, who would trample their cities and carry their people off to exile. 

But while God is a righteous Judge who carries out deserved judgment, he is also a merciful Savior who gives undeserved grace and full forgiveness to those who turn to him in repentance. The specific hope Micah presented was the promise of a Shepherd-King who would gather his faithful remnant back in the land, tenderly care for them, and defeat their great enemy. The result would be that people from many nations would come to worship Israel’s God. To God’s people who had suffered under a line of failed kings and oppressive foreign regimes, Micah announced the coming of a Shepherd-King who would arise from Bethlehem, saying, “He shall be their peace” (Micah 5:2–5 ESV). 

Ultimately, Jesus himself is the long-anticipated Shepherd-King who has made peace with God. He has done it, however, not through the raw power of military deliverance but through “the blood of his cross” (Colossians 1:20 ESV). He did not come to destroy but to be destroyed, laying down his life for his sheep (John 10:15). He now rules over his people in perfect justice and abundant mercy, empowering his people, by his Spirit, to walk humbly in his just and merciful ways (1 John 2:6)—the very life Israel in Micah’s day had abandoned. 

—ESV Gospel Transformation Study Bible

Source: Content adapted from the ESV Gospel Transformation Study Bible. This article first appeared on Crossway.org; used with permission.

But the theme of the book is plain: it is the wretched estate of all Israel because of their sin, and the wonderful deliverance to be brought in by him “whose goings-forth have been of old, from everlasting,” yet who was to come out of Bethlehem-Ephrathah to effect salvation for his people. Hence, though this first chapter begins with their solemn arraignment for “the transgression of Jacob” and “for the sins of the house of Israel,” the book concludes with the precious assurance that he whom they have offended will cast all their sins into the depth of the sea.

—H.A. Ironside

Source: Ironside, H. A. “Commentary on Micah 1”. Ironside’s Notes on Selected Books. https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/eng/isn/micah-1.html. 1914.

Micah is going to come to the south [Southern Kingdom of Judah] about the time that the north [Northern Kingdom of Israel] is going to be taken away by Assyria. So he’s going to be prophesying during the Assyrian captivity. Assyria is going to come, they’re going to take the Northern Kingdom, they’re going to strip them naked, they’re going to put hooks in their mouths like fish, they’re going to put shackles on their necks and on their hands, and they are going to lead them in shame out of the nation of Israel back home to Assyria where they will become indentured servants there. 

Micah is going to be watching this happen in the north, and he’s going to speak to the south and say, “Listen guys, what got them in trouble is the same stuff that’s going on down here and there’s no way that we should think we are above the law and we are going to miss out on this sort of judgment.” God is giving this word to Micah. So he is primarily a prophet to the Southern Kingdom of Judah, often describing and reflecting upon events that are happening or did happen in the north. 

—Garrett Kell

Source: Garrett Kell, quoted from his lecture “1:1-2:5” on the book of Micah from his course called Study Micah. This message originally appeared here at The Gospel Coalition.

Her leaders judge for a bribe, her priests teach for a price, and her prophets tell fortunes for money. Yet they look for the Lord’s support and say, “Is not the Lord among us? No disaster will come upon us.” 

—Micah 3:11 NIV

Micah 3:5 elaborates on the extent of the prophets’ wickedness: they “cry ‘Peace’ when they have something to eat, but declare war against him who puts nothing into their mouths.” These false prophets were engaging in a type of spiritual extortion. They prophesied positive messages to those who provided them with sustenance. But, if someone refused to pay, these selfish prophets-for-hire would utter negative or even violent oracles against him. In other words, these wicked men were abusing their office, and their messages were based solely on what brought them the greatest benefit. 

—Got Questions

Source: “Why is the lack of visions and divinations considered a punishment (Micah 3:6)?” Got Questions Ministries, accessed May 25, 2023, [https://www.gotquestions.org/lack-of-visions.html]

Amos (ca. 775-743 BC) gives us eyewitness testimony to the moral rot at work inside Samaria a generation before Micah (cf. Amos 2:6-7; 4:6-9; 5:10-12; 8:4-6). Hosea, who bridged the generations between Amos and Micah (ca. 760-725), testifies that the same sorry situation continued to obtain in Samaria. From Hosea’s successors, Micah and Isaiah, we learn that the contagious social injustices that prevailed in Samaria now prevailed in her… sister Jerusalem as well.

—Bruce Waltke

Source: Waltke, Bruce K. A Commentary on Micah. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2007.

Apart from Isaiah 2:2-4, three other passages from Micah are quoted elsewhere in Scripture. Micah 3:12 is quoted in Jeremiah 26:18, thereby saving Jeremiah’s life from King Jehoiakim’s death sentence. Micah 5:2 is quoted by the chief priests and scribes (Matthew 2:6) in response to Herod’s query about the birthplace of the Messiah. Micah 7:6 is employed by Jesus in Matthew 10:35 and 36 when commissioning his disciples.

—John MacArthur

Source: Copyright 2022, Grace to You. All rights reserved. Used by permission. This Grace to You article originally appeared here at gty.org.

This is really important to understand and it travels through all of these prophets: warnings of judgment are always grace. Because if all God wanted to do was to judge us, he wouldn’t warn us first, he would just judge us. Whenever God announces his judgment—why is he doing that? To give us a chance to listen, and to see, and to confess, and to turn. The core message, then, of Micah is that this Righteous Judge is also a Tender Savior, and he will not forsake his righteous requirement in order to deliver his mercy.

—Paul David Tripp

Source: Paul David Tripp, quoted from his video “Micah Summary” in his series, The Gospel: One Book at a Time, published on his blog paultripp.com. 

Micah promises a future deliverer who will gather God’s people as a shepherd gathers his flock but will also fight for them and lead them as their King. Such imagery, reminiscent of King David, a shepherd who eventually became king (1 Samuel 16:11–13; 2 Samuel 2:1–4), anticipates a coming King like David who will once again gather God’s people, fight for them against their enemies, deliver them from bondage, bring about lasting peace, and rule over them with justice. With echoes of Israel’s deliverance out of Egypt (Exodus 13:21; Deuteronomy 1:30–33), Micah proclaims that the Lord himself will be that Shepherd-King. Of course, Micah’s original audience would likely hear such a promise in terms of God’s Spirit being with a human king, as the Spirit was with David. However, God’s plans were much greater, as it was indeed God himself, the Lord made flesh, who would rescue his people through his own life, death, and resurrection.

—Kristofer D. Holroyd

Source: Content taken from Jonah, Micah, and Nahum: A 12-Week Study © 2018 by Kristofer D. Holroyd. All rights reserved. Used by permission of Crossway Books, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

God’s judgment often seems to threaten the total annihilation of humanity, as in the days of Noah (Genesis 6); and sometimes the spread of wickedness seems to threaten total annihilation of God’s people, as in the days of Elijah (1 Kings 19). In both cases, however, God preserved for himself a remnant, a small group of those faithful to him, through whom he preserved the reputation and glory of his name. In the days of Noah, God preserved the remnant of Noah and his family; in the days of Elijah, God preserved 7,000 in Israel who had not worshiped the false god Baal. Throughout the struggles of Israel in the Old Testament, God always preserved a remnant of his people, a small group of those called by God and faithful to him (e.g., Isaiah 10:20–23; Micah 2:12–13). Similarly today, despite judgment on the earth or the apparent expansion of wickedness to the detriment of the church, God preserves his people as a remnant among all people on earth, protecting the reputation and glory of his name through that remnant.

—Kristofer D. Holroyd

Source: Content taken from Jonah, Micah, and Nahum: A 12-Week Study © 2018 by Kristofer D. Holroyd. All rights reserved. Used by permission of Crossway Books, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

God is looking for wholeheartedness. He’s looking for people that love him with all of themselves—inside and out…[God says in Micah 6] “Don’t come with rituals, claiming that you love me. Show that you love me by how you treat your neighbor. Show that you really love and regard and honor me by the way that you follow my command to love your neighbor as yourself, to act justly and to love mercy”…In other words he tests their asserted devotion in their hearts and in their worship to God by how they are treating other people. Are you treating other people the way the God that you say that you love has told you to treat other people? By the way that is very important for us today as believers—that our treatment of our neighbors concords with our profession of love to God.

—Ligon Duncan

Source: Ligon Duncan, quoted from his message, “Micah: Who Is Like God?,” from the series The Minor Prophets, preached at Christ Covenant Church on July 22, 2018. 

Micah Playlist

Discover music inspired by the message and content of the book of Micah.

Peace
by We The Kingdom feat. Bethel Music | Pop
Act Justly, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly
by Pat Barrett | Pop
Micah 6:8
by VeggieTales | Children
In the Valley (Bless the Lord)
by CityAlight feat. Sandra McCracken | Hymn
Come Let's Go Up to the Mountain
by Paul Wilbur | Folk
O Little Town of Bethlehem
by Norton Hall Band | Hymn
Who Would Have Dreamed 
by Sovereign Grace Music | Contemporary
The Sea of Forgetfulness
by Helen Baylor | Gospel
More Songs