Micha 7:14 Kommentar

In this chapter, I. The prophet, in the name of the church, sadly laments the woeful decay of religion in the age wherein he lived, and the deluge of impiety and immorality which overwhelmed the nation, which levelled the differences, and bore down the fences, of all that is just and sacred (Mic 7:1-6). II. The prophet, for the sake of the church, prescribes comforts, which may be of use at such a time, and gives counsel what to do. 1. They must have an eye to God (Mic 7:7). 2. They must courageously bear up against the insolences of the enemy (Mic 7:8-10). 3. They must patiently lie down under the rebukes of their God (Mic 7:9). 4. They must expect no other than that the trouble would continue long, and must endeavour to make the best of it (Mic 7:11-13). 5. They must encourage themselves with God's promises, in answer to the prophet's prayers (Mic 7:14, Mic 7:15). 6. They must foresee the fall of their enemies, that now triumphed over them (Mic 7:16, Mic 7:17). 7. They must themselves triumph in the mercy and grace of God, and his faithfulness to his covenant (Mic 7:18-20), and with that comfortable word the prophecy concludes.

Here is, I. The prophet's prayer to God to take care of his own people, and of their cause and interest, Mic 7:14. When God is about to deliver his people he stirs up their friends to pray for them, and pours out a spirit of grace and supplication, Zac 12:10. And when we see God coming towards us in ways of mercy, we must go forth to meet him by prayer. It is a prophetic prayer, which amounts to a promise of the good prayed for; what God directed his prophet to ask no doubt he designed to give. Now, 1. The people of Israel are here called the flock of God's heritage, for they are the sheep of his hand, the sheep of his pasture, his little flock in the world; and they are his heritage, his portion in the world. Jacob is the lot of his inheritance. 2. This flock dwells solitarily in the wood, or forest, in the midst of Carmel, a high mountain. Israel was a peculiar people, that dwelt alone, and was not reckoned among the nations, like a flock of sheep in a wood. They were now a desolate people (Mic 7:13), were in the land of their captivity as sheep in a forest, in danger of being lost and made a prey of to the beasts of the forest. They are scattered upon the mountains as sheep having no shepherd. 3. He prays that God would feed them there with his rod, that is, that he would take care of them in their captivity, would protect them, and provide for them, and do the part of a good shepherd to them: "Let thy rod and staff comfort them, even in that darksome valley; and even there let them want nothing that is good for them. Let them be governed by thy rod, not the rod of their enemies, for they are thy people." 4. He prays that God would in due time bring them back to feed in the plains of Bashan and Gilead, and no longer to be fed in the woods and mountains. Let them feed in their own country again, as in the days of old. Some apply this spiritually, and make it either the prophet's prayer to Christ or his Father's charge to him, to take care of his church, as the great Shepherd of the sheep, and to go in and out before them while they are here in this world as in a wood, that they may find pasture as in Carmel, as in Bashan and Gilead. II. God's promise, in answer to this prayer; and we may well take God's promises as real answers to the prayers of faith, and embrace them accordingly, for with him saying and doing are not two things. The prophet prayed that God would feed them, and do kind things for them; but God answers that he will show them marvellous things (Mic 7:15), will do for them more than they are able to ask or think, will out-do their hopes and expectations; he will show them his marvellous lovingkindness, Psa 17:7. 1. He will do that for them which shall be the repetition of the wonders and miracles of former ages - according to the days of thy coming out of the land of Egypt. Their deliverance out of Babylon shall be a work of wonder and grace not inferior to their deliverance out of Egypt, nay, it shall eclipse the lustre of that (Jer 16:14, Jer 16:15), much more shall the work of redemption by Christ. Note, God's former favours to his church are patterns of future favours, and shall again be copied out as there is occasion. 2. He will do that for them which shall be matter of wonder and amazement to the present age, Mic 7:16, Mic 7:17. The nations about shall take notice of it, and it shall be said among the heathen, The Lord has done great things for them, Psa 126:2. The impression which the deliverance of the Jews out of Babylon shall make upon the neighbouring nations shall be very much for the honour both of God and his church. (1.) Those that had insulted over the people of God in their distress, and gloried that when they had them down they would keep them down, shall be confounded, when they see them thus surprisingly rising up; they shall be confounded at all the might with which the captives shall now exert themselves, whom they thought for ever disabled. They shall now lay their hands upon their mouths, as being ashamed of what they have said, and not able to say more, by way of triumph over Israel. Nay, their ears shall be deaf too, so much shall they be ashamed at the wonderful deliverance; they shall stop their ears, as being not willing to hear any more of God's wonders wrought for that people, whom they had so despised and insulted over. (2.) Those that had impudently confronted God himself shall now be struck with a fear of him, and thereby brought, in profession at least, to submit to him (v. 17): They shall lick the dust like a serpent, they shall be so mortified, as if they were sentenced to the same curse the serpent was laid under (Gen 3:14), Upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat. They shall be brought to the lowest abasements imaginable, and shall be so dispirited that they shall tamely submit to them. His enemies shall lick the dust, Psa 72:9. Nay, they shall lick the dust of the church's feet, Isa 49:23. Proud oppressors shall now be made sensible how mean, how little, they are, before the great God, and they shall with trembling and the lowest submission move out of the holes into which they had crept (Isa 2:21), like worms of the earth as they are, being ashamed and afraid to show their heads; so low shall they be brought, and such abjects shall they be, when they are abased. When God did wonders for his church many of the people of the land became Jews, because the fear of the Jews, and of their God, fell upon them, Est 8:17. So it is promised here: They shall be afraid of the Lord our God, and shall fear because of thee, O Israel! Forced submissions are often but feigned submissions; yet they redound to the glory of God and the church, though not to the benefit of the dissemblers themselves. III. The prophet's thankful acknowledgment of God's mercy, in the name of the church, with a believing dependence upon his promise, Mic 7:18-20. We are here taught, 1. To give to God the glory of his pardoning mercy, Mic 7:18. God having promised to bring back the captivity of his people, the prophet, on that occasion, admires pardoning mercy, as that which was at the bottom of it. As it was their sin that brought them into bondage, so it was God's pardoning their sin that brought them our of it; Psa 85:1, Psa 85:2, and Isa 33:24; Isa 38:17; Isa 60:1, Isa 60:2. The pardon of sin is the foundation of all other covenant-mercies, Heb 8:12. This the prophet stands amazed at, while the surrounding nations stood amazed only at those deliverances which were but the fruits of this. Note, (1.) God's people, who are the remnant of his heritage, stand charged with many transgressions; being but a remnant, a very few, one would hope they should all be very good, but they are not so; God's children have their spots, and often offend their Father. (2.) The gracious God is ready to pass by and pardon the iniquity and transgression of his people, upon their repentance and return to him. God's people are a pardoned people, and to this they owe their all. When God pardons sin, he passes it by, does not punish it as justly he might, nor deal with the sinner according to the desert of it. (3.) Though God may for a time lay his own people under the tokens of his displeasure, yet he will not retain his anger for ever, but though he cause grief he will have compassion; he is not implacable; yet against those that are not of the remnant of his heritage, that are unpardoned, he will keep his anger for ever. (4.) The reasons why God pardons sin, and keeps not his anger for ever, are all taken from within himself; it is because he delights in mercy, and the salvation of sinners is what he has pleasure in, not their death and damnation. (5.) The glory of God in forgiving sin is, as in other things, matchless, and without compare. There is no God like unto him for this; no magistrate, no common person, forgives as God does. In this his thoughts and ways are infinitely above ours; in this he is God, and not man. (6.) All those that have experienced pardoning mercy cannot but admire that mercy; it is what we have reason to stand amazed at, if we know what it is. Has God forgiven us our transgressions? We may well say, Who is a God like unto thee? Our holy wonder at pardoning mercy will be a good evidence of our interest in it. 2. To take to ourselves the comfort of that mercy and all the grace and truth that go along with it. God's people here, as they look back with thankfulness upon God's pardoning their sins, so they look forward with assurance upon what he would yet further do for them. His mercy endures for ever, and therefore as he has shown mercy so he will, Mic 7:19, Mic 7:20. (1.) He will renew his favours to us: He will turn again; he will have compassion; that is, he will again have compassion upon us as formerly he had; his compassions shall be new every morning; he seemed to be departing from us in anger, but he will turn again and pity us. He will turn us to himself, and then will turn to us, and have mercy upon us. (2.) He will renew us, to prepare and qualify us for his favour: He will subdue our iniquities; when he takes away the guilt of sin, that it may not damn us, he will break the power of sin, that it may not have dominion over us, that we may not fear sin, nor be led captive by it. Sin is an enemy that fights against us, a tyrant that oppresses us; nothing less than almighty grace can subdue it, so great is its power in fallen man and so long has it kept possession. But, if God forgive the sin that has been committed by us, he will subdue the sin that dwells in us, and in that there is none like him in forgiving; and all those whose sins are pardoned earnestly desire and hope; to have their corruptions mortified and their iniquities subdued, and please themselves with the hopes of it. If we be left to ourselves, our iniquities will be too hard for us; but God's grace, we trust, shall be sufficient for us to subdue them, so that they shall not rule us, and then they shall not ruin us. (3.) He will confirm this good work, and effectually provide that his act of grace shall never be repealed: Thou wilt cast all their sins into the depth of the sea, as when he brought them out of Egypt (to which he has an eye in the promises here, Mic 7:15) he subdued Pharaoh and the Egyptians, and cast them into the depth of the sea. It intimates that when God forgives sin he remembers it no more, and takes care that it shall never be remembered more against the sinner. Eze 18:22, His transgressions shall not be mentioned unto him; they are blotted out as a cloud which never appears more. He casts them into the sea, not near the shore-side, where they may appear again next low water, but into the depth of the sea, never to rise again. All their sins shall be cast there without exception, for when God forgives sin he forgives all. (4.) He will perfect that which concerns us, and with this good work will do all that for us which our case requires and which he has promised (Mic 7:20): Then wilt thou perform thy truth to Jacob and thy mercy to Abraham. It is in pursuance of the covenant that our sins are pardoned and our lusts mortified; from that spring all these streams flow, and with these he shall freely give us all things. The promise is said to be mercy to Abraham, because, as made to him first, it was mere mercy, preventing mercy, considering what state it found him in. But it was truth to Jacob, because the faithfulness of God was engaged to make good to him and his seed, as heirs to Abraham, all that was graciously promised to Abraham. See here, [1.] With what solemnity the covenant of grace is ratified to us; it was not only spoken, written, and sealed, but which is the highest confirmation, it was sworn to our fathers; nor is it a modern project, but is confirmed by antiquity too; it was sworn from the days of old; it is an ancient charter. [2.] With what satisfaction it may be applied and relied upon by us; we may say with the highest assurance, Thou wilt perform the truth and mercy; not one iota or tittle of it shall fall to the ground. Faithful is he that has promised, who also will do it.

INTRODUCTION TO MICAH 7 This chapter begins with a lamentation of the prophet, in the name of the church and people of God, concerning the general depravity and corruption of the times in which he lived, Mic 7:1; then declares what he was determined to do for his relief in such circumstances, Mic 7:7; comforts himself and the church with a good hope and firm belief of its being otherwise and better with them, to the shame and confusion of their enemies that now rejoiced, though without just reason for it, Mic 7:8; with promises of deliverance, after a desolation of the land for some time, Mic 7:11; and with the answer returned to the prayers of the prophet, Mic 7:14; which would issue in the astonishment of the world, and their subjection to the church of God, Mic 7:16; and the chapter is concluded with admiration at the pardoning grace and mercy of God, and his faithfulness to his promises, Mic 7:18.

Feed thy people with thy rod,.... These are either the words of God the Father to Christ, the great Shepherd of the sheep, calling upon him to do his office as such; to feed the people he had given him, the sheep of his hand, the flock of his pasture, by his Spirit, and with his word and ordinances; see Zac 11:5; or of Christ to his ministers, his undershepherds, to feed his sheep and his lambs, the people committed to their care and charge, with wholesome words, with sound and good doctrine, by faithfully preaching the Gospel, and administering the ordinances to them: or rather the words of the prophet, a prayer of his to God or Christ, to take care of the people of God in their desolate state, in captivity; to guide and lead them, protect and defend them, by his power and providence, as a shepherd directs, leads, governs, and preserves his flock with his pastoral crook or rod; or, as before, to feed the church of God as a shepherd does his flock, lead them into good pastures, and secure them from all their enemies: and this, being a prayer of faith, may be considered as a prophecy or prediction of what would be; and so some render the words, "thou shalt feed thy people", &c. (h). The Targum is, "feed thy people with thy word, the people of thine inheritance, in the age which is to be renewed;'' in the new world, the world to come; plainly referring to the times of the Messiah; the flock of thine heritage; who are like to sheep for their harmlessness and innocence, and to a flock of them, being associated together, and folded in the church; and though but a little flock, yet the lot, the portion, the inheritance of Christ; all which is a strong reason for his feeding, keeping, and preserving them, being committed to his care and charge for that purpose: which dwell solitary in the wood; dwell alone in the world, which is like a wood and a wilderness; separated from the men of the world; distinguished by the grace of God, chosen and called out from among them, and different from them both in principle and practice: this may have respect to the Jews, in their dispersion, living separate from and unmixed with the nations of the world; or rather to their dwelling in safety and security under the protection of the great Shepherd, the Messiah, David their Prince, when they shall be returned to their own land in the latter day: in the midst of Carmel; or of a fruitful field, as Carmel was; enjoying all happiness and prosperity, temporal and spiritual: let them feed in Bashan and Gilead, as in the days of old; places in the land of Israel famous for rich and fat pastures; and so express the great plenty of good things wished for, and which will be enjoyed by the Jews when converted to Christ, and replaced in their own land; and are an emblem of those spiritual good things, and of those rich and green pastures of the word and ordinances, which the great Shepherd is desired to lead, and does lead, his people into; see Psa 23:1; these places are now in the hand of the Turks, and so the words may be a petition for their conversion, as well as for the Jews, that this country may no more be inhabited by Heathens, but by the Israel of God, as Gulichius (i) very well observes. (h) "pasces", so some in Vatablus. (i) Apud Burkium in loc.

(Verse 14 and following) Feed your people with your staff, the flock of your inheritance, dwelling alone in the forest of Carmel. They will graze in Bashan and Gilead as in ancient times, as in the days when you came out of the land of Egypt, I will show (or have shown) them wonders. The nations will see and be ashamed of all their might. They will lay their hands over their mouths; their ears will become deaf. They will lick the dust like serpents; they will tremble from their hiding places. They will fear our Lord God, and they will fear you. LXX: Feed your people with your staff, the sheep of your inheritance, who dwell alone in the woods. They will be fed on the mountains of Carmel, in Bashan and Gilead, as in days of old, as in the days when you led them out of the land of Egypt. I will show them wonders. The nations will see and be ashamed of all their might. They will put their hands over their mouths; their ears will be deaf. They will lick the dust like snakes, moving along the ground. They will be in distress in their own territories. They will fear and be afraid of our Lord God; they will fear you. This is what is said: Feed your people with your staff, God the Father speaks to the Son, that is, to our Lord Jesus Christ, that because he is a good shepherd, and he lays down his life for his sheep (John 10), he may feed his people with his staff, and the sheep of his inheritance. And lest we think that the same people are both the sheep, in another place we read: But we are your people, and the sheep of your pasture (Psalm 78:21). The people refers to those who are rational, but the sheep refers to those who are not yet using reason, being content only with simplicity, and they are called the heritage of God."] Both the people and the sheep need the shepherd's staff, of which the Apostle also speaks: 'What do you want? Shall I come to you with a rod, or in love and a spirit of gentleness?' (I Cor. IV, 21). I think it was for this reason, because the people of Israel were stiff-necked and always longed for Egyptian meat, that Moses used the staff not only against the Egyptians, whom he struck with ten plagues, but also against the people in the wilderness, with the legal staff, the striking staff, and by breaking all the earthen and fragile vessels. But the Apostles of the Lord Savior, who spoke wisdom among the perfect (I Cor. II), the staff was shaken out of their hands, because perfect love casts out fear (I John IV). But if anyone opposes us, how can it now be said to Christ, that is, to the good shepherd, who is certainly greater than the Apostles, and better, that he should use a staff, when it is a greater advancement not to have a staff, than to use a staff to correct peoples and sheep: we will respond to them according to what the Lord promises to his Apostles, that they will perform greater signs among the people than he himself has done (John XIV). And because the Lord was still speaking to the carnal Israel, and not yet to him who could fully understand the mysteries, therefore it was said about him that he would feed the people and his flock with a rod. However, the apostles had the rod taken from their hands, and the severity of the Law was tempered by the mercy of the Gospel. Furthermore, these people and these sheep are struck and fed with a rod because they had dwelt alone in the wilderness. Indeed, we can apply this to those who, separating themselves from the Church, engage in feasts and friendships with the heathens, as well as to those who, out of hatred for the human race, seek a solitary life, such as we read about Timon in Athens. Not because a solitary and prophetic life, like that of Elijah (1 Kings 17 and 19) and John (Matthew 3 and 11), should be condemned, but because if one despises others and exalts oneself, living in the wilderness of vices, the rod should be corrected. He who dwells alone, and does not dwell in the wilderness, is to be praised for his virtues; but he who is alone and does not do the works of justice, and enjoys only the pleasure of rest, and does not toil in the work and labor of Christ, nor seeks food with his own hands as the Apostle commands (I Cor. IV), and is lifted up in pride: he dwells in the wilderness and wanders among barren trees. However, because he is a good shepherd, his staff strikes in order to correct, and a better prophetic word promises, saying: They will graze on the Carmel and the Galaadite, according to the days of eternity, and according to the days of your departure from Egypt. Carmelus interpretatur scientia circumcisionis: Basanitis confusio, et Galaad transmigratio testimonii. Populus ergo Dei, et oves pascuae ejus, quae prius pascebantur absquegrege Domini, et extra Ecclesiam ejus, in saltu versabantur errorum, postea transferentur ad notitiam verae circumcisionis, et servient Deo in spiritu, et gloriabuntur in Domino, et non in carne confident, et erunt vera circumcisio, et non concisio. And when they have been nourished with spiritual circumcision, understanding their former sins, they will be confounded in their vices, and they will be ashamed, and they will be in the confusion that leads to life (Ecclesiastes 4), for there is another confusion that leads to death, in which Og, the king of Bashan, once dwelt, for Bashan means confusion: concerning which worst confusion, the Lord promises to deliver his people: The Lord said, I will bring again from Bashan, I will bring again from the depths of the sea (Psalm 68, 23). And when we know true circumcision, and are confounded concerning our sins, then we shall be in Galaad, which is interpreted as the transmigration of testimony, in the Church of Christ, to which the testimonies of the Law and the words of the Prophets have transcended, and this will happen to us according to the ancient days, according to the days when we went out of the land of Egypt, of which Moses says: Remember the days of eternity (Deut. XXXII, 7), not the days of this world, which are called evil, but eternal days. But he remembers the days of eternity, which does not look at the present, and rose with Christ, and sits with him in heavenly places, now assuming in mind that he has been liberated from the days of the present age. The divine word also promises that it will show to its people and to the sheep of its inheritance wonders: Then, it says, the nations will see and will be confounded in all their strength, because they had once devastated and prevailed against the people of God, and their confusion will have profit, when they understand their own evils. For they will place their hands upon their mouths, and evil deeds will take away from them all freedom of speech. In the same way that the hands of impious nations close their mouths, so will the hands of the righteous unlock their mouths, receiving the ability to speak with God from the good work of those who accept it. Their ears will also become deaf, for wickedness has not only blinded the sight of their eyes, but it has also made their ears deaf; for they refused to hear the voice of those who enchant, and the wise sorcerer. And according to Isaiah: They have heard heavily with their ears (Isa. XXXIII): although it is much less to hear heavily than to not hear at all, and to become deaf to the word of truth. After so many evils are spoken of them, it is said that they lick the ground like serpents, which drag the earth, walking in their belly, and eating the earth all the days of their life (Gen. III). And of the flesh, that is, doing earthly works, and dragging them with themselves until the day of vengeance and visitation of the Lord, not dust, not the small traces of the earth, but the whole ground. And when they have done this, and come before the judgement of God, and have been convicted and disturbed, they will be disturbed and convicted as long as the earth they have drawn upon remains in them, like serpents. But when that departs from them, they will be astonished and amazed, not in the Lord their God (for they have not yet deserved to be called the Lord their God), but in the Lord our God. And suddenly there is a turning towards Christ and it is said to him: And they will fear you. For the beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord (Proverbs 7). And these things will happen so that the nations may see and be confounded in all their strength of evil; and they will place their hand over their mouth, and their ears will be stopped, and they will lick the ground like serpents that drag the earth, so that they may be brought to a close and be troubled by the closure, and then, terrified, be astonished by the Lord God of the holy ones, and in the end, they themselves may also fear Him. This is according to the Septuagint (LXX). Furthermore, because our edition does not differ much from theirs, at least in the present context, we believe that what was said in their edition is also said in ours.

The prophet begins this chapter with lamenting the decay of piety and the growth of ungodliness, using a beautiful allegory to imply (as explained in Mic 7:2) that the good man is as seldom to be met with as the early fig of best quality in the advanced season, or the cluster after the vintage, Mic 7:1, Mic 7:2. He then reproves and threatens in terms so expressive of great calamities as to be applied in the New Testament to times of the hottest persecution, Mic 7:3-6. See Mat 10:35, Mat 10:36. Notwithstanding which a Jew is immediately introduced declaring, in the name of his captive people, the strongest faith in the mercy of God the most submissive resignation to his will, and the firmest hope in his favor in future times, when they should triumph over their enemies, Mic 7:7-10. The prophet upon this resumes the discourse, and predicts their great prosperity and increase, Mic 7:11, Mic 7:12; although the whole land of Israel must first be desolated on account of the great wickedness of its inhabitants, Mic 7:13. The prophet intercedes in behalf of his people, Mic 7:14. After which God is introduced promising, in very ample terms, their future restoration and prosperity, Mic 7:15-17. And then, to conclude, a chorus of Jews is introduced, singing a beautiful hymn of thanksgiving, suggested by the gracious promises which precede, Mic 7:18-20.

Feed thy people with thy rod - בשבטך beshibtecha, "with thy crook." The shepherd's crook is most certainly designed, as the word flock immediately following shows. No rod of correction or affliction is here intended; nor does the word mean such. Solitarily - They have been long without a shepherd or spiritual governor. In the midst of Carmel - Very fruitful in vines. Bashan and Gilead - Proverbially fruitful in pasturages.

THE UNIVERSALITY OF THE CORRUPTION; THE CHOSEN REMNANT, DRIVEN FROM EVERY HUMAN CONFIDENCE, TURNS TO GOD; TRIUMPHS BY FAITH OVER HER ENEMIES; IS COMFORTED BY GOD'S PROMISES IN ANSWER TO PRAYER, AND BY THE CONFUSION OF HER ENEMIES, AND SO BREAKS FORTH INTO PRAISES OF GOD'S CHARACTER. (Mic. 7:1-20) I am as when, &c.--It is the same with me as with one seeking fruits after the harvest, grapes after the vintage. "There is not a cluster" to be found: no "first-ripe fruit" (or "early fig"; see on Isa 28:4) which "my soul desireth" [MAURER]. So I look in vain for any good men left (Mic 7:2).

Feed thy people--Prayer of the prophet, in the name of his people to God, which, as God fulfils believing prayer, is prophetical of what God would do. When God is about to deliver His people, He stirs up their friends to pray for them. Feed--including the idea of both pastoral rule and care over His people (Mic 5:4, Margin), regarded as a flock (Psa 80:1; Psa 100:3). Our calamity must be fatal to the nation, unless Thou of Thy unmerited grace, remembering Thy covenant with "Thine heritage" (Deu 4:20; Deu 7:6; Deu 32:9), shalt restore us. thy rod--the shepherd's rod, wherewith He directs the flock (Psa 23:4). No longer the rod of punishment (Mic 6:9). which dwell solitarily in the wood, in . . . Carmel--Let Thy people who have been dwelling as it were in a solitude of woods (in the world, but not of it), scattered among various nations, dwell in Carmel, that is, where there are fruit-bearing lands and vineyards [CALVIN]. Rather, "which are about to dwell (that is, that they may dwell) separate in the wood, in . . . Carmel" [MAURER], which are to be no longer mingled with the heathen, but are to dwell as a distinct people in their own land. Micah has here Balaam's prophecy in view (compare Mic 6:5, where also Balaam is referred to). "Lo, the people shall dwell alone" (Num 23:9; compare Deu 33:28). To "feed in the wood in Carmel," is to feed in the rich pastures among its woods. To "sleep in the woods," is the image of most perfect security (Eze 34:25). So that the Jews' "security," as well as their distinct nationality, is here foretold. Also Jer 49:31. Bashan--famed for its cattle (Psa 22:12; Amo 4:1). Parallel to this passage is Jer 50:19. Bashan and Gilead, east of Jordan, were chosen by Reuben, Gad, and half Manasseh, as abounding in pastures suited for their many cattle (Num. 32:1-42; Deu 3:12-17).

The Church's Penitential Prayer, and the Divine Promise - Micah 7 The prophet responds to the threatening of the Lord (Mic 6:9-16) in the name of the believing church with a penitential prayer, in which it sorrowfully confesses the universality of the deep moral corruption, and painfully bemoans the necessity for the visitation of God (Mic 7:1-6); after which it rises, through belief in the fidelity of God, to the confidential hope that the Lord will cause the light of His grace to rise again upon the church, which is bearing the merited punishment, and will not let its enemies triumph over it, but will procure it justice, and deeply humble the foe (Mic 7:7-13); and to this it appends a prayer fore the renewal of the former manifestations of grace (Mic 7:14). The Lord answers this prayer with the promise that He will renew for His people the wonders of the olden time (Mic 7:15-17); whereupon the prophet closes by praising the mercy and grace of the Lord (Mic 7:18-20).

The promise of salvation impels the congregation to pray that it may be granted (Mic 7:14); whereupon the Lord assures it that His covenant mercies shall be renewed, and promises the thorough humiliation of the hostile nations of the world (Mic 7:15-17). Mic 7:14. "Feed thy people with thy staff, the sheep of thine inheritance, dwelling apart, in the wood, in the midst of Carmel: let them feed in Bashan and Gilead, as in the days of the olden time." The question in dispute among commentators, whether this prayer is addressed to the Lord by the prophet on behalf of the nation, or whether the prophet is still speaking in the name of the believing church, is decided in favour of the latter by the answer addressed to the church in Mic 7:15. The Lord is addressed as the shepherd of Israel, the title by which Jacob addressed Him in Gen 49:24 (cf. Psa 80:2; Psa 23:1 ff.). The prayer is related to the promise in Mic 5:3 ff., viz., that the ruler coming forth out of Bethlehem will feed in the strength of Jehovah, and involves the prayer for the sending of this ruler. "With this staff," i.e., the shepherd's staff (cf. Lev 27:32; Psa 23:4), is added pictorially; and as a support to the prayer, it designates the people as the sheep of Jehovah's inheritance. צאן נחלה, instead of עם נחלה, which occurs more frequently, is occasioned by the figure of the shepherd. As the sheep need the protection of the shepherd, lest they should perish, so Israel needs the guidance of its God, that it may not be destroyed by its foes. The following apposition שׁכני לבדד determines the manner of the feeding more precisely; so that we may resolve it into the clause, "so that thy people may dwell apart." The words contain an allusion to Num 23:9, where Balaam describes Israel as a people separated from the rest of the nations; and to Deu 33:28, where Moses congratulates it, because it dwells in safety and alone (bâdâd, separate), under the protection of its God, in a land full of corn, new wine, etc. The church asks for the fulfilment of this blessing from Jehovah its shepherd, that it may dwell separate from the nations of the world, so that they may not be able to do it any harm; and that "in the wood in the midst of Carmel," that promontory abounding in wood and pasture land (laetis pascuis abundat: Jerome on Amo 1:2). The wood is thought of here as shutting off the flock from the world without, withdrawing it from its sight, and affording it security; and the fact that dangerous wild beasts have their home in the forest (Jer 5:6; Psa 80:14) is overlooked here, because Israel is protected from them by its own shepherd. ירעוּ, which follows, is not future, but optative, corresponding to the imperative רעה. Gilead and Bashan are also named as portions of the land that were rich in pasture (cf. Num 32:1 ff.), namely, of the land to the east of the Jordan, Carmel belonging to the western portion of Canaan. These three portions individualize the whole of the territory which Israel received for its inheritance, and not merely the territory of the kingdom of the ten tribes. The simple reason why no districts in the kingdom of Judah are mentioned, is that Judah possessed no woody districts abounding in grass and pasture resembling those named. Moreover, the prayer refers to the whole of Israel, or rather to the remnant of the whole nation that has been rescued from the judgment, and which will form an undivided flock under the Messiah (cf. Mic 5:2; Isa 11:13; Eze 37:15 ff.). ימי עולם, "the days of old," are the times of Moses and Joshua, when the Lord brought Israel with His mighty arm into the possession of the promised land. The Lord answers this prayer, by promising, according to His abundant goodness, more than the church has asked. Mic 7:15. "As in the days of thy going out of the land of Egypt will I cause it to see wonders. Mic 7:16. Nations will see it, and be ashamed of all their strength: they will lay the hand upon the mouth, their ears will become deaf. Mic 7:17. They will lick dust like the snake, like the reptiles of the earth they come trembling out of their castles: they will go trembling to Jehovah our God, and before thee will they fear." The wonders (niphlâ'ōth; cf. Exo 3:20; Exo 15:11; Psa 78:11) with which the Lord formerly smote Egypt, to redeem His people out of the bondage of that kingdom of the world, will the Lord renew for His people. In צאתך the nation is addressed, whilst the suffix of the third pers. attached to אראנּוּ points back to עמּך in Mic 7:14. The miraculous deeds will make such an impression, that the heathen nations who see them will stand ashamed, dumb and deaf with alarm and horror. Ashamed of all their strength, i.e., because all their strength becomes impotence before the mighty acts of the Almighty God. Laying the hand upon the mouth is a gesture expressive of reverential silence from astonishment and admiration (cf. Jdg 18:19; Job 21:5, etc.). Their ears shall become deaf "from the thunder of His mighty acts, Job 26:14, the qōl hâmōn of Isa 33:8" (Hitzig). With this description of the impression made by the wonderful works of God, the words of God pass imperceptibly into words of the prophet, who carries out the divine answer still further in an explanatory form, as we may see from Isa 33:17. The heathen will submit themselves to Jehovah in the humblest fear. This is stated in Mic 7:17. Licking the dust like the serpent contains an allusion to Gen 3:14 (cf. Psa 72:9 and Isa 49:23). זחלי ארץ, earth-creepers, i.e., snakes, recals the זחלי עפר of Deu 32:24. Like snakes, when they are driven out of their hiding-place, or when charmers make them come out of their holes, so will the nations come trembling out of their castles (misgerōth as in Psa 18:46), and tremble to Jehovah, i.e., flee to Him with trembling, as alone able to grant help (see Hos 3:5), and fear before thee. With ממּךּ the prayer passes into an address to Jehovah, to attach to this the praise of God with which he closes his book.