MICAH - CHAPTERS 5-7
Micah II – Chapters 5-7
Tuesday Morning Bible Study
September 22, 2026, the Year of Our Lord
Pastor Carolyn Sissom
4:12: Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion, for I will make your horn iron, and I will make your hooves bronze. You will beat in pieces many peoples. I will consecrate their gain to the LORD, and their substance to the LORD of the whole earth. 5:1: Now gather yourself in troops, O daughter of troops; He has laid siege against us. They will strike the judge of Israel with a rod on the cheek.
Verses 4:12 and 5:1 are a continuation of the LORD’s triumph over the evil of the whole earth and the coming judgment of Israel.
5:2: The prophet now reverts to the future. Whereas in 4:8, the emphasis was on the extent of the territory to be restored to Israel, here it turns to the ruler himself. The terms used were completely fulfilled in the Messiah. This ruler over Israel will arise from the Davidic line, indeed from the same town of Bethlehem, which despite its obscurity though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel.
“His goings forth are from of old, from everlasting” stretches back beyond time altogether.
In 5:3-4: The woman who is in labor stands in the same vein of prophetic revelation as Isa. 7:14. When she has given birth, that is when the labor is over. Then the remnant of His brethren shall return to the children of Israel. From our post-resurrection vantage point, we see great David’s greater Son delivering His people from the captivity of sin. The qualities of a Davidic king are magnified to a Messianic scale. He will not only shepherd his flock but will do so with the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD HIS GOD, His greatness will extend far beyond the boundaries that David’s kingdom knew and He shall be great to the ends of the earth. With no external enemies left unvanquished.
5:5: And this One (Jesus) will be our peace, when the Assyrian (spirit of anti-christ) invades our land, when he tramples on our citadels, then we will raise against him seven shepherds and eight principled (anointed) men.
Christ is our peace, reconciling us to God; and He is our peace as a king, conquering our enemies and commanding down fears and passions
I preached a sermon on these seven shepherds and eight principled men 6/14/2011 in preparation for our annual conference.
The numbers seven and eight are cardinal numbers. In higher mathematics this has to do with that which is infinite. It also means a competent number of persons. These will be men and women that shall have the care and tenderness of shepherds and the courage and authority of principal men or princes of men. Seven and eight are a certain number for an uncertain.
Symbolically Seven means: “completeness, spiritual perfection, purification, consecration, weapons, self-defense.”
Eight means: “Man’s ability to transcend limits of physical existence, teacher, new birth, abounds in strength.”
5:6: They shall waste with the sword the land of Assyria, and the land of Nimrod as its entrances. Thus, He shall deliver us from the Assyrian when he comes into our land and when he treads within our borders.
This is a important verse we can use going into the mid-terms to come against those who have the spirit of the Assyrian. The land of Nimrod (Shinar) is in Saudia Arabia today.
The opposition and oppression of the Lord’s people shall be brought down. This is represented metaphorically as well as literally by laying waste the Assyria and Chaldea.
The Assyrian in the days of Micah, Isaiah, and Hezekiah did not trample the palaces of Judah, so this trampling refers to that of the future spirit the Assyrian, who did destroy Israel. This same spirit of the Assyrian is now in the United States and rapidly taking over city and state governments. In the 2026 mid-term elections, the spirit of antichrist is going after Federal government to control Congress.
5:7: Then the remnant of Jacob will be among many peoples like dew from the Lord, like showers on vegetation which do not wait for man or delay for the sons of men. And the remnant of Jacob will be among the nations, among many peoples like a lion among the beasts of the forest, like a young lion among flocks of sheep.
Glorious things are here spoken of the remnant of Jacob, that remnant which was raised of her that halted (4:7), and it seems to be that remnant which the Lord our God shall call (Joel 2:32) on whom the Spirit will be poured out, the remnant that shall be saved (Rom. 9:27).
On one hand the remnant will have the refreshing influence of dew or showers on the many peoples in whose midst they will find themselves. Their ability to do so (dunamis power) comes from the Lord. On the other hand, the same remnant of Jacob will exercise irresistible power among the nations. As a lion excels the other beasts of the forest, so will the influence of Israel and the Church excel. They will be bold as a lion in witnessing against the corruption of the times and places they live in. They will be strong as a lion to resist and overcome their spiritual enemies.
As a young lion loose among the flocks of sheep destroys and mangles, with no one to rescue, the defenseless animals, so will Israel and the church triumph over their enemies. So, it has been down through the centuries. The spiritual blessings given uniquely to Israel enabled her to outlast all the persecutions of her enemies from Nebuchadnezzar to Hitler, Nasser, Iran, and to survive after their enemies have been destroyed.
5: 10-11: In that day, declares the Lord I will cut off your horses from among you and destroy your chariots. I will also cut off the cities of your land and tear down your fortifications.
Unique blessings carry unique responsibility (Am. 3:2); the nation which is to triumph over its enemies must depend wholly on God. In the military and political sphere, horses and chariots, cities and strongholds will all be swept away.
Witchcraft, and spells forbidden by Mosaic Law, will be removed. Images, sacred stones, and Asherah poles, all symbols of decadent pagan worship will be destroyed. No longer will the Lord’s people commit blasphemy and bow down to the work of their own hands. If such stringent measures are needed to purify Israel, how much greater the anger and wrath with which God will take vengeance upon the pagan nations which, though they may have been instruments of His disciplinary purpose have not obeyed Him (1 Pet. 4: 17-18).
Those who stand against the gospel of Christ, and continue in league with their idolatries and witchcrafts will fall under the wrath of God.
Chapter 6 is cast in the form of an accusation before witnesses in a law court. The LORD invites His people to plead their case with the mountains and hills as a witness. The LORD has a case against His people and opens his case in verses 3-5. In answer to His own rhetorical question, he catalogues His past actions on their behalf (5:4-5).
Then in verses 6-7, He lists valuable offerings which are futile outward rituals of the sacrificial system familiar to the Israelites.
Valuable calves a year old were the prerogative of the rich. On state occasions thousand of rams were offered, but for the individual to do so would be absolutely ruinous. Ten thousand rivers of oil were vast beyond imagination. The LORD culminates the unacceptable sacrifices with the frightful and forbidden child sacrifice, the death of the firstborn.
The prophet gives an answer unsurpassed in spiritual insight anywhere in the Old Testament:
6:6: He has shown you, O man, what is good, and what does the LORD require of you, but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
Lori Wilke wrote a book based on this scripture, “Requirements For Greatness.
“Every time we treat people with dignity and respect, we demonstrate the true meaning of God’s justice. A good man always seeks to make others good.” (L. W.)
“Mercy and Grace from God’s hand are always there to lift us up from the blows of rejection and condemnation. His mercy is an absolute spiritual force empowering us to overcome every obstacle blocking our way, whether it is emotional, physical, or spiritual.” (L. W.)
“Do you wish to be great? Then begin by being humble. Do you desire to construct a vast and lofty fabric? Think first about the foundation of humility. The higher your structure is to be, the deeper must be its foundation” – St. Augustine.
Verse 9-16 are a continuation of the indictment begun in verses 3-5. So, today for those who persistently refuse to heed the demands and warnings of God, there remains only a fearful prospect of judgment.
6:9: The LORD’s voice cries to the city – Wisdom shall see Your name.
Chapter 7: 1-6, the prophet pours out his personal despair over what the LORD has shown him about the wickedness of the people. Micah shares the despair of loneliness experienced earlier by Elijah (1 Kg. 19:10) “there is no one upright among men. Micah sees the godless as altogether swept from the land with not one left to offer him fellowship.
No one who follows the LORD for long will fail to experience at some time a similar sense of loneliness and overpowering opposition.
7:7: Therefore, I will look to the LORD. I will wait for the God of my salvation. My God will hear me.
In these closing words of his prophecy, Micah speaks on behalf of the nation, and in particular on behalf of Jerusalem, which will both bear the main brunt of God’s punishment and witness the chief glory of His restoration. He directs the spiritual thrust toward the generation that will have to undergo the anguish of the exile and discover God’s mercy in adversity.
The disobedience of the past would give place to a humble submissiveness. Israel must patiently bear the Lord’s wrath, for a limited time, until he pleads my case. The confidence that He will eventually do this gives the assurance that the enemy has no right to gloat over the fallen nation for it will rise once more.
Even while enduring the darkness of His wrath, Israel will find the LORD will be her light and eventually bring her out to the light of restoration. The enemy will in turn be covered with shame and trampled underfoot like mire in the streets.
In verses 11:13, Micah sees not only the walls of Jerusalem rebuilt, but a national boundary that will extend beyond the limits of the Judah of his own. The scripture reads much like the Palestinian political chant of “from the river to the sea.”
7:12: In that day, they shall come to you from Assyria and the fortified cities, from the fortress to the river, from sea to sea, and mountain to mountain.
In verses 14-17, the prophet prays for the Lord’s protecting care over the restored nation, as a shepherd protects his flock.
7:15: As in the days when you came out of the land of Egypt, I will show them wonders.
We can decree verse 16-17 over the United Nations meeting this week in New York city.
7:16-17: The nations shall see and be ashamed of all their might. They shall put their hand over their mouth. Their ears shall be deaf. They shall lick the dust like a serpent. They shall crawl from their holes like snakes of the earth. They shall be afraid of the LORD our GOD and shall fear because of you.
7:18-20 His vision of God’s ultimate triumph over judgment leads Micah into his final outburst of praise.
Who is God like You pardoning iniquity and passing over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in mercy. He will again have compassion on us and will subdue our iniquities. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. You will give truth to Jacob and mercy to Abraham, which You have sworn to our fathers from days of old.
Carolyn Sissom, Pastor
Eastgate Ministries Church, 10115 West Hidden Lakes Lane, Richmond, TX
Scripture from N.K.J.V. – I entered into the labors of David J. Clark, F. F. Bruce Bible Commentary. Quotes from Requirements for Greatness by Lori Wilke. Comments and conclusions are my own and not meant to reflect the views of those who I entered into their labors.