Sermon Tone Analysis

According to a 3rd century rabbi, Moses gave 365 prohibitions and 248 positive commands.

David reduced them to 11 in .

Isaiah made them 6 (, ).

binds them into 3 commands.

Habbakuk reduces them all to one great statement: The just shall live by faith.

Micah, meaning "who is like Yahweh",[1] was a prophet who prophesied from approximately 737–696 BC in Judah and is the author of the Book of Micah.

He was a contemporary of the prophets Isaiah, Amos and Hosea and is considered one of the twelve minor prophets of the Tanakh (Old Testament).

Micah was from Moresheth-Gath, in southwest Judah.

He prophesied during the reigns of kings Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah of Judah.

Micah’s messages were directed chiefly toward Jerusalem.

He prophesied the future destruction of Jerusalem and Samaria, the destruction and then future restoration of the Judean state, and he rebuked the people of Judah for dishonesty and idolatry.

The sins of the people were hidden behind a veneer of religious activity—routine worship that didn't come from their hearts.

God Pleads with Israel

(NKJV)

1  Hear now what the LORD says: "Arise, plead your case before the mountains, And let the hills hear your voice.

2  Hear, O you mountains, the LORD'S complaint, And you strong foundations of the earth; For the LORD has a complaint against His people, And He will contend with Israel.

3  "O My people, what have I done to you?

And how have I wearied you?

Testify against Me.

4  For I brought you up from the land of Egypt, I redeemed you from the house of bondage; And I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.

5  O My people, remember now What Balak king of Moab counseled, And what Balaam the son of Beor answered him, From Acacia Grove to Gilgal, That you may know the righteousness of the LORD."

6  With what shall I come before the LORD, And bow myself before the High God? Shall I come before Him with burnt offerings, With calves a year old?

7  Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, Ten thousand rivers of oil?

Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?

8  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?

This chapter depicts a courtroom scenein which the Lord lodges a legal complaint against Israel, primarily Judah.

(NKJV)

1  Hear now what the LORD says: "Arise, plead your case before the mountains, And let the hills hear your voice. 2  Hear, O you mountains, the LORD'S complaint, And you strong foundations of the earth; For the LORD has a complaint against His people, And He will contend with Israel.

Verses 1-2 the Lord summons the people to listen and prepare their defence against the charges that is to come.

The sins of the people were hidden behind a veneer of religious activity—routine worship that didn't come from their hearts.

Micah's contemporary, the Prophet Isaiah, told the people that the nation was sick from head to foot () but wouldn't admit it, and that their "worship" was nothing more than "trampling" the temple courts (v.

12).

They were like the patient who asked the doctor to retouch his X-rays so he wouldn't have to endure surgery!

His deceit didn't cure him; it made him worse.

In this courtroom scene, the Lord called the witnesses () and told the people to be prepared to plead their case.

(NKJV)

1  Hear the word of the LORD, You children of Israel, For the LORD brings a charge against the inhabitants of the land: "There is no truth or mercy Or knowledge of God in the land.

(NKJV)

3  "O My people, what have I done to you?

And how have I wearied you?

Testify against Me.

4  For I brought you up from the land of Egypt, I redeemed you from the house of bondage; And I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.

5  O My people, remember now What Balak king of Moab counseled, And what Balaam the son of Beor answered him, From Acacia Grove to Gilgal, That you may know the righteousness of the LORD."

God asks what has He done that made them act and sin as they have done.

Has He treated them badly to cause this?

The answer is , of course NO.

Lord opened by telling and emphasizing the gracious way He had dealt with the nation from the very beginning.

He redeemed them from Egyptian slavery; He gave them leaders who guided them through the wilderness with His help; and He brought them to their promised inheritance.

And throughout this journey, the Lord had put up with their unbelief, disobedience, and repeated complaints ().

(NKJV)

5  Thus says the LORD: "What injustice have your fathers found in Me, That they have gone far from Me, Have followed idols, And have become idolaters?

6  Neither did they say, 'Where is the LORD, Who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, Who led us through the wilderness, Through a land of deserts and pits, Through a land of drought and the shadow of death, Through a land that no one crossed And where no one dwelt?'

On three occasions, Balak, king of Moab, commanded Balaam to curse Israel, but God turned the curse into blessing (; ; ).

(NKJV)

12  So Balaam said to Balak, "Did I not also speak to your messengers whom you sent to me, saying, 13  'If Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go beyond the word of the LORD, to do good or bad of my own will.

What the LORD says, that I must speak'?

The Israelites didn't even know that this spiritual battle was going on; yet God protected His people.

What did the Jews do in return?

They became friendly with the Moabites, attended their idolatrous religious rites, and committed fornication with their women!

(see ).

What Balaam couldn't do by means of his curses, the Jews themselves did with their sinful lusts.

(NKJV)

5  Then he sent messengers to Balaam the son of Beor at Pethor, which is near the River in the land of the sons of his people, to call him, saying: "Look, a people has come from Egypt.

See, they cover the face of the earth, and are settling next to me! 6  Therefore please come at once, curse this people for me, for they are too mighty for me.

Perhaps I shall be able to defeat them and drive them out of the land, for I know that he whom you bless is blessed, and he whom you curse is cursed."

(NKJV)

12  So Balaam said to Balak, "Did I not also speak to your messengers whom you sent to me, saying, 13  'If Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go beyond the word of the LORD, to do good or bad of my own will.

What the LORD says, that I must speak'?

(NKJV)

5  Nevertheless the LORD your God would not listen to Balaam, but the LORD your God turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the LORD your God loves you.

(NKJV)

6  With what shall I come before the LORD, And bow myself before the High God? Shall I come before Him with burnt offerings, With calves a year old?

7  Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, Ten thousand rivers of oil?

Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?

They were so tied up in their ownselves that they could not see that they were doing wrong.

God did not want what they could do for Him, God wanted then.

(NKJV)

22  So Samuel said: "Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the LORD?

Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams.

Instead of confessing their sins or standing mute because their mouths had been shut by their sense of guilt (), they asked what they could do to get rid of their sins.

Their request shows how shallow their spiritual life really was and that they were ignorant of the enormity of their sin and the high cost of forgiveness.

They were like the rich young ruler who didn't really see himself as a condemned sinner before God (), but they were not like the people at Pentecost who were cut to the heart and cried out, "What shall we do?" ()

"Doing penance" without truly repenting and trusting God's mercy only multiplies the sin and deadens the conscience.

Thinking they were good enough to please God, the people asked Jesus, "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?"

He replied, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent" ( nkjv).

True saving faith comes from a heart that's been broken in repentance and realizes that no amount of good works can atone for sin (; ; ).

(NKJV)

8  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?

The prophet spoke to the people () and told them exactly what the Lord wanted each of them to do.