Final Words of Worship
Final Words of Worship
Praise in the Bible comes in two forms, viz., praise to God and praise about God. These two types of praise might be labeled as prayer praise and proclamation praise. In the former the believer addresses his comments directly to the Lord. The latter is intended for others to hear. Proclamation or confessional praise might be likened to bragging on the Lord. Both types of praise mingle in the closing verses of Micah. The prophet begins with prayer praise, drifts into proclamation praise, and then returns to his direct address to God.
A. Prayer Praise (7:18a)
When it comes to dealing with sin, the Lord is incomparable. “Who is a God like you?” In this prayer the three main Old Testament words for sin are used. “Iniquity” (‘avon) is perverseness or crookedness which makes a person guilty before God. “Transgression” (pesha‘) is deliberate rebellion against God’s word. “Sins” (chatta’ot) are all actions that fall short of God’s glory whether intended or unintended, whether by commission or omission.
Yahweh is a specialist in dealing with the human sin problem. First, he “lifts up iniquity,” i.e., he removes the perverseness which taints the character of man. Second, “he passes by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage.” The “flock of your inheritance” of v. 14 will at some point become a “remnant” (she’erit), i.e., a small portion of what once existed. Only then would their transgression be passed over. The verb suggests the night when God passed over the houses of the firstborn of Israel. If God does not pass over the transgression, the transgressor is doomed.
B. Proclamation Praise (7:18b–19a)
Micah, speaking for the believing remnant, begins to make assertions about God rather than to God in the middle of verse 18. The theme is still the masterful manner in which the Lord deals with the human sin problem. Micah makes four assertions which build on what has just been said in the context of prayer.
First, Yahweh does not “seize,” i.e., retain, “his anger forever.” If he continually clung to his anger no one would escape destruction. Micah is declaring that Yahweh’s anger last but a short time.
Second, Yahweh “delights in covenant faithfulness.” Even when his people are unfaithful, Yahweh is faithful to his covenant commitment. He delights in keeping his program of redemption on track. To that end he is anxious to forgive. He looks, not for reasons to condemn and destroy, but for reasons to forgive and build up (7:18).
Third, since Yahweh delights in covenant faithfulness, “he will again have mercy on us.” The verb “to show mercy” (racham) refers to the tender care which one who is stronger lavishes on one who is in need.
Fourth, Yahweh “will subdue our iniquities.” Our sins are God’s enemies. He will vanquish those enemies, i.e., he will give his people victory over sin.
C. Prayer Praise (7:19b)
Once again Micah addressed God directly in prayer praise. He continued to extol the gracious way in which God deals with the sins of his people.
Micah praises God for the completeness and finality of divine forgiveness. “You will cast all of their sins into the depths of the sea.” Just as he destroyed the army of Egypt which pursued ancient Israel (cf. Exod 15:5), so Yahweh would destroy any sin which continued to hound his people.
The possessive “their” should be noted. Throughout the prayer Micah speaks of Israel in the first person. He reserves the third person for the nations (cf. vv. 16–17). The possessive suffix “their” in the midst of v. 19 suggests that now Micah is praising God that his forgiveness extends even to Gentiles who come trembling before him. Thus verse 19 affirms that God treads underfoot “our” iniquity, i.e., Israel’s iniquity. At the same time he casts “their” sins, i.e., the sins of penitent Gentiles, into the sea.
D. Final Petition (7:20)
The verb which opens verse 20 is optative, and should be rendered as a prayer form: “May you give …” The closing petition of the book asks that forgiveness be followed by the fullness of heaven’s blessing. Three such blessings are mentioned.
First, “may you give faithfulness to Jacob,” i.e., to Jacob’s descendants, Israel. “Faithfulness” (’emeth) is a characteristic of God’s nature (Exod 34:6) and God’s words (Ps 119:142). The word carries the underlying sense of certainty or dependability. God bestows this gift upon penitent people. The powerful deeds of divine mercy and grace are so tremendous that the sinner is persuaded to remain faithful to the Lord. For this faithfulness, however, God receives the glory, not man.
Second, Yahweh is asked to give “covenant faithfulness to Abraham.” This is the only use of the name “Abraham” for the people of God corporately. Covenant faithfulness is a gift to the penitent in the same sense that faithfulness is a gift. Genuine love and gratitude are such powerful forces that the entire direction of lives can be changed permanently by them. Those who had been unfaithful through sin, become faithful. Those who were disloyal to the covenant through transgression, begin to live up to their obligations to God and fellow man. Again, Yahweh is the giver, because he provides the incentive to change through his grace.
The final petition is grounded in the Patriarchal promise made some thirteen hundred years earlier. Yahweh keeps the oath which he swore “to our fathers from days of old.” All of the promises which God made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob he has kept. Not the least of those was that in which Yahweh promised to bless all peoples of the earth through seed of Abraham, even Jesus. That oath to the fathers had created a special relationship which “obligatory love” (chesed) fulfilled and “faithfulness” (’emeth) maintained (7:20).