The Right Preacher For These People

Micah of Moresheth was almost certainly not the kind of prophet or preacher the Judahites wanted. Yet he was called by YHWH to give warning to the people. Whether they would heed the warning or not would be up to them.

The Word of YHWH came to Micah of Moresheth in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah (ca. 742-680 BCE; cf. Micah 1:1). The Word of YHWH which Micah saw regarding Samaria pronounced its imminent doom (Micah 1:2-9). Moresheth was a village in southwestern Judah where the Shephelah met the Philistine coastal plains, and Micah had messages of warning for his fellow inhabitants in the Shephelah regarding the destruction and devastation which would soon come despite all the preparations the state had made (Micah 1:10-16).

Yet YHWH, through Micah, did not want the Judahites to be confused at all regarding the reasons why such devastation would come. He pronounced a woe upon those wicked schemers among the wealthy and well-established who would devise calamity while they rested, carrying out their plans in the morning since they had complete power to do so (Micah 2:1). As a result, ancestral inherited lands and property held by the people soon became the property of the most connected and elite among the nobility, and all done through “legal” means which they established to accomplish their purposes (Micah 2:2). On account of these things YHWH was planning disaster against Judah, and they would not be able to escape it (Micah 2:3). Micah imagined the mocking lament raised in taunt against them: they are completely destroyed, and their lands have been sold off to their conquerors (Micah 2:4). They may have gained all kinds of land now, but the day would come on which they would no longer have any descendants to inherit land among YHWH’s people (Micah 2:5; cf. Joshua 15:1-21:45).

At least some of those who heard Micah of Moresheth’s message of denunciation seem to have been less than pleased by it. Micah recorded some level of reaction to him: he should not prophesy in such ways, for they remained confident they would not be overtaken by such humiliation (Micah 2:6). The Masoretic Text in Micah 2:7-10 presents us with many challenges, but it would seem the first portion continues the same theme, suggesting Israelites are saying YHWH’s patience with them would not be exhausted, and He would never allow His people to experience such degradation (Micah 2:7). It would then seem Micah would respond to these Judahites: those who obey YHWH’s commands would find rewards, but they were doing the opposite: they resisted the people of Judah as if enemies by stealing clothing from people, casting out women and children from their homes, and defrauding people of their inheritances (Micah 2:7-9). They would be forced to leave the land, for it was not as secure as they imagined; sin would lead to such devastation (Micah 2:10). Micah then presented his coup de grâce: if a man led by the wind/a spirit would come speaking of wine and beer, he would be the kind of prophet or preacher this people would want to hear (Micah 2:11)!

Micah’s woe and its response can give us a lot of insight into the situation at hand. It remains possible the majority of the people wanted to speak against what Micah was talking about, but more likely he was receiving resistance from the very people doing the kinds of things he was condemning. Those who were on the receiving end of the oppression might well have appreciated what Micah was saying. We can somewhat reconstruct the theology of Micah’s opponents: they maintained great confidence in YHWH as the God of Israel, and expected YHWH as the God of Israel to continue to preserve His people against their enemies and to maintain their standing in the land as they had enjoyed it for innumerable generations to that point. It was inconceivable to them for YHWH to so thoroughly degrade and humiliate His own people: what kind of god would willingly do that? They wanted to find their justification and rationalization for continuing the status quo which was working very much in their favor even if it caused great distress and grief to many others.

Micah 2:11 remains justly famous: the people would love to hear of a man with a certain kind of spirit and who would preach about them. Yes, many would want to hear about wine and beer. But Micah probably has in mind well more than just wine and beer: the “good life,” in which one is able to enjoy wine, beer, probably women, and other luxuries. All those things sound good, fantastic, and fun, but Micah of Moresheth knows what they cost. They enjoy their wine, beer, and other luxuries at the expense of the many they have disinherited in order to build and grow their wealth. Such was not according to the will or purpose of YHWH. Yes, for a moment, they might enjoy all their property they have accumulated. But the time would soon come when an enemy would arise and would dispossess the dispossessors. They had caused grief and ruin; grief and ruin would come upon them. And their enemies, no doubt, would celebrate; their enemies would want to hear a man prophesy of wine and beer. It would be the last thing they would want to hear about on that day.

But this would not be the final word or the end of the situation. YHWH would gather all of the Israelites would remain after these days, and would gather them like a shepherd and multiply them greatly (Micah 2:12). Micah imagined YHWH leading His people, with their king advancing before them, with one having broken them out of the city in which they were held captive (Micah 2:13).

It would all come to pass just as Micah of Moresheth prophesied. The Assyrians would devastate the land, and many of its landholders, in 701 BCE; in 586 BCE, the Babylonians would destroy Jerusalem and the Temple and exile most of its inhabitants. Jesus of Nazareth would suffer, die, and be raised so the people of God could be broken out of their captivity to sin and death. And yet the message of Micah resonates to this day. In almost every land there are the wealthy and well-connected who continue to get the laws made to their advantage so they can obtain the ancestral land and wealth of those less fortunate than they. Many people still would rather hear a lying deceiver of wine and beer rather than a preacher who speak frank, uncomfortable truths of God. Such people might prosper in the moment, but YHWH of Hosts has noticed, and it will be done unto them or their descendants as they did unto others at some point. We all do better to seek the ways of God in Christ through the Spirit, to uphold His justice and righteousness, and obtain salvation in Him!

Ethan R. Longhenry