Context at a Glance
Author:Traditional Attribution
Topic:micah Chapter 7 Study
This chapter provides a foundational look at the theological themes of micah, analyzed across multiple historic translations for maximum scholarly depth.
Micah 7
New Revised Standard Version
1Woe is me! For I have become like one who, after the summer fruit has been gathered, after the vintage has been gleaned, finds no cluster to eat; there is no first-ripe fig for which I hunger.
2The faithful have disappeared from the land, and there is no one left who is upright; they all lie in wait for blood, and they hunt each other with nets.
3Their hands are skilled to do evil; the official and the judge ask for a bribe, and the powerful dictate what they desire; thus they pervert justice.
4The best of them is like a brier, the most upright of them a thorn hedge. The day of their sentinels, of their punishment, has come; now their confusion is at hand.
5Put no trust in a friend, have no confidence in a loved one; guard the doors of your mouth from her who lies in your embrace;
6for the son treats the father with contempt, the daughter rises up against her mother, the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; your enemies are members of your own household.
7But as for me, I will look to the LORD, I will wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me. A final liturgy
8Do not rejoice over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD will be a light to me.
9I must bear the indignation of the LORD, because I have sinned against him, until he takes my side and executes judgment for me. He will bring me out to the light; I shall see his vindication.
10Then my enemy will see, and shame will cover her who said to me, "Where is the LORD your God?" My eyes will see her downfall; now she will be trodden down like the mire of the streets.
11A day for the building of your walls! In that day the boundary shall be far extended.
12In that day they will come to you from Assyria to Egypt, and from Egypt to the River, from sea to sea and from mountain to mountain.
13But the earth will be desolate because of its inhabitants, for the fruit of their doings.
14Shepherd your people with your staff, the flock that belongs to you, which lives alone in a forest in the midst of a garden land; let them feed in Bashan and Gilead as in the days of old.
15As in the days when you came out of the land of Egypt, show us marvelous things.
16The nations shall see and be ashamed of all their might; they shall lay their hands on their mouths; their ears shall be deaf;
17they shall lick dust like a snake, like the crawling things of the earth; they shall come trembling out of their fortresses; they shall turn in dread to the LORD our God, and they shall stand in fear of you.
18Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over the transgression of the remnant of your possession? He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in showing clemency.
19He will again have compassion upon us; he will tread our iniquities under foot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.
20You will show faithfulness to Jacob and unswerving loyalty to Abraham, as you have sworn to our ancestors from the days of old. NAHUM
1874NAHUM Introduction Although Nahum does not begin with a date formula, its allusions to historical events allow us to date it in the middle or late seventh century BCE. Nahum refers to the fall of Thebes (3.8) which occurred in
663BCE. The focus of the book, the fall of Nineveh (612 BCE), is either an imminent or recent event. Nahum's placement among the Minor Prophets thus seems to be chronological, directly following Micah, who was active in the late eighth century BCE. As is typical of Israelite prophecy, Nahum's words were prompted by the dramatic events of international history. The Assyrian Empire, whose power had for centuries been felt and feared from Mesopotamia to the Mediterranean, crumbled quickly after the death of Ashurbanipal (627 BCE). Under the combined assaults of the Medes from north of Persia and the Chaldeans from southern Babylonia, the ancient Assyrian capital city, Asshur, fell in 614. When the renowned Nineveh was destroyed in
612BCE, Assyrian domination of the Near East was ended, though its imperial structures served as a template for subsequent empires. The fervent reaction to the overthrow of Assyria, expressed by the peoples long subjected to its yoke, is nowhere seen more clearly than in Nahum. The core of the book is a superb, vivid poem (2.3-9; 3.1-3) extolling Nineveh's destruction. The prophet spells out the reason for the Assyrian downfall: It is the LORD's judgment against an oppressor. This basic theme makes clear that Nahum's though is passionately partisan. He asserts boldly that the Lord is the avenger of cruelty and immorality. Prophetic collections often include oracles against nations (e.g., Isa 13-23; Jer 46-51). In essence, the brief book of Nahum, like that of Obadiah, consists entirely of this single genre. To that extent, it fails NAHUM
1875to indicate the consequences of this divine justice for Israel itself. The book and its sentiments toward Nineveh are often contrasted with those in the book of Jonah (contrast Nah 3.11 with Jon 4.11; Nah 1.2-3 with Jon 4.1-2). The date of Nahum's triumphal ode lies close to the events it foretells (or describes), probably between
626and
612BCE. Its author is identified only by his name (which means "comforted"); even the location of his home, Elkosh (1.1), is unknown.