Micah Now Calls On Creation To Witness YHWH's Case Against Israel, And Finishes By Stating YHWH's Requirements. (Micah 6:1-8)
Knowing that the people might be puzzled as to why YHWH should treat His people as described in Micah 5:10-15, Micah, having called on creation as witnesses, now presents YHWH's case. The people respond to His case and reveal in their response their total lack of understanding of what YHWH is really like. Their view is that He can be pacified with offerings and gifts. Micah then replies by explaining what YHWH does really want of them, that they will do what is right, love compassion, and walk thoughtfully before God.
The Prophet calls on creation to hear YHWH's case against His people (Micah 6:1-2).
‘Hear you now what YHWH says,
“Arise, contend you before the mountains,
And let the hills hear your voice.
Hear, O you mountains, YHWH's controversy,
And you enduring foundations of the earth,
For YHWH has a controversy with his people,
And he will contend with Israel.”
YHWH Puts His Case to the People (Micah 6:3-4).
“O my people, what have I done to you?
And in what have I wearied you?
Testify against me.”
“For I brought you up out of the land of Egypt,
And redeemed you out of the house of bondage,
And I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.”
O my people, remember now what Balak king of Moab devised,
And what Balaam the son of Beor answered him;
Remember from Shittim to Gilgal,
That you may know the righteous acts of YHWH.”
The People Ask What Is Required Of Them (Micah 6:6-7).
With what shall I come before YHWH?
And bow myself before the high God?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
With calves a year old?
Will YHWH be pleased with thousands of rams,
Or with ten thousands of rivers of oil?
Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression,
The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
The Prophet Explains What YHWH Really Wants (Micah 6:8).
“He has showed you, O man, what is good,
And what does YHWH require of you?
But to do justly, and to love kindness,
And to walk humbly with your God?
We will now consider it section by section.
‘Hear you now what YHWH says,
“Arise, contend you before the mountains,
And let the hills hear your voice.
Hear, O you mountains, YHWH's controversy,
And you enduring foundations of the earth,
For YHWH has a controversy with his people,
And he will contend with Israel.”
In the first instance Micah calls on the people to hear what YHWH says, and then calls on them to make their case before the mountains and hills which have witnessed all that has gone on in past ages, especially the false worship in the high places. Then he turns to the mountains and the foundations of the earth, asking them to witness the controversy that YHWH has with His people, and will now bring before them
Note the careful chiastic arrangement. The opening and closing thoughts are of contending, while in between come the two controversies. This calling on creation to witness God's controversies with His people is a regular feature of the prophets. See Isaiah 3:13 ff; Isaiah 5:3 ff; Jeremiah 25:31; Hosea 4:1; Hosea 12:2.
“O my people, what have I done to you?
And in what have I wearied you?
Testify against me.”
YHWH Himself now calls on His people to tell Him what He has done to upset them, and why they have grown weary of Him. He is calling on them to testify against Him. But before they make their reply He explains what He has done for them so that they will be without excuse.
“For I brought you up out of the land of Egypt,
And redeemed you out of the house of bondage,
And I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.”
O my people, remember now what Balak king of Moab devised,
And what Balaam the son of Beor answered him;
Remember from Shittim to Gilgal,
That you may know the righteous acts of YHWH.”
His case is a strong one:
· He reminds them how He had brought them out of Egypt, and had redeemed them from the house of bondage, the very basis on which His covenant with them was made. (compare Exodus 20:2). DELIVERANCE.
· He reminds them how He had provided leadership in the persons of Moses the Prophet, Aaron the Priest and Miriam the Prophetess (a unique reference to the latter two in the prophets). LEADERSHIP.
· He reminds them how the King of Moab had planned wickedness against them by means of a false prophet, and how He had caused Balaam to refute the King and bless Israel. PROTECTION.
· He reminds them how they had crossed the Jordan from Shittim to Gilgal on dry land. MIRACULOUS ASSISTANCE.
And He had done it so that they might know the righteous acts of YHWH. Note the emphasis on righteous. YHWH wants to bring home that He is above all righteous. This should have made them pause and think before they made fools of themselves. But it failed. Like many religious people their view was that what mattered to God was right religious ritual and observance, and plenty of it.
And so they asked:
With what shall I come before YHWH?
And bow myself before the high God?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
With calves a year old?
Will YHWH be pleased with thousands of rams,
Or with ten thousands of rivers of oil?
Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression,
The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
They wanted to know what was required of them as they made their formal obeisance to YHWH, the High God, in the temple. Did He require burnt offerings consisting of the valuable one year old calves? Did He expect thousands of rams or tens of thousands of rivers of oil, more lavish offerings even than Solomon's (1 Kings 8:5)? Did He expect them to sacrifice their own firstborns to Him in order to pay for their sins, giving the fruit of their body (their firstborns) for the sin of their inner hearts? This last was the requirement of Moloch (Melech) from his worshippers. Did YHWH require the same?
Note how the level of sacrifice has risen with each step forward. But they are expecting an easy ride. They do not expect the last two requests to be taken seriously. They know from their history that YHWH hates child sacrifice. So they are confident that they really know how much God wants. But Micah's reply comes back as a shock to them. God wants none of these things unless their hearts are right. He is not looking for ritual and observance. However great their offerings it will not be sufficient. What He is looking for is obedience to the covenant, to His moral requirements.
Compare for similar prophetic teaching, Isaiah 1:11-17; Amos 5:21-24; Psalms 40:6-8; Psalms 50:7-14; Psalms 51:16-17).
“He has showed you, O man, what is good,
And what does YHWH require of you?
But to do justly, and to love kindness,
And to walk humbly with your God?
Micah's reply is sublime. He points out that YHWH has Himself shown them what is good. It is to do what is right. It is to love showing compassion and mercy. It is to walk humbly with God carefully observing His commandments. Note that the last adverb translated ‘humbly' includes the idea of careful consideration to what is required. The point of prime importance is His stress on the fact that what YHWH requires is not ritual and offerings but true goodness of life, and that only that will prevent all the evil things that have been described coming upon them.
Sadly his words were ignored. But they are spoken to us too. We fail to observe them at our peril.