As Micah continued his list
of cities which were affected by the judgment of the Lord for
apostasy, he wrote about “Lachish” which was a city just
south of Jerusalem and their influence upon the people there. The
people within “Lachish” were to “bind the chariot to
the swift beast:” in
preparation for the judgment that was to come against them, and in
chapter one and verse fourteen, Micah adds “Moreshethgath”
and “Achizib” to
the group of perpetrators where we read:
Therefore shall you
give presents to Moreshethgath:
the houses of Achzib
shall be a lie to the kings of Israel.
The
verse begins, “Therefore shall you give presents to
Moreshethgath:” Micah began
with “Therefore shall you give” which
is a conclusion phrase which points us back to what was just stated
before it. The people within “Lachish” were
to “give presents” or
“bestow, provide, issue or designate parting or sending away gifts”
“to Moreshethgath”
which means “possession of Gath” and was “a place
apparently in the neighborhood of Gath and probably the home of the
prophet Micah”. Not only were they going to have to leave their
homes quickly, but they were going to provide departing gifts when
they left as though they might receive some help from their
neighbors.
The verse continues, “the
houses of Achzib shall be a lie to the kings of
Israel.” Micah added, “the
houses of Achzib” which means
“the dwelling places of deceit” and
was “a town in the lowland of west Judah in Asher by the Sea of
Galilee” “shall be a lie”
or “deceitful, treacherous, deception, deceptive and disappointing”
“to the kings of Israel”.
In addition to giving “presents to Moreshethgath”,
the people of Judah would hope to have support from “the
houses of Achzib”, however
those within this city would only prove to live up to their names and
become a “lie and deception” instead of a rescuer.
Psalm
chapter one hundred and eighteen and verse eight says, “It
is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man”.
If the people of Judah had not forsaken the Lord in apostasy, they
would not have to reach out with gifts and hope for places like
“Moreshethgath”
and “Achzib”.
Rather than become rescuers these places became victims themselves.
Perhaps as we imagine ourselves in the position of those within Judah
we will have a better understanding of why it is so necessary that we
stay close to the Lord. The judgments they were to endure would never
have been employed against them if they had only stayed close to Him.
May the Lord remind us to stay by His side, and when we reach out to
others for help and aid, may they know we have the Lord on our side.
Next
time Micah writes about Mareshah and Adullam the glory of Israel,
so read ahead, and we
shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
Look
for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From
Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be
Married”, and the new devotional “One Year in the Sermon on the
Mount” in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com
; http://www.barnesandnobles.com
; download to e-books, and find it locally at
http://www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
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