Micah the prophet wrote
concerning the pending judgment that was to fall upon Samaria and
Jerusalem for their apostasy against the Lord God Almighty. Among
their people were those who devised evil and wicked plans upon their
beds and couches which they implemented as soon as the sun rose. In
chapter two and verse three Micah shared the consequences of their
pernicious behavior where we read:
Therefore
thus says the LORD; Behold, against this family do I devise an evil,
from which you shall not remove your necks; neither shall you go
haughtily: for this time is evil.
The
verse begins, “Therefore thus says the LORD; Behold,
against this family do I devise an evil,” Micah
began with the word, “therefore” which
we have learned is a word of conclusion that means “because of or
on account of” and points us to what was previously written. In
other words, because of the evil plans and implementations of these
people, “thus says the LORD”, and
whenever we see the “LORD”
in all capital letter in the Bible it is the Hebrew letters “YHVH”
from which we derive “Yehovah” or “Jehovah” and it speaks of
the LORD God Almighty. The “LORD”
said, “Behold” or
“look or pay attention to” “against this family”
or “clan, group, or tribe” “do I devise”
which means “to think, plan, esteem, calculate, invent, make
a judgment, imagine or count” “an evil” or “bad,
disagreeable, malignant and displeasing” thing. Because these
wicked people devised an evil plan and carried them out against their
fellowmen, the LORD was to do the same against them.
The
verse goes on to say, “from which you shall not remove your
necks;” To emphasize the strength of this “evil”
planned by the LORD against the wicked doers, Micah wrote, “from
which you shall not remove” which means “escape or depart
from” “your necks” which means “back of the necks”.
Like prisoners who are bound in stocks, these wicked people would not
be able to escape the judgment of the LORD, and they would be bound
by the devises which He carried out.
Finally the verse says, “neither shall you go haughtily: for
this time is evil.” Not only would these whom
the LORD judges be bound, but another effect would be, “neither
shall you go haughtily” or “walk, proceed or go forward with
a proud, conceited and elevated manner”. Though these wicked doers
may have been boastful and proud in their past venues, they were to
be humbled “for this time is evil” or “event, occasion
or experience” was going to be “bad, malignant, displeasing and
disagreeable” against them.
It
is interesting to note the reciprocation of judgment that the LORD
pronounced upon these wicked people. Where they devised evil deeds
upon others, the LORD devised evil against them. The “Law of
Reciprocity” was fully planned and carried out by the Lord. This
“Family” or
“Group” of wicked doers thought they were getting away with their
evil deeds, and yet the LORD was planning against them all the while.
As we ponder this verse, perhaps it will help us to be reminded of
what Jesus said in the gospel of Matthew in chapter seven and verse
two, “For with what judgment you judge, you shall be
judged: and with what measure you mete, it shall be measured to you
again.” These evildoers in
Samaria and Jerusalem came to know what this phrase meant, and it is
a good warning for us as well as we keep in mind that nothing escapes
the view and knowledge of our LORD God Almighty.
Next
time Micah shares about a parable that will come up against these
evil people, 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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