As Micah continued his
lamentable prophesy against Samaria and Jerusalem, he began to list
several charges which the people should employ when their judgment
came. They were not to “declare it at Gath”, not “weep
at all”, and “roll” themselves “in the dust”
in “Aphrah”. In chapter one and verse eleven, Micah
continued his list with “Saphir, Zaanan and Bethezel” where we
read:
Pass away, you
inhabitant of Saphir, having your shame naked: the inhabitant of
Zaanan came not forth in the mourning of Bethezel; he shall receive
of you his standing.
The
verse begins, “Pass away, you inhabitant of Saphir,
having your shame naked:” Micah
began this verse with the phrase “pass away”
which means “to pass over or by or through, alienate, bring,
carry, do away, take, take away or transgress”. His words were to
“you inhabitant of Saphir” which means “fair or
beautiful” and either refers to a name which Micah gave to
Jerusalem and Samaria or was an unknown city in Judah. Our main
interest is what he said to this “inhabitant” - “Pass
away”“having your shame naked” or “vile and ignominious
condition exposed or made open”. The idea is those who were once
known to be “fair and beautiful” were now exposed for their vile
and wicked ways.
The
verse continues, “the inhabitant of Zaanan came not forth in the
mourning of Bethezel;” After mentioning “Saphir”,
Micah continued his words with “the inhabitant of Zaanan”
which means “pointed or place of flocks”. His charge against
“Zaanan” was they “came not forth” which means
to “exit, lead out or go forward” “in the mourning”
or “wailing” “of Bethezel” which means “house of
narrowing or of firm root”. Evidently “Bethezel” was a
conquered city in Judah which was near “Zaanan”, and when
they were, the inhabitants of “Zaanan” did not come to
their rescue.
Finally the verse says, “he
shall receive of you his standing.”
Micah ends with this statement, “he shall receive”
or “be captured, taken away, removed or brought into” “of
you his standing” which means “standing ground or place where
anyone stops or lodges”. The “he” in this line refers to
the enemy who was against these cities, and because “Zaanan”
no longer had the city of “Bethezel” near them for help,
the enemy would take away the “standing ground or lodging place”
of the inhabitants of “Zaanan” as well.
As we meditate upon this
verse, perhaps it will help us to think about what we would do if
cities near us were being conquered one by one. Because of the
“apostasy” in both Samaria and Jerusalem, Micah knew their
destruction was imminent, and the evidence for it was the conquering
of the cities surrounding them. “Saphir, Bethezel and Zaanan”
could be replaced in modern days by names we know, and if they were
conquered, how would we feel or respond? The people in the times of
Micah lacked in their faith in God Almighty, and they forsook His
commandments and ways. The eventual outcome was defeat and
destruction for those who fell away. What would the Lord God do today
if He were to hold our cities to the same standard of judgment as
these cities? The thought of this should bring all of us to a state
of humility, and may we fall on our faces in repentance before Jesus
Christ before it is too late for us as well.
Next
time Micah will share about Maroth and evil coming down upon
Jerusalem, 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.
No comments:
Post a Comment