As the LORD continued to
share through Micah the prophet concerning the “remnant of
Jacob”, He told them He would “cut off” their
horses, “destroy” their “chariots”, “cut
off” their fortified “cities”, and “throw down”
all their “strong holds”. The LORD desired for their
dependence to be upon Him rather than any other creature comfort or
place of security. In chapter five and verse twelve of Micah's
prophesy, the LORD deals with two other areas in which the people
within “the remnant” relied where we read:
The
verse begins, “And I will cut off witchcrafts out of your
hand;” The LORD dealt
with material things when He spoke of “horses, chariots, cities
and strongholds”, and now He addresses spiritual ones. Micah
wrote, “And I will cut off” which shows the LORD's
continuance of thought and means “to cut, cut down, cut off a body
part, cut out, eliminate, kill, cut a covenant” “witchcrafts”
which refers to “sorceries or incantations” “out of your
hand” or “side, portion, part or strength”.
The
verse goes on to say, “and you shall have no more
soothsayers:” The LORD was to
eliminate “enchanters, sorceresses, diviners,
fortunetellers, barbarian cloud gatherers who act covertly and
practice magic and the hidden arts”. Once again the dependence upon
these spiritual means other than the LORD was to be removed from the
“remnant of Jacob”, and their reliance was to be upon the
LORD and Him alone.
As we ponder the words of
the LORD as recorded by Micah, it is good for us to note how the LORD
desired dependence upon Him and not upon other spiritual resources.
Sometimes people are prone to want their “fortune” told, or their
palm read, or horoscope divulged, but this was not to be among the
people of God. Reliance upon any spiritual means or method other than
the LORD as verified by His word is not only dangerous but also
blasphemous toward Him. May we always rely upon the LORD Jesus and
His word, and never be given over to other spiritual influences such
as “witchcrafts” and “soothsayers” no matter
how convincing they may be.
Next
time Micah writes concerning graven images and works of the people's
hands,
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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