8 Rejoice not over me, O my enemy;
when I fall, I shall rise;
when I sit in darkness,
the Lord will be a light to me.
9 I will bear the indignation of the Lord
because I have sinned against him,
until he pleads my cause
and executes judgment for me.
He will bring me out to the light;
I shall look upon his vindication.
10 Then my enemy will see,
and shame will cover her who said to me,
“Where is the Lord your God?”
My eyes will look upon her;
now she will be trampled down
like the mire of the streets.
11 A day for the building of your walls!
In that day the boundary shall be far extended.
12 In that day they will come to you,
from Assyria and the cities of Egypt,
and from Egypt to the River,
from sea to sea and from mountain to mountain.
13 But the earth will be desolate
because of its inhabitants,
for the fruit of their deeds. – Micah 7:8-13 ESV
As Micah prepares to bring his treatise to a close, he personalizes its content, addressing his own feelings as he watches all the events he has prophesied about begin to transpire. He is in distress, having to witness the very judgments God had warned about as they actually come about.
The nation is in a sorry state, filled with wicked, unethical, and immoral people. And as they stubbornly cling to their greed, selfishness, and idolatry, Micah declares his allegiance to the Lord.
But as for me, I will look to the Lord;
I will wait for the God of my salvation;
my God will hear me. – Micah 7:7 ESV
And in a sense, Micah is speaking on behalf of the faithful remnant who remain in Israel and Judah. Micah feels all alone, so, he speaks in the first-person singular, referring to himself with the terms, “me, my, and I.” You can sense the loneliness and isolation in his words. And they express the same sentiment the prophet Elijah felt after he had defeated the false prophets of Baal and was running from the wrath of Queen Jezebel.
Elijah traveled for 40 days and night and got as far as Mount Sinai, where he rested in a cave. It was there that God asked him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” (1 Kings 19:9 NLT). And Elijah had responded to God with a pitiful and pitiable story of self-sacrifice and suffering.
“I have zealously served the LORD God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me, too.” – 1 Kings 19:10 NLT
But rather than affirm Elijah’s assessment of his situation, God had him stand outside the entrance to the cave. He then provided the prophet with a pyrotechnic show he would not soon forget.
And as Elijah stood there, the LORD passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. – 1 Kings 19:11-12 NLT
And God followed up that divine display of His power and glory with the same question He had asked before. “What are you doing here, Elijah?” (1 Kings 19:13 NLT). And Elijah gave the same self-absorbed answer.
“I have zealously served the LORD God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me, too.” – 1 Kings 19:14 NLT
But God was not going to allow what happened on Mount Carmel to be turned into a referendum on Elijah’s sacrifice and subsequent suffering. It was not about Elijah. It was about the work that God was doing on behalf of the nation of Israel. Elijah was under the impression that he was the only one left. He was the only faithful servant of Yahweh remaining. But he was wrong. And God informed Elijah of the truth and assured him that he was far from alone. There were others.
“Yet I will preserve 7,000 others in Israel who have never bowed down to Baal or kissed him!” – 1 Kings 19:18 NLT
And the same thing was true in Micah’s day. His myopic view of reality was wrong. And whether he realized it or not, his words were spoken on behalf of all those among the people of Israel who remained faithful to God. Micah may not have known their identities, but God did. So, when Micah spoke, he did so as the representative of all those Israelites who had kept their covenant commitment to Yahweh. Yes, they were few in number, but they were there.
Do not gloat over me, my enemies!
For though I fall, I will rise again.
Though I sit in darkness,
the Lord will be my light.
I will be patient as the Lord punishes me,
for I have sinned against him. – Micah 7:8-9 NLT
Micah was not the last man standing. God was not going to leave His prophet as the sole survivor of His judgment. He had preserved a remnant, a small but faithful number of His people who had refused to bow their knees to false gods or to follow the lead of Israel’s lousy leaders.
Micah expressed confidence in God’s mercy and justice, declaring that Israel’s well-deserved judgment would be followed by God’s undeserved restoration.
he will take up my case
and give me justice for all I have suffered from my enemies.
The Lord will bring me into the light,
and I will see his righteousness. – Micah 7:9 NLT
In the midst of all that was happening around him, Micah placed his hope in the character of God. He kept focusing on God’s love, mercy, and faithfulness. He fully understood the need for God’s wrath, but he also rested in what he knew of God’s righteousness and unwavering love. God was not going to abandon His own. The darkness would be followed by light. But that light would not be for the benefit of Micah alone.
The prophet knew that the day would come when God turned the tables on Israel’s enemies, all those who had taunted and mocked them by asking, “So where is the Lord—that God of yours?” (Micah 7:10 NLT). The faithful remnant would one day see their God show up and dress down their enemies, giving them what they deserved. And Micah, speaking on behalf of the remnant, shares his eager anticipation for that day.
With my own eyes I will see their downfall;
they will be trampled like mud in the streets. – Micah 7:10 NLT
In verse 11, Micah shifts his focus to the “latter days,” which he has addressed before. This is a reference to the Millennium, that future period of time when God will re-gather and reestablish Israel in her land and place His Son on the throne of David. This will be a time marked by redemption, restoration, and the re-establishment of Israel as His chosen people. And Micah excitedly describes the unprecedented nature of those days.
In that day, Israel, your cities will be rebuilt,
and your borders will be extended.
People from many lands will come and honor you—
from Assyria all the way to the towns of Egypt,
from Egypt all the way to the Euphrates River,
and from distant seas and mountains. – Micah 7:11-12 NLT
Micah was confident that God would restore Israel. And he was not alone. The prophet, Obadiah, also wrote of Israel’s future restoration by God.
“But Jerusalem will become a refuge for those who escape;
it will be a holy place.
And the people of Israel will come back
to reclaim their inheritance.” – Obadiah 1:17 NLT
And the prophet, Zechariah, provided further details concerning that day.
“Jerusalem will someday be so full of people and livestock that there won’t be room enough for everyone! Many will live outside the city walls. Then I, myself, will be a protective wall of fire around Jerusalem, says the Lord. And I will be the glory inside the city!” – Zechariah 2:4-5 NLT
But before that future day of restoration could happen, judgment would have to come. In verse 13, Micah returns to his prediction of God’s pending punishment on the nation of Israel.
But the land will become empty and desolate
because of the wickedness of those who live there. – Micah 7:13 NLT
The future of Israel was bright, but there was going to be a period of prolonged darkness in the land as God delivered His promised judgment on them for their sins against Him. This darkness would pervade the land for generations and would still be evident when Jesus arrived on the scene at His incarnation. Jesus declared of Himself:
“God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed.” – John 3:19-20 NLT
And that darkness would remain throughout the days of Jesus’ earthly ministry, ending with His death on a cross. And when He died, darkness covered the land (Matthew 27:45). But He rose from the dead. And He eventually returned to His Father’s side in heaven. But the day is coming when Jesus will return.
Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords. – Revelation 19:11-16 ESV
The Light of the world will penetrate the darkness once again. But this time, He will bring a permanent end to the gloom of sin and death that has shrouded the world in darkness for generations. He and His Father will become the permanent source of light for the world.
And the city has no need of sun or moon, for the glory of God illuminates the city, and the Lamb is its light. The nations will walk in its light, and the kings of the world will enter the city in all their glory. – Revelation 21:23-24 NLT
And even in the midst of his less-than-ideal circumstances, the prophet Micah could eagerly long for that day.
He will bring me out to the light;
I shall look upon his vindication. – Micah 7:9 ESV
English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
The Message (MSG)Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson
