Verses 1-3 And I said, Hear, I pray you, O heads of Jacob, and ye princes of the house of Israel; Is it not for you to know judgment? 2 Who hate the good, and love the evil; who pluck off their skin from off them, and their flesh from off their bones; 3 Who also eat the flesh of my people, and flay their skin from off them; and they break their bones, and chop them in pieces, as for the pot, and as flesh within the caldron.
The pronoun “I” above appears to be the prophet Micah speaking and not the LORD, although his words are under the inspiration of the LORD. Here Micah details the sins and transgressions of the leadership of the nation Israel. They were supposed to render righteous judgement upon the people and they were not doing this. There was no justice for the people as these leaders hated that which was good and loved that which was evil. They were serving their father, the Devil. The Hebrew word translated as “evil” is “ra” and it means bad, evil, wicked, disagreeable, malignant, unpleasant, distress, misery, injury and calamity. The people could not receive justice and fairness at the hands of these leaders, and since people tend to follow their leaders’ example, they too were behaving in an evil or unrighteous manner. The rest of the verses above describe a picture of cannibalism or of a butcher cutting up an animal. It is metaphor or a word picture to show the terrible extent to which the leadership and the people had fallen in their rebellion and sin against God. The leadership was abusing their position and power and the people were like sheep going to slaughter.
Application: The prophet Micah’s words in the verses above are applicable to the condition of the nations and their people today. The leadership serving Satan hate that which is good and love that which is evil and they persecute and harm their own citizenry. The people’s money and possessions are stolen through taxation, the young people are used as cannon fodder to fight endless wars that only enrich the pockets of the rich elite, the court systems are rigged in favor of evil, the people are fooled into believing in and accepting government handouts through programs that make them dependent upon the system so that they cannot complain or demand justice, the peace officers whose jobs were to protect the people have been militarized so that they in many cases are threats to the people, freedoms are taken away constantly in the name of “national security”, laws are passed that support the governments and not the people, the necessities of life such as food, water, and air are systematically being poisoned, and the reality is that today the whole world is in the same condition as that of the nations Israel and Judah in the days of Micah the prophet. Why? Because except for a remnant, the whole world has rejected the LORD and rebelled against Him, allowing the enemy, Satan, to come in like a flood and attempt once again to establish his one-world system with him as its king. Is there hope today? Not in the nations’ governments or in voting which is rigged in favor of evil, or in social programs, or in a country’s military which answers to the United Nations, another Satanic system, or in any man-made institution. The only hope today is the same one that was in the days of the prophet Micah, and that hope is in the LORD Jesus Christ. This world cannot be fixed, prophecy must be fulfilled, and the LORD Jesus will return. The only questions is are you, the reader, ready for the end of this world and for eternity. Think about it.
Verse 4 Then shall they cry unto the LORD, but he will not hear them: he will even hide his face from them at that time, as they have behaved themselves ill in their doings.
When unbelievers become desperate and/or frightened, it is a common occurrence to see them all of a sudden decide that God exists and to ask for His help. And it is also a common occurrence to see God give them the help they need. Because of His mercy and grace and love, God wants to be in peoples’ lives and to help them in times of trouble. But the leaders of Israel and Judah, according to the prophet Micah, were not going to get any assistance from God, and they should not expect to get help from God in their times of trouble and distress. There is a point at which God “washes His hands” so to speak of people who are so wicked that their actions have closed the door to His mercy and grace.
Verses 5-7 Thus saith the LORD concerning the prophets that make my people err, that bite with their teeth, and cry, Peace; and he that putteth not into their mouths, they even prepare war against him. 6 Therefore night shall be unto you, that ye shall not have a vision; and it shall be dark unto you, that ye shall not divine; and the sun shall go down over the prophets, and the day shall be dark over them. 7 Then shall the seers be ashamed, and the diviners confounded: yea, they shall all cover their lips; for there is no answer of God.
False prophets promise every good thing and this is what appeals to the people who are ignorant of the Word of God. They promise that God is a god of peace and so He will make everything in life positive. They do not teach that all of mankind has three enemies trying to destroy which are the flesh, the world and Satan. They paint a rosy picture even when judgement is at the door. This is what was happening in the prophet Micah’s day so God promised that these false prophets would not hear from Him and God would not permit the devils to communicate with them either. They would remain in spiritual darkness unable to prophesy, having no power and no authority. Furthermore, God would confuse them so that they could not practice witchcraft and divination and He would ruin their credibility among the people. Basically, God would put them out of work as whatever they predicted He would not allow to come to pass.
Application: False prophets kill people. They lie to the people and lead them astray unto destruction. They are fighting against God. In ancient days, listening to false prophets lead to the people not hearing the true Word of God, and often, this lead to them being invaded, killed, and/or taken captive by an enemy nation. But worse than physical death is the spiritual death that a false prophet causes. When ignoring the Word of God, people end up following Satan whom the false prophets serve either knowingly or by default, and their final destination is Hell, awaiting judgement and consignment to the Lake of Fire for eternity. Today the world is full of false prophets spewing their lies and mis-characterizations of God in the pulpit, on television, on radio, and on the internet. They have a common theme: God is love and wants you to be blessed and prosperous. The apostles proved this teaching to be false as none of them were rich with houses and possessions. The Apostle Paul directed converts to follow his example as he had been with Jesus Christ and had received the Gospel directly from the LORD. He worked hard for a living and never owned property or even a donkey as far as we know, and he spent a lot of time in prisons, suffering persecution primarily at the hands of the Jews of his day. Even Jesus stated when on Earth, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.” Luke 9:58 Following Jesus will be difficult, but the rewards in this life and the next make it all worth while.
Verse 8 But truly I am full of power by the spirit of the LORD, and of judgment, and of might, to declare unto Jacob his transgression, and to Israel his sin.
The prophet Micah, on the other hand, was a true prophet of God operating in the power of the Holy Spirit. He was God’s servant and he had wisdom, knowledge, and discernment (gifts of the Spirit) and was therefore qualified to judge and to declare the sins of Israel and Judah.
Verse 9 Hear this, I pray you, ye heads of the house of Jacob, and princes of the house of Israel, that abhor judgment, and pervert all equity.
The prophet Micah directs his prophetic words to the leaders of the nations as they are the main source of the problem.
Verse 10 They build up Zion with blood, and Jerusalem with iniquity.
Verse 10 above describes politics and Satan’s mode of operation. No nation is guiltless of shedding blood and coveting money or riches and power. So these leaders and power elite shed blood and engaged in horrific sin in order to build their system of governance and to enslave and control the people, all at the behest of Satan. The Hebrew word translated as “iniquity” is “evel” and it means injustice, unrighteousness, and wrong.
Verse 11 The heads thereof judge for reward, and the priests thereof teach for hire, and the prophets thereof divine for money: yet will they lean upon the LORD, and say, Is not the LORD among us? none evil can come upon us.
There is no righteous judgement in Israel or Judah, nor is there any righteous religious leadership. The saying, “Follow the money trail”, was true here. The priests taught politically correct doctrine and reaped financial rewards. The prophets got paid for “feel good” prophecies and they said what they were paid to say. These were the forerunners of the televangelists of today. It is all fake news. However, they use the name of the LORD when convenient and for effect.
Verse 12 Therefore shall Zion for your sake be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of the forest. (Micah 3)
Because of all their sin, Jerusalem would be reduced to rubble and the religious, occult places of worship would be destroyed.