Introduction
‘In the last days the mountain of the LORD’s temple will be established as the highest of the mountains; it will be exalted above the hills, and peoples will stream to it. Many nations will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the temple of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths.” The law will go out from Zion, the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. He will judge between many peoples and will settle disputes for strong nations far and wide. They will beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore. Everyone will sit under their own vine and under their own fig tree, and no one will make them afraid, for the LORD Almighty has spoken. All the nations may walk in the name of their gods, but we will walk in the name of the LORD our God for ever and ever.’ Micah 4:1-5
The Mountain Of The LORD
The promises of the remnant’s return from exile and the blessings that go along with it are prophesied here, Isaiah 2:1-5 / Zechariah 8:20-23. Note that Micah 4:1-3 is repeated in Isaiah 2:1-3.
The last days are a reference to the coming of the Messianic age, Micah 4:1 / Acts 2:16. The mountain of the the Lord, Micah 4:1, is a reference to Mount Zion. The people will flow like a mighty river into the kingdom, Micah 4:1, that is, the church, Isaiah 60:11 / Daniel 2:35 / Daniel 2:44-45 / Matthew 24:14 / Revelation 7:9.
Notice that many nations will come, Micah 4:2 / Isaiah 2:2 / Revelation 7:9.
Coffman, in his commentary, says the following, concerning Micah 4:2-3.
1. The gospel would spring from Jerusalem, where Christ exercised his ministry, died, rose again from the dead, and from whence he commanded his disciples that ‘repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning in Jerusalem’.
2. The gospel was not for the purpose of destroying the law of Moses, but for the sake of fulfilling it. The righteousness of Christ himself consisted, at least in part, of his perfect obedience to the ancient Law and as Christ’s righteousness is that alone which redeems men now, the salvation of every man is surely, thereby, related to it.
3. Note that it will be a law that will go forth from Jerusalem in the new dispensation, confirming exactly what is reiterated again, and again by the sacred writers of the New Testament who referred to the gospel as the precious law of liberty, James 2:12, the perfect law, James 1:26, the royal law, James 2:8, the law of faith, Romans 3:27, the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus, Romans 8:2, the law of Christ, Galatians 6:2, and not being without law but under the law to Christ, 1 Corinthians 9:21. No greater misunderstanding prevails upon the earth today than the notion that the grace of God has freed God’s children from all law. They were, of course, freed from the law of Moses but they are under law to Christ.’
When Jesus reigns, He will judge between the people and war will cease, Micah 4:3. Micah 4:3 and Isaiah 2:4, both read, ‘they will beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks.’ But in Joel 3:10 we find the words, ‘beat your ploughshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears’.
In Micah and Isaiah the weapons are made into farming implements, but in Joel the farming implements are made into weapons. The point is when Micah and Isaiah speak, they both speak in terms of peace which will come in the future, hence why the weapons are made into farming implements. But in Joel, there will be no peace for God’s enemies because they are about to be judged, hence why the farming implements are made into weapons.
The land will be clean again and because they have eradicated idolatry, they can have a relationship with a pure land, Micah 4:3. Sitting under a vine and fig tree, Micah 4:4, signifies peace, security, and enjoyment of property, 1 Kings 4:25 / 2 Kings 18:31 / Zechariah 3:10.
Walking in the name of LORD, Micah 4:5, means relying on Him and living in His ways, Genesis 5:22 / Genesis 17:1. This is a picture of the coming reign of the Messiah, in which His kingdom is one of peace, Jeremiah 31:31-34 / Daniel 2:44 / Daniel 7:13-14. We must note that this peace is only offered to those who submit to the Kingship reign of Christ, Psalm 2:9.
The LORD’s Plan
‘In that day,” declares the LORD, “I will gather the lame; I will assemble the exiles and those I have brought to grief. I will make the lame my remnant, those driven away a strong nation. The LORD will rule over them in Mount Zion from that day and forever. As for you, watchtower of the flock, stronghold of Daughter Zion, the former dominion will be restored to you; kingship will come to Daughter Jerusalem.” Micah 4:6-8
The day mentioned here, Micah 4:6, is the day when the above prophecy was fulfilled in Christ, Romans 11:26. This will be the day when the Holy Spirit was poured out, Joel 2:28-32 / Acts 2:16-17, the day the church was established on Pentecost, Acts 2.
Coffman, in his commentary, says the following.
‘That portion of the old Israel which was ‘lame’ and ‘cast off’, as for example the hated and hunted minority in the times of Elijah, will become, through God’s power, ‘the remnant’, that is, the only part of old Israel that will partake of the everlasting kingdom in Christ. The nucleus of the New Israel of God would be precisely those persons in the old order who were disowned and cast out as evil by the Pharisees.’
Micah says the church would become a strong nation on earth because Christ would be reigning supreme, Micah 4:7 / Daniel 7:13-14 / Matthew 16:18-19 / Ephesians 1:20-22. The church would become the New Jerusalem where Jesus will reign as King, Luke 17:20-21.
Coffman, in his commentary, says the following about the remnant, Micah 4:7.
‘That portion of the old Israel which was ‘lame’ and ‘cast off,’ as for example the hated and hunted minority in the times of Elijah, will become, through God’s power, “the remnant,” that is, the only part of old Israel that will partake of the everlasting kingdom in Christ.’
God, Himself will be the watchtower of His sheep, He will watch over and protect His people, Micah 4:8.
Barnes, in his commentary, says the following.
‘The visible kingdom of God in Judah was often obscured, kings, princes, priests, and false prophets combining to encourage one another in rebellion against God. In the captivity it even underwent an almost total eclipse by the over-shadowing of earthly power, save when the divine light flashed forth for an instant in the deeds or words of power and wisdom, related by Daniel. ‘Henceforth’, that is, from the time, when the law should go forth out of Zion, God should indeed reign, and that kingdom should have no end.’
Gill, in his commentary, says the following, concerning the coming kingdom.
‘Not the first notice of the Messiah’s kingdom, given by John the Baptist, Christ, and his apostles, to the Jews, in the first times of the Gospel or the preaching of the Gospel of the kingdom first to them but rather he who has the first or principal dominion, and to whom the kingdom belongs, he shall come to the daughter of Zion, as in Zechariah 9:9, though it rather respects here his coming to them at the time of their conversion when they shall come to him, Romans 11:26, and when the first, chief, and principal kingdom in the world, and which is preferable to all others, will come unto and be placed among them, as in Micah 4:7, and when it shall be, as some interpret it, as at the beginning, in the days of David and Solomon, and much more abundantly.’
‘Why do you now cry aloud—have you no king? Has your ruler perished, that pain seizes you like that of a woman in labour? Writhe in agony, Daughter Zion, like a woman in labour, for now you must leave the city to camp in the open field. You will go to Babylon; there you will be rescued. There the LORD will redeem you out of the hand of your enemies. But now many nations are gathered against you. They say, “Let her be defiled, let our eyes gloat over Zion!” But they do not know the thoughts of the LORD; they do not understand his plan, that he has gathered them like sheaves to the threshing floor. “Rise and thresh, Daughter Zion, for I will give you horns of iron; I will give you hooves of bronze, and you will break to pieces many nations.” You will devote their ill-gotten gains to the LORD, their wealth to the Lord of all the earth.’ Micah 4:9-13
Coffman, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Here follows a contrast between the judgments already pronounced against the literal house of Jacob and about to be reiterated, with the glorious and universal blessings of the kingdom of heaven in Christ set forth by Micah in Micah 4:1-8. The now is therefore temporal having direct reference to the way it was when Micah wrote and when the times he was prophesying would be fulfilled in the defeat and captivity of the punished chosen people.’
When Israel went through their captivity, it was like a woman going through labour, Micah 4:9, after going through captivity a new Israel was born, one which was cleansed of idolatry.
This is looking forward to the time when the Messiah would bring about new birth, a new birth which would create a new people, in a new relationship with God, 2 Corinthians 5:17 / Jeremiah 31:31-34.
Notice Micah tells them that they will go to Babylon, Micah 4:10.
Coffman, in his commentary, says the following.
‘As is always the case with the great predictive prophecies in the Bible, this one also is multiple in meaning. The going of Israel to Babylon will come about because of military disaster, indicated by their going forth out of the city and dwelling in the field. The slavery of the people is indicated by their ‘dwelling’ in the field, the usual habitation of slaves. The rescue and redemption of the people are also prophesied at the same time.’
God says He will redeem them, Micah 4:10, and He will do this using Cyrus of the Medo Persians, who defeated the Babylonians, Daniel 2:39 / Isaiah 13. After seventy years of captivity, Cyrus allowed Israel to return to the restored land, Ezra 1:2-4. In much the same way Christians have been redeemed from the bondage of sin, Ephesians 1:7.
Constable, in his commentary, says the following, concerning Micah 4:11-12.
‘In Micah’s day many nations desired to see Israel polluted and destroyed. However, they did not understand God’s purposes for Israel or for themselves. They failed to see that He would gather the nations for judgment, as a farmer gathers sheaves of grain on a threshing floor in preparation for beating them out.’
The metaphor of threshing the nations is a terrible one indeed, Micah 4:13. The allusion is to the threshing machine studded underneath with iron spikes dragged over the threshing floor.
Some of Israel’s enemies had actually executed such horror upon them, Amos 1:3 / 1 Kings 13:7, and the promise in Micah 4:13, is that God will reward the wicked nations in kind, for their godless, evil ways.
Gill, in his commentary, says the following, concerning the words ‘iron horns’ and ‘brass hooves’, Micah 4:13.
‘The Lord would give them strength sufficient to such work, and such power their enemies should not be able to resist and overcome and that they should into their hands, and be crushed, trod and trampled on by them, and utterly subdued.’
Henry, in his commentary, says the following, concerning Micah 4:13.
‘The nations thought to ruin Christianity in its infancy, but it was victorious over them; those that persisted in their enmity were broken to pieces, Matthew 21:44, particularly the Jewish nation but multitudes by divine grace were gained to the church, and they and their substance were consecrated to the Lord Jesus, the Lord of the whole earth.’
