Micah 3:5-8 – False vs. True Spiritual Leadership

Translation & Sermon by Nate Wilson for Christ The Redeemer Church of Manhattan, KS, 25 Aug. 2024

Introduction

• In chapter 2 of Micah, we saw oppression denounced, and here in chapter 3, the political and spiritual authorities who make oppression possible are denounced. (Cohen) The chapter is divided neatly into three sections, the first four verses critiquing and sentencing against the political leaders, the next four verses critiquing and sentencing the religious leaders, and the last four verses recapping the sins and punishment of the political and religious leaders. We’ve already looked at the first and last sections of chapter 3; now I want to hone in on the middle section and apply its warnings about bad and good spiritual leadership.

• Read my translation: Then I said, “Listen now, heads of Jacob and leaders of the house of Israel: Aren’t y’all supposed to know what justice is? Y’all are hating what is good and loving what is evil, stealing their hide from off of them and their flesh from off their bones! Yes, it is they who consumed the flesh of my people and stripped their hide from off of them, and gleefully-broke their bones, and chopped them up as though for the boiler and like meat in a stock-pot. At that time, they will cry out to Yahweh, but He will not answer them; instead, He will hide his face from them then, because they have made their deeds evil. Thus says Yahweh concerning the prophets who lead my people astray – who bite using their teeth even when they call out a peaceful greeting, but when anyone does not make a payment upon their demand, then they will dedicate war upon him. Therefore, night will be yours without a seer’s-vision, and it will be dark for y’all without a medium’s-oracle, and the sun will set over the prophets such that the day will be dark over them. And the seers will experience shame, and the mediums will blush; indeed all of them will put a wrap over their lips, for there will not be any answer from God. However, as for me, I am full of strength – with the Spirit of Yahweh – and also of justice and might, to communicate to Jacob its transgression and to Israel its sin. Listen now to this, you heads of the house of Jacob and leaders of the house of Israel: You who despise justice indeed distort all that is right - building Zion with bloodshed and Jerusalem with injustice. For a bribe, her heads will render judgment, and for a price her priests will teach, and for money her prophets will deliver oracles, while they presume upon Yahweh, saying, “Isn’t Yahweh in nearness to us? Nothing terrible is going to come upon us!” Therefore, on account of y’all, Zion will be plowed into a field, and Jerusalem will become a debris-pile, and the temple mount into a highland forest.

vs. 5-7 – Warning To False Prophets

• A prophet is supposed to speak God’s word to people and help them know what is true. A spiritual leader is supposed to help folks get oriented about what is right and wrong and help folks understand God’s plan so they can walk with God, but in verse five, Micah is describing prophets who are doing the opposite – they are leading God’s people astray!

  • The Biblical prophet Isaiah (who lived at the same time as Micah) mentioned the same problem in Isaiah 3:12 “...My people, your guides mislead, and they have swallowed up the course of your paths… 9:14 So Yahweh will cause to be cut off from Israel head and tail, branch and plant in one day. 15 The old and the honorable man is the head, and the prophet who causes lies to be taught is the tail. 16 Those who guide this people have been causing them to go astray, and those who are guided by them are swallowed up.” (NAW)

• Jesus and the Apostles warned us that this would be a continuing problem:

  • Jesus said in Matthew 24:24 “...false messiahs and false prophets will be raised up, and they will give great signs and wonders so as to cause, if it were in their power, even the chosen ones to wander astray.” (NAW)

  • Luke 21:8 “...Take heed that you not be deceived[led astray]. For many will come in My name, saying,`I am He,' and,`The time has drawn near.' Therefore do not go after them.” (NKJV)

  • 2 Timothy 3:13 “...evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.” (NKJV)

  • 1 John¹ 2:26 “These things I write to you concerning the ones who are leading you astray.” (NAW)

• In v. 5, Micah says that “they bite with their teeth” while “calling out peace.”

  • To “call peace” is translated in most English Bibles as a prophetic proclamation of peace, and, while there is evidence that such false prophecies of peace were happening in Micah’s day², I don’t think that is what Micah meant here. The words Micah uses here are used throughout the Hebrew Bible to describe one person greeting another person – to say “Shalom/Peace” while approaching someone, and “call” it out loud enough for them to hear while you are far enough away that they are still trying to decide whether to get ready to defend themselves from you or whether to get read to give you a warm hug.

  • Also, this Hebrew verb for “bite” is only used literally to describe snake bites in the Bible, not to describe anybody eating anything. Interestingly, its only figurative use in the Bible is to describe the financial oppression of charging interest on a loan, for instance in

    • Deuteronomy 23:19 "You shall not [bite -] charge interest to your brother-- interest on money or food or anything that [bites, that is,] is lent out at interest.” (NKJV) and

    • Habakkuk 2:6-7 “...Woe to him who increases what is not his-- For how long-- And makes himself rich with loans? Will not your [biters -] creditors arise up suddenly, And those who collect from you awaken? Indeed, you will become plunder for them.” (NASB)

  • All the commentators I read, interpreted it as biting food³, but I think this figurative financial meaning makes more sense in Micah 3:5. In other words, these religious leaders would call out a peaceful greeting and act all warm and friendly, but it was only because they were trying to squeeze more money out of their constituencies.

• And if you didn’t “feed them/pay them on demand,” they become your inveterate enemies.

  • Again, the Hebrew words Micah uses here are never used to describe eating anywhere else in the Bible, but they are used to describe verbal commands to pay tribute⁴, such as in

    • Joshua 19:50 “According to the word of the LORD (literally “upon the mouth of Yahweh”) they gave him the city which he asked for…” Does that mean they crammed a whole city into God’s mouth? No, it means that a prophet, acting as God’s mouthpiece, commanded the Israelites to dedicate a particular city to a particular use, so they did. Another example is in...

    • 2 Kings 23:35‎ “So Jehoiakim... taxed the land to give silver upon the mouth of Pharoah…” (NAW) Again, the mouth of Pharaoh demanded more money from his Israelite vassals, so they had to pay higher taxes.

  • This same idea of leaders in Micah’s day demanding more payment fits with my interpretation of the beginning of verse 5, in which spiritual leaders had become loan sharks, taking advantage of the poor. They saw a debtor on the street and said, “Hi, how are you doing? If you don’t make a payment right now, I will send my thugs after you. Ok, have a nice day!”

• As we see later on in v.11, the prophets⁵ and priests of Micah’s day, by-and-large were not contenting themselves with the tithes and offerings God had provided for them to live on; instead they were profiteering, running credit-and-loan side-businesses while also charging fees for teaching God’s word and giving advice, instead of offering their spiritual services freely to God’s people.

  • The prophet Ezekiel also commented on this in Ezekiel 22:25-28 “The conspiracy of her prophets in her midst is like a roaring lion tearing the prey; they have devoured people; they have taken treasure and precious things; they have made many widows in her midst... Her prophets plastered them with untempered mortar, seeing false visions, and divining lies for them, saying, `Thus says the Lord GOD, when the LORD had not spoken." (NKJV)

  • In the Talmud⁶, there is a story about a man named Bar Hedia who was an interpreter of dreams. “Abaye and Rava saw an identical dream, and they asked bar Haddaya to interpret it. Abaye gave him money and paid his fee, while Rava did not give him money. They said to him: ‘The verse: “Your ox shall be slain before your eyes and you shall not eat there­of...” was read to us in our dream.’ He interpreted their dream and to Rava [who had paid him no money] he said: ‘Your business will be lost and you will derive no pleasure from eating because of the extreme sadness of your heart.’ To Abaye [who had paid him] he said: ‘Your business will profit and you will be unable to eat due to the joy in your heart.’”

  • The English editor of Calvin’s commentary on Micah also described something that he had seen in the Roman Catholic worship of his day: a painting of a saint would be set up behind the church offering box, and there would be a hole in the painting where the saint’s mouth was. If a parishioner put a lot of money into the offering box, a priest standing behind the painting would hold up a painting of a smiling mouth over the hole, and if a parishioner didn’t put much money into the offering box, the priest would hold up a painting of a frowning mouth over the hole, to make it appear that the saint was frowning upon them.

• Jesus and the apostles warned us in the New Testament that spiritual fraud would continue to be a problem:

  • Mark 13:22 “For false christs and false prophets will rise and show signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.” (NKJV)

  • Romans 16:18 “For those who are such do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly, and by smooth words and flattering speech deceive the hearts of the simple.” (NKJV)

• Just because the majority of influencers say something, doesn’t mean they have God’s word on the matter.

• We must continue to be on our guard against the deception of false prophets, by familiarizing ourselves with the truth of God’s word, and, I might add, by studying church history.

• At the same time, we need guard our own hearts against the greed and vice which could drive us to lead someone else astray:

  • That is why 1 Timothy 3:3 and Titus 1:7 require candidates for church eldership not to be “greedy for money.”

  • And that is why every Christian is reminded in Galatians 5:14-16 “For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another! I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” (NKJV)

• The reason for these warnings is that God is righteous, so He will not allow injustice to go unpunished. God knew all about this religious corruption, so He delivered a message of warning through Micah and followed it up with vindictive action. God’s sentence against these religious leaders is laid out in...

vs. 6-7 – The Dark Results of Separation from God

• Remember, prophets were supposed to be able to see “visions” and “deliver oracles” – as go-betweens between God and Man. Some false prophets use occult witchcraft to do this, others use natural psychological deception, but because they had “made their deeds evil,” “hated good,” “led God’s people astray,” and cheated, defrauded, and oppressed them, God would remove their ability to connect with any source of spiritual guidance, rendering them useless to the community.

  • “They kept others in the dark, and now God will bring them into the dark.” (M. Henry)

• The word for “vision” in v.6 is the Hebrew word describing a prophetic revelation. (The books of Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Obadiah, Nahum, and Habakkuk, in their introductions, are all called “visions.”) But, just as God stopped communicating with King Saul⁷ after his rebellion against God, so Micah (and the other prophets) warned the leaders that came after, that rebellion against God would result in no more communication from God:

  • Amos 8:11 “‘Behold, the days are coming,’ says the Lord GOD, ‘That I will send a famine on the land, Not a famine of bread, Nor a thirst for water, But of hearing the words of the LORD.’” (NKJV)

  • Isaiah 29:10 “For Yahweh has poured upon y'all a spirit of sleep, and has closed your eyes. The prophets and your heads, the seers, He has covered-over.” (NAW, cf. 8:20, 59:10)

  • Jeremiah 15:9 “‘...Her sun has gone down While it was yet day; She has been ashamed and confounded. And the remnant of them I will deliver to the sword Before their enemies,’ says the LORD.” Lamentations 2:9 “Her gates have sunk into the ground; He has destroyed and broken her bars. Her king and her princes are among the nations; The Law is no more, And her prophets find no vision from the LORD.” (NKJV)

  • Ezekiel 7:26 “Disaster will come upon disaster, And rumor will be upon rumor. Then they will seek a vision from a prophet; But the law will perish from the priest, And counsel from the elders… 13:23 Therefore you shall no longer envision futility nor practice divination; for I will deliver My people out of your hand, and you shall know that I am the LORD.” (NKJV)

  • And after the exile, there was a period of some 400 years between the prophet Micah and John the Baptizer when there was no prophetic vision. This was a fulfillment of prophecy.

• In v.7, Micah adds that false prophets will be “shamed/embarrassed/disgraced/confounded/ laughed to scorn.” He also says later in Micah 7:16 “The nations shall see and be ashamed of all their might; They shall put their hand over their mouth; Their ears shall be deaf.” (NKJV)

  • This is a common theme among the Biblical prophets:

    • Isaiah 44:25 “and He will make fools of diviners, breaking the signs of soothsayers, and He will befuddle their knowledge, turning wise men back.” (NAW, cf. Isaiah 65:11-13)

    • Zecheriah 13:1-4 “In that day a fountain shall be opened for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for uncleanness. It shall be in that day, says the LORD of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, and they shall no longer be remembered. I will also cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to depart from the land. It shall come to pass that if anyone still prophesies, then his father and mother who begot him will say to him, ‘You shall not live, because you have spoken lies in the name of the LORD.’ And his father and mother who begot him shall thrust him through when he prophesies. And it shall be in that day that every prophet will be ashamed of his vision when he prophesies; they will not wear a robe of coarse hair to deceive.” (NKJV)

  • In the context of this shame and embarrassment of false prophets, Micah mentions in v. 7 that they will have to “put a wrap over their upper lip/mustache/mouth.” The only other places in the Bible where anyone covers this part of their body are in:

    • Leviticus 13:45 “and the one who is leprous... he shall cover over [his] lips and call out, 'Unclean, unclean!'” (NAW) This would indicate that something is wrong – that he is a source of contagion.

    • And the other is Ezekiel 24:17-23 “...make no mourning for the dead; bind your turban on your head, and put your sandals on your feet; do not cover your lips, and do not eat man's bread of sorrow… you shall neither mourn nor weep…” From this context, it is clear that wrapping a garment around the upper lip was a traditional practice for mourning⁸ over a great loss – in this case in Micah, it is the loss of access to God and His word.

• If you have lost access to God and His word, how can you find it again?

  • “Those who come to hear the word of God must be willing to be told of their faults, and must not only give their ministers leave to deal plainly and faithfully with them, but take it kindly, and be thankful...” ~Matthew Henry, 1714 AD

  • John 8:12 Jesus said, “...I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life... 11:9-10 ... If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. But if one walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him… 12:35 … A little while longer the light is with you. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going. 36 While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.” (NKJV, cf. Rev. 22:5)

  • The Apostle Paul affirmed the church in Thessalonica that identified themselves with Christ, “You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness.” (1 Thessalonians 5:5, NKJV)

• Now, after seven verses describing the apostate political and spiritual leaders, we have...

v. 8 – Introduction Of The True Prophet

• Micah offers himself (and, in a typological way, the Messiah too) in sharp contrast to the corrupt spiritual leaders of his nation, saying, “As for me, I am full of the Holy Spirit’s power/strength, justice, and courage/might!”

  • Isaiah also talked about that “power/strength” from God in Isaiah 40:28-31 “Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God – Yahweh, Creator of the ends of the earth will not grow faint and will not tire; it is not possible to make a survey of His understanding, giving power to the faint, and to the ones who have no strength He will increase might. Now, boys will grow faint and tire, and young men will utterly falter, But Yahweh's attendants will exchange strength; they will take wing like the eagles; they will run and not tire; they will walk and not grow faint.” (NAW) Is God your strength?

• This “power” comes from God, from the Holy “Spirit,” not from yourself or anything else. (The alternative to being empowered by the Holy Spirit is to operate out of your natural flesh or to be empowered by an evil spirit.) A true prophet is under the authority and control of the Holy Spirit.

  • Deuteronomy 34:9 “Now Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, for Moses had laid his hands on him; so the children of Israel heeded him, and did as the LORD had commanded Moses.” (NKJV)

  • Ezekiel 11:5 “Then the Spirit of the LORD fell upon me, and said to me, ‘Speak! “Thus says the LORD: Thus you have said, O house of Israel; for I know the things that come into your mind.”’” (NKJV)

  • Acts 4:8 “Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, spoke...’”

• This should also be true of anyone today who claims to be a prophet or a preacher. There are different opinions on this, but I believe that, while there can be no more prophecy to add to the Holy Bible, the Holy Spirit’s gift of prophecy does continue in the lives of Christians when they use holy scripture to exhort others⁹.

  • For what it’s worth, this was also John Calvin’s perspective: “[W]hen any one is drawn into arduous and difficult struggles, he is at the same time especially strengthened by the Lord... so endued by the celestial Spirit, when they came to great trials, that they have closed the mouths of great doctors... By such evidences God openly proves at this day, that he is the same now as when he formerly endued his servant Micah with a power so rare and so extraordinary. This then is the reason why he says, that he was filled with power… These two things are especially necessary for all ministers of the word — to excel in wisdom, to understand what is true and right, and to be also endued with inflexible firmness, by which they may overcome both Satan and the whole world… Let them excel in doctrine; and then that they may be confirmed, let them not yield to any gales that may blow, nor be overcome by threats and terrors; let them not bend here and there to please the world; in a word, let them not succumb to any corruptions: it is therefore necessary to add courage to judgment… for all who are sent to teach the word are sent to carry on a contest. It is therefore not enough to teach faithfully what God commands, except we also contend.” ~J. Calvin, 1559 AD

  • “The sign of the Spirit’s presence was not ecstasy but the ability to persevere vigorously, valiantly, and victoriously on the side of justice in the face of uncommon hostility.” ~Bruce Waltke, 2007 AD

• Now, looking beyond ourselves, and looking beyond Micah, this prophet “filled with the Spirit of the LORD” ultimately points us to Jesus, who is the ultimate man filled with the Holy Spirit:

  • Isaiah 61:1 “The Spirit of the Lord Yahweh is upon me, because Yahweh has anointed me to evangelize lowly ones. He has sent me to bind up those who are broken of heart, for the calling out of liberty to the captives, and opening of the eyes for those which have been bound.” (NAW, cf. 11:2) Jesus said in Luke 4:21 that this prophecy was not ultimately about Isaiah, but about Himself.

  • Luke 3:22 “And the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, ‘You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased.’” (NKJV)

• And it is this ultimate, anointed prophet, Jesus Christ, who sends His Spirit to fill the hearts of those who love Him:

  • John 16:7 Jesus said, “...when I do go, I will send the Comforter to you.” (NAW)

  • Acts 1:8 “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” (NKJV)

• And every time in the New Testament when someone is filled with the Holy Spirit, they speak (and sometimes even sing!) about the Bible, truth, justice, the Gospel message – that is, about Jesus. This is the New Testament definition of being “filled with the Spirit”:

  • Ephesians 5:18-20 “...be filled with the Spirit; [How?] Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (KJV) That command to be filled with the Spirit in that way is addressed to all Christians – it is not just for super-believers like Micah.

• Notice in v.8, that it is the prophets’ role in particular “to make sin known.”

  • According to 2 Kings 17:13 that’s what “all” prophets did: “...the LORD testified against Israel and against Judah, by all of His prophets, every seer, saying, ‘Turn from your evil ways, and keep My commandments and My statutes, according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by My servants the prophets.’” (NKJV)

  • In Lamentations 2:14, it is a characteristic of false prophets NOT to uncover iniquity: “Your prophets have seen for you False and deceptive visions; They have not uncovered your iniquity, To bring back your captives, But have envisioned for you false prophecies and delusions.” (NKJV)

  • You know a true prophet if they call for repentance from sin, and not just that, but that they also call for faith in Christ and they remain faithful to the Bible.

    • They must stick to the Bible and not add stuff,

    • they must uphold God’s standards of righteousness,

    • and they must promise God’s grace to all who will repent of their sin and trust in Jesus to save them.

  • Micah’s messages are more about repentance from sin than they are about what’s going to happen in the future. Prophecy doesn’t have to be about predicting the future, but it does have to be about about our need to get right with God.

  • And you should apply that criterion to every bit of social media you read and listen to:

    • Those who say that everything is fine - and who never make you uncomfortable by bringing up the problem of sins against God - are not true messengers of God.

    • Too many preachers today turn a blind eye to widespread sins like murder (I’m thinking especially of the millions of unborn children murdered in abortions, and the millions more yet to be murdered with the new do-it-yourself-at home kits), and beyond that, there’s far too much toleration of the Biblical categories of adultery (including pornography, homosexuality, fornication, and flirtatious behavior), and idolatry (including profanity, greed, and the removal of acknowledging God from all areas of life), and so much more (like theft – not just the illegal forms, but the much-more-insidious legal forms, such as socialism, usury, and inflation)¹⁰.

    • If they don’t “make sin known,” and call for faith in Christ, and do it all on the basis of what the Bible says, then stop listening to them!

    • Micah reminds us that God is not going to leave false teachers unpunished. He is not going to be patient forever; He will act in judgment.

• Finally, let me note that, just as God used Micah to “make sin known” in his day, the Holy Spirit may also use you to initiate a prophetic exhortation.

  • It may begin as your heart becomes burdened about a particular sin, and a particular scripture verse comes to mind which highlights the problem of that sin. You should speak up about it!

  • But before you do, Jesus cautioned us to make sure we have rooted that sin our of our own life before we start criticizing other people; He called it “taking the log out of your own eye” before trying to remove a “speck” out of someone else’s (Matt. 7:5); so be sure to search your own heart before you go exhorting other people about a sin.

  • Also, the Apostle Paul cautions us to be “gentle” and to have a desire to “restore” others when we go to them: Galatians 6:1 “Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness…” (NKJV) The Biblical goal is not to shame the brother or sister, but to restore them!

  • “Making sin known” is challenging and tricky, but it is well worth the effort! The Apostle James encourages us at the end of his epistle that, “...the one who returns a sinner out of his wandering way will save a soul out of death and will cover a multitude of sins” (NAW, James 5:20).