Post by nicfos on Nov 20, 2007 6:21:49 GMT -5
The Lord's Judgement of Bankruptcy is coming upon this coveteous generation. Get ready for the insolvency crunch.
You have lived by the standards of your king, Omri, the decadent lifestyle of the family of Ahab.
Because you've slavishly followed their fashions, I'm forcing you into bankruptcy. Your way of life will be laughed at, a tasteless joke. Your lives will be derided as futile and fake." Attention! God calls out to the city! If you know what's good for you, you'll listen. So listen, all of you! This is serious business.
"Do you expect me to overlook obscene wealth you've piled up by cheating and fraud? Do you think I'll tolerate shady deals and shifty scheming?
I'm tired of the violent rich bullying their way with bluffs and lies. I'm fed up. Beginning now, you're finished. You'll pay for your sins down to your last cent.
Micah 5:10 And in that day, says the Lord, I will cut off your horses [on which you depend] from among you and will destroy your chariots. 11And I will cut off the cities of your land and throw down all your strongholds.
12And I will cut off witchcrafts and sorceries from your hand, and you shall have no more soothsayers.
13Your carved images also I will cut off and your statues or pillars out of your midst, and you shall no more worship the work of your hands.
14And I will root out your Asherim [symbols of the goddess Asherah] and I will destroy your cities [the seats of false worship].
15And in anger and wrath I will execute vengeance upon the nations which would not obey [vengeance such as they have not heard of before].
Micah 6 What God Is Looking For
1-2 Listen now, listen to God: "Take your stand in court. If you have a complaint, tell the mountains; make your case to the hills. And now, Mountains, hear God's case; listen, Jury Earth For I am bringing charges against my people. I am building a case against Israel.
3-5"Dear people, how have I done you wrong? Have I burdened you, worn you out? Answer! I delivered you from a bad life in Egypt; I paid a good price to get you out of slavery. I sent Moses to lead you— and Aaron and Miriam to boot!
Remember what Balak king of Moab tried to pull, and how Balaam son of Beor turned the tables on him. Remember all those stories about nutstim and Gilgal.
Keep all God's salvation stories fresh and present."
6-7How can I stand up before God and show proper respect to the high God?
Should I bring an armload of offerings topped off with yearling calves?
Would God be impressed with thousands of rams, with buckets and barrels of olive oil? Would he be moved if I sacrificed my firstborn child, my precious baby, to cancel my sin? 8But he's already made it plain how to live, what to do, what God is looking for in men and women.
It's quite simple: Do what is fair and just to your neighbor, be compassionate and loyal in your love, And don't take yourself too seriously— take God seriously.
9Attention! God calls out to the city! If you know what's good for you, you'll listen. So listen, all of you! This is serious business.
10-16"Do you expect me to overlook obscene wealth you've piled up by cheating and fraud? Do you think I'll tolerate shady deals and shifty scheming?
I'm tired of the violent rich bullying their way with bluffs and lies. I'm fed up. Beginning now, you're finished. You'll pay for your sins down to your last cent.
No matter how much you get, it will never be enough hollow stomachs, empty hearts. No matter how hard you work, you'll have nothing to show for it bankrupt lives, wasted souls. You'll plant grass but never get a lawn. You'll make jelly but never spread it on your bread. You'll press apples but never drink the cider.
You have lived by the standards of your king, Omri, the decadent lifestyle of the family of Ahab.
Because you've slavishly followed their fashions, I'm forcing you into bankruptcy. Your way of life will be laughed at, a tasteless joke. Your lives will be derided as futile and fake."
Omri's evil influence was so pervasive and long-lasting that over 150 years later, the prophet Micah spoke of it in the present tense, saying, “For the [evil] statutes of Omri are kept ...”1
1 Kings 16:25-26 But Omri wrought evil in the eyes of the LORD, and did worse than all that were before him. For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in his sin wherewith he made Israel to sin, to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger with their vanities.
Omri was the first king of Israel to pay tribute to the Assyrians under their king Asurnacirpal III, in 876 BC. From the days of Shalmaneser II (860 BC) down to the time of Sargon (722 BC), Northern Israel was known to the Assyrians as "the land of the house of Omri." On Shalmaneser's black obelisk, Jehu, who overthrew the dynasty of Omri, is called Ja'uaabal Chumri, "Jehu son of Omri."
Omri entered into an alliance with the Phoenicians by the marriage of his son Ahab to Jezebel, daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Sidonians.
This may have been done as protection against the powers from the East, and as such would have seemed to be a wise political move, but it was one fraught with evil for Israel.
4. His Religious Influence and Death:
Although Omri laid the foundation of a strong kingdom, he failed to impart to it the vitalizing and rejuvenating force of a healthy spiritual religion. The testimony of 1 Ki 16:25,26, that he "dealt wickedly above all that were before him," coupled with the reference to "the statutes of Omri" in
Mic 6:16, indicates that he may have had a share in substituting foreign religions for the worship of Yahweh, and therefore the unfavourable light in which he is regarded is justified. Upon his death, Omri was succeeded upon the throne by his son Ahab, to whom was left the task of shaking off the Syrian yoke, and who went beyond his father in making the Phoenician influence along with Baalism of prime importance in Israel, thus leading the nation into the paths that hastened its downfall.
(2) A Benjamite, son of Becher (1 Ch 7:8).
(3) A Judahite, descendant of Perez, who lived at Jerusalem (1 Ch 9:4).
(4) A prince of Issachar in the time of David (1 Ch 27:18).
S. K. Mosiman
Calvin, Commentary on Micah, Part 15
(... continued from part 14)
Lecture Ninety-fifth.
Micah 6:15
Thou shalt sow, but thou shalt not reap; thou shalt tread the
olives, but thou shalt not anoint thee with oil; and sweet wine, but
shalt not drink wine.
The Prophet adds another kind of punishment, which was to
follow the calamity threatened in the last verse. He had said, that
those who escaped would at length be destroyed by the sword; he says
now, that the whole land would become a prey to enemies: and he took
his words from Moses; for it was usual with the prophets, when they
wished to secure greater authority to themselves, to quote literally
the curses contained in the Law, as in the present instance: see
Deut. 28 and Lev. 26. Now it is well known, that God denounced this
punishment, with others, on the people, - that when they sowed their
fields, another would reap, - that when they cultivated with great
labour their vineyards, others would become the vintagers. The
meaning is that whatever fruit the land produced, would come into
the hands of enemies, for all things would be exposed to plunder.
Now it is a very grievous thing, when we see not only our provisions
consumed by enemies, but also the fruit of our labour; which is the same as though they were to drink our blood: for the labour of man is often compared to blood, for labour occasions perspiration. It
now follows -
Micah 6:16 For the statutes of Omri are kept, and all the works of the house of Ahab, and ye walk in their counsels; that I should make thee a desolation, and the inhabitants thereof an hissing: therefore ye shall bear the reproach of my people.
You have lived by the standards of your king, Omri, the decadent lifestyle of the family of Ahab.
Because you've slavishly followed their fashions, I'm forcing you into bankruptcy. Your way of life will be laughed at, a tasteless joke. Your lives will be derided as futile and fake." Attention! God calls out to the city! If you know what's good for you, you'll listen. So listen, all of you! This is serious business.
"Do you expect me to overlook obscene wealth you've piled up by cheating and fraud? Do you think I'll tolerate shady deals and shifty scheming?
I'm tired of the violent rich bullying their way with bluffs and lies. I'm fed up. Beginning now, you're finished. You'll pay for your sins down to your last cent.
Micah 5:10 And in that day, says the Lord, I will cut off your horses [on which you depend] from among you and will destroy your chariots. 11And I will cut off the cities of your land and throw down all your strongholds.
12And I will cut off witchcrafts and sorceries from your hand, and you shall have no more soothsayers.
13Your carved images also I will cut off and your statues or pillars out of your midst, and you shall no more worship the work of your hands.
14And I will root out your Asherim [symbols of the goddess Asherah] and I will destroy your cities [the seats of false worship].
15And in anger and wrath I will execute vengeance upon the nations which would not obey [vengeance such as they have not heard of before].
Micah 6 What God Is Looking For
1-2 Listen now, listen to God: "Take your stand in court. If you have a complaint, tell the mountains; make your case to the hills. And now, Mountains, hear God's case; listen, Jury Earth For I am bringing charges against my people. I am building a case against Israel.
3-5"Dear people, how have I done you wrong? Have I burdened you, worn you out? Answer! I delivered you from a bad life in Egypt; I paid a good price to get you out of slavery. I sent Moses to lead you— and Aaron and Miriam to boot!
Remember what Balak king of Moab tried to pull, and how Balaam son of Beor turned the tables on him. Remember all those stories about nutstim and Gilgal.
Keep all God's salvation stories fresh and present."
6-7How can I stand up before God and show proper respect to the high God?
Should I bring an armload of offerings topped off with yearling calves?
Would God be impressed with thousands of rams, with buckets and barrels of olive oil? Would he be moved if I sacrificed my firstborn child, my precious baby, to cancel my sin? 8But he's already made it plain how to live, what to do, what God is looking for in men and women.
It's quite simple: Do what is fair and just to your neighbor, be compassionate and loyal in your love, And don't take yourself too seriously— take God seriously.
9Attention! God calls out to the city! If you know what's good for you, you'll listen. So listen, all of you! This is serious business.
10-16"Do you expect me to overlook obscene wealth you've piled up by cheating and fraud? Do you think I'll tolerate shady deals and shifty scheming?
I'm tired of the violent rich bullying their way with bluffs and lies. I'm fed up. Beginning now, you're finished. You'll pay for your sins down to your last cent.
No matter how much you get, it will never be enough hollow stomachs, empty hearts. No matter how hard you work, you'll have nothing to show for it bankrupt lives, wasted souls. You'll plant grass but never get a lawn. You'll make jelly but never spread it on your bread. You'll press apples but never drink the cider.
You have lived by the standards of your king, Omri, the decadent lifestyle of the family of Ahab.
Because you've slavishly followed their fashions, I'm forcing you into bankruptcy. Your way of life will be laughed at, a tasteless joke. Your lives will be derided as futile and fake."
Omri's evil influence was so pervasive and long-lasting that over 150 years later, the prophet Micah spoke of it in the present tense, saying, “For the [evil] statutes of Omri are kept ...”1
1 Kings 16:25-26 But Omri wrought evil in the eyes of the LORD, and did worse than all that were before him. For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in his sin wherewith he made Israel to sin, to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger with their vanities.
Omri was the first king of Israel to pay tribute to the Assyrians under their king Asurnacirpal III, in 876 BC. From the days of Shalmaneser II (860 BC) down to the time of Sargon (722 BC), Northern Israel was known to the Assyrians as "the land of the house of Omri." On Shalmaneser's black obelisk, Jehu, who overthrew the dynasty of Omri, is called Ja'uaabal Chumri, "Jehu son of Omri."
Omri entered into an alliance with the Phoenicians by the marriage of his son Ahab to Jezebel, daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Sidonians.
This may have been done as protection against the powers from the East, and as such would have seemed to be a wise political move, but it was one fraught with evil for Israel.
4. His Religious Influence and Death:
Although Omri laid the foundation of a strong kingdom, he failed to impart to it the vitalizing and rejuvenating force of a healthy spiritual religion. The testimony of 1 Ki 16:25,26, that he "dealt wickedly above all that were before him," coupled with the reference to "the statutes of Omri" in
Mic 6:16, indicates that he may have had a share in substituting foreign religions for the worship of Yahweh, and therefore the unfavourable light in which he is regarded is justified. Upon his death, Omri was succeeded upon the throne by his son Ahab, to whom was left the task of shaking off the Syrian yoke, and who went beyond his father in making the Phoenician influence along with Baalism of prime importance in Israel, thus leading the nation into the paths that hastened its downfall.
(2) A Benjamite, son of Becher (1 Ch 7:8).
(3) A Judahite, descendant of Perez, who lived at Jerusalem (1 Ch 9:4).
(4) A prince of Issachar in the time of David (1 Ch 27:18).
S. K. Mosiman
Calvin, Commentary on Micah, Part 15
(... continued from part 14)
Lecture Ninety-fifth.
Micah 6:15
Thou shalt sow, but thou shalt not reap; thou shalt tread the
olives, but thou shalt not anoint thee with oil; and sweet wine, but
shalt not drink wine.
The Prophet adds another kind of punishment, which was to
follow the calamity threatened in the last verse. He had said, that
those who escaped would at length be destroyed by the sword; he says
now, that the whole land would become a prey to enemies: and he took
his words from Moses; for it was usual with the prophets, when they
wished to secure greater authority to themselves, to quote literally
the curses contained in the Law, as in the present instance: see
Deut. 28 and Lev. 26. Now it is well known, that God denounced this
punishment, with others, on the people, - that when they sowed their
fields, another would reap, - that when they cultivated with great
labour their vineyards, others would become the vintagers. The
meaning is that whatever fruit the land produced, would come into
the hands of enemies, for all things would be exposed to plunder.
Now it is a very grievous thing, when we see not only our provisions
consumed by enemies, but also the fruit of our labour; which is the same as though they were to drink our blood: for the labour of man is often compared to blood, for labour occasions perspiration. It
now follows -
Micah 6:16 For the statutes of Omri are kept, and all the works of the house of Ahab, and ye walk in their counsels; that I should make thee a desolation, and the inhabitants thereof an hissing: therefore ye shall bear the reproach of my people.