Bible Survey of Micah

Transcription

1 Journey through the Old Testament Bible Survey of Micah Who Is The Prophet? Micah s name means Who is like God? He comes from Moreseth, (Micah 1:1) a little village 25 miles southwest of Jerusalem on the boarder of Judah and Philistia, near the city of Gath. Where Did He Preach? He preached in the southern kingdom of Judah When Did He Preach? He preaches during the reigns of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. ( B.C.) He was a contemporary of Isaiah in the south. The two of them would have worked together in the southern kingdom of Judah and delivered God s Word. Micah s book is often called the book of Isaiah in miniature. Notice the similarities between Micah s message and Isaiah s message Micah 1:2 - Hear, O peoples, all of you, listen, O earth and all who are in it, that the Sovereign LORD may witness against you, the Lord from his holy temple. Isaiah 1:2 - Hear, O heavens! Listen, O earth! For the LORD has spoken: I reared children and brought them up, but they have rebelled against me. 1: : :8-9 - Lately my people have risen up like an enemy. You strip off the rich robe from hose who pass by without a care, like men returning from battle. 9 You drive the women of my people from their pleasant homes. You take away my blessing from their children forever. 10:2 - to deprive the poor of their rights and withhold justice from the oppressed of my people, making widows their prey and robbing the fatherless. 2:12 10:10-23 Winter 2011 Scarborough Chinese Baptist Church Page 1 of 8

2 2:13 - One who breaks open the way will go up before them; they will break through the gate and go out. Their king will pass through before them, the LORD at their head. 52:12 - But you will not leave in haste or go in flight; for the LORD will go before you, the God of Israel will be your rear guard. 3:5-7 29:9-12 4:1 - In the last days the mountain of the LORD s 2:2 - In the last days the mountain of the temple will be established as chief among the LORD s temple will be established mountains; it will be raised above the hills, as chief among the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and peoples will stream to it. and all nations will stream to it. 5:2 - But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times. 7:14 - Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. 5:4 - He will stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. And they will live securely, for then his greatness will reach to the ends of the earth. 6:6-8 - With what shall I come before the LORD and bow down before the exalted God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? 7 Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? 8 He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. 7:7 - But as for me, I watch in hope for the LORD, I wait for God my Saviour; my God will hear me. 7:12 - In that day people will come to you from Assyria and the cities of Egypt, even from Egypt to the Euphrates and from sea to sea and from mountain to mountain. 40:11 - He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young. 58:6-7 - Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? 8:17 - I will wait for the LORD, who is hiding his face from the house of Jacob. I will put my trust in him. 11:11 - In that day the Lord will reach out his hand a second time to reclaim the remnant that is left of his people from Assyria, from Lower Egypt, from Upper Egypt, from Cush, from Elam, from Babylonia, from Hamath and from the islands of the sea. Winter 2011 Scarborough Chinese Baptist Church Page 2 of 8

3 What Did He Preach? God is sovereign and that sovereignty of God needs to be expressed through his people. We are to be like our God in holiness, in our love for others, and in our care for the poor. We are to live lives of godliness. Divisions of the Book: 1. The Prophecy Of Retribution (Micah 1:1-3:12) 2. The Promise Of Restoration 3. The Plea For Repentance 1.0 The Prophecy of Retribution. The Punishment (Micah 1:1-3:12) 1.1 The Of God s Judgement (Micah 1) 1.2 The of God s Judgement (Micah 2-3) the sins of the (Micah 2:1-13) the sins of the (Micah 3:1) the sins of the prophets (Micah 3:5) the sins of the priests (Micah 3:11) Winter 2011 Scarborough Chinese Baptist Church Page 3 of 8

4 2.0 The Promise of Restoration (Micah 4-5) 2.1 The Promise of the Coming (Micah 4:1-4:5) 2.2 The Promise of the Coming (Micah 4:6-5:1) 2.3 The Promise of the Coming (Micah 5:2-5:15) 3.0 The Plea for Repentance (Micah 6-7) The scene here is one of a courtroom, God is the judge and the hills are the jury. God tells us what is expected of us in Micah 6:8 He has shown you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. With the call to repentance comes a promise of restoration Who is a god like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea. (Micah 7:18-19) Winter 2011 Scarborough Chinese Baptist Church Page 4 of 8

5 Journey through the Old Testament Bible Survey of Nahum Who Is The Prophet? Nahum s name means comfort or consolation. He is an Elkoshite (Nahum 1:1). Elkosh is believed to be part of the southern kingdom. Where Did He Preach? The focus of Nahum s prophecy is the nation of Assyria, in particular the capital city of Nineveh. When Did He Preach? He preached between 663 and 654 BC Ninevah FYI We first read of Nineveh in Genesis 10:8-11. It was established by a man named Nimrod. His name is derived from the Hebrew marad meaning to rebel. In some versions it reads, He was a mighty warrior before the Lord (Nahum Genesis 10:9). Other versions render the word before as against. The city of Nineveh is a strong fortress. The important Kings of Assyria are as follows: KING DATE Shalmaneser III B.C. Tiglath pileser III B.C. Shalmaneser V B.C. Sargon II B.C. Northern kingdom falls Sennacherib B.C. Sennacherib s kingdom, with Nineveh as its capital city, is strong and prosperous. Winter 2011 Scarborough Chinese Baptist Church Page 5 of 8

6 What Did He Preach? God s judgement would come upon the people of Nineveh Divisions of the Book: 1. What God Will Do? (Nahum 1) 2. How God Will Do It? (Nahum 2) 3. Why God Will Do What He Will Do? (Nahum 3) 1.0 What God Will Do Nineveh Will Be Destroyed (Nahum 1) 1.1 God s Wrath Is Displayed (Nahum 1:1-6) The Lord is a jealous and avenging God; the Lord takes vengeance and is filled with wrath. The Lord takes vengeance on his foes and maintains his wrath against his enemies. (Nahum 1:2) Notice the words used to describe God s wrath: o jealous (Nahum 1:2) o vengeance (Nahum 1:2) o wrath (Nahum 1:2) o anger (Nahum 1:3) o indignation (Nahum 1:6) o fierce (Nahum 1:6) The word jealous speaks of the intensity of God s wrath it will be zealous. But it also speaks of God s love. God wants the best for people. The word vengeance does not speak of retaliation but of retribution. God s judgement is a logical result of his love. The very nature of love is that it will burn with anger against everything that destroys life. Winter 2011 Scarborough Chinese Baptist Church Page 6 of 8

7 2.0 How God Will Destroy Nineveh. (Nahum 2) 2.1 The of Nineveh. (Nahum 2:1-8) 2.2 The of Nineveh. (Nahum 2:9-13) Babylon in alliance with the Medes will destroy Nineveh. Notice how specific God s word is and how archaeology confirms God s word For example: the Medes soldiers were dressed in red (Nahum 2:3) Nineveh would be destroyed by fire and water. The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him, but with an overwhelming flood he will make an end of Nineveh. (Nahum 1:7, 8) You will be consumed like dry stubble (Nahum 1:10) I will burn up your chariots in smoke (Nahum 2:13) Fire has consumed their bars (Nahum of your gates) (Nahum 3:13) There fire will devour you. (Nahum 3:15) All of this is confirmed by history and archaeology. Nineveh was flooded by the Tigris and the invading armies burned the city to the ground. Winter 2011 Scarborough Chinese Baptist Church Page 7 of 8

8 3.0 Why God Will Destroy Nineveh (Nahum 3) 3.1 Nineveh Is Guilty of Violence (Nahum 3:1-3) 3.2 Nineveh Is Guilty of Deceit (Nahum 3:1) 3.3 Nineveh Is Guilty of Plundering (Nahum 3:1) 3.4 Nineveh Is Guilty of Witchcraft (Nahum 3:4) 3.5 God Will Treat Nineveh Like Thebes (Nahum 3:8) Group Questions: Nahum 1:7 says The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him How have you experienced this truth in your life? Pray, giving thanks for God s care for you. Personal Questions Perhaps the most terrifying words of Scripture are spoken by God through his prophet Nahum in 3:5 God says, I am against you. This is the opposite of Romans 8:31. Have you ever experienced this in your life? Have circumstances seemed to be against you to such a degree that God seems to be against you? What did you do? How is the situation changed? Winter 2011 Scarborough Chinese Baptist Church Page 8 of 8