When was micah the prophet born

Another prophecy given by Micah details the future destruction of Jerusalem and the plowing of Zion a part of Jerusalem. Micah is interpreted as a prophecy that Bethlehem, a small village just south of Jerusalem, would be the birthplace of the Messiah. This passage is recalled in Matthew , and the fulfillment of this prophecy in the birth of Jesus is further described in Matthew —6.

And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel. In Matthew —36 Jesus adapts Micah to his own situation;. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. And a man's foes shall be they of his own household. Micah was referring to the division in Judah and Samaria, the distrust that had arisen between all citizens, even within families.

Jesus was using the same words to describe something different. Jesus said that he did not come to bring peace, but to divide households. Men are commanded to love Jesus Christ more than their own family members, and Jesus indicated that this priority would lead to persecution from others and separation within families. This is repeated in Luke —73 in the prophecy Zechariah at the circumcision and naming of John the Baptist. Please contact us or click here to learn more about how to enable JavaScript on your browser.

Follow us:. Listen Now. The prophet Micah identified himself by his hometown, called Moresheth Gath, which sat near the border of Philistia and Judah about twenty-five miles southwest of Jerusalem. Dwelling in a largely agricultural part of the country, Micah lived outside the governmental centers of power in his nation, leading to his strong concern for the lowly and less fortunate of society—the lame, the outcasts, and the afflicted Micah Therefore, Micah directed much of his prophecy toward the powerful leaders of Samaria and Jerusalem, the capital cities of Israel and Judah, respectively Micah prophesied in the days of the kings of Judah: Jotham B.

However, it must be noted that many would take this reference as a later editorial insertion. John Bright, A History of Israel, 3rd ed. Philadelphia: Westminster, , The prophet Amos B. Another contemporary of Micah was Hosea who ministered to the northern kingdom from B. Gary Stansell Philadelphia: Fortress, , xxi. The lungs of the northern kingdom of Israel during this time were: Menahem B.

Micah lived in a time of international fear and uncertainty. The mid to late eighth century B. The Assyrian army was known for their courage, toughness, violence and cruelty. Their weaponry was state of the art for their time — composite bows, horses, chariots, and powerful battering rams for besieging city walls.

The Assyrian economy was supported by both tribute paid from conquered peoples and plunder gained by their armies. After the deaths of these lungs, political power in the region began to shift in response to the rise of the Assyrians.

At this time the northern Kingdom of Israel was ruled by a succession of kings who often usurped the rule of the previous lung through murder. Together Pekah and Rezin tried to force Ahaz of Judah to join them in their rebellion through threat of attack. Rezin carried many captives away to Damascus as well 2 Chron. Pekah and Rezin were seeking to set up a new king on the throne of Judah the son of Tabeel, king of Tyre, [14] Walter C.

Kaiser, Jr. Ahaz sought help against these two kings in what has come to be called the Syro-Ephraimitic Crisis B. At this time, Hoshea usurped the throne of Israel by killing the rebellious Pekah and thus averted an Assyrian advance upon Samaria.

Tiglath-Pilesar then sacked Damascus and killed Rezin B. Ahaz sacrificed to the idol gods of Damascus who had defeated him, set up idolatrous altars in Jerusalem and closed the doors of the Temple 2 Chron.

Later Ahaz went to swear loyalty to the Assyrian king in Damascus. He saw an Assyrian altar there and had it copied and installed in place of the bronze altar of the Lord in the temple.

Edward J. Eerdmans, , Wiseman, Vassal Treaties of Esarhaddon London: Shalmanezar V imprisoned Hoshea and the Assyrian armies besieged Samaria for over two years before it fell 2 Kings However, he may have been present as a general in charge of troops at the time. Micah saw his prophecy against Samaria come true when, in B. The Israelites were settled in a place near Haran where Abraham had lived and also in modern-day Iran 2 Kings This group formed the nucleus of what would become the Samaritans.

The Jews came to hate and reject the Samaritans as pagans even though they had assimilated a form of Yahweh worship. However, we do not know how quickly he made these changes. To renounce the Assyrian gods publicly would have been the first step in rebellion.

His reforms probably came incrementally at first, in order to test the waters with his Assyrian overlords. The successful rebellion by the Babylonian prince Merodach-Baladan lasting from B.

In B. In the following years Egypt promised aid to the cities and peoples of Palestine against the Assyrians cf. Isaiah Hezekiah apparently did not join this rebellion and the Assyrian general Tartan crushed it. Egyptian aid never materialized and the Ashdod region became an Assyrian province. After the death of Sargon II in battle B. See also Ussishkin, Lachish, Hezekiah prepared well for a strong Assyrian response.

Hezekiah accomplished this by tunneling through from the base of the Gihon outside the city wall winding under the city and inward to the south inside the walls to the pool of Siloam. It states,. The day the breach was made, the stonecutters hacked toward each other, pick against pick, and the water flowed from the source to the pool [twel]ve hundred cubits, even though the height of the rock above the heads of the stone cutte[rs] was a hundred cubits!

Perhaps to bring the other Philistine cities in line with the rebellious coalition, Hezekiah attacked the Philistines and took back the areas that the Philistines had taken from Ahaz 2 Kings In response to the rebellion, Sennacherib marched to Tyre, then southward down the highway on the coastal plain to Ashkelon.

This, Micah says, is a punishment of God for the sins of Israel. Micah then foretells the same doom for Jerusalem because the rich oppress the poor; the prophets of his time and the teachers condone this oppression; and moral cleanliness is not sought by men. Chapters foretell the fall of Jerusalem and the restoration of its glory; he predicts that all the peoples of the earth will stream to the restored city in order to learn there how to observe the commandments of God and to attain holiness.

Chapters contain a series of oracles and denunciations. Israel's ingratitude, injustice, and cheating, the disappearance of godly behavior, and the rise of religious infidelity are all castigated by Micah. But the text ends with an expression of hope in the ultimate salvation of Israel and a petition for God's mercy and a fulfillment of God's promises to Abraham. Although all seven chapters of the Book of Micah bear his name, serious doubts have been raised by biblical scholars as to the authorship of certain chapters.

There is general agreement that chapter come from Micah.