St Louis UBF UBF Bible Study : Micah 5:1-15

Bible Study Materials

Micah 5:1-15

by Ben West 12/11/2022

Question

JESUS, OUR SHEPHERD KING

Micah 5:1–15

Key Verse 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.”

Read verse 1. What was the historical situation of Judah and Israel in Micah’s time (1, 5; 2Ki 18:9–14)? What might the people have thought was their most pressing need from God? What threatening or humiliating situations have you faced or are you facing?
Read verses 2–6. What kind of new ruler would God raise up to save his people? What are the surprising origins of this ruler? How does he compare with the existing rulers of Israel (3:11)? What would the new ruler do (4–6)? Why do we need a shepherd King?
Read verses 7–9. What would be the characteristics of the remnant of God’s people among the nations? How can we be a blessing to the nations like dew from heaven? How can we have lion-like victory in our Christian lives?
Read verses 10–15. What would God do to rescue his people, and why? In what ways do we seek strength, security, and future knowledge apart from God? What “idols” are you seeking that God wants to cut off?

Attachment

Micah 5.bs.2022.CWS(II).docx

Message

One of the most famous Christmas prophecies comes from Micah 5:2, which the Jewish teachers of the law readily quoted to King Herod after he asked where the Messiah was to be born (Mt 2:4–6). Yet, I’d never studied the book of Micah or the context of this prophecy. At first glance, this chapter seemed distant and difficult—what’s all this about striking a ruler and Assyria, dew, and lions, and how does it relate to Christmas? But when we look deeper, this passage gives us an oft-unexplored perspective on the Christmas message—who Jesus is as our shepherd King, the kind of people he makes his followers, and what hinders people from following him. As we study the context of this amazing Christmas prophecy, let’s marvel at the counterintuitive nature of this promised King—his lowly yet ancient origins, his humble yet mighty rule, and how he brings peace amidst conflict. We’ll also see how King Jesus makes his people both a blessing like dew on parched ground and victorious like lions, and how he delivers us through destroying false hopes of security so we can trust fully in him.

Trust God’s Shepherd King (vs. 1–6)

Micah 5 opens with God’s people in a bad situation. Verse 1 warns Jerusalem, “Marshal your troops now, city of troops, for a siege is laid against us. They will strike Israel's ruler on the cheek with a rod.” Micah prophesied during the reigns of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah (Mic 1:1). During that time the whole Middle Eastern world felt the threat of the rising superpower that was the Assyrian empire. In 713, during Hezekiah’s reign, Shalmaneser King of Assyria invaded Palestine and deported Northern Israel (1Ki 18:9–10). Then in 701, Assyrian king Sennacherib attacked again, ravaging the land of Southern Judah, destroying most Judean cities, laying siege to Jerusalem, and only leaving after God’s intervention. Despite all the troops of Jerusalem, Hezekiah would be unable to stop the foreign invasion of his land, which was humiliating, like being struck in the face. So their external condition was dismal.

Their internal condition was no better. Micah 3:11a says, “Her leaders judge for a bribe, her priests teach for a price, and her prophets tell fortunes for money. …’” The civil and religious leaders who were supposed to be shepherds for God’s people were exploiting their position for their own advantage and material gain. And worse still was the nation’s problem of relativism that tolerated idols of the surrounding pagans—an egregious breach of the Mosaic covenant with God (Mic 1:7).

Is our situation much better today? In our world today, we see war, inflation, threats to the supply chain, looming shortages of natural gas and fertilizer, and our national enemies emboldened by perceived American weakness. On the moral front, we are witnessing corruption among our elites and politicians, sexual immorality on our campuses, and violence in our cities. If the prophet Micah were transported to modern America, surely he would proclaim God’s judgment on our individual and national sins in similar terms!

God’s solution to the problems of his people was unexpected: he promised a shepherd King. This King would not come immediately but after a period of apparent abandonment. Verse 3 says, “Therefore Israel will be abandoned until the time when she who is in labor bears a son, and the rest of his brothers return to join the Israelites.” Though God would discipline his people by scattering them for a time, he would return to them through the birth of a son. This son was none other than Jesus Christ, who was and is Immanuel, God with us. Because Jesus is with all who trust in him, we are never abandoned.

This promised ruler would have several surprising features. First, his counterintuitive origins: lowly and ancient. Let’s read together our key verse, 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.” Many of the emperors of Jesus’ era were born in the great city of Rome, including Julius Caesar, Augustus, and Tiberius. But Bethlehem was such a small and insignificant town that it was often omitted from lists of the towns of Judah (Jos 15:20–63). Indeed, Jesus’ family was one of the lowliest families in that lowly town—poor travelers for whom no guest room was available for the birth of their firstborn, who had a feedbox for his cradle. What a humble beginning! But God loves to begin his work in humble and insignificant ways, like when he called childless old Abraham to be the ancestor of his people, or when he called lowly Gideon to fight against the Midianite invaders. Often God’s kingdom and his work are unseen and seem insignificant in the eyes of the world. But while the world superpowers appeared then vanished one after another, Jesus and his kingdom has spread to the ends of the earth. God is using lowly, manger-like ministries today—churches that begin with just one or two families—to bring to light of Christ into the lives of students in campuses all over the world.

At the same time, Jesus’ origins are from of old, from ancient times. The Hebrew words for “of old” and “ancient times” are used elsewhere in Micah to refer to the days of David (Mic 7:14) and the days of the Patriarchs when God made his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Mic 7:20). Jesus is the fulfillment of these ancient covenants—the Son of David who would reign forever on David’s throne and the Seed of Abraham through whom all nations would be blessed. But Jesus’ origins go back further than that. The same Hebrew words are used of God who is “from everlasting” in Habakkuk 1:12 and of “the eternal God” in Deuteronomy 33:27. From John’s Gospel, we know that Jesus “was with God in the beginning” (Jn 1:2) and that he had glory with God the Father before the world began (Jn 17:5). The amazing truth of Christmas is that baby in the manger in lowly Bethlehem is also the eternal God, “the First and the Last” (Rev 1:17), without beginning or end. As Spurgeon eloquently put it, “Infinite, and an infant. Eternal, and yet born of a woman. Almighty, and yet hanging on a woman's breast. Supporting a universe, and yet needing to be carried in a mother's arms. King of angels, and yet the reputed son of Joseph. Heir of all things, and yet the carpenter's despised son.” Who would have expected such a lowly beginning for the greatest being?

Second, Jesus’ counterintuitive rule: humble and mighty. Look at verse 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.” The rule of King Jesus is described as shepherding his flock. Shepherding is a humble profession. The ancient Egyptians despised shepherds, as did most people in Jesus’ day. But that’s how God chose to describe the reign of his Son. Jesus taught about his role as the good shepherd in John 10. As our good shepherd, Jesus is accessible to his sheep; he leads by going ahead; he knows his sheep personally, calling them by name; and he lays down his life for the sheep.

But though Jesus is humble, he is not weak. In contrast to the limited power of King Hezekiah, who was not strong enough to defend against a metaphorical rod to the face, Jesus shepherds in the strength of the Lord. Jesus is the almighty God, wielding the full omnipotence of deity. When they struck Jesus in the face (Jn 18:22), it was not because of his weakness; he could have summoned twelve legions of angels to obliterate his enemies (Mt 26:53). Rather, it was because of his love for us, to bear our pain and shame so that we could be forgiven and healed. By his almighty power, Jesus healed the sick, freed demon-possessed people, opened the eyes of the blind, and raised the dead. Most all, he destroyed the power of sin, death, and Satan through his death and resurrection. Today, he saves and frees sinners from sin, death, and Satan through the preaching of the gospel. When we cling to Jesus for salvation, no one can snatch us from his hand (Jn 10:28).

Third, the counterintuitive circumstances of Jesus’ rule: peace amidst conflict. Look at verse 5a: “And he will be our peace when the Assyrians invade our land and march through our fortresses. …” I don’t know about you, but it’s hard to imagine a less peaceful situation than having an enemy army invading your land and marching through your fortresses. Yet somehow, even during such a time of conflict, Jesus would be their peace. How is this possible? Peace is possible in any circumstance if you have an almighty shepherd. I’m reminded of David’s poetry about God’s shepherdship in Psalm 23:4–5a, “Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. …” Following Jesus our Shepherd King doesn’t mean there won’t be dark valleys and fierce enemies. But we need fear no evil when Jesus is with us.

At the NGLR last month, William Larsen from LA UBF shared his life testimony, including the account of how he was in the hospital for 40 days earlier this year with severe internal bleeding. When he was taken away in an ambulance, he had lost about 70% of his blood, so he was very close to death. But he testified, “By God's grace though this event… it turned out to be a great blessing for my family. In this time I experienced that although I was dying, I was actually living. What I mean by that is that being so close to death I really experienced that faith in Jesus delivers. I experienced that there was no fear when I was almost about to die; instead, I had great peace that this was not the end, I wasn't gonna actually die, even though everyone around me—paramedics—is like, “This guy's gonna die.” But I'm here in my heart, “I'm not gonna die,” and there was no fear of death. And I've never been that close to death, but I can testify that this faith delivers in the time of trouble.”¹ In the hospital, the doctors were amazed at William’s patience, though they couldn’t figure out what was wrong or how to fix it. So William’s peace in Christ in the darkest valley became a testimony to Christ to all the doctors. And at the end of the 40 days, William was suddenly healed, apparently as God’s answer to many prayers of his people.

Jesus finished his final lecture to his disciples in John 16:33, saying, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” Jesus overcame the world by resisting temptation and obeying his Father even to the point of death. His victory became our salvation, as he said in John 10:11, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”

Because Jesus has overcome the world, those who trust in him can have peace amidst any trouble. So whether we face illness, financial hardship, war, persecution, tyranny, final exams, or any other distressing situation, let us look to Jesus our almighty shepherd and find peace.

Micah describes the victory of the Messiah in verses 5b–6: “…We will raise against them seven shepherds, even eight commanders, 6 who will rule the land of Assyria with the sword, the land of Nimrod with drawn sword. He will deliver us from the Assyrians when they invade our land and march across our borders.” The Assyrians serve as an archetype of the enemies of God and his people. In the New Testament era, Paul teaches that, “…our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the … spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Eph 6:12). Jesus wages war by raising up shepherds to fight the spiritual battle with “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Eph 6:17). Nevertheless, he is the one who delivers—not us. Let us fight the spiritual battle under the banner of our Shepherd King by serving as humble and compassionate shepherds for others to bring the good news of Jesus’ greatness to the ends of the earth!

Follow God’s Shepherd King to Bless and Triumph (vs. 7–9)

Micah continues his counterintuitive prophecies by describing God’s vision for his people using two seemingly dissonant metaphors: the remnant of God’s people would be both a gentle blessing like dew and an unstoppable force like a lion. Look at verse 7: “The remnant of Jacob will be in the midst of many peoples like dew from the LORD, like showers on the grass, which do not wait for anyone or depend on man.” This prophecy mentions a remnant; when God disciplined Israel and Judah for their sins, he would exile them according to his covenant warnings (Lev 26:33), but he would not wipe them out entirely (Jer 30:11). Because of his promises to Abraham and David, God would preserve a remnant of his people among the many nations where they were scattered. Humanly the situation of the remnant looked pathetic, but God would make them a blessing among the Gentiles like dew and showers of rain on dry ground.

This is God’s intent for us as his people today. Jesus commanded his disciples in Matthew 5:16, “In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” Christians should be model citizens and model neighbors, being givers rather than takers, known for kindness and generosity, which we learned from Jesus. The greatest blessing we have to offer is the message of the gospel (Ac 3:25–26). Jesus blessed people through preaching the gospel message that they must repent and trust in him. Micah, also, confronted Israel with their sins of injustice and idolatry, even with tears (Mic 1:8), yet he also gave them the message of hope. Let us seek to bless the world around us with the good news of Jesus: though because of our rebellion against God each one of us deserves eternal punishment, Jesus came as our shepherd King to lay down his life so that whoever repents and trusts in him can have forgiveness and eternal life.

At the same time that God’s people would be a blessing, they would also have enemies. Nevertheless, because of God’s presence with his people, they would not be destroyed. Verses 8–9 say, “The remnant of Jacob will be among the nations, in the midst of many peoples, like a lion among the beasts of the forest, like a young lion among flocks of sheep, which mauls and mangles as it goes, and no one can rescue. 9 Your hand will be lifted up in triumph over your enemies, and all your foes will be destroyed.” This description reminded me of the book of Esther. Though Haman tried to destroy the Jewish people, when Esther and the Jews of Susa fasted and prayed, the plan blew up in Haman’s face. The Jews triumphed not because they were stronger or smarter than their foes but because God heard their prayers and Esther acted by faith.

God wants his people to be victorious like lions as we follow our shepherd King. The first step toward victory is knowing what a win looks like; Jesus’ victory on the cross didn’t look victorious to the world! Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:9a, “So we make it our goal to please him…” Victory in any situation is to choose to please God rather than people, rather than ourselves. Jesus triumphed over his foes not by superior force—even though he could have—but by denying himself to please and obey his Father by laying down his life to save others on the cross. This is the way to victory for us as well. Revelation 12:11 describes the victory of believers over Satan: “They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.” When we trust in Jesus’ blood, testify faithfully to the good news, and love Jesus more than life itself, we will be unstoppable, like lions. However, if we compromise with the world around us, we will become ineffectual in the spiritual battle. How can we avoid compromise?

Repent of Idols (vs. 10–15)

The final counterintuitive truth of God’s salvation is how he would deliver his people through cutting off the things they thought they needed to survive. In verses 10–14, God promised he would destroy their horses and chariots, their cities and strongholds, their witchcraft and spellcasting, and their idols and idolatry. All of these were self-help strategies that the Israelites trusted in and sought for security and prosperity apart from God. Why would God destroy these objects of his people’s trust? To teach them that he alone can save and satisfy their souls.

Today, we may not put our hopes in horses, city walls, witchcraft, and Asherah poles, but we still often rely on self-help strategies apart from God to get the things our hearts desire. Here’s an exercise: fill in the blank: “If only God would give me ____, then I would be happy.” Alternatively, “If I lost ____, then my life wouldn’t be worth living.” Some may put there fun, money, outward appearance, success, people’s approval, significant other, etc. But whatever we put into those blanks shows what we are treasuring, worshiping. Anything that goes there besides Jesus is an idol. Idols mislead us not to follow Jesus but to chase false hopes and misprioritize our lives—not seeking first God’s kingdom but seeking first what the world around us values. God cares immensely what we seek. Romans 2:6–8 says, “God will repay each person according to what they have done. To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.” The greatest danger and tragedy is to waste our one precious life seeking temporary things that cannot satisfy or make us secure, thereby forfeiting eternal glory, honor, and immortality which are the foremost gifts from God through Jesus Christ. Jesus came to deliver us from idols and the power of darkness and give us life to the full. And that is why he alone is worthy of our devotion, our discipleship, our worship. Serving idols leads to wrath, but as we follow our shepherd King, he leads us to everlasting life and glory in his eternal kingdom.

Eventually all idols will be exposed as powerless. Sometimes, like with Israel, God is merciful in cutting off the things we idolize by letting us hit rock bottom and realize those things can’t save us after all. Ultimately, the day of judgment, the day when God takes vengeance against the disobedient nations (v. 15), will show the powerlessness of every idol. On that day, the only ones who will withstand the judgment are those who trusted in Christ as their good shepherd, because he laid down his life to rescue his sheep. So let us repent of our self-help strategies and our idols and turn to Christ, our shepherd King, for his love alone can satisfy our souls.

As we celebrate Christmas year after year, it’s easy to forget the surprising nature of the Christmas message: the eternal God was born in an insignificant town to serve as our gentle yet almighty King and Savior, who gives salvation from the power of sin and death and peace in all circumstances. When we follow our shepherd King, he makes us a blessing like dew yet victorious like lions. So let’s repent of all our idolatrous self-help strategies so we can trust in Jesus and follow him alone. And let’s deeply accept our shepherd King and victoriously bring blessing through spreading the joyful news of Christmas around us—and to the ends of the earth!