Who, What and Why of Micah

Why:

Why? Why is a question that must be answered of a lot of biblical books. This question is especially important for us when we encounter prophetic books, like Micah, that are rarely used in worship, much less quoted from on a fairly regular basis. It is my position that through the power of the Holy Spirit we have been given scripture. The book of Discipline of the United Methodist Church states "the Holy Bible, Old and New Testaments, reveals the Word of God so far as it is necessary for our salvation. It is to be received through the Holy Spirit as the true rule and guide for faith and practice." (Discipline 2008, 2008). We believe that all scripture contains direction from God and to ignore one part of scripture because it makes us uncomfortable or, because we can't bother to learn more about its context and meaning, is not an acceptable way to live out our salvation in Christ.

If we are to learn about how God would have us act with one another and how to live like Christ we cannot afford to ignore any part of scripture including a prophetic book that is too seldom read.

Who:

Micah is describe as the author in the first verse of the book. There is no historical evidence that makes any scholar say without doubt that Micah was a historical person. That makes no difference to me. As part of the accepted canon of scripture I believe that traditionally speaking the author is best called by the name Micah. There is debate among scholars if the entire book can be subscribed to just one individual. More than likely there are parts that have been written by other individuals. For example verse one which contains historical information probably wasn't written by Micah but by an editor who wanted future generations to have the historical information. For the purposes of this study and for the life of the church we will study under the assumption that Micah was written by one person. Where appropriate (i.e. chapter 1:1) it will be noted about authorial difficulties with explanations to follow.

What:

What is prophetic literature in the bible? This question is perhaps best answered by understanding what prophetic literature is not. It is not, strictly speaking, just about future events. The prophets in the Old testament were individuals called by God who could often understand and perceive the directions their culture and society were taking that were contrary to the will of God. One of the beauties of prophecy is that it has multiple meanings, it has a depth to it that becomes apparent over time. Books like Micah have not lost that depth and continue well past their initial audience to speak about the sins of our society and the need for repentance.

Where:

Micah was written somewhere in Judah possibly Jerusalem. We know from the superscription that the prophet Micah was from the town of Moresheth which appears to be a defensive town that was around the city of Jerusalem. The only evidence we have for this comes from the book itself and from some potential references in the book of Jeremiah.

When:

This book was probably written in 750-687 BCE during the reigns of the three kings mentioned in the first chapter. Of note is the fact that the prophet was working during the time of the Assyrian threat. The Assyrian empire was located in what would become modern day Iraq and was particularly cruel in their treatment of conquered territories and in their demands for payment from those territories.

Theological themes of Note:

1. Gods anger. What do we do with it, how do we understand it.
2. What does God expect from us
3. Forces us to examine the idea of suffering as punishment for sin
4. What is the balance between speaking words of judgment and words of hope.