The Prophet Micah

Micah is a shortened form of “Micaiah” (Judges 18:2) and “Micaiah” (1 Kings 22:8). The name means “Who is like the Lord?” The prophet Isaiah and Micah were contemporaries, ministering during the same period. While Isaiah came from a wealthy, upper-class background, Micah was a simple countryman from Moresheth, a village located in the fertile highlands southwest of Jerusalem. He was a man who cared deeply for ordinary people, especially the poor, and he was very concerned about social injustice and the exploitation of the vulnerable and impoverished.

Micah was intimately familiar with rural life, and this is evident in the many parables he used to illustrate his points. He primarily spread God’s word among the common people and was known as the “country prophet.” Despite his rural upbringing, Micah was a very powerful communicator. His writing style is captivating, as he moves rapidly from one point to another, alternating between curses, blessings, and more curses, keeping the reader engaged. Some of the most beautiful words in the Bible are found in this book, filled with rich knowledge and beneficial instruction. The book is also full of vivid imagery: when the Lord appears, “the mountains will melt under him, and the valleys will be split apart, like wax before the fire, like water cascading down a slope.”

Many of Micah’s prophecies were fulfilled with astonishing accuracy hundreds of years later. Although he was a prophet of the southern kingdom, his message was directed at both the southern and northern kingdoms. His powerful and timely message influenced King Hezekiah of Judah, leading to a change in Judah’s policies and saving the nation from imminent danger.