Micah 5:2-15

The Bethlehem Prophecy predicts the Incarnation, the coming of God to earth as a Man through the birth process.  This event in Bethlehem is recorded in the Gospels (Mt. 2:6; Lk. 2:4,11; Jn. 7:42).  Micah said Israel would suffer in Babylon and at the hand of many nations (4:10-11).  Now he says this will continue until the time that she who is in labor has given birth; then the remnant of His brethren shall return to the children of Israel.    

Consider the profound statements about the Ruler, all of which speak of Christ.

·        5:2: He is, in fact, the LORD.  Again, we saw this in 4:2-3,7 that the Messiah, the one who teaches and reigns is the LORD.  So Jesus was and is God in the flesh (John 1:1,14 and all across the New Testament).

·        5:4: He shall stand and shepherd.  Jesus is the Good Shepherd (Jn. 10:7-18).

·        5:4: He shall serve in the strength and majesty of the LORD.  Jesus, like Micah (3:8), served in the power of the Spirit (Lk. 4:1, etc.).  He was submitted to His Father and bore the marks of true humanity.  Yet Peter says that in the transfiguration he was an eyewitness to His majesty (2 Pt. 1:16). 

·        5:5a: Jesus was truly peace and Prince of Peace.  His arrival was announced with peace (Lk. 2:14).  Paul said He Himself is our peace (Eph. 2:14) and that He made peace through the blood of His cross (Col. 1:19).

This prophecy is more than just the place of His birth; it speaks of His nature as the One God has appointed Ruler in Israel.  But when does this happen?  The woman has given birth; When will He reign?  Here is the answer.

·        5:b-6: First, the Assyrians will enter the land of Judah, which they did in the reign of Hezekiah (Isa. 36-37).  The reference to seven shepherds and eight princely men may refer to how the LORD used His own people, and only a few of them, to deliver Jerusalem from the Assyrians.  Some relate this to historical figures but it doesn’t fit the context which is clear that the LORD will deliver from Assyria.  Assyria ceased to exist after the rise of Babylon.

·        5:7-9: Then will come the time when the remnant of Jacob is in the midst of many peoples … among the Gentiles.  This speaks of the times of the Gentiles that extended from the time of Babylon until the Messiah comes to reign.

·        5:10-15: Then, in that day, the LORD will restore Israel spiritually.  No more will the transgression of Jacob and the sons of the house of Israel (1:5) be found among God’s people.  At that time God will execute His vengeance on the nations that afflicted His people.

The Messiah will not reign until the nation has been made ready, until they receive Him as LORD for that is who He is.  The nation rejected Him as LORD in His first coming.  But by God’s grace they will receive Him when He returns.  Till then we can say that whoever receives Him by faith, they will be granted the right to become children of God (John 1:12).  Have you received Jesus?