Micah 6:1-8 Commentary

We all know what the key verse in the text is.  The real star of the show shows up in verse 8, words set to music, memorized and printed on mission trip t-shirts: “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”  So, before we jump to that one, let’s acclimate to the larger argument of Micah and the preceding 7 verses.

Background on Micah

Micah, the text, is difficult to nail down to one theme, like a pendulum or a conversation, it sways back and forth. On one side, we have oracles of judgment, dire warnings to the Southern Kingdom of Judah that their fate is likely to follow that of the Northern Kingdom if they don’t return to the justice, righteousness and exclusive, holy worship of God.  On the other side, there are glimmers of hope, sketching out a vision for peace in the land, enemies defeated and a Kingdom with a righteous ruler restored.  According to the CEB Bible Commentary, Asa. Whole, Micah swings between images of judgment and hope.” Chapters 1-3 and 6 issue warnings “that the Lord will judge Judah just as the Lord judges the northern kingdom. Meanwhile, Micah 4-5 and 7 center “another theme: coming hope at the end of time and renewal.”  Robert Alter summarizes the message of Micah as “a noble vision of the Lord requiring justice and humility more than spaces of animal sacrifices (which) puts him early in the line of prophets that set ethical behavior above the Temple cult as Israel’s primary responsibility.

Micah, the prophet, is from a rural town deep in Judah, the territory of the Southern Kingdom. In addition to his humble hometown, Micah 1:8 depicts him as walking barefoot, a symbol of grief and lowly condition. He prophesied during a time of deep distress in the Southern Kingdom as they were watching the destruction of Israel, the Northern Kingdom.  Almost like a younger sibling listening at the door as an older sibling is being disciplined for something they’ve done wrong — the younger sibling (in this case Judah) should be trying to figure out what went wrong and how not to do that thing in the future. (Or, as in my case, how not to get caught doing it at least.) During Micah’s time, enemies were already knocking at Judah’s door and, in at least one case, knocking it down.  Judgment was palpable in the air. The minor prophet, Micah, was offering his oracles at the same time as one of the headliners: the major prophet, Isaiah.  In fact, Micah 4:1-5 is nearly identical to Isaiah 2:2-4, leading some—like Robert Alter—to surmise, “it is at least possible that Micah was Isaiah’s source.”

The Other Verses

While it is not uncommon in Hebrew poetry to call on the mountains and hills to rejoice and praise God, Micah is conscripting them toward a different duty in verse 1.  He wants the mountains and hills to serve on the jury.  To listen to his claims against Judah and to adjudicate fairly. In verses 1 and 2, you can visualize Micah as a prosecuting attorney pacing in front of the jury box, drawing the ancient mountains and humble hills to bear witness.

In verse 3, Micah launches into a representative speech on behalf of God — the covenant God reasoning with the wayward covenant children. With basic Biblical knowledge, we understand Micah’s argument in verse 4, a callback to the Exodus narrative.  Verse 5 requires a bit more facility with the Hebrew Scriptures and The CEB Bible Commentary helps us out here immensely, “These statements give brief reminders of God’s deliverance in Moab (before the Israelites entered the land.” You can read more in Num 22-24. Robert Alter helps us to place Shittim and Gilgal. “These are, respectively, the last way station of the Israel east of the Jordan and their first encampment after crossing the Jordan.”

After the prosecuting attorney, Micah, takes his seat another lawyer appears to defend the people from these charges.  The foundation of his argument seems to be something like, “What more do you want from us?!”  In verses 6-7 Robert Alter observes “a pattern of intensification in these lines: first, simply burnt offerings and yearlings; then, in a hyperbolic flourish, thousands of rams and tens of thousands of streams of oil; and, in the crowning extravagance, child sacrifice—the most a person can give.”

Objection, Your Honor

As though in exasperation, the prosecuting attorney stands up at his desk, “He has told you, o mortal…” As thought to say: come on, don’t act like you don’t know what this is all about.  He told you.  The standard has always been right there.

Do justice.

Love kindness.

Walk humbly with God.

Clear enough?

This, according to Alter, “This is a succinct and especially beautiful expression of the view Micah shares with Isaiah that ethical behavior is far more important than the mechanics of sacrificial rites.”

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A Micah 6:8 Audit

Several organizations have put out something called a Micah Audit, a discernment tool for individuals and church congregations to assess their level of concern for those things that concerned Micah. Here is just one example. Obviously every example is contextual and you will need to adapt questions, reflection prompts, etc. for your context.  You could develop something to send home with people for their own use, it could be something for small groups or church leadership to use together. You might even consider a couple questions in the bulletin or on a slide for a time of personal reflection or commitment after the service.