Micah 5

Micah 5 is the fifth chapter of the Book of Micah. Following Micah 4, which alternates between the reality of besieged Zion and the promise of restoration, it foretells a ruler who will come forth from Bethlehem. The Hebrew Bible numbers verse 1 of this chapter as Micah 4:14, so the verse numbers of chapter 5 in the Hebrew Bible run one lower than in English Bibles.

Structure

• Verse 1 describes the humiliation of a siege in which the enemy smites the judge (ruler) of Israel with a rod upon the cheek.
• Verses 2–4 From Bethlehem Ephratah, little among the clans of Judah, will come one who is to be ruler in Israel. The people will be given up until she who travaileth has brought forth. Afterward the remnant of his brethren will return, and he will stand and feed his flock in the strength of the LORD, and his greatness will reach to the ends of the earth.
• Verses 5–6 He will be the peace of the people. When Assyria invades, seven shepherds and eight principal men will be raised up to waste the land of Assyria and the land of Nimrod.
• Verses 7–9 The remnant of Jacob will be among many peoples both as dew and showers upon the grass and as a young lion among the flocks of sheep.
• Verses 10–15 In that day the LORD will cut off Israel's horses and chariots, its strongholds, its witchcrafts and soothsayers, its graven images and standing images, and its Asherah groves. He also declares that He will execute vengeance upon the nations that have not obeyed.

Key Verses

• Micah 5:2 "But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah … out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel" — a verse the New Testament quotes in connection with the birthplace of Jesus.
• Micah 5:5 "And this man shall be the peace" — an expression linking the coming ruler with peace.

People and Places

• Bethlehem: a small town of Judah and the hometown of David.
• Ephratah: an ancient name for the area around Bethlehem (Genesis 35:19; Ruth 1:2).
• Nimrod: the mighty man mentioned in Genesis 10; "the land of Nimrod" refers to the region of Assyria.
• Jacob: here a name for the people of Israel as a whole.

Points for Reflection

• In Matthew 2, when Herod asks where the Christ should be born, the chief priests and scribes answer by citing verse 2, though the wording is changed to "art not the least." The same expectation appears in John 7:42. Christian tradition reads this verse as a messianic prophecy, and the Jewish Aramaic translation (the Targum) is also known to have connected it with the Messiah.
• Interpretations of "whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting" differ. Many Christian interpreters read it as referring to the preexistence of Christ (His existence before the world), while others take it to refer to the ancient roots of the Davidic dynasty.
• Interpretations of "she which travaileth" in verse 3 are likewise divided. Some connect it with the birth of Jesus, while others see it as a picture of Zion reaching restoration after a time of suffering.
• Verse 5 is often read together with Ephesians 2:14, "For he is our peace."
• The horses and chariots cut off in verses 10–15 belong not to the enemy but to Israel itself. The passage is therefore read as God's intention to remove the people's reliance on military power and idols.

In Korean Churches

Verse 2 is frequently read alongside Matthew 2 in sermons during Advent and Christmas and in Sunday school Christmas programs.