The Pulpit Commentary — Micah — Section 69

the world-power is arrayed against God's nations. The remnant of la.ooh. The faithful, people ; the details ( ae often in snob pro- Messianic Israel, a.a eh. iv. 7; lea. x. 21. phecies) do not exa.ctly suit the actual Many people; rather, many poople• (eh. iv. facts in ccntempomry history. Then ahall 11, 13); BO in ver. 8. The LXX. ineerte, lr we raise against him aeven shepherds, Toi's {9vff7'111, "among the nations," ae in ver. 8. We, the Israel of God, shall be enabled to As a dew from the Lord. Converted Israel repel the enemy. "Shepherds," i.e. princee, ehall e.ct as Meeeiah himeelf in refreshing and those in o.bundanoe. "Seven" is the and stimulating the nations. Receiving perfect number, representing completeness grace from him, she shall diffuee it to and rest. And eight principal men; or, others. (For the metaphor of dew thua need. princes among men, appointed by the Ruler comp. Dent. xxiii. 2; Hos. xiv. 6.) It is ae hie subordinates and representatives. especially appropriate in a country where These are ea.id to be "eight," to imply their from May to October the life of herbage great number: there should be a super- depends chiefly on the copious dews (comp. abundance of able leaders. (On a similar Gen. u:vii. 28; Dent. xxxiii. 13, 28: Hag. use of numbers, see note on Amoe i. 3.) The i. 10). As the showers upon the graaa. LXX. renders, o/C'Tcl, 11-1,-yµaTa l,,v8ptfnrr,,v, The dew is called " showers " ae appearing .. eight attacks of men," reading differently. to descend in a multitude of drops. That Ver. 6.-They ahall we.ate, The word t&nieth not for man, nor waiteth for rendered" waete" (raah) is capable of two the sons of men. Thie refers to the dew, interpretations according as it ie derived. It which is wholly the gift of God, and is not. may mean" to break" or" to feed;" and in artificially supplied by man's labour, ea the latter sense may signify either "to eat Egypt is "watered by the foot" (Dent. xL up" or "to be shepherd over," ae the 10). So grace ie God's free, unmerited Septuagint, .,,o,µa.voiiu,. The 11ddition, with gift, and will come upon the nations in his the sword, however, limits the explanation, good time and way. The LXX. has here whichever verb we refer it to. These a curious rendering, K"1 C:.s l!pvu ,.,,t leaders shall not only defend their own lo.nd l!-ypr,,1TT111, h-o,s µ¾, IT'IJVG')(9j µ11ads, µ115" age.inst the enemy, but shall carry the war wouTp Iv uloit &v6ptfnr.,,,, which Jerome into the hostile territory, conquer it, and exp lame of the obdurate Gentiles who con- rule with rigour (for the phrase, comp. tinue in unbelief, "ae lambs upon the gmsa, Pe. ii. 9; Rev. ii. 27; ni. 5). True religion that none may e.esemble nor withstand has always a war to wage with error and among the sons of men." -worldlinese, but shall conquer in the power Ver. 8.-Secondly, Israel shall be a -of Christ. The la.nd of Nimrod. This is terrible power among the nations, and in- taken by some commentators to mean Babf~ vincible in strength. "Nova theocratica Jon, the other great enemy of the Church agit Sll&viter et fortiter" (Kne.henbe.uer). -of God. But Babylon is nowhere in Scrip- As a lion. The Lamb of God is also the tme called "the land of Nimrod," though Lion of the tribe of Judah (Rev. v. 5; Nimrod ie connected with Babel in Gen. x. Numb. xxiii 24), and he "is set for the fa.11 10; and the term ie better explained here and rising age.in of many" (Luke ii 34). .as a synonym of Aeeyrie., used to recall the In his irresistible strength Israel shall over- "rebel" (eo Nimrod ie interpreted) who come 11ll enemies. So Jude.a Macce.ban1s is founded the first empire (Gen. x. 8-12), compared to a lion (1 MBcc. iii. 4). and gives the character to the kingdom of Ver, 9.-The prophet's exulting prayer this world. In the entranoea thereof; for the success of hie people. Thine hand literally, in the gates thereof; i.e. in the shall be, etc.; rather, let thine hand be lifted cities and fortresses, corresponding to the up'; and eo in the next clause, "let thine .. palaces" of ver. 5 ( comp. lee.. iii. 26; xiii. enemies be cut off." The phrase, " high be 2: Nab. iii. 13). Septuagint, iv ,j Td</>P'I' thy hand upon, or over," rece.lls the expres- abT,is, " with her trench; " Vulgate, in lanceis sion in Exod. xiv. 8, "The children of lerael ~tu, which, if the Hebrew be taken as Jerome went out with an high hand" (comp. Numb. .reads it, will be in close parallelism with the xxxiii. S : lea. xxvi. 11 : and our idiom, " to words in the. preoeding clause, "with the get tl..te npper hand"). (For the promise sword." Thus ( and) he shall deliver us, contained in the prayer, see Isa. l.x. 12.) lsre.el has to undergo much tribulution and Vere. 10-15.-§ 11. Meuiah shall d&troy many struggles, but Messiah shall eave her. all the inatruments of war, and put down all Vere. 7-9.-§ 10. The people under idolatry, having taught hi, people to relt· Meseiah's rule have a mission to ezecute; upon him alone. they are to be not only conquerors, but Ver. 10.-In that day. When Messie.h'11 ..,mviours also. kingdom ie established. Micah depicts the Ver. 7.-Firet, Israel in God's hands shall interior perfectiou of the Church, as he had ;fie an inetruwcnt of life e.ml heulth to the btfore ellph,ined its relatioa t1;1 ellteroal 70 THE DOOK OF MICAH. [CB, V, 1-15,..