religion, but also reigned prosperously till his death' (Ewald), the clear-sighted prophet Micah warned his people of a judgment more severe than even Isaiah in general announced. But how are we to explain chaps. vi. and vii.? Are we not transported into another period? Such is the impression of Ewald. "We feel here," he says, "the effects of the cold, biting wind which King Manasseh brought over the kingdom of Judah; it is also plain from vi. 16 that the idolatrous tendency which this king favoured had long been prevailing; and the more religious hardly ventured, according to vi. 9b, to name the king quite openly." Certainly it is difficult to account for the tone of these chapters from what we are told in the historical books of the reign of Hezekiah; and the theory of Ewald, whether we adopt it or not, may serve to call our attention to the very real change of tone and circumstances in the two last chapters of the book. It will be remembered that there is a somewhat similar difficulty in accounting for the internal phenomena of Isai. xl.—lxvi.

CHRONOLOGY. The chronology of the kings of Israel is too intricate a subject to be treated of here. It is safest to follow the contemporary records of the Assyrians whenever a definite indication of date is given. The following table differs somewhat from the chronology of Usher, but there is no justification for adhering to an antiquated opinion, when a more critical view is attainable.

B. C.

727 Accession of Shalmaneser.

726

722

Hezekiah.

Sargon, and capture of Samaria.

711 Sargon's invasion of Judah; Hezekiah's illness.

705 Accession of Sennacherib.

701 Sennacherib's invasion of Judah.

697 Accession of Manasseh.

The invasion of Sargon referred to is not mentioned in the Old Testament narratives in their present form; but there is reason to think that there is a confusion in 2 Kings xviii. 13 (= Isa. xxxvi. 1) between Sargon and Sennacherib, and that the

later Jews had forgotten Sargon almost entirely, just as they forgot Assurbanipal. Certainly Sargon himself claims to have conquered the land of Judah (so Oppert, Sayce, and Schrader), and it is probable that the invasion was to punish Hezekiah for having joined the same coalition of which Yavan, the unfortunate king of Ashdod, was a member (see Smith's Assyria in S. P. C. K.'s Ancient History from the Monuments, pp. 104, 5). This new fact illustrates not only the first chapter of Micah but several prophecies of Isaiah (viz. x. 5—xii. 6, xiv. 24—27, and probably chap. xxii.). The fate of Ashdod (Isai. xx. 1) seemed likely to be shared by Jerusalem; and the prophets bent all their energies to move the people to a timely repentance.

MICAH.

CHAP. I. 1. Heading.

HE word of the LORD that came to Micah the Morasthite 1 in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.

Hear, all ye people;

Hearken, O earth, and all that therein is:

CHAP. I.

The judgment upon Samaria and the land of Judah; and the prophet's lament. The historical fulfilment of the prophecy is in the capture of Samaria by Sargon in 722 and that same king's invasion of Judah in 711 (see note A). Compare the topographical allusions in i. 10—15 with the corresponding section in Isai. x. 28-32.

1. HEADING (see Introduction).

1. Micah the Morasthite] i.e. Micah of Moresheth-gath (see v. 14). which he saw] To 'see' is a very early and very natural synonym for 'to prophesy;' 'he that is now (called) a Prophet was beforetime called a Seer' (1 Sam. ix. 9). Hence the prophecies of Isaiah are called a 'vision' (Isai. i. 1; comp. Nah. i. 1, Obad. i. 1). Another figure for prophecy is hearing' (see Isai. xxi. 10, xxviii. 22). The meaning is that the prophet has an inward perception of certain facts through the influence of the Divine Spirit (Zech. vii. 12).

2-7. THE THREAT OF PUNISHMENT.

2. all ye people] Rather peoples. God's judgment upon the world is now in progress (comp. Isai. iii. 13, 14, xxxiv. 1-5), and one of the principal acts in the great drama is the judgment impending over Israel. Hence all nations are summoned, not merely as legal witnesses (as when 'heaven and earth' are called upon in a figure in Deut. iv. 26, xxx. 19, xxxi. 28, Isai. i. 2), but that they may learn wisdom in time from Israel's fate. Hence the next half of the verse continues, ...against you.' The opening words of this verse are uttered by Micaiah in 1 Kings xxii. 28, which can hardly be an accidental coincidence, as Micah is a

MICAH

6

2

2

3

And let the Lord God be witness against you,
The Lord from his holy temple.

For behold, the LORD cometh forth out of his place,

And will come down and tread upon the high places of the earth.

4 And the mountains shall be molten under him,

And the valleys shall be cleft,

As wax before the fire,

And as the waters that are poured down a steep place. 5 For the transgression of Jacob is all this,

And for the sins of the house of Israel.

What is the transgression of Jacob? is it not Samaria?
And what are the high places of Judah? are they not
Jerusalem ?

shortened form of Micaiah. Probably the words in 1 Kings were interpolated by some ill-advised scribe, who identified Micaiah with our prophet Micah.

the Lord God] Rather, the Lord Jehovah. This is the reading of the Hebrew text; A.V. follows the vowel-points, which in this case merely express the exaggerated reverence of the later Jews for the sacred name.

his holy temple] It is 'the temple of heaven' which is meant (Rev. xvi. 17). Comp. Hab. ii. 20, Zech. ii. 13, Isai. lxiii. 15, Ps. xi. 4.

3. cometh forth out of his place] Two persons may use the same expressions in very different senses. Heathen poets imagined that divine beings 'came forth' and mingled in the strife of mortals; the prophets adopt the same language as the symbol of the working of a spiritual Deity.

4. the mountains shall be molten...] The figure is that of a storm, but no ordinary storm. Lightning descends, and dissolves the very mountains, and torrents of rain scoop out channels in the valleys. Similar symbolic descriptions occur in Judg. v. 5, Isai. lxiv. 1, Hab. iii. 6; comp. Ex. xix. 18.

5. The cause of this awful manifestation-the sin of Samaria and Jerusalem.

Jacob] A poetic synonym for Israel. The term has a slightly dif ferent meaning in the two halves of the verse. In the first, it clearly means the whole of the chosen people, including Judah; but in the second, only the Ten Tribes, sometimes called 'Ephraim' (e.g. Isai. vii. 5), but oftener (in the historical books) 'Israel.'

What is the transgression] From what does it proceed? In what is it summed up? Transgression' is a weak rendering; apostasy would be nearer the Hebrew.

what are the high places of Judah ?] In order to make sense, it is necessary to assume that the term 'high places' is here synonymous