📖 Biblical Definition
Micah is the prophetic book named for the prophet from Moresheth in Judah (c. 750-686 BC), a contemporary of Isaiah. The book denounces greedy rulers and corrupt priests who "build up Zion with blood" (Micah 3:10), predicts the Messiah’s birth in Bethlehem Ephratah (Micah 5:2) — the prophecy Herod’s scribes quoted to the Magi — and summarizes the whole law in one famous verse: "He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?" (Micah 6:8). Micah’s structure alternates judgment and hope across three cycles, closing with covenant mercy and the unfailing oath sworn to Abraham.
📜 Webster 1828 Definition
MICAH, n. A minor prophet of Judah.
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MICAH, n. A Hebrew prophet of Moresheth-gath, contemporary with Isaiah, who prophesied during the reigns of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah; his canonical book denounces the rapacity of the princes, the venality of the prophets, and the formalism of the priests, foretells the birth of the Ruler of Israel at Bethlehem Ephrathah, and reduces all true religion to three duties — justice, mercy, humility.
📖 Key Scripture
Micah 5:2 — "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah…out of you shall come forth…the One to be Ruler in Israel."
Micah 6:8 — "He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?"
Micah 7:18 — "Who is a God like You, pardoning iniquity and passing over the transgression of the remnant?"
Micah 4:3 — "They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks."
⚠️ Modern Corruption
6:8 reduced to a bumper sticker that drops the 'walk humbly with your God' clause.
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Micah 6:8 is the favorite verse of those who want ethics without God. They keep 'do justice' and 'love mercy' and quietly file off 'walk humbly with your God.' The result is moralism — a self-righteous justice movement that becomes the very pride it claims to oppose.
The third clause is not optional decoration; it is the engine. Justice without humble God-walking turns activist into tyrant. Mercy without humble God-walking turns into sentiment. Micah binds the three; do not unbraid them.
🔗 Greek & Hebrew Roots
Key terms: mishpat (justice), chesed (mercy), tsana (walk humbly).
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H4941 — mishpat — justice, judgment
H2617 — chesed — steadfast love, mercy
H6800 — tsana — to walk humbly
Usage
"Micah ties three threads — justice, mercy, humility — into one cord."
"Bethlehem appears centuries before the manger; the Word always plans ahead."
"A god small enough to make swords from plowshares is too small."