Mic 5:1-3 | KingComments | STEP | Several explanations of this verse have been given. The correct translation of that part is: “With a rod they have struck the Judge of Israel on the jaw. It seems that this verse has three parts, each with its own subject. There is a clear connection between the parts or subjects. The first line is a call of the LORD to Assyria, the “daughter of the Gang of Struggles”. Assyria is called to group and stand in battle order to go to war against Jerusalem (cf. ; ). In the second line we hear what the faithful remnant says. They see the armies coming. They acknowledge that they are sent by the LORD as the inevitable judgment of the idolatry of the unbelieving mass of the Jews. Through the word “us”, Micah makes himself one with the part of the population that is faithful to the LORD. He takes his place in spirit with them in the besieged city. In the third and fourth lines, the prophet gives the cause of judgment, the answer to the question of why that siege took place. The correct translation of that part is: “With a rod they have smitten the Judge of Israel on the cheek.” This refers to the rejection of the Lord Jesus, because He is “the Judge of Israel”. He is so called because He has the judiciary, while He has been treated and condemned so unfairly. ‘To smite on the cheek’ means to treat with contempt (cf. ; ). All distress and oppression that will afflict Jerusalem in the future are the result of their rejection of the Messiah, God’s anointed King. They have humiliated and abused Him. That is why God’s anger comes upon them, an anger that He exerts by sending hostile nations against them.

‏ Micah 5:1-3

The Judge of Israel Smitten on the Cheek

Several explanations of this verse have been given. The correct translation of that part is: “With a rod they have struck the Judge of Israel on the jaw. It seems that this verse has three parts, each with its own subject. There is a clear connection between the parts or subjects.

The first line is a call of the LORD to Assyria, the “daughter of the Gang of Struggles”. Assyria is called to group and stand in battle order to go to war against Jerusalem (cf. Joel 2:9-12; Psa 83:1-9).

In the second line we hear what the faithful remnant says. They see the armies coming. They acknowledge that they are sent by the LORD as the inevitable judgment of the idolatry of the unbelieving mass of the Jews. Through the word “us”, Micah makes himself one with the part of the population that is faithful to the LORD. He takes his place in spirit with them in the besieged city.

In the third and fourth lines, the prophet gives the cause of judgment, the answer to the question of why that siege took place. The correct translation of that part is: “With a rod they have smitten the Judge of Israel on the cheek.” This refers to the rejection of the Lord Jesus, because He is “the Judge of Israel”. He is so called because He has the judiciary, while He has been treated and condemned so unfairly. ‘To smite on the cheek’ means to treat with contempt (cf. 1Kgs 22:24; Job 16:10).

All distress and oppression that will afflict Jerusalem in the future are the result of their rejection of the Messiah, God’s anointed King. They have humiliated and abused Him. That is why God’s anger comes upon them, an anger that He exerts by sending hostile nations against them.

A Ruler From the Days of Eternity

After the deep humiliation of Zion and all the distress that will befall the people in the future as a result of smiting “the Judge of Israel” (Mic 5:1), Micah is speaking about this Judge in more detail here. This abused and rejected Judge will go forth from Bethlehem as a Ruler. He will not only save His people from the power of the enemy, but through Him there will be blessing for the whole world. The greatness of the future Ruler over Israel, the Lord Jesus, contrasts sharply with the earlier humiliation.

The announcement of the birth follows all promises of a glorious future, because that future lies in Him, because He is the One who makes up that future. Micah first mentions the birthplace of the Messiah. That is seven centuries before His birth. Just as Micah announces the place of birth, so his contemporary Isaiah prophesied that the Messiah is born of a virgin. The special thing is, that this virgin becomes pregnant without the intervention of a man (Isa 7:14; Lk 1:35).

Bethlehem means ‘bread house’ and Ephrathah means ‘fertile’. The Messiah will be the true food of His people (Jn 6:51) and everyone connected with Him will bear fruit for God (Jn 15:5). This is not something for the people of the world to become enthusiastic about. Likewise, the place of birth is not an attractive place. There is not much to enjoy. But He Who is born there is a Ruler Who will carry out the intention of God (2Sam 23:3; Jer 30:21).

The fact that He is not born in Jerusalem, but in the insignificant Bethlehem, shows the decline of the royal house of David. Bethlehem may be an insignificant place for people, but for God this place has the greatest significance. It is the place of the birth of His Son. The Messiah will come forth from there, in accordance with the announcement of the prophet Micah. And He will come forth there “for Me”. The LORD thus says that the Messiah will be there for Him, to fulfill the promises made by Him.

The place of the birth of the Messiah is also clear to the spiritual leaders of the people when the Messiah is actually born. When Herod hears of His birth, he inquires with the chief priests and scribes about the place of Christ’s birth. They then quote this verse from Micah (Mt 2:3-6).

It is remarkable that Matthew in his quotation replaces ‘Ruler’ with ‘Leader’ (Darby Translation). Of course, this is not a mistake. Matthew, like all other biblical writers, is led by the Holy Spirit (2Pet 1:21). God’s Spirit inspired him (2Tim 3:16) to quote the translation of the Hebrew text from the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament, in which the word for ‘Ruler’ is translated by ‘Leader’. That fits exactly with the way He was born. He is certainly the born King and it is certain that He will rule. But if He had appeared as Ruler, the people would have been lost. Now He comes first to be their Leader and to shepherd them as His people (cf. 1Chr 11:2).

There is another difference. Here it says “Bethlehem-Ephrathah”, while Matthew writes about “Bethlehem, land of Judah”. Ephrathah is reminiscent of the birth of Benjamin, ‘the son of the right hand’, and of the death of Rachel (Gen 35:16-19). In Micah the thought seems to be that while all hope of life for Israel – in the picture of Rachel – is gone, the Christ – in the picture of Benjamin – appears. In Matthew, the Gospel representing the Lord Jesus as the King, it is about Judah, the tribe from which the King comes.

The false leaders of the people at the time of the birth of the Lord Jesus examined and knew the Scriptures, but they did not allow the Scriptures to examine and guide them. If our familiarity with the Word of God is only rational, intellectual, it will increase our guilt because it has no effect in our lives.

For example, it is a small thing to print your initials on your Bible so that everyone knows that Bible is yours. But it is something completely different to let the Bible print its mark on you, and that is no small thing. Then you don’t have a mouth full of Bible texts, but your life shows the contents of the Bible. So you must have knowledge of the Bible, because otherwise there can be no life that is in accordance with the Bible.

In this verse Micah presents the Lord Jesus as born in Bethlehem and at the same time as the Eternal One. His origin is twofold: from Bethlehem and from the days of eternity. This indicates that He is Man and God. He has become Man, He is God eternal. Although He was born at a certain time, He is not subject to time (Psa 90:2; Pro 8:22-23). This is where the preexistence of the Messiah is taught, i.e. that the Ruler born on earth is the same as the eternal God. Isaiah also indicated His Godhead (Isa 9:5-6).

The Remainder of His Brethren

Mic 5:2 can be seen as an intermediate sentence. Then Mic 5:3 connects to Mic 5:1 and gives the result of the smiting of the Judge of Israel. The beginning of the verse, “therefore”, refers to the reason for giving them up. Israel is given up to its enemies because of their rejection of the Messiah.

Israel, and more specifically Judah, is given up, but it is only for a certain time. That period of time is compared to a period of childbirth. This refers to the great tribulation, the time of the many soul-exercises, the fears and difficulties that Israel goes through at that time. Israel has to go through all those deep ways, the fear, the judgments and the chastisements of God, in order to make them accept and acknowledge that it has earned those punishments because of its iniquity. The people will be like Naomi, who will be brought back to the land by grace and to whom it is given that the King will be born of her (Rth 1:6 ; Rth 4:17).

When we look at Revelation 12 with this verse, we see that Micah is talking about the end time. From the description given by John, it becomes clear that the woman who gives birth is the people of Israel (Rev 12:1-2). The contractions of labor of which Micah speaks are still future and look forward to the great tribulation.

In the first verses of Revelation 12, John describes that the Lord Jesus was born of Israel. When He is born, the great red dragon in the person of Herod is ready to devour Him (Rev 12:4; Mt 2:16). That fails because God takes Him up into heaven (Rev 12:5). This is visible in the ascension of the Lord Jesus. And then suddenly John moves us into the time of the great tribulation (Rev 12:6). Contractions of labor overwhelm the people. That time is described in the rest of Revelation 12. But at the same time it is the announcement of the (second) coming of the Lord Jesus.

When the Lord Jesus returns, His brethren (cf. Mt 25:40), the Judeans, His ‘tribesmen’, ‘His own flesh and blood’ (cf. 2Sam 19:13), will return to the land. They will convert to the LORD, together with the other tribes of the land, who are still in the scattering all over the world.