Micah (Bible book)

Micah , 6th of the books of the Minor Prophets of the Bible, containing the oracles of the prophet Micah, a contemporary of Isaiah whose career spanned the period c.750-c.700 BC The prophecy can be divided into three sections: the doom of Israel and Judah, who are to be punished for hypocritical worship, social injustice, and personal immorality; ultimate redemption; a recapitulation in different form of the same themes. The book includes a famous Messianic passage, alluded to in the Gospels of St. Matthew and St. John. Micah's prophecy of the fall of Jerusalem was recalled over a century later. In Micah, the people of Judah are taught that they have not discharged their obligation to God if they have engaged in cultic activity but neglected the poor and needy. Some oracles have been subsequently added to the original collection after the event.

Bibliography: See studies by J. L. Mays (1976), R. Smith (1984), D. R. Hillers (1984), and J. Limburg (1988). See also bibliography under Old Testament.

Micah. Sixth book in the collection of Minor Prophets in the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. The prophet was a native of the Southern Kingdom and is probably referring to the political events occurring in the reign of King Hezekiah.

Micah, book of One of the OT Minor Prophets. Micah came from the countryside to Jerusalem during the reign of Hezekiah (Jer. 26: 18) and was a contemporary of Isaiah. The main part of the book appears to derive from about 720 to 700 BCE and is a denunciation of the wrongdoing in the nation, especially by the ruling classes. Mic. 6: 8 is often quoted as the great summary of prophetic teaching. Injustice will bring God's punishment in the form of military disasters. Micah had the assyrian threat in mind. It is probable that there are interpolations from a later generation: 7: 1–7 has a different style, 7: 8–10 seems to suppose the destruction of the nation by the babylonians (early 6th cent.), and 7: 11–20 could have in mind the Return from Exile, and the rebuilding of the walls and the Temple. Mic. 5: 2 is interpreted by Matt. 2: 6 and Mic. 5: 15 suggests a universal and ongoing context for its readership.