Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Micah 6:6
Wherewith shall I come before the LORD, [and] bow myself before the high God? shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old?
6. Wherewith ] i.e. with what present?
bow myself ] With the obeisance of a subject before his king, or of a poor man before a rich.
with calves of a year old ] These were considered the choicest (Lev 9:3).
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
6 8. The people, feeling its need of atonement, anxiously (note the repeated questions) inquires of the prophet how it is to propitiate Jehovah. Bishop Butler, in his Sermon on the Character of Balaam, adopts the view that Mic 6:6-7 represent the question of Balak, and Mic 6:8 the answer of Balaam. This was probably suggested by 2Ki 3:27, where it is recorded that the king of Moab offered up his eldest son as a burnt-offering. But the inference is hasty; human sacrifices were one of the abominations of Israel (see below), which most excited the reprobation of the prophets. Bishop Butler, too, had probably not realized the amount of personification which exists in the prophetic writings. It is the people personified which speaks in these two verses (6 and 7).
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Wherewith shall I come before the Lord? – The people, thus arraigned, bursts in, as men do, with professions that they would be no more ungrateful; that they will do anything, everything – but what they ought. With them it shall be but Ask and have. They wish only to know, with what they shall come? They would be beforehand with Him, anticipating His wishes; they would, with all the submission of a creature, bow, prostrate themselves before God; they acknowledge His High Majesty, who dwelleth on high, the most High God, and would abase themselves before His lofty greatness, if they but knew, how or wherewith.
They would give of their best; sacrifices the choicest of their kind, which should be wholly His, whole-burnt-offerings, offered exactly according to the law, bullocks of a year old Lev 9:2-3; then too, the next choice offering, the rams; and these, as they were offered for the whole people on very solemn occasions, in vast multitudes, thousands or ten thousands ; the oil which accompanied the burnt sacrifice, should flow in rivers ; nay, more still; they would not withhold their sons, their first born sons, from God, part, as they were, of themselves, or any fruit of their own body.
They enhance the offering by naming the tender relation to themselves Deu 28:53. They would offer everything, (even what God forbade) excepting only what alone He asked for, their heart, its love and its obedience . The form of their offer contains this; they ask zealously, with what shall I come. It is an outward offering only, a thing which they would bring. Hypocritical eagerness! a sin against light. For to enquire further, when God has already revealed anything, is to deny that He has revealed it. It comes from the wish that He had not revealed what lie has revealed. : whose, after he hath found the truth, discusseth anything further, seeketh a lie. God had told them, long before, from the time that He made them His people, what he desired of them; So Micah answers,
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Mic 6:6-8
Wherewith shall I come before the Lord
Pleasing God
This is a momentous question, which the world has ever been asking–How shall we approach God?
For men feel that they are separated from Him,–that there is something which prevents access, and they have sought how to remove the obstacles which intervene.
I. Three methods likely to effect the desired purpose. They are–
1. Outward acts. What must I do? This is to a certain extent natural, for we cannot obtain any substantial good in the world without work, or its equivalent, money. Some attempt one particular deed, such as self-denial, others a notably moral life; others, again, obsequious religious observances.
2. Pious gifts. With burnt offerings. This shows the innate idea of atonement or propitiation. There is a universal consciousness of innate guilt and sinfulness, and there is a universal feeling that it must be punished. There is also in the text the idea of purchase. Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams? It is not uncommon for men to think that they can bribe God by outward acts of philanthropy, by building churches or hospitals.
3. Personal suffering and self-denial. Should I give my firstborn, etc. How terrible the consequences of such an act! Yet men have thought that mortifying the natural sentiments of humanity would gratify God. Many have voluntarily submitted to mutilation, to pilgrimages; they have even sacrificed their children in the hope of obtaining eternal life.
II. The text points out the only true method of acceptance with God. The prophet rebukes these popular ideas in a quiet manner. He says,–There is no excuse for your ignorance. Then why do men ask? It is because of their want of faith, for seeing they see not. He hath showed this in His Word, in His precepts, in His examples of life. We have here as components of that way–
1. Holiness. God hath required of thee to do justly. We must not forget that justice is due to God as well as to man. Just dealing demands reverence, faith, trust towards God in Christ, as much as honesty towards our fellow creatures.
2. Mercy. This means tenderness of disposition, and an ability to receive Gods message as well as to show our mercy to others.
3. Humility. Accepting Gods method of salvation, leaving our hopes and destiny with Him, receiving the sacrifice wrought out for us at Calvary; not to think higher of himself than a man ought to think. To live justly is to live in Christ, for in Him all justice is fulfilled. To love mercy is to imbibe Christs spirit, for He is the manifestation of Divine mercy. To walk humbly is to follow Christs teaching, for He inculcates humility, self-denial, and trust. (J. J. S. Bird, B. A.)
The worlds cry concerning the method of being brought into fellowship with God
It is not that God has withdrawn from us; it is that we are alienated from Him by wicked works. Here is one of the worlds cries. Where can we get a satisfying response? There are only three answers–
1. That which has reference to the presentation of sacrifices. This is the way in which the heathen have sought to bridge the gulf between themselves and their Maker. Yes, and the old Hebrew too. Millions of victims have been slain, and oceans of blood have been shed. But is this satisfactory? To say that we are to return to God through sacrifices, however costly and abundant, is not quite sufficient. In the first place, it is repugnant to our reason to suppose that such sacrifices can be acceptable to the God of love and mercy. In the second place, it is opposed to the declarations of the Bible. For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it. Thou delightest not in burnt offering (Psa 51:16). To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto Me? saith the Lord (Isa 1:11). And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt offering (Isa 40:16). None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him: for the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceaseth forever (Psa 49:7-8). And in the third place, such sacrifices, as a fact, have never removed from man this feeling of distance from his Maker. The gulf remains as deep and broad though the cattle upon a thousand hills were offered.
2. There is that which has reference to a right moral conduct. He hath showed 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? This is just what philosophy would say. Think the true, love the good, and do the right, and you will be accepted of your Maker–you will come back into a friendly state with Him. This is satisfactory so far as it goes; for to do the right thing is reconciliation with heaven. Those who live a holy life walk with God, and are happy in His fellowship. But the question is, How to come into this morally right state? And the philosophy which presents this method has no answer to this question.
3. There is that which has reference to the intervention of Christ. This is the answer of the Bible. It teaches that Christ is mans way back to fellowship with his Maker. I am the way: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me. Through Him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father (Eph 2:18). But, now, in order to see the satisfactoriness of this answer, it may be necessary to ask the question, In what way does Christ bring man into fellowship with God? Negatively–First: Not by repealing any of the laws of moral obligation binding on man. Christs intervention did not render man in the slightest degree less bound to obey every precept in heavens moral code. That code is as immutable as God Himself, Secondly: Not by dispensing with any of the settled conditions of spiritual culture and improvement. Christ does not make men good in any miraculous way. Observation, reflection, study, resolution, faith, practice, these are the means by which souls must ever advance. Thirdly: Not by effecting any change in the Divine mind. The mission of Christ was the effect–not the cause–of Gods love. Christ was its messenger and minister, not its creator. Nor did He change Gods purpose. It was according to His eternal purpose that Christ came, and to work that purpose out was Christs mission. What, then, does He do? He is the Reconciler. He reconciles not God to man, but man to God. God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself. In Christ, as the reconciler or remover of this felt distance between man and his Maker, we discover a twofold adaptation of the most perfect kind.
I. In Him we see a special approach of God to Man. In Christ there is a change in the Divine manifestation. He in Christ comes to man in mans own nature. God is manifest in the flesh. In man He reveals the image of His invisible self. In this manifestation two great obstructions to mans union to God are removed.
1. The obstruction of inappreciableness. God in nature is so vast as to be inappreciable by man, but in the Man Christ He comes within our horizon, and within the compass of our faculties.
2. The obstruction of guilty dread. Was there an obstruction to this union on Gods part? If so, who shall describe its nature? Men, the world over, feel that they have sinned, and are liable to a terrible punishment. This sense of guilt hangs as a portentous cloud over the soul of the world. Men, by millions, often stagger with horror under its black shadow, and anxiously seek some shelter from the threatened storm. This guilty dread first drove man from his Maker. I heard Thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid. The soul, from the laws of its nature, flees from the object of its dread. Fear is the centrifugal force of the spirit; it drives it from its Maker. This dread of God is as universal as sin, and as deep as the heart of humanity. It accounts for all the horrid views that men have of their Maker, and for all their hostility to Him in heart and life. Now, how does God in Christ remove this? He comes to man in just such a form as is adapted to expel fear, and inspire hope and trust. In what form could He come but in the form of a man to effect this? Would a revelation of Himself in all His absolute glory do it? No! this, if it could be borne by mortals, would only raise the terror to a more overwhelming degree. Would a revelation of Himself through angelic natures do it? The Eternal, to disarm man of this terrible fear, comes to him in mans own nature. Are you afraid of a Teacher, who, free from all assumption of superiority, scholastic stiffness, and pedantic utterance, mingles with the crowd, and utters truth the most lofty to the imagination, the most reasonable to the intellect, the most real to the conscience, the most inspiring and ennobling to the heart? Transport yourselves in thought to the mountains of Capernaum, and the shores of Galilee, and listen to Him who speaks as never man spake. God is in that Teacher, and through Him He says, It is I, be not afraid. Are you afraid of a Philanthropist, the most tender in heart, the most earnest in affection, the most race wide in sympathy? Follow Jesus of Nazareth during the three years of His public life, as He goes about doing good. Count the diseased that He heals, the hungry that He feeds, and the disconsolate that He comforts.
II. In Him we see a special attraction of Man to God. This is another step. He not only comes to man, but He attracts man to Himself. He does this–
1. By awakening the highest gratitude. Gratitude attracts, draws the soul into loving sympathy with its benefactor. Kindness is a magnet that draws the object to its author. God in Christ displays such infinite mercy as is adapted to inspire the soul with the strongest gratitude. Where is there mercy like this? He loved us and gave Himself for us.
2. He does this by awakening the highest love. Love attracts, love draws us into the presence of its object and makes us one with it, feel as it feels, and move as it moves. God in Christ is moral beauty in its sublimest form. All conceivable virtues centre there, and radiate thence, in infinite perfection. Holiness, as it streams directly from the Absolute One, would be too strong for our vision, would dazzle and confound us, but in Christ it comes mildly and fascinatingly, reflected through the humanities of our nature.
3. He does this by awakening the highest hope. Hope draws the heart to its object, Thus we are drawn to Him. We feel that our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son, Jesus Christ. (Homilist.)
The religion of man, and the religion of God
I. The religion of man. Wherewith shall I come before the Lord? etc.
1. This is simply the voice of mans religious instinct seeking after God. In Popes universal prayer, there is truth, as well as error. There are, says the late Dr. Vaughan, tendencies in man which make religion, in some form, a necessity of his nature; but it is no less certain that there are tendencies in him which ensure that the religion chosen by him will not be a spiritual one, etc.
2. Consciousness, history, the Bible, prove that this inward light has become darkness. Mans religious faculty has become impaired, and reveals its degeneracy in superstition and cruelty. God must be propitiated, but by thousands of rams, and ten thousands of rivers of oil, and by the sacrifice of their own offspring. Where there is no vision, etc.
3. The ignorance in which man has involved himself is rectified by Gods revealed will. He hath showed thee, O man, etc. Reason has failed to discover a resting place for the soul. The course of ages witnessed the trial, and in the most favourable circumstances.
II. Gods religion. He hath showed thee, O man. Notwithstanding their gorgeous economy of symbol and sacrifice, they were taught that the symbol could not save, that God desired truth in the inward parts. The religion of God is summed up under three heads–
1. Do justly. Love to God ensures love and justice to man.
2. Love mercy. This strikes at the selfishness of our nature.
3. Walk humbly with thy God. The soul of religion is here; reconciliation–communion–reverent, constant converse with God. (John Lewis.)
The ancient question
A question which has troubled mankind in every age. For the religious feeling is natural to man. All nations have had some idea of God, and have worshipped Him according to their notion of His nature and attributes. Consequently, strange answers have been given to this inquiry, which have led to cruelty and human sacrifices. Men have mistaken the character of God.
1. The question which the heathen tried to answer is still waiting for our individual answer. In the minds of all thinking and earnest persons the question will sometimes arise, Am I living as God intended me to live? Am I at peace with God? There are times when we are brought face to face with the living realities of life, and of death, and of eternity.
2. To this question many and different answers have been given. The old Jews thought the best way to approach God was by the sacrifices of the Levitical law. Will God be pleased with outward observances and external show? Can we gain Gods favour by bribing Him with flattery and gifts? Not Jews only, many Christians have had such fancies. What does Isaiah say to such religionists? God wants no gifts and offerings. Can Gods favour be obtained by suffering? Shall I lacerate my tenderest affection? Shall I give up everything that is pleasant? Hundreds have asked themselves this question. But they have utterly mistaken the character of God. They thought He was pleased with torture and self-sacrifice. But He is a God of love, our Father, and not a hard taskmaster.
3. To this question the prophet gives us the true answer. God would have us live justly, and mercifully, and humbly before our God. Our Fathers will is that we do our duty where He has placed us, to God, and to our fellows, and to ourselves; that we be just, with a justice that hates oppression, and will not tolerate wrong; that scorns petty vices and despicable meannesses; merciful, with a mercy that condescends to the helpless, the fallen, and the despised; and humble, with an honest reverence towards God, the Author and Giver of all good things. This is what God requires, goodness, and justice, and sincerity, and love. (John Vaughan, M. A.)
The awakened sinner
Here the purport, though not the express words, of a conversation between Balak and Balaam is introduced, in order strongly to describe the slate of a mind harassed with guilt, and clearly to point out the only way in which relief can be obtained.
I. Show what is implied in the anxious inquiries of the awakened sinner.
1. Such inquiries imply the existence of a sense of sin. Sin is the transgression of the Divine law–an infraction of the immutable rule of righteousness which God hath given to His creatures–a state and course of rebellion against His rightful authority; and an opposition to His character, and the interests of His holy dominion. Every child of Adam is the subject of moral failure, chargeable with moral delinquency, and exposed to all the evils of moral ruin. The great bulk of mankind are totally insensible to their real condition. Sooner or later the spell on them will be broken. The idea of God presents itself. The character of God is seen as infinitely pure and inflexibly just. The sinner finds he has broken His law in innumerable instances, in thought, word, and deed. There is often some particular transgression to which the sinner is addicted.
2. The questions before us imply a conviction of the indispensable necessity of expiation. The awakened sinner is convinced, not only that God has a right to demand satisfaction for the injury done to His moral character, in the view of intelligent beings, but that reparation of one kind or other must be made, else it is absolutely impossible for the offender to escape. Under the influence of such views, the sinner asks, Wherewith shall I come before the Lord, etc. His concern is, to get the obstacle removed which intervenes between him and the favour of the Almighty. Something, he conceives, must be done: some sacrifice must be presented; a suitable expiation must be made.
3. The words imply a willingness to go any length, and to be at any expense, if only expiation can thereby be made, and the desired pardon be obtained. It is to this natural principle of the carnal mind that we are to ascribe the numerous austerities and works of supererogation practised by the members of the Church of Rome.
4. All these anxious inquiries, with all the self-righteous efforts to which they give rise, discover an awful and lamentable ignorance of the only way of salvation. How can a creature that is bound by the laws of his moral constitution to yield a perfect, uninterrupted, and perpetual obedience to the reasonable demands of his Maker, throughout every period of his being, make compensation by any subsequent conduct for former omissions and transgressions?
II. the cheering import of the prophets reply. Revelation alone solves the difficulty. In the Bible, and in the Bible alone. Of this Divinely authenticated communication the substance is this: that the whole human race, having, by transgression and rebellion, forfeited the Divine favour, and become obnoxious to the everlasting infliction of the Divine wrath, and being utterly destitute of all aid from themselves and from all creatures, the Infinite Jehovah, whose laws they had broken, and whose authority they had rejected and contemned, Loved with amazing pity, sent His own equal Son into the world to suffer, the just for the unjust: that by the infliction of the punishment upon Him as the substitute of the guilty, a sufficient manifestation might be afforded of the Divine opposition to sin, while mercy is extended to every sinner that betakes himself by faith to the Lord Jesus Christ as his Saviour, his Righteousness, and his Strength. Whoever, of all the guilty sons or daughters of Adam, believes in the all-sufficiency of the atonement which the Son of God made with His infinitely precious blood upon the Cross, is freed from his obligation to punishment, and obtains a right to all the privileges and all the blessedness of the kingdom of heaven. The atonement is that good which we individually require. Nothing else can satisfy the mind, remove its fears, or inspire it with a good hope towards God.
III. A description is here given of evangelical holiness. There are two rocks on which men are ever disposed to make shipwreck of their souls: the one is self-righteousness; the other is, turning the grace of God into lasciviousness. Multitudes go down to the grave with part of the concluding words of the text as a lie in their right hand. Piqueing themselves on the probity of their character before men, the charity which they distribute to the poor, and their going regularly through the outward forms of religion, they imagine that they have Divine authority itself for believing that all will be well with them at last. But the words admit of no such construction. They do not, in fact, apply at all to unconverted and unbelieving sinners; but to such only as have found the good which the maintain good works. (E. Henderson.)
The good way of coming before the Lord
The question of an awakened soul. Wherewith shall I come before the Lord? An unawakened man never puts that question. He does not like to think of God, or the claims of God.
I. The piercing question of every awakened soul.
1. An awakened soul feels that his chief happiness is in coming before God. This was unfallen Adams happiness. This is the joy of holy angels. This is the true happiness of a believer.
2. An awakened soul feels difficulties in the way. Two great difficulties. The nature of the sinner. When God really awakens a soul, He shows him the vileness and hatefulness of himself. He directs the eye within. The nature of God. The High God. When God really awakens a soul, He generally reveals to him something of His own holiness and majesty. See the cases of Isaiah and Job. The anxiety of the awakened soul leads to the question, Wherewith? It is the question of one who has been made to feel that one thing is needful. Anything he has he would give up to get peace with God.
II. The answer of peace to the awakened soul. He hath showed thee, O man, what is good. Nothing that man can bring with him will justify him before God. There is nothing a man would not do–nothing he would not suffer–if he might only cover himself before God. Tears, prayers, duties, reformations, devotions–the heart will do anything to be righteous before God. But all this righteousness is filthy rags. For–
1. The heart remains an awful depth of corruption.
2. Supposing the righteousness were perfect, it cannot cover the past. Old sins, and the sins of youth still remain uncovered. Christ is the good way. The good way to the Father–
(1) Because He is so suitable.
(2) Because He is so free.
(3) Because He is so God-glorifying.
All other ways of salvation are man-glorifying; but this way is God-glorifying.
III. Gods requirement of the justified.
1. God requires His redeemed ones to be holy.
(1) He requires you to do justly; to be just in your dealings between man and man.
(2) To love mercy. This is the brightest feature in the character of Christ. If you are in Christ, drink deep of His Spirit.
(3) To walk humbly with your God.
2. Remember that this is Gods end in justifying you. He loved the Church, and gave Himself for it, that He might sanctify and cleanse it. If you are not made holy, Christ died for you in vain.
3. Whatever He requires, He gives grace to perform. Christ is not only good as our way to the Father, but He is our fountain of living waters. Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. Look as much to Him for sanctification as for justification. (R. M. MCheyne.)
On the atonement
The first rites of all religions but one are rites of propitiation. Men everywhere, feeling themselves sinners, justly conceive it necessary that, in order to obey God acceptably, they must first be reconciled to Him, and obtain indemnity for past offences. Among the pro fessors of idolatry, ancient and modern, the principle of self-atonement has taken up its residence. Even we may think that our sufferings ought to be accepted as a partial atonement for our offences. The mistake is not mans conviction of the necessity of an atonement, but the way in which that atonement is sought. The mistake is mans making his conviction a foundation for his pride to erect its fancied claims on the Divine justice, and his self-righteousness to flatter itself with the hopes of meritorious exertion. God has provided the necessary burnt-offering. He has provided it in a way at once the most suitable to His own glory, the most congenial to the harmony of the Divine attributes, and adapted, with unspeakable wisdom and felicity, to the lost and hopeless state of His guilty creatures. Being justified by His grace, through the atonement which He has accepted, we have a ground of confidence before God. And being reconciled to God through the death of His Son, we should walk acceptably before Him, in newness of life. (C. R. Maturin.)
How to come before God
Assuming the fall of our first parents, human reason brings us to the conclusion that we are all naturally the worthy objects of Gods wrath and punishment. Scripture seems to teach this, and our experience confirms it. How then can we be delivered out of this state? Wherewith shall we come before the Lord?
1. Shall we come with repentance and amendment of life? No. These may be indispensable conditions of salvation, they can, in no sense, be its meritorious and procuring cause.
2. Shall we come before Him with burnt offerings? etc. There is no virtue in animal sacrifices to wash out the guilty stain of our offences.
3. Shall we give our firstborn for our transgression? Would human sacrifices do, if animal sacrifices would not? No. They would be neither an adequate nor perfect sacrifice, such as God could accept.
4. Is there any created being that would suffice to redeem us? There is no creature that could meet the two required conditions, and be, at the same time, a perfect and an adequate sacrifice.
5. The apostle answers the question in Eph 2:13-18. Christ was the victim everyway adapted to the necessities of the case. He was a perfect sacrifice, and He was a sufficient sacrifice. (Ch. G. Lawson, M. A.)
The principles of the Reformation and of Protestantism
I propose to consider that peculiar element of Christianity which, though not exclusively held by the Churches of the Reformation, yet it was the glory of the Reformation to have brought fully out. The warning of the prophet Micah consists of three parts, which contain within themselves the doctrine and practice of all true Protestant religion.
I. the authority to which all religious questions must be referred. The question of authority is one by which men in these days are often perplexed. It is said that our business is not to ask what is taught, but only to know who it is that teaches us. This is not the way in which the Bible speaks of authority. We are to heed what it is that is said, and what it is that commends itself to our own consciences. The person, the office, no doubt is something; but the message, and the substance of the message is much more. The real authority which guides and ought to guide us, is that which needs no external support or credentials. Everywhere the true voices of God make themselves heard and felt, if not immediately, yet at last, not by external weight, but by their own intrinsic force. The real teachers and oracles of mankind have been those who, in every age, and in every station, and in every race of men, have been raised up by God. The Bible is the great and supreme authority, because the Bible contains the greatest of all truths in the most enduring, persuasive, and exalted form. We do not believe the Bible to be true because it is inspired; but we believe the Bible to be inspired because and in proportion as it is true. There is, therefore, no need to go to any external official source for guidance.
II. The great question which has to be settled. Wherewith shall I come before the Lord? That question is the root at once of all religion, and of all superstition. Man feels that there is a Being above him, whom he longs to propitiate and to approach. Between weak, frail, sinful man, and the great, supreme, holy God what is there in common? Many ways have been devised. In the early ages of the world it was by the offering of gifts–the gifts of the earth, the gifts of slain animals, the gift even of human life. In Christian times other modes have been adopted, also of the most various kinds. Even the wildest and the worst of them is instructive as expressive of the yearning of the human heart, even in its lowest condition, to bridge over the gulf, to express its reverence for the Most High, to be at peace with its Maker. The modes of approaching God might be wrong, but the question how we are to approach, and how we are to please the great Father of all human spirits, is the question which cannot be put aside.
III. The Divine answer to that question. This is the answer to the question how God is to be approached. There is no other answer–by justice, by mercy, by humility. Though this answer came from a heathen prophet, it was yet the Word of God, and commends itself at once to every enlightened heart and conscience. It needs no defence; it needs no explanation. It is the foundation of all true religion, because it rests on the only true idea of the character of God. This is true theology; this is a true account of what God is, and of what God requires. False religion imagines that God can be pleased by other means than by a good, merciful, and humble life. True religion teaches that whatever else may be pleasing to God, there is and there can be nothing so pleasing to Him as doing justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly. There are many other great truths in the Bible besides this; but this is the one master truth which runs through from first to last, controls and covers all the rest. And this is the teaching of the New Testament. Through that ideal of human justice, mercy, and reverence, was the Divine nature manifested in Jesus of Nazareth. And it is the end and meaning of the death of Christ. Not by the blood of bulls and goats, but by the eternal spirit of holiness and truth, He offered Himself. It is the end and meaning also of His resurrection. He rose again that we might rise above the follies and sins of the world, that we might die unto sin and live unto righteousness. (Dean Stanley.)
The true sacrifice for sin
Does any one ask, Wherewith shall I come before the Lord? Then we have a cheering answer for him. No such way of acceptance as is suggested in this passage. It is a mistake to imagine that by an increased attention to outward services, and by a devotion to specified duties, he can compensate for the violations or omissions of days gone by. God requireth another sort of service than that of mere outward ceremony. He is to be worshipped in spirit and in truth: He requireth a new heart and a right spirit. Nor can the most painful efforts or arduous instances of self-punishment or self-denial avail. We are too apt to have a low estimate of the sinfulness of sin. It requires a deep sense of the holiness and majesty of God to estimate sin in some degree aright. When we do, we may comprehend more adequately the nature of that precious and costly atone ment of Gods own providing, set forth in Scripture as a sufficient sacrifice and oblation, and satisfaction for the sins of the whole world. We are not competent, in the weakness of our present powers, to comprehend these matters fully. Should the newly awakened sinner ask what sacrifice he shall offer; what self-infliction shall he undergo? we say, No such things are required of thee. Look to the Cross of Christ as the heaven sent remedy for the disease of the soul, and as the Divinely appointed way of reconciliation with God. (J. B. Smith, D. D.)
Outward and inward religion
Does the prophet, in these words, really condemn all outward rites and sacrifices as such? All that the prophet seems to inveigh against was enjoined by the express commands of Almighty God. Neither Micah, nor Isaiah, nor any other prophet, had authority to dispense with the requirements of the Mosaic law. And our blessed Lord came not to destroy the law. The office of the prophets was clearly to prepare the way for a more spiritual religion than the law had given to Israel. Their mission was to perfect, or rather to prepare the way for perfection. And so they disparaged legal ordinances, not as useless or wrong, but because they were imperfect. The law was given for a particular use, to be a schoolmaster to bring men to Christ. But if men made it an end, instead of the way to an end, no wonder that the prophets lifted up their voices in warning against it. You are not necessarily arguing for the total disuse of a thing, because you maintain its proper use against its abuse. Christianity grafted a higher state of things upon what was already in existence. What the prophets say is, in effect, this,–Your sacrifices are nothing in themselves, but connected with the truth they typify and shadow forth, they have a value and dignity. But while you practise injustice, cruelty, and pride, they are utterly valueless in the sight of God. You cannot please God with these alone, unless you are pleasing Him by the discharge of your social and moral duties. The truth for us is, that no attention to the externals of religion can satisfy the demands of our Creator and Redeemer if it be not accompanied with a holy and virtuous life. (J. C. Chambers, M. A.)
God requires what He does
Taking the text as a revelation of the character of the Speaker Himself, we may say that God does in His own economy and sphere what He asks us to do in ours. What does this revelation do?
1. It does away with all ostentatious piety. Many of us would be glad to buy ourselves off from judgment. We may not put the question into words; it is not, therefore, less a question of the soul. What can I buy my liberty for? No amount of oil shall stand between me and release; no number of calves and rams shall for a moment deter me from paying the fine, if so be I can have the arrow drawn out of my heart, the poison withdrawn from my blood. But the Lord will not have all this. He does not want your gaiety but your simplicity; He does not want you to drive up to His door in chariot of gold and with steeds of fire, that he may receive your patronage; He sends word down to you by the first and humblest servant He lights upon,–Go and say all I want is that thou shalt do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with thy God. This will take all the paint off our religion; this will deplete our decoration; this will leave us in ruins as to external appearance; but there are ruins that are true palaces. It will do away with all our ostentation of another kind than that which is merely physical, ornamental, or decorative; it will do away with all our intellectual contributions and displays of patronage in reference to the Cross. The Cross does not want your intellectual homage.
2. This revelation vindicates God from the charge of delighting in animal sacrifices. Does He love to see the smoking hecatomb? No; when He has required blood of the merely animal kind, it has always been symbolically, typically, or prefiguratively; it was a necessary part of the alphabet of spiritual lessons. He must begin His lessons where the scholar can begin. Everything the Lord did require of a physical and external kind was only in a temporary sense, the whole thought of God leading up to spirituality. God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth.
3. This revelation destroys the notion of piety by proxy. My firstborn for my transgressions. We are always willing to make away with other people; we are exceedingly liberal with the lives of others. We philosophise and theorise with admirable serenity, as if we had abundance of leisure in which to contemplate the tragedy of mankind, and we say, If a thousand perish, and ten thousand be saved, the gain is on the side of salvation. No! That is false; that is a misuse of the principle of majorities. There ought to be no man lost. And no man will be lost but the son of perdition. If after the Lord has dealt with a man by His providence and by His Spirit, and by all the mystery of the Cross, there is found in that man nothing but devil, he must go to his own place, and to his own company. But the Lord will do the handling upon a scale we cannot comprehend, and if the Lord gives up any human soul we may well say sadly, Amen. (Joseph Parker, D. D.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 6. Wherewith shall I come before the Lord] Now the people, as defendants, appear; but instead of vindicating themselves, or attempting to dispute what has been alleged against them, they seem at once to plead guilty; and now anxiously inquire how they shall appease the wrath of the Judge, how they shall make atonement for the sins already committed.
Bow myself before the high God] They wish to pray, and to make supplication to their Judge; but how shall they come before him? They have no right to come into his presence. Some offering must be brought; but of what kind, or of what value? Their sin is unprecedented, and usual methods of access will not avail. They are distracted in their minds, and make a variety of proposals to themselves, some rational, some absurd and impossible, and some even sinful.
Shall I come before him with burnt-offerings] This is reasonable, and according to the law; but this will be insufficient.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
In the foregoing part of the chapter you have Gods resolution to have a hearing, Mic 6:1,2, and his plea for himself against an ungrateful people, Mic 6:3-5. Now in this verse you have the result, which is either an unfeigned submission, and justification of Gods just proceedings, made by some of the best of this people, or else an inquiry made by men among them, who did yet retain some opinion of their own integrity; much like those Isa 58:3, they were ready to say, We have offered sacrifices as required, &c.; what would God have us do more? Or else it is an inquiry what the prophet would further direct them to do in this case, with an intimation that they were ready to offer any sacrifices God should require of them. Or else this verse is the prophets supposition, that some among them would be ready to inquire how they should in this case behave themselves, and so this prosopoeia fairly makes way for further direction to this people.
Wherewith? Heb. With what? what preparation shall I make for a due and right address unto God?
Shall I, in the person of all the people, or else in the person of the most thinking among them: this I is the people of the Jews.
Come before the Lord: it is a temple phrase, and contains the solemn attendance on God in his worship; well paraphrased in the Chaldee paraphrase, With what shall I serve before the Lord?
And bow myself before: this is exegetical to the former phrase, When I come to bow myself and worship the Lord, with what shall I appear?
The high God; such was the God of Israel, heaven his throne, the earth his footstool; idols are dunghill gods, our God alone is the God who dwells on high.
Shall I come before him with burnt-offerings? shall these suffice for testimony that I owe my all to God, or appease his displeasure, which justly might devour me as the fire the sacrifice?
With calves of a year old: it is probable this repeats (as is usual in Scripture, to confirm and affect us the more) the thing before mentioned.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
6. Wherewith shall I come before theLord?The people, convicted by the previous appeal of Jehovahto them, ask as if they knew not (compare Mic6:8) what Jehovah requires of them to appease Him, adding thatthey are ready to offer an immense heap of sacrifices, and those themost costly, even to the fruit of their own body.
burnt offerings (Le1:1-17).
calves of a year oldwhichused to be offered for a priest (Lev 9:2;Lev 9:3).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Wherewith shall I come before the Lord,…. These are not the words of the people of Israel God had a controversy with, and now made sensible of their sin, and humbled for it; and willing to appease the Lord, and make it up with him at any rate; for there are such things proposed by them as do by no means suit with persons of such a character, nay, even suppose them to be hypocritical; and much less are they what were put into their mouths by the prophet to say, as some suggest; but they are the words of Balak king of Moab, which, and what follow, are questions he put to Balaam, who had told him that he could do nothing without the Lord, nor anything contrary to his word: now he asks what he must do to get the good will of this Lord; in what manner, and with what he must appear before him, serve and worship him, as the Targum; that so he might have an interest in him, and get him to speak a word to Balaam in his favour, and against Israel; see
Nu 22:8;
[and] bow myself before the high God? the most high God, the God of gods, whose Shechinah or Majesty is in the high heavens, as the Targum: his meaning is, with what he should come, or bring with him, when he paid his homage and obeisance to him, by bowing his body or his knee before him; being willing to do it in the most acceptable manner he could:
shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old? such as he had been used to offer on the high places of Baal to that deity. Sacrifices of this kind prevailed among the Heathens, which they had received by tradition from the times of Adam and Noah; see
Nu 22:41.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Israel cannot deny these gracious acts of its God. The remembrance of them calls to mind the base ingratitude with which it has repaid its God by rebelling against Him; so that it inquires, in Mic 6:6, Mic 6:7, with what it can appease the Lord, i.e., appease His wrath. Mic 6:6. “Wherewith shall I come to meet Jehovah, bow myself before the God of the high place? Shall I come to meet Him with burnt-offerings, with yearling calves? Mic 6:7. Will Jehovah take pleasure in thousands of rams, in ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give up my first-born for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?” As Micah has spoken in Mic 6:3-5 in the name of Jehovah, he now proceeds, in Mic 6:6, Mic 6:7, to let the congregation speak; not, however, by turning directly to God, since it recognises itself as guilty before Him, but by asking the prophet, as the interpreter of the divine will, what it is to do to repair the bond of fellowship which has been rent in pieces by its guilt. does not here mean to anticipate, or come before, but to come to meet, as in Deu 23:5. Coming to meet, however, can only signify humble prostration ( kaphaph ) before the divine majesty. The God of the high place is the God dwelling in the high place (Isa 33:5; Isa 57:15), or enthroned in heaven (Psa 115:3). It is only with sacrifices, the means appointed by God Himself for the maintenance of fellowship with Him, that any man can come to meet Him. These the people offer to bring; and, indeed, burnt-offerings. There is no reference here to sin-offerings, through which disturbed or interrupted fellowship could be restored, by means of the expiation of their sins; because the people had as yet no true knowledge of sin, but were still living under the delusion that they were standing firmly in the covenant with the Lord, which they themselves had practically dissolved. As burnt-offerings, they would bring calves and rams, not because they formed the only material, but because they were the material most usually employed; and, indeed, calves of a year old, because they were regarded as the best, not because no others were allowed to be offered, as Hitzig erroneously maintains; for, according to the law, calves and lambs could be offered in sacrifice even when they were eight days old (Lev 22:27; Exo 22:29). In the case of the calves the value is heightened by the quality, in that of the rams by the quantity: thousands of rams; and also myriads of rivers of oil (for this expression, compare Job 20:17). Oil not only formed part of the daily minchah, but of the minchah generally, which could not be omitted from any burnt-offerings (compare Numbers 15:1-16 with ch. 28 and 29), so that it was offered in very large quantities. Nevertheless, in the consciousness that these sacrifices might not be sufficient, the people would offer the dearest thing of all, viz., the first-born son, as an expiation for their sin. This offer is founded, no doubt, upon the true idea that sacrifice shadows forth the self-surrender of man to God, and that an animal is not a sufficient substitute for a man; but this true idea was not realized by literal (bodily) human sacrifices: on the contrary, it was turned into an ungodly abomination, because the surrender which God desires is that of the spirit, not of the flesh. Israel could and should have learned this, not only from the sacrifice of Isaac required by God (Genesis 22), but also from the law concerning the consecration or sanctification of the first-born (Exo 13:12-13). Hence this offer of the nation shows that it has no true knowledge of the will of its God, that it is still entangled in the heathen delusion, that the wrath of God can be expiated by human sacrifices (cf. 2Ki 3:27; 2Ki 16:3).
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
| Anxiety Respecting the Divine Favour. | B. C. 710. |
6 Wherewith shall I come before the LORD, and bow myself before the high God? shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old? 7 Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? 8 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?
Here is the proposal for accommodation between God and Israel, the parties that were at variance in the beginning of the chapter. Upon the trial, judgment is given against Israel; they are convicted of injustice and ingratitude towards God, the crimes with which they stood charged. Their guilt is too plain to be denied, too great to be excused, and therefore,
I. They express their desires to be at peace with God upon any terms (Mic 6:6; Mic 6:7): Wherewith shall I come before the Lord? Being made sensible of the justice of God’s controversy with them, and dreading the consequences of it, they were inquisitive what they might do to be reconciled to God and to make him their friend. They apply to a proper person, with this enquiry, to the prophet, the Lord’s messenger, by whose ministry they had been convinced. Who so fit to show them their way as he that had made them sensible of their having missed it? And it is observable that each one speaks for himself: Wherewith shall I come? Knowing every one the plague of his own heart, they ask, not, What shall this man do? But, What shall I do? Note, Deep convictions of guilt and wrath will put men upon careful enquiries after peace and pardon, and then, and not till then, there begins to be some hope of them. They enquire wherewith they may come before the Lord, and bow themselves before the high God. They believe there is a God, that he is Jehovah, and that he is the high God, the Most High. Those whose consciences are convinced learn to speak very honourably of God, whom before they spoke slightly of. Now, 1. We know we must come before God; he is the God with whom we have to do; we must come as subjects, to pay our homage to him, as beggars, to ask alms from him, nay, we must come before him, as criminals, to receive our doom from him, must come before him as our Judge. 2. When we come before him we must bow before him; it is our duty to be very humble and reverent in our approaches to him; and, when we come before him, there is no remedy but we must submit; it is to no purpose to contend with him. 3. When we come and bow before him it is our great concern to find favour with him, and to be accepted of him; their enquiry is, What will the Lord be pleased with? Note, All that rightly understand their own interest cannot but be solicitous what they must do to please God, to avoid his displeasure and to obtain his good-will. 4. In order to God’s being pleased with us, our care must be that the sin by which we have displeased him may be taken away, and an atonement made for it. The enquiry here is, What shall I give for my transgression, for the sin of my soul? Note, The transgression we are guilty of is the sin of our soul, for the soul acts it (without the soul’s act it is not sin) and the soul suffers by it; it is the disorder, disease, and defilement of the soul, and threatens to be the death of it: What shall I give for my transgressions? What will be accepted as a satisfaction to his justice, a reparation of his honour? And what will avail to shelter me from his wrath? 5. We must therefore ask, Wherewith may we come before him? We must not appear before the Lord empty. What shall we bring with us? In what manner must we come? In whose name must we come? We have not that in ourselves which will recommend us to him, but must have it from another. What righteousness then shall we appear before him in?
II. They make proposals, such as they are, in order to it. Their enquiry was very good and right, and what we are all concerned to make, but their proposals betray their ignorance, though they show their zeal; let us examine them:–
1. They bid high. They offer, (1.) That which is very rich and costly–thousands of rams. God required one ram for a sin-offering; they proffer flocks of them, their whole stock, will be content to make themselves beggars, so that they may but be at peace with God. They will bring the best they have, the rams, and the most of them, till it comes to thousands. (2.) That which is very dear to them, and which they would be most loth to part with. They could be content to part with their first-born for their transgressions, if that would be accepted as an atonement, and the fruit of their body for the sin of their soul. To those that had become vain in their imaginations this seemed a probable expedient of making satisfaction for sin, because our children are pieces of ourselves; and therefore the heathen sacrificed their children, to appease their offended deities. Note, Those that are thoroughly convinced of sin, of the malignity of it, and of their misery and danger by reason of it, would give all the world, if they had it, for peace and pardon.
2. Yet they do not bid right. It is true some of these things were instituted by the ceremonial law, as the bringing of burnt-offerings to God’s altar, and calves of a year old, rams for sin-offerings, and oil for the meat-offerings; but these alone would not recommend them to God. God had often declared that to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams, that sacrifice and offering he would not; the legal sacrifices had their virtue and value from the institution, and the reference they had to Christ the great propitiation; but otherwise, of themselves, it was impossible that the blood of bulls and goats should take away sin. And as to the other things here mentioned, (1.) Some of them are impracticable things, as rivers of oil, which nature has not provided to feed men’s luxury, but rivers of water to supply men’s necessity. All the proposals of peace but those that are according to the gospel are absurd. One stream of the blood of Christ is worth ten thousand rivers of oil. (2.) Some of them are wicked things, as to give our first-born and the fruit of our body to death, which would but add to the transgression and the sin of the soul. He that hates robbery for burnt-offerings much more hates murder, such murder. What right have we to our first born and the fruit of our body? Do they not belong to God? Are they not his already, and born to him? Are they not sinners by nature, and their lives forfeited upon their own account? How then can they be a ransom for ours? (3.) They are all external things, parts of that bodily exercise which profiteth little, and which could not make the comers thereunto perfect. (4.) They are all insignificant, and insufficient to attain the end proposed; they could not answer the demands of divine justice, nor satisfy the wrong done to God in his honour by sin, nor would they serve in lieu of the sanctification of the heart and the reformation of the life. Men will part with any thing rather than their sins, but they part with nothing to God’s acceptance unless they part with them.
III. God tells them plainly what he demands, and insists upon, from those that would be accepted of him, v. 8. Let their money perish with them that think the pardon of sin and the favour of God may be so purchased; no, God has shown thee, O man! what is good. Here we are told,
1. That God has made a discovery of his mind and will to us, for the rectifying of our mistakes and the direction of our practice. (1.) It is God himself that has shown us what we must do. We need not trouble ourselves to make proposals, the terms are already settled and laid down. He whom we have offended, and to whom we are accountable, has told us upon what conditions he will be reconciled to us. (2.) It is to man that he has shown it, not only to thee, O Israel! but to thee, O man! Gentiles as well as Jews–to men, who are rational creatures, and capable of receiving the discovery, and not to brutes,–to men, for whom a remedy is provided, not to devils, whose case is desperate. What is spoken to all men every where in general, must by faith be applied to ourselves in particular, as if it were spoken to thee, O man! by name, and to no other. (3.) It is a discovery of that which is good, and which the Lord requires of us. He has shown us our end, which we should aim at, in showing us what is good, wherein our true happiness does consist; he has shown us our way in which we must walk towards that end in showing us what he requires of us. There is something which God requires we should do for him and devote to him; and it is good. It is good in itself; there is an innate goodness in moral duties, antecedent to the command; they are not, as ceremonial observances, good because they are commanded, but commanded because they are good, consonant to the eternal rule and reason of good and evil, which are unalterable. It has likewise a direct tendency to our good; our conformity to it is not only the condition of our future happiness, but is a great expedient of our present happiness; in keeping God’s commandments there is great reward, as well as after keeping them. (4.) It is shown us. God has not only made it known, but made it plain; he has discovered it to us with such convincing evidence as amounts to a demonstration. Lo this, we have searched it, so it is.
2. What that discovery is. The good which God requires of us is not the paying of a price for the pardon of sin and acceptance with God, but doing the duty which is the condition of our interest in the pardon purchased. (1.) We must do justly, must render to all their due, according as our relation and obligation to them are; we must do wrong to none, but do right to all, in their bodies, goods, and good name. (2.) We must love mercy; we must delight in it, as our God does, must be glad of an opportunity to do good, and do it cheerfully. Justice is put before mercy, for we must not give that in alms which is wrongfully got, or with which our debts should be paid. God hates robbery for a burnt-offering. (3.) We must walk humbly with our God. This includes all the duties of the first table, as the two former include all the duties of the second table. We must take the Lord for our God in covenant, must attend on him and adhere to him as ours, and must make it our constant care and business to please him. Enoch’s walking with God is interpreted (Heb. xi. 5) his pleasing God. We must, in the whole course of our conversation, conform ourselves to the will of God, keep up our communion with God, and study to approve ourselves to him in our integrity; and this we must do humbly (submitting our understandings to the truths of God and our will to his precepts and providences); we must humble ourselves to walk with God (so the margin reads it); every thought within us must be brought down, to be brought into obedience to God, if we would walk comfortably with him. This is that which God requires, and without which the most costly services are vain oblations; this is more than all burnt-offerings and sacrifices.
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
The Prophet now inquires, as in the name of the people, what was necessary to be done: and he takes these two principles as granted, — that the people were without any excuse, and were forced to confess their sin, — and that God had hitherto contended with them for no other end and with no other design, but to restore the people to the right way; for if his purpose had only been to condemn the people for their wickedness, there would have been no need of these questions. But the Prophet shows what has been often stated before, — that whenever God chides his people, he opens to them the door of hope as to their salvation, provided those who have sinned repent. As this then must have been well known to all the Jews, the Prophet here asks, as with their mouth, what was to be done.
He thus introduces them as inquiring, With what shall I approach Jehovah, and bow down before the high God? (166)
Shall I approach him with burnt-offerings, (167) with calves of a year old? But at the same time there is no doubt, but that he indirectly refers to that foolish notion, by which men for the most part deceive themselves; for when they are proved guilty, they indeed know that there is no remedy for them, except they reconcile themselves to God: but yet they pretend by circuitous courses to approach God, while they desire to be ever far away from him. This dissimulation has always prevailed in the world, and it now prevails: they see that they whom God convicts and their own conscience condemns, cannot rest in safety. Hence they wish to discharge their duty towards God as a matter of necessity; but at the same time they seek some fictitious modes of reconciliation, as though it were enough to flatter God, as though he could be pacified like a child with some frivolous trifles. The Prophet therefore detects this wickedness, which had ever been too prevalent among them; as though he said, — “I see what ye are about to say; for there is no need of contending longer; as ye have nothing to object to God, and he has things innumerable to allege against you: ye are then more than condemned; but yet ye will perhaps say what has been usually alleged by you and always by hypocrites, even this, — ‘We wish to be reconciled to God, and we confess our faults and seek pardon; let God in the meantime show himself ready to be reconciled to us, while we offer to him sacrifices.’” There is then no doubt, but that the Prophet derided this folly, which has ever prevailed in the hearts of men: they ever think that God can be pacified by outward rites and frivolous performances.
He afterwards adds, He has proclaimed to thee what is good. The Prophet reproves the hypocrisy by which the Jews willfully deceived themselves, as though he said, — “Ye indeed pretend some concern for religion when ye approach God in prayer; but this your religion is nothing; it is nothing else than shamelessly to dissemble; for ye sin not either through ignorance or misconception, but ye treat God with mockery.” — How so? “Because the Law teaches you with sufficient clearness what God requires from you; does it not plainly enough show you what is true reconciliation? But ye close your eyes to the teaching of the Law, and in the meantime pretend ignorance. This is extremely childish. God has already proclaimed what is good, even to do judgment, to love kindness and to walk humbly with God.” We now perceive the design of the Prophet.
As then he says here, With what shall I appear before God? we must bear in mind, that as soon as God condescends to enter into trial with men, the cause is decided; for it is no doubtful contention. When men litigate one with another, there is no cause so good but what an opposite party can darken by sophistries. But the Prophet intimates that men lose all their labor by evasions, when God summons them to a trial. This is one thing. He also shows what deep roots hypocrisy has in the hearts of all, for they ever deceive themselves and try to deceive God. How comes it that men, proved guilty, do not immediately and in the right way retake themselves to God, but that they ever seek windings? How is this? It is not because they have any doubt about what is right except they willfully deceive themselves, but because they dissemble and willfully seek the subterfuges of error. It hence appears that men perversely go astray when ever they repent not as they ought, and bring not to God a real integrity of heart. And hence it also appears that the whole world which continues in its superstitions is without excuse. For if we scrutinize the intentions of men, it will at length come to this, — that men carefully and anxiously seek various superstitions, because they are unwilling to come before God and to devote themselves to him, without some dissembling and hypocrisy. Since it is so, certain it is, that all who desire to pacify God with their own ceremonies and other trifles cannot by any pretext escape. What is said here is at the same time strictly addressed to the Jews, who had been instructed in the teaching of the Law: and such are the Papists of this day; though they spread forth specious pretenses to excuse their ignorance, they may yet be refuted by this one fact, — that God has prescribed clearly and distinctly enough what he requires: but they wish to be ignorant of this; hence their error is at all times wilful. We ought especially to notice this in the words of the Prophet; but I cannot proceed farther now.
(166) Literally, “the god of the height,” that is, of heaven, אלהי מרום. See Psa 68:18
(167) This clause is omitted in my Latin copy; and viewing it as an accidental omission, I have supplied it. — Ed.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(6) Wherewith shall I come . . .?This has been taken by some commentators as Balaks question to Balaam, who gives his reply in Mic. 6:8. Dean Stanley writes, after his picturesque manner, of the short dialogue preserved, not by the Mosaic historian, but by the Prophet Micah, which at once exhibits the agony of the king and the lofty conceptions of the great Seer (Jewish Church, Lect. 8). But it is rather in harmony with the context to understand it as the alarmed and conscience-stricken reply of the Jewish people impersonated in some earnest speaker to the pleading brought before them by the prophet in the Lords name.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
Mic 6:6. Wherewith shall I come, &c. This is the answer of the people; they offer nothing in their justification; they oppose nothing to what the Lord hath said; for what could they say against a God who had convinced them in so strong and affecting a manner? They declare themselves ready to offer any expiatory sacrifice, however costly, if that would propitiate the displeasure of the Almighty, and avert his judgments; representing exactly the temper of hypocrites and habitual sinners, who hope to obtain God’s favour by performing the external duties of religion.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
DISCOURSE: 1213
THE SUM OF PRACTICAL RELIGION
Mic 6:6-8. Wherewith shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before the high God? Shall I come before him with burnt-offerings, with calves of a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my first-born for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? 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?
IN human judicatories, offenders are arraigned, witnesses examined, sentence passed, in order to the punishment of crimes. But God has raised a tribunal, to which he summons his offending creatures, in order that when their mouths are stopped, and they plead guilty before him, he may pardon their iniquity, and restore them to his favour.
We have, in the chapter before us, God bringing a charge against his people, and calling upon the hills and mountains to judge between them. He first challenges them to allege any thing against him that can in any respect excuse their disobedience, or extenuate their guilt: and, when they are unable to do it, he proceeds to set forth his conduct towards them as the greatest aggravation of their guilt. He instances this in two particulars; in his exertions for them when he brought them out of Egypt into the wilderness; and in his kindness to them just when he was bringing them out of the wilderness into Canaan; when he overruled the evil purposes of Balaam, and constrained him to bless those whom he had been hired to curse. This having produced on some the desired effect, a repenting Jew is introduced, anxiously inquiring how he may be reconciled to his Maker, and serve him acceptably in future? and God, instead of inexorably consigning him over to the punishment he has deserved, prescribes to him the way wherein he must walk, and wherein he shall obtain the favour he desires.
Some have understood these words as proceeding from Balak and Balaam: but Balak had no such wish to please God: on the contrary, he wanted nothing so much as to destroy his people: and Balaam expressed no such solicitude to lead Balak to a holy life; but, on the contrary, taught him how to ruin the souls of Gods people, by tempting them to an illicit intercourse with the daughters of Midian.
The view before given seems to be the more just: and agreeably to it we shall consider,
I.
The inquiries of an awakened soul
A person convinced of his lost estate, cannot but desire to obtain peace with God
[The most abandoned sinner, previous to the illumination of his mind by the Spirit of God, will be regardless of his state, and unconcerned about the account which he must give of himself at the judgment-seat of Christ. But, when once his eyes are opened to see his guilt and danger, he can no longer be indifferent about his eternal interests: he feels that it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of God; and, however hardened he may have before been, he will cry out with agony of mind, What shall I do to be saved [Note: Act 2:37; Act 16:30.]? ]
But the ways he devises for his restoration to the Divine favour are invariably erroneous and absurd
[The Jew, like all others of his own nation, first proposes a compliance with the ordinances of the ceremonial law; then, if that will not suffice, he will multiply them, so us to offer, if possible, thousands of rams instead of one, and ten thousands of rivers of oil, instead of about one or three pints, prescribed for the meat-offerings [Note: Lev 14:10; Lev 14:21. Exo 29:40.]. If this be not of sufficient value, he is ready to offer even his first-born son; determined, that neither the heathen deities shall be more honoured than Jehovah [Note: 2Ki 17:16-17.], nor Abraham himself perform a more self-denying act of obedience than he [Note: This idea will account for such a proposal in the mouth of a penitent Jew. Gen 22:2; Gen 22:16.].
Such are the means whereby men still hope to recommend themselves to the Divine favour. They will multiply rites and observances far beyond what God himself has required: they will very readily submit to penances, and mortifications, and all manner of painful discipline: but to part with their bosom lusts, and to obtain a thorough renovation of their souls, they have no wish: they rest in external services; and substitute them in the place of an inward change of heart, and a thorough conversion unto God. And though we are not shocked at such views, as we are at the proposals of the Jew, yet are they, in fact, as derogatory from the Divine honour, and as unsuitable to the end proposed, as the grosser conceptions that are expressed in the text. The inquiries may be considered as twofold; first, How shall I obtain reconciliation with God? and next, How shall I walk so as to please him? Now is there any thing in external ceremonies, of whatever kind they be, calculated to answer either of these ends? Can superficial penitence, and ritual observances, worthless as they are in themselves, and still further debased by a presumptuous affiance in them, stand in the place of deep contrition, humble faith, and universal obedience? ]
Their futility will appear from,
II.
The answer of God to them
God has shewn to every person what is good
[It is true that God did require offerings and sacrifices under the law: but he did not require them in lieu of obedience [Note: Isa 1:10-17.]; nor in preference to obedience [Note: 1Sa 15:22.]; nor at all for their own sake [Note: Psa 50:4-14. (Here is the same controversy as in the text,) and Psa 51:16-17.]: when used in any of these views, they were even hateful in his sight [Note: Amo 5:21-24. Isa 66:3.]: and on account of the abuse made of them, he calls them statutes which were not good [Note: Eze 20:25.]. He had declared by Moses, that the thing which alone he required, and to which all the ceremonial ordinances were subservient, was, the obedience of a humble and devoted heart [Note: Deu 10:12-13.].]
And the things specified in the text have an exclusive title to that character
[Our blessed Lord, apparently referring to these words, throws the true light upon them [Note: Mat 21:23.]. He shews that the Pharisees substituted ceremonial in the place of moral obedience: and that, while punctilious and exact in outward observances, they neglected those things which God principally required, judgment, mercy, and faith. These are the very things mentioned in the text: for the walking humbly with God evidently implies a humble and believing dependence on him.
Behold, then, what the Lord our God requires of us. First, we must do justly. It is in vain to think that we can ever please God, if we be not honest and just in all our dealings. Truth in our words, and integrity in our actions, are so essential, that a man may as well call himself an angel as a Christian, if he be allowedly defective in either. An adulterous Christian, or a murderous Christian, is not a greater contradiction in terms, than a lying Christian or a dishonest Christian. Hear this, ye professors of religion; and examine whether in your several trades and callings a dependence can be placed upon your word; and whether you are careful to keep a conscience void of offence towards God and man: and let it never be said of you, They will talk about religion indeed, but they will lie and cheat as much, and perhaps more, than other people: a man of the world is more to be depended on than they. O, if you give occasion for such a scandal as this, cast off your religion at once; or else get it purified from these base and damning defilements.
Next, We must love mercy. Justice admits of no degrees: we must be just or unjust; and therefore we are told to do justice. But mercy has gradations that are of an unlimited extent: and therefore we must love mercy; or we shall never attain such a measure of it as will adorn our holy profession. Mercy includes every act and office of love, at least as far as relates to the distressed, the indigent, or the offending. And this disposition must be cultivated in all its branches with assiduity and delight. This constitutes the image of God upon the soul: and therefore we are exhorted to be merciful, even as our Father which is in heaven is merciful. Indeed if we shut up our bowels of compassion from a needy brother, all pretences to the love of God are vain and hypocritical [Note: 1Jn 3:17.]. Hear then again, ye who profess godliness; and bring your experience to the touchstone. See whether you are filled with tenderness and compassion towards the bodies and souls of your fellow-creatures? See whether you not only do a kindness when called upon, but whether you devise liberal things, and deny yourselves with a view to the more extensive exercise of benevolence? Look at a professor that is hard-hearted, griping, covetous, vindictive; what a monster does he appear! How unlike to that adorable Jesus who laid down even his own life for his very enemies! Are there such people in the world? O tell it not in Gath, publish it not in the streets of Askclon.
Finally, We must walk humbly with God. We have already shewn the construction which our Lord puts upon these words, and that without any force, they include the most essential doctrines of the Gospel. Indeed this requisition comprehends all our duty to God, as the two foregoing do our duty to our neighbour. Now our duty to God is, to walk with him, as Enoch and Noah did; and to walk humbly with him in a believing dependence on his grace to help us, and his mercy to pardon our defects. Without this, our attention to relative duties will be of no avail. This chiefly distinguishes the true Christian from a proud self-righteous Pharisee. There certainly are people of the world, who are eminent for their honour and integrity, their benevolence and liberality: but when we inquire into their secret walk with God, they are found miserably defective; and especially with respect to the humiliation of their souls, and their exercise of faith on Christ. It is in the relative duties, that the hypocrite fails; and in the duties to God, that the defects of the moralist appear. But both of them, though in different ways, are departed from God, and in the high road to destruction. Examine yourselves, therefore, ye decent and externally blameless characters; search and try how it is with you in your secret chambers; see whether you be not habitually and allowedly wanting in respect of brokenness of heart, and a steadfast cleaving unto Christ? And remember, that, while you cherish such pride and self-sufficiency in your hearts, you are as far from heaven as the most abandoned profligate; for God will resist the proud, and give grace only to the humble [Note: Jam 4:6.].]
We shall conclude with a word of caution,
1.
To the careless and secure
[We hear this passage quoted by many, with a view to subvert all the fundamental doctrines of Christianity: Tell us not, say they, about regeneration, or faith in Christ: this is my religion; Do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God. But can it be supposed that the prophet intended to contradict every other part of the inspired writings, and to tell us that morality was all, and Christ nothing? It has already appeared, from the words of Christ himself (wherein he seems to have referred to the very passage before us,) that faith is one of the weightier matters of the law; and that an acknowledging of ourselves to be lost sinners, and a believing in Christ for salvation, are absolutely essential to a humble walk with God. Let not then this mistaken confidence deceive you. Rest not in such an interpretation of the textas directly opposes the whole tenour of Scripture. But, if you will persist in this perversion of Gods word, inquire, Whether you have perfectly, and at all times, complied with these directions? and know, that if you have not, you shall be judged out of your own mouth, and be condemned by your own law.]
2.
To those who are concerned about their souls
[As you must shortly appear before God, it becomes you to inquire, wherewith you shall come before him with acceptance? and in answering this important question, there are two things against which you must guard with equal care, namely, a self-righteous dependence on your own works, and a presumptuous hope of salvation, while you live in any known sin, whether of commission or of omission. Nothing but Christs obedience unto death can form a proper ground of your hope: yet nothing but a life wholly devoted to God can evidence your interest in Christ. If your faith be productive of good works, it is lively, and saving; if not, it is dead, worthless, delusive. Seek then a humble faith in order to a holy life. If ye will offer sacrifices, let them be those of a broken and contrite spirit: if ye will give a first-born for your transgression, let it be Gods First-born, yea, his only-begotten Son. But never forget that your duties to God and to your neighbour are of equal and immutable obligation; and that according to your performance or neglect of them you will be acquitted or condemned at the last day.]
Fuente: Charles Simeon’s Horae Homileticae (Old and New Testaments)
This is that memorable passage in scripture which hath given rise to numberless opinions, both in the moral and religious world, and by the perversion of it, untaught by God the Holy Ghost, hath produced endless disputes among the carnal and worldly minded in all ages. I beg the Reader’s indulgence on this account, to be somewhat more particular upon it than I otherwise should have done; and when I have finished, I shall leave the whole before him that he may form his own judgment; begging of him first, as I now do, to seek the light and instruction of that Almighty Spirit which is promised, and whose office it is to guide into all truth! And first I should observe, that some have thought that the enquiry, wherewith shall I come before the Lord, and the proposal of burnt offerings, and the like, is not from Israel, but from Balak. They that are of this opinion, conceive, that before Balak and Balaam parted, the former put such questions as in these verses, and Balaam gave the answer as in the eighth verse. And the reason such writers have assigned, is, that Israel never could be so ignorant as to ask, whether they should offer human sacrifices, as in the gift of their first born for the sin of their soul. But I confess that this kind of reasoning doth not appear satisfactory to me. We know that in the case of Israel, at the very time of Balaam’s hiring himself to curse the people of God, that by the advice of that infamous enchanter, Moab got Israel, by means of their daughters, to join the Moabites in their sacrifices. See Num 25:1-3 . Compared with Rev 2:14 . I cannot but think therefore, that the enquiry is not Balak, but Israel. And I humbly conceive that it corresponds to the anxious enquiry of every soul, when first brought under the awakening distress of his own heart concerning sin, and before God the Holy Ghost hath brought him savingly acquainted with the Lord Jesus Christ. Reader! let us accept the inquiry in this light; and now attend to the answer. He hath showed 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? that is, say some, in every department of life to do the just, the honest, the upright part; to be merciful according to a man’s ability, in acts of alms-giving, and the like; and to observe an humble reverence towards God. This, say they, is the sum and substance of all moral and religious obligations. But I bless God, that I have not so learned Christ. For on this presumption, the words of the Lord Jesus Christ would be inverted, and instead of making the love of God the first, and grand concern; and causing the second, which is the love of our neighbor, to arise out of it; the love of men in this sense would become the first, and the love of God the last, and least. And did men attend to the plain sense of scripture, and not the presumptuous reasoning of their own minds, they would discover that those acts here spoken of, in doing justice, loving mercy, and walking humbly, are expressly said to be with God, that is, with an eye to Him, and serving Him in all. And if we thus accept this memorable passage of scripture, and explain it under the terms of the Gospel, the sense of it will be as plain and obvious as need be. Reader! you and I shall indeed do justly with our God, if we confess that in ourselves, by reason of sin, we justly deserve his wrath and indignation, having broken all his righteous laws. We shall indeed love mercy, if the Lord Jesus Christ be the mercy we love, who is himself the mercy promised; (Luk 1:72 .) and in his own person, blood, and righteousness, comprehends the whole of mercy and salvation. And we shall indeed walk humbly with our God, while from a daily sense of sin, and from feeling the workings of corruption within, we walk as those, who in the moment they seek mercy, constantly acknowledge their total undeservings of it. This is indeed to walk humbly with our God, when we make a free and full confession of all sin, and subscribe as fully and freely to the rights of God’s justice. It is called in scripture, accepting the punishment of our iniquity. See Lev 26:40-41 . And it is also said to be justifying the divine government, in condemning ourselves. So did David. Psa 51:4 . If, to the anxious inquiry in this memorable passage, we thus interpret scripture, according to the teaching of God the Holy Ghost. See Joh 16:8-11 . And under the humblings of the soul we do the first act of justice to the first of Beings, in acknowledging ourselves to be virtually nothing but sin; and in the consciousness of this most unquestionable truth, we so love mercy, as to accept on our bended knees in transports of rejoicing, the Lord Jesus Christ, as the whole of our salvation; then will follow all the blessed effects in walking humbly with God, and in love, justice, and charity with men. But to suppose that this blessed passage of scripture refers only, or even principally to the second branch of duties, while overlooking, or only slightly regarding the first, is, according to my views of the word of God, sadly perverting the whole purport of scripture. May the Lord be the teacher of him that writes, and him that reads, that to both may be given a right understanding in all things. Amen.
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Mic 6:6 Wherewith shall I come before the LORD, [and] bow myself before the high God? shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old?
Ver. 6. Wherewith shall I come before the Lord? ] This is vox populi, the voice of the people now convinced in part; or at least of some one for them. Praestat herbam dare quam turpiter pugnare: Better yield than disgracefully hold out the contest. God, say they, hath the better of us; neither need he now call upon heaven and earth to arbitrate, nor on the mountains and strong foundations to hear the quarrel, for we are self-condemned, Tit 3:11 . Our own consciences read the sentence against us, we have deserved to be destroyed; but O, what may we do to avert and avoid his wrath? “what shall we do that we might work the works of God?” Joh 6:28 . Lo, this is the guise of graceless men; fain they would pacify God, and work themselves into his grace and favour by ceremonies and frivolous businesses; yea, they offer largely for a dispensation to live in their sins, which they had as lief be knocked on the head as part with. Interea per flexuosos circuitus fingunt se ad Deum accedere, a quo tamen semper cupiant esse remoti, saith Calvin; they fetch a compass about God, but care not to come near him. Heaven they would either steal if they could, or buy at any hand, if they might; fain would they pass e coeno ad coelum, a deliciis ad delicias, from Delilah’s lap to Abraham’s bosom; fain they would (as one saith) dance with the devil all day, and then sup with Christ at night. They seem here very inquisitive and solicitous about their soul’s health; they give the half turn, sed ad Deum usque non revertuntur, but they return not even to God; like a horse in a mill, they move much, but remove not at all; like those silly women, 2Ti 3:6-7 , or as ants that run to and fro about a mole hill, but grow not greater.
And bow myself before the high God
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, &c.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Mic 6:6-8
6With what shall I come to the LORD
And bow myself before the God on high?
Shall I come to Him with burnt offerings,
With yearling calves?
7Does the Lord take delight in thousands of rams,
In ten thousand rivers of oil?
Shall I present my first-born for my rebellious acts,
The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
8He has told you, O man, what is good;
And what does the Lord require of you
But to do justice, to love kindness,
And to walk humbly with your God?
Mic 6:6-7 In Mic 6:6-7 the literary form of diatribe (i.e., a supposed objector) is used. The prophet uses a supposed collective person to voice the false views which were commonly held by the people of Judah. They thought God was being unfair to them and that He only wanted more sacrifices.
Mic 6:6
NASBthe God on high
NKJVthe High God
NRSVGod on high
TEVthe God of heaven
NJBGod All-high
This (BDB 43, CONSTRUCT BDB 928) is metaphorical for the Most High God or exalted God (cf. Psa 99:2; Psa 113:4; Psa 38:6; Isa 57:15).
yearling calves These were unblemished calves used for sacrifice from the age of eight days to one year (cf. Lev 9:3; Lev 22:27).
Mic 6:7 in thousands of rams. . .rivers of oil The people are (1) charging God of being unreasonable in His requirements. However, God never asked for these things. They reflect pagan worship practices. Or (2) on some national occasions large numbers of sacrifices are given (i.e., dedication of Solomon’s temple, e.g., 1Ki 8:63). Could this representative speaker be talking of an event of national repentance (i.e., ritual sacrifice)?
first-born. . .fruit of my body Is this a purposeful distortion (i.e., hyperbole) or a sincere misunderstanding of Genesis 22 or Exo 13:2-12? There are several places in the Mosaic Law where human sacrifice is condemned (cf. Lev 18:21; Lev 20:2-5; Deu 12:31; Deu 18:10; Psa 106:37; Jer 7:31).
It is possible that God’s people had become so spiritually confused that they attempted to worship YHWH in the form of Molech, the fertility fire god of Ammon (see Special Topic: Molech , cf. Lev 18:21; Lev 20:2-5; 1Ki 11:7; 2Ki 3:27; 2Ki 16:3; 2Ki 17:17; 2Ki 21:6; 2Ki 23:10; Jer 32:35; Amo 5:26; Act 7:43).
God’s people attempted to save the nation by offering an innocent one (child). In some way they had logically extended the sacrificial system (cf. Leviticus 1-7) in an inappropriate direction. However, it is this same concept that is behind Genesis 22 and Calvary (cf. Mar 10:45; 2Co 5:21).
Mic 6:8 He has told you The VERB (BDB 616, KB 665) is a Hiphil PERFECT and may reflect Mic 6:4. God had provided a revelation of His character and will (esp. as it related to sacrifice, cf. 1Sa 15:22; Psa 51:16-17; Isa 1:11-17; Hos 6:5-6). This verse seems to reflect the comment of Micah.
O, man This VOCATIVE is addressing the idolatrous covenant people of Judah. This verse is not addressing how Gentiles might be saved (i.e., works righteousness), but how covenant people must live in grateful response to God’s forgiveness (which in the OT was symbolized as the sacrifice of an innocent animal cf. Joh 1:29; 2Co 5:21). For a good brief discussion of this topic see Hard Sayings of the Bible, pp. 336-337.
what is good This verse is the most famous saying of Micah. It refers to the priority of loving, interpersonal relationships on a high level of care and love (cf. Psa 14:1; Psa 14:3; Psa 37:3; Psa 51:17; Hos 12:6 and described in Psa 15:2-5), not cultic performance (i.e., sacrifice) only (cf. Isa 1:13; Amo 5:21-23). This verse is a wonderful definition of what is good (BDB 373 II) in God’s eyes (cf. Mic 3:2; Isa 1:17; Isa 5:20; Amo 5:14-15).
require This VERB (BDB 205, KB 233) is a Qal ACTIVE PARTICIPLE, which represents continuous action. The term means to demand or ask for (e.g., Deu 18:19; Deu 23:21).
justice In this context justice (BDB 1048) refers to social fairness, which is discussed in Mic 6:9-11. The OT knows no distinction between the secular and the sacred! All of life is sacred! See note at Mic 3:1.
There is a series of three Qal INFINITIVE CONSTRUCTS:
1. Do justice (BDB 793, KB 889)
2. Love kindness (BDB 12, KB 17)
3. Walk humbly (BDB 229, KB 246)
The word humbly (BDB 857, KB 1039) is an INFINITIVE ABSOLUTE.
Biblical faith affects every aspect of daily life. Faith is a lifestyle, not just a theology or creed. The divine covenant gift of eternal life (i.e., the restoration of the image and likeness of God lost in the fall) has observable characteristics (both in relation to God and other humans). This verse is one of the best in the OT describing these characteristics.
love kindness This is the powerful covenant word hesed (BDB 338). It refers to God’s covenant loyalty. It reflects God’s sacrificial, no-strings-attached, love. I think this term, in many ways, is analogous in meaning to the NT agape. See Special Topic: Lovingkindness (hesed) .
walk humbly This is an acknowledgment of human need (i.e., possible meaning of this rare word humble, BDB 557, cf. Pro 11:2) and God’s provision (Mosaic covenant requirements). Ritual without the proper attitude (cf. Isa 29:13 vs. Isa 57:15 and Isa 66:2 d) is an abomination (cf. 1Sa 15:22; Mat 23:23). Walk in the Bible is (1) a metaphor of identification with someone (e.g., Gen 5:24; Gen 6:9; Job 34:8; Psa 1:1; Mal 2:6) and/or (2) a metaphor for daily living (cf. Eph 4:1; Eph 4:17; Eph 5:2; Eph 5:15). Biblical faith is daily, not weekly or annually, personal relationship directed toward God and other human beings!
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
the high God = God on high.
high. Hebrew. marom; not Elyon.
God. Hebrew. Elohim. App-4.
burnt offerings. See App-43.
of a year old. Reference to Pentateuch (Lev 9:3). App-92.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Wherewith: 2Sa 21:3, Mat 19:16, Luk 10:25, Joh 6:26, Act 2:37, Act 16:30, Rom 10:2, Rom 10:3
bow: Psa 22:29, Psa 95:6, Eph 3:14
the high: Gen 14:18-22, Dan 3:26, Dan 4:9, Dan 5:18, Dan 5:21, Mar 5:7, Act 16:17
with: Lev 1:3-17, Num 23:1-4, Num 23:14, Num 23:15, Num 23:29, Num 23:30, Heb 10:4-10
of a year old: Heb. sons of a year, Exo 12:5
Reciprocal: Gen 14:19 – high Gen 22:12 – Lay Gen 24:26 – General Lev 1:5 – kill 1Sa 6:2 – wherewith 1Sa 13:1 – reigned one year 1Sa 15:22 – Hath the Lord 1Ki 3:4 – a thousand 2Ch 35:9 – gave Psa 46:4 – most Psa 50:9 – General Psa 56:2 – most Pro 21:3 – General Isa 29:1 – kill Isa 40:16 – nor Jer 6:20 – To what Hos 5:6 – go Hos 6:6 – I desired Amo 5:22 – offer Jon 1:11 – What Mic 6:1 – Arise Zec 7:7 – cried Mat 9:13 – I will Mat 11:28 – all Mat 12:7 – I will Mar 12:33 – is more Heb 7:1 – the most
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Mic 6:6. This and the following verse sound like a penitent and complete confession on the part of Israel for the sins of the nation. It doubtless might have been the sincere senti-ments of some individuals in the nation, but it certainly was not an expression of the nation as a whole. I understand the passage to be the prophet’s way of showing what should have been the attitude manifested, and my comments will be made on that basis. The nation as a whole had become so corrupt, that it was inconsistent to come witli the outward rituals of animal sacrifices. Such for-malities had been ordained by the law of Moses and were right in themselves, but whem they were performed in con-nection with so much abomination as these leaders practiced, the whole service was displeasing to God and he rejected it all. See the long note offered with the comments on Isa 1:10 in volume 3 of this Commentary.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Mic 6:6-7. Wherewith shall I come before the Lord After the preceding reproof of the peoples ingratitude, they are here introduced as anxiously inquiring how they may propitiate Gods displeasure, and avert his judgments. They intimate that they are ready to offer any expiatory sacrifices, though never so costly, for that purpose. Shall I come before him with burnt-offerings, &c. Will God accept of the ordinary sacrifices, such as we have offered on other occasions, as an atonement for sin? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, &c. With a prodigious number; or ten thousands of rivers of oil Were it possible to give them? Doth he expect more costly sacrifices than ordinary? We are ready, if that will appease him, to offer up to him multitudes of rams, and to add meat-offerings, prepared with oil, in proportion, though it should cost us an immeasurable quantity of that article. Shall I give my firstborn, &c. The dearest of my offspring, or any other of my children, to Jehovah, by way of atonement for my transgression? It is well known that the Phenicians, and their descendants the Carthaginians, sacrificed their children to Saturn or Molech, and in their great dangers they were wont to offer the dearest of them. And some of the idolatrous Jews and Israelites imitated this horrid practice: see note on Lev 18:21, where God in a solemn manner prohibits it, as he frequently does elsewhere. These two verses give us an exact description of the character of hypocrites and habitual sinners, who hope to obtain Gods favour by performing certain external ceremonies; and are willing to purchase their own pardon upon any terms, except that of reforming their lives.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
6:6 Wherewith {e} shall I come before the LORD, [and] bow myself before the high God? shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old?
(e) Thus the people by hypocrisy ask how to please God, and are content to offer sacrifices, but will not change their lives.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
B. Micah’s response for the Israelites 6:6-8
In this pericope Micah responded to God’s goodness, just reviewed, as the Israelites should have responded. His was the reasonable response in view of Yahweh’s loyal love for His people (cf. Rom 12:1-2).
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
The prophet, for His people, asked himself what offering He should bring to the exalted Lord in heaven that would be appropriate in view of Yahweh’s mercies to the Israelites throughout their history. Would burnt offerings of year-old calves be suitable, since they were the very best offerings and expressed the worshipper’s total personal dedication to Yahweh (cf. Lev 9:2-3; Lev 22:27)?