Mapping Micah

 

koot van wyk (DLitt et Phil; ThD)

Visiting Professor

Kyungpook National University

Sangju Campus

South Korea

Conjoint lecturer of Avondale College

Australia

23 June 2012

 

       To understand Micah properly there are a number of things necessary that the person will not do:

 

a. Do not read Micah preteristically, that is, everything the prophet said was for his own times. Words like "forever" etc. in Micah 4:7 will not make sense.

b. Do not design one's own scenarios without some form of backing from other previous readers and interpreters. Science-fictional reading of Micah will not work.

c. Read the book a couple of times.

d. Study the order of End-time events of Adventists and charts of it.

        A brief simple order will be given since it is the biblical doctrinal charts of the End-time events:

- End of 2300 years (year for day principle) ending in 1844.

- 1844 is beginning of great Heavenly Event

- Heavenly Event takes place in the Sanctuary

- It is the beginning of the Investigative Judgment of the saints (Daniel 7 with the Son of Man coming to the Ancient of Days).

- Simultaneously with the Investigative Judgment will be Deceptive strategies of Satan.

- God's Remant members will be deceived.

- There is a great apostacy.

- Great leaders will fall away.

- Latter Rain event.

- Sealing Time or making saints perfect.

- Time of Trouble or Time of Jacob's Trouble.

- Second Coming as rescue mission.

- Millennium or 1000 years of confirmation judgment.

- Hell.

- Eternity starts for all entities. History is history.

        This brief framework is necessary to read the prophets of the Old Testament, otherwise the reader will get lost.

        How do I know I have a case of the End-time scenario mentioned supra?

        When there is a reference to the word "forever" or "never" or "always", one can know that it is no longer historical but falls in the domain of Eternity when history is history.

        At the end of 2300 years that Daniel saw in his vision in Daniel 8:14 he said that he could see the Sanctuary "shall be justified" nitzdaq. The Sanctuary is not the earthly sanctuary. The starting point for the counting of the 2300 years is given by the angel as the time 457 by Ezra and that brings us to 1844 for the Great Event. As Hebrew expert Prof. George Bush saidto William Miller after the disappointment of 1844 when Jesus did not come as Miller wrongly thought He would, you had no choice to make this assumption since you are standing on the shoulders of great exegetes before you who did the same. But, although wrong, Miller was right. Something happened in Heaven in 1844 and that is the Sanctuary Message, Jesus as High-Priest entering the Most Holy to function as Advocate when the Books of Heaven for the saints are opened to be asked by other heavenly beings why saved humanity has a right to enter heaven. Of course the nail-marks in the Advocate's Hands and their faith in Him close the case against them. They passed the exam. This ongoing event is called the Investigative Judgment. God does not do things in secrecy. He does not need such an event but created it for the sake of sharing His open approach to all heavenly beings. That is why a 1000 years in heaven is allocated between the Second Coming and the Hell, in order to allow earthly beings to confirm the judgment against their love-ones. That is why the Bible says He will wipe away the tears. It also says that we will sit with Christ on His throne. His compassion will encourage us and uplift us during this sad period.

Micah saw all this also. He saw the Lord in His Holy Temple and said: "let the Lord God be a witness to you, the Lord from His Holy Temple" (Micah 1:2).

        Daniel saw that the Antichrist that was operative before 1844 for a period of 1260 years between 538 and 1798, when it received the "deadly wound" mentioned in Revelation 13:3, that it was in Daniel 8:11 actually continuing a role that Satan had, and by switching from feminine (horn) to masculine (Satan) in verse 11, Daniel saw the action of Satan against Christ and His angels, and how Satan magnified himself against Christ, tampering with the tamid or continual offering of Christ efficacy of salvation (by substituting it with his own device of bread becoming real Christ and wine becoming real blood of Christ placing salvation only in his own hand) and lastly, threw down the mekon (niche) of His Sanctuary (miqdasho).

        This word mekon or niche in the Sanctuary is very important, since Micah saw it two centuries before Daniel also.

"And it shall be at the End of Days that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be firmly established (nakon) at the top of the mountains" (Micah 4:1). We do not cite the second part of this verse. Why? Because there is a time lapse between the settling on the mountain and the streaming of the nations. The context of the bible and Micah makes this clear.   Many things happen in between before the remnant gathering takes place (Micah 2:12). It will become clearer later.

        Micah says that at this time in 1844, the Torah will be established on the Mountain of the Lord (Micah 4:2). Torah establishment is maybe also the purpose of the period after 1844 and may be the role of Christ in the Heavenly Sanctuary since the ten commandments are the very character of God. Demanding obedience of all and giving His life as rescue, He has a right to ask obedience at all times. How this works out is through a relationship with Him, and not apart from it. Apart from Him it is legalism and useless for eternal salvation. It may be a plus to heathen's who did not know better but did their best within their perception of best, but that process is still going through the court-decision of Christ.

        It is a time when Christ has a Rib or court-case with His people (Micah 6:1,2). He wants Torah keeping (Micah 6:8, 9) and complains that they do not follow it. He warns of punishment against them, even though they are the remnant (Micah 6:13-15, 16). The curses of Deuteronomy 28:15-68 is applicable here.

        He means that these sins will put them together with the evil at the Second Coming and again after 1000 years at the Hell event when He will eradicate all evil.

        Micah saw this opening of the Court case in Heaven and Micah suffered also from an Elijah syndrome (Micah 7:1-2). He saw all the sins of the saints and felt bad about it (Micah 7:3-6). In contrast to these secularistic tendencies of the saints and the tension between fathers and sons and sons and fathers (Micah 7:5-6), as well as the mockers of times of the coming of the Lord (Micah 7:10-11), Micah declares that he will wait patiently for the Lord (Micah 7:7, 8, 9, 10).

        That sins are within the remnant is a painful Rib or case that Christ has with His people, but there are more things that Micah saw regarding this. Ecumenism will prevail and be uplifted (Micah 4:5). In contrast Micah will cling to His God (Micah 4:5). The actions of Micah are very Elijah-like for a period when the Third Elijah like movement will proclaim the Sabbath as the Seventh-day and the Investigative Judgment starting in heaven.

        Truth will be proclaimed since 1844 and that was to continue until the Time of Jacob's Trouble. Micah used a preposition lamed before Jacob to say that truth should be to Jacob, meaning the Time of Jacobs Trouble. Then Perfection making by God and Sealing is done so that Truth proclamation is no longer necessary. "Let him that is good be good still and him that is evil be evil still". All evangelism is done. The Door of Mercy closed. The Time of Trouble kicks in and thus, Truth is just up to this time (Micah 7:20).

        Truth is flourishing with the Spirit of the Lord, justice and strength (Micah 3:8).

        However, lovingkindness will continue all the way to the Second Coming "lovingkindness to Abraham" (Micah 7:20). Why is Abraham associated with the Second Coming? Because he dreamed of the promise land that he never had and that promise land will become reality to him and all resurrected saints after the Time of Trouble at the Second Coming of Christ. Eternity at last. That is why the lamed preposition is used with Abraham here to indicate a time to the promise to Abraham. The context makes that clear since the next part of the verse reminds us of that promise and the covenant of Grace that God made with Abraham (Genesis 15).

        The Deception period that will be prior to the Latter Rain period is also seen by Micah. He explains it in Micah 3:5-7, 10, 11.

        At this point in history, we do see fulfillments in ecumenism, secularism, sins even within the remnant. We also see some historical events in the Middle East that, perhaps one may say, Micah also saw.

        In Micah 7:12-13 it seems as if Micah is seeing a window in the future, touching on our own days, of a situation in the Middle East that corresponds with what happened the past few years until now. It appears as if Iraq and his associates (Micah 7:12), the US from Pentagon = fortress, the US in Iraq (as the river), the US and its navy (from the sea of the west) and Russia (Mountain people?) will have the Middle East in chaos or "desolate" (Micah 7:13). If one may be permitted to historicize this part of the prophecy as a time signal for orientation of the rest of the chart, then one should expect the Deception and Latter Rain soon.

        The Investigative Judgment will hide awon (iniquities of the saints who Has chosen Christ's Substitute death on their behalf of their sins) and also cast their sins (hatha) into the sea, not for consideration by the heavenly beings on the basis of this faith relationship (Micah 7:19). Rabbi Ibn Ezra believed that it was the sins of the remnant that was at stake here.

        The Chaos in the Middle East, if the interpretation is correct here, will bring the Latter Rain.

        It is a period of the working of the Spirit of God (Joel 2-3).

        A remnant is created (Micah 4:6). The limping one and the scattered one will be brought into the remnant. The remnant becomes Zion (Micah 5:6). Its name is the remnant of Jacob (Micah 5:6). Why Jacob? Because Jacob is associated with the Time of Trouble in biblical doctrine, a time to be repeated in future in the eschatological charts.

This period of remnant creation is called a remnant gathering of Jacob "all of you" (Micah 2:12).

        It is a time of wonders or miracles (Micah 7:15). It is a time when the Lord leads as Shepherd the remnant (Micah 7:14). The remnant has success and enough food to eat (Micah 7:14-15).

        Micah is mentioning that the remnant will be noisy and that a breaker shall go before them and break the gate and their King shall pass before them and the Lord is at their head (Micah 2:13). The Kingship of Christ starts when the Time of Trouble starts. That is when the work of Christ or function of Christ as High-Priest is done and He took on the Kingly robes of Glory, King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He is the One who will be in front of the remnant.

        At the perfection of the saints, at least the Sealing, a change occur among regarding the successful status of the saints. We know they will be successful since it is mentioned that the Spirit of the Lord will be upon all flesh, good and bad and that the success of the harvest will be enormous and in great proportions. Secularism will stand empty-handed, it seems. But only for a period. It seems that at the turning point of the Time of Trouble, the remnant becomes daughter of Zion and Zion a tower (Micah 4:7). This is a period of global persecution. The nations react against the previous success of the remnant during the Latter Rain event and wonders (Micah 7:16). It probably happens after God finishes refining the remnant as silver (Zechariah 3:9). We already indicated that evangelism halted since the Door of Mercy closed. Therefore, Truth proclaiming seized to be the main mission and now survival is the future plan. Remnant becomes fortress, but not military but a term talking about God's protection with His eschatological war in mind, not with humans but with Him and his angels, not UFO's either.

        In this time of global persecution, many nations gather and says about the remnant "let her be guilty". Strike the judges on the cheek (Micah 4:14). This last term may be a historical signal as well. There are already some democratic countries who wants to do away with constitutional jurisdiction and wants political decisions overruling constitutional ones. Rulers look angrily at judges.

        The length of this period of persecution for the remnant will be as long as a woman's pregnancy lasts "pangs like a woman in confinement" (Micah 5:2), thus, nine months. No wonder Christ said so many times in the last chapter of Revelation that He is coming quickly (after those events of course).

        The Time of Trouble is not a serious time for the remnant since Micah said: "Is the King not among you?" (Micah 4:10).

        He talks about pain, kneeling, that the remnant is out of the city in the field (Micah 4:10) and in the hand of the enemies (Micah 4:10).

When this period of global persecution sets in for the remnant, the nine months past, another change comes.

        Micah saw that Lord came out of the Temple, descends and step on the earth (Micah 1:3). "For behold, the Lord comes forth from His place, and He shall descend and tread upon the high places of the earth".

        He says that the Real Possessor come to you (Micah 1:5).

When Christ comes at the Second Coming to the earth, the wicked Zion will be ploughed (Micah 3:12), earthly Jerusalem becomes a heap, the Temple mound a forest. Mountains melt like wax (Micah 1:4), all because of the sins of the Remnant (Micah 1:5).

        At this time the Lord will be at the head of the Remnant (Micah 2:13). There is a good part and a bad part at the Second Coming. There are two classes of people and two experiences of the same event. One will be with happiness and glory the other with fear and trembling. The redeemed shall be rescued and saved (Micah 4:10).

        There is an ingathering taking place then (Micah 4:12). He gathered them in as sheaves. The Lord takes back again (Micah 4:13).

The Messiah King shall stand and lead with might at the Second Coming and this will be the glorification of Christ (Micah 5:3).

        There will be a threshing floor twice. With the first one the remnant will have success against their enemies like a lion (Micah 5:7-8). It is at the Second Coming and is like the mouse sitting on the elephant and who said: "Wow, we make the bridge tremble!" It is really Christ who will do this. See also Micah 4:12 for the threshing floor.

        But, after the 1000 years or millennium or the confirmation judgment, then Hell will take place and at that time it will not be the remnant but the Lord Himself who will execute final and absolute judgment with fire (Micah 5:9-14). One should not miss this distinction here. Rabbi Redak of the Middle Ages also saw this passages as the final battle (his commentary on Micah 5:12). There is a threshing floor at the Second Coming but just temporary but a final threshing floor at the executive judgment or Hell.

        The mechanism of the investigative Judgment is also explained. For the evil He hides His countenance (Micah 3:4). He does not serve as Advocate. He hides when He is to defend! He is embarassed.

        At the Hell event Samaria will burn with fire (Micah 1:6-7). The remnant will be like a fortress on a mountain forever (Micah 4:5) and Micah 4:7. Heavenly Jerusalem will be heavenly Zion (Micah 4:9). It is at that time the swords will be changed into agricultural tools (Micah 4:3). Earthly military devices and factories will seize to exist and eternity runs on peace in heaven and with a new earth created anew by God. All evil are eradicated absolutely with Satan as well.