Take Two in the Morning: Micah 1, Proverbs 24

Micah 1 is a prophesy of judgment against both Judah and Samaria. The reason for the judgment is the wickedness of the people who liver there. Those people are not some really mean conquering tribe of barbarians...they are the descendents of those who God brought out of Egypt. Many years had passed by by the time that God speaks judgment through this prophet. The general timeframe according to the reigns of the kings listed in the first verse, put this prophet's ministry as beginning before the fall of Samaria (722 BC) and extending to around 685 BC. Most date Micah's ministry 735 BC to 685 BC (give or take). This makes Micah a contemporary of Isaiah (as a point of reference.)

What had prompted the prophesy of judgment against His own people. Well, they had experienced a period of economic prosperity and peace...which led them to engage in activities that did not reflect who they really were...God's people. In other words, as they began to accumulate for themselves material things and were not under the immediate threat of political attack, they let down their guards, became complacent, calloused, and compromising.

An important thing to remember, as we will see worked out in this book in the coming days, God loves His people too much to allow them to get away with rebellion. Because of His love for His people and His holiness which means that he hates sin...He cannot allow His people to engage is sin and it go unpunished. As we will see, the purpose of the punishment is not to simply punish, but to motivate repentence and restoration. For this group of people, God will use the Assyrian armies as agents of judgment to cause the hearts of His people to return to Him.

Proverbs 24:27 is my takeaway today. The instruction is for the reader to prepare his fields before he prepares his house. Why? Because it is the field that will provide the food and the income to support the man when he lives in the house.

There are probably a few sermons in this but here is just a short thought or two:

To heed this proverb means that one must discipline himself/herself to delay the "reward" until the "work" is done. Delayed gratification is a biblical principle. It seems to me that many today want to "have" what their parents have...the day they graduate from high school or college. Truthfully though, they did not see the previous generation live within their means until they had the means to live as they do. Be willing to put in the effort today so that you can have tomorrow.

Another thought is that there is a work element involved in nearly every blessing. Just because God says: "Start a family, change careers, go into ministry" doesn't mean that he will miraculously provide for everything without your effort. And...working the fields before building the house, does not display a lack of faith in God for the house...it is exercising wisdom in getting it.

The final thought connects to the last five verses. The man who builds the house first, may grow so comfortable in it...that he fails to work the fields. (Probably a parallel in the Church today). COmfort...leads to complacency and ultimately to destruction.