_In the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah_ Micah is thought to have prophesied about sixteen years in Jotham's time, as many under Ahaz, and fourteen under Hezekiah: in all, forty-six years. And he survived the captivity of Israel ten years, which he lamented as well as foretold. _Which he saw conc... [ Continue Reading ]
_Hear, all ye people_ All ye of Israel and Judah. _Hearken, O earth_ Or, O land, [of Israel:] _and all that therein is_ That is, all its inhabitants. _Let the Lord be witness against you_ “I call him to witness, that I have forewarned you of the judgments that hang over your heads, unless you speedi... [ Continue Reading ]
_For the transgression of Jacob_ That is, of the sons of Jacob; for the many transgressions committed among them; _is all this_ All these many, great, and irresistible judgments of God foretold and executed. _What is the transgression of Jacob_ Where is the chief cause of Israel's sin and apostacy?... [ Continue Reading ]
_Therefore I will make Samaria as a heap_ A heap of ruins. _And as plantings of a vineyard_ As in planting vineyards men dig the earth, and cast it up in hillocks, so shall they make this city. The Vulgate reads, _I will make Samaria as a heap of stones in a field, when a vineyard is planted. I will... [ Continue Reading ]
_Therefore I will wail and howl_ I will mourn and lament. _I will go stripped and naked_ That is, without an upper garment; or with garments rent and torn. This would fitly denote the naked condition to which the ten tribes were to be reduced by their enemies. _I will make a wailing like dragons_ Th... [ Continue Reading ]
_Declare ye it not in Gath_ Lest the Philistines triumph. The words seem to be taken out of David s lamentation over Saul and Jonathan, 2 Samuel 1:20, where see the note. _Weep ye not at all_ Or, _weep ye not with loud weeping_, as Archbishop Newcome renders it. Do not make any loud lamentations, le... [ Continue Reading ]
_O thou inhabitant of Lachish_ This was a strong fortress in the tribe of Judah: see Joshua 15:39. _Bind the chariot to the swift beast_ In order to flee from the approaching enemy. Lachish was one of the first cities that Sennacherib besieged, when he invaded Judea. _She is the beginning of the sin... [ Continue Reading ]
_Make thee bald_ O Judah and Israel, tear off thy hair; _and poll thee_ Shave what thou canst not tear off; _for thy delicate children_, &c. For the loss of them, some being slain, others starved or swept away by pestilence, and the residue carried into captivity. Cutting the hair, or shaving it clo... [ Continue Reading ]