WEEKLY SUNDAY
SCHOOL LESSON
An international
Sunday school lesson commentary
For
Sunday July 5, 2015
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readers worldwide
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NO
REST FOR THE WICKED
(GOD’s
truth may hurt, but it leads us to goodness)
(Micah
2:1-11)
The prophet Micah was a contemporary
of the prophet Isaiah. Like Isaiah, he prophesied and preached to both northern
Israel and Judah in the eight century B.C. He lived in the small town of
Moresheth, just south of Jerusalem, and his messages soundly denounced the
oppressive ways of the wealthy in Jerusalem and Samaria. He called for the
leaders in these capital cities of Israel to set aside their pride, arrogance,
greed, corruption, and religious hypocrisy, and begin setting a better example
of holy and right living among the people that they were called to shepherd.
In the years leading up
to the Assyrian invasion of Israel in 722 B.C., the social injustices of the
wealthy, who defrauded the poor, and robbed widows and children of their homes,
spread like a disease in a community that sorely lacked medical assistance. As
families were driven from the lands of their inheritance, a “poverty class” was
created, and as it took shape, an economic blight began to characterize large
sections of the nation.
Peter C. Craigie once
wrote, “When people cease to care, then, religion, morally, social customs, and
values, all cease to function as mortar that holds together a society, and
maintains ancient faith”. Here in Micah 2, we see being described by the
prophet, a wealthy class of people who are, quite literally, driven by
materialism, and, who gained their wealth by oppressing the poor, orphans, and
widows, and robbing them of their inherited possessions. In verse 1 Micah warns
of how terrible it will be for those who lay awake late at night devising
ungodly, evil schemes, and then, rise up early in the morning to carry out
their evil ideas.
These wealthy
individuals, who were sorely destitute of morality, and bankrupt of any GODly character,
were not satisfied with their financial overflow, but rather, they still
greatly coveted the possessions of those who were far less prosperous than them.
Their sin, apart from that of materialistic greed and theft, was their blatant
disregard for the rights of their fellowman.
When GOD freed the
ancestors of these same Israelites from Egypt, HE had strongly admonished them
not to turn around and enslave one another, nor to violate the boundary markers
that HE had set for each tribe in their new, promised land of Canaan. To take
control of each other’s financial holdings would be to directly disregard the
Law of GOD. Micah was sent by GOD to announce his disappointment with HIS
chosen people, and to forecast the punishment that they would receive for their
blatant disobedience. GOD would now replace their “pride and arrogance” with a
“debased condition” that they would have to suffer through, and, that they
would be unable to use their wealth to extricate themselves from.
In verses 6-11 Micah
addresses the false prophets who were livid at him for prophesying coming
disasters on Israel, even though his oracles were true. Throughout biblical
history, we see depicted, both, true and false prophets. True prophets spoke
for GOD to HIS people, and warned them to return to the moral and ethical
values that were put in place by the delivery of HIS laws through HIS servant Moses.
False prophets, on the other hand, often delivered a message from satan that
GOD would not harm HIS people so long as they were involved in the ceremonial
aspects of the law (basically “playing church”).
The true prophet’s
messages have always been more “ethical” than they were “eschatological”, and
they often relay GOD’s promises as being “conditional”. Man has always needed
to perform at a high level in order to realize the maximum returns that can be
gained through obedience. Deuteronomy 27-28 spells out the conditions by which
man, through his “choices” can receive either “blessings”, or “curses”. How we
fare in life is left strictly up to us. GOD gives us “wills that are free”, and
HE also makes available to us, through the power of the HOLY SPIRIT, great
spiritual discernment that we can use in the decision-making process.
There is no rest for
the wicked, as they desire greatly to control us, abuse us, and indeed, ultimately
destroy us. We must strive hard as individuals to stay away from their gravitational
pull and influence, desiring not their ways, but rather, by learning, and then
keeping our minds focused on the Word and ways of GOD. These ways were clearly demonstrated
to us by JESUS CHRIST, in person, here on earth, and while GOD’s truth may sometimes
be painful to accept, it always, without fail, leads us to goodness.
A Sunday school lesson
by,
Larry D. Alexander
LARRY D. ALEXANDER- Official Website
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