§ 9. Under Messiah ' s rule shall be peace. Cheyne considers these verses to have been inserted by an afterthought, either to explain the "many nations" and "many peoples" of Micah 4:11 , Micah 4:13 , or to rectify the omission of the period of foreign rule. This may be reasonably allowed; but it is not necessary to the explanation of the paragraph, which is merely a further description of Messiah's kingdom. read more
The Prince of Peace. Solomon as well as David was a type of Christ; and just as Micah, when he said (verse 4), "He shall stand and feed," etc; probably thought of the shepherd youth, raised to the throne of Israel, as typical of Israel's spiritual King, who would eventually appear and bring heavenly strength and succour to a needy world, so when he added respecting the Messiah, " And this Man shall be the Peace, " he thought of the peaceful rule of Solomon, and saw in this a symbol of... read more
An invasion. "And this Man shall be the Peace, when the Assyrian shall come into our land: and when he shall tread in our palaces, then shall we raise against him seven shepherds, and eight principal men. And they shall waste the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod in the entrances thereof: thus shall he deliver us from the Assyrian, when he cometh into our land, and when he treadeth within our borders." "And this same shall be the peace when the Assyrian shall invade... read more
Now gather thyself in troops, O daughter of troops - The “daughter of troops” is still the same who was before addressed, Judah. The word is almost always . used of “bands of men employed in irregular, marauding, in-roads.” Judah is entitled “daughter of troops,” on account of her violence, the robbery and bloodshed within her (Micah 2:8; Micah 3:2; etc. Hosea 5:10), as Jeremiah says, “Is this house which is called by My Name become a den of robbers in your eyes?” (Jeremiah 7:11, compare... read more
But - (And) thou, Bethlehem Ephratah With us, the chequered events of time stand in strong contrast, painful or gladdening. Good seems to efface evil, or evil blots out the memory of the good. God orders all in the continuous course of His Wisdom. All lies in perfect harmony in the Divine Mind. Each event is the sequel of what went before. So here the prophet joins on, what to us stands in such contrast, with that simple, And. Yet he describes the two conditions bearing on one another. He had... read more
Therefore - Since God has so appointed both to punish and to redeem, He, God, or the Ruler “whose goings forth have been from of old from everlasting,” who is God with God, “shall give them up, that is, withdraw His protection and the nearness of His Presence, “giving them up:”(1) into the hands of their enemies. And indeed the far greater part never returned from the captivity, but remained, although willingly, in the enemy’s land, outwardly shut out from the land of the promise and the hope... read more
And He shall stand - The prophet continues to speak of personal acts of this Ruler who was to be born. He was not to pass away, not to rule only by others, but by Himself. To stand is the attitude of a servant, as Jesus, although God and Lord of all, said of Himself, “He shall come forth and serve them” Luke 12:37; “The Son of Man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister” Matthew 20:28. “He shall stand” as a Shepherd Isaiah 61:5, to watch, feed, guard them, day and night; “He shall... read more
And this Man shall be the Peace - This, emphatically, that is, “This Same,” as is said of Noah, “This same shall comfort us” Genesis 5:29, or, in the song of Moses, of the Lord, “This Same is my God” Exodus 15:2. Of Him he saith, not only that He brings peace, but that He Himself is that Peace; as Paul saith, “He is our Peace” Ephesians 2:14, and Isaiah calls Him “the Prince of peace” Isaiah 9:6, and at His Birth the heavenly host proclaimed “peace on earth” Luke 2:14; and He “preached peace to... read more
Micah 5:1. Now gather thyself, &c. It seems this verse ought to be joined to the foregoing chapter, as it evidently belongs to it, and not to this, which is upon a quite different subject. Thus considered, after the promises given of a restoration from the captivity into which they should be carried, and of victory over their surrounding enemies, the prophecy concludes with bidding them first expect an enemy to come against them, who should lay siege to their chief city, and carry their... read more
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The Pulpit Commentary - Micah 5:5
And this Man shall be the Peace; and he shall be Peace; Vulgate, et erit iste Pax . This same Ruler will not only bring peace, and be the Author of peace, but be himself Peace; as Isaiah ( Isaiah 9:5 ) calls him "Prince of Peace," and St. Paul ( Ephesians 2:14 ) "our Peace." Peace personified (comp. Zechariah 9:9 ). It is best to put a full stop here, and remove the colon at "land" in the next clause. There may be an allusion to Solomon, the peaceful king, who erected the temple... read more