Micah 2:12

¹² I will surely assemble all of you, O Jacob;
I will gather the remnant of Israel;
I will set them together like sheep in a fold,
like a flock in its pasture, a noisy multitude of men.

The Story: Micah abruptly shifts his focus from the present to the future when God in His mercy will restore Israel to its former glory. As God reassured Elijah when He informed the tired prophet that He had reserved seven thousand who had not bowed the knee to Baal (1 Ki. 19:18), God reassures the faithful who will listen to Micah that he will gather a remnant of the faithful like sheep. During periods of apostasy, there always will be a remnant, sometimes no more than a family as in the days of Noah, sometimes many more, but still only a portion of the whole. Other passages pertaining to a remnant can be found in Is. 10:20-22; 11:11, 16; 46:3. Yet this remnant mentioned here seems to be an accumulation of various “remnants” throughout Israel’s history because of the phrase, “a noisy multitude of men.”

The Structure: A question arises: To what event is this passage referring? Is it referring to the end of King Sennacherib’s siege (Micah 1:12)? Is it referring to the end of the Babylonian exile? Or is it referring to the end of the age? Prophecy is both forthtelling and foretelling. When it is foretelling, it can predict something that will happen in the near future as well as something that will happen in the far future. In Isaiah 7:10-14, Isaiah speaks to King Ahaz and says that the Lord will give the king a sign in which a virgin “shall conceive and bear a son.” This in all likelihood was fulfilled in some way during Ahaz’s time. But we also know that it foretold the virgin birth of Jesus many centuries later (Matt. 1:22-23). Micah 2:12 might already in one sense been fulfilled yet its ultimate fulfillment is yet to be (Rom. 11:26).

We can take comfort in the fact that regardless of how difficult things might become, God will keep His promises to those who remain faithful and bring them into His presence. Even if we think we are the only ones left who are His, He has kept a remnant!

For more insight to the prophet Micah, order the book, The Minor Prophets, Vol. 2: Micah-Malachi, by James Montgomery Boice, from our online store.

The Worldview Bible examines the teaching of Scripture according to the Story and Structure of Truth – the Framework of Christian Worldview – using only other Scriptures for illumination. Information about The Framework of Truth is available on this site. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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