Context No. 3987 of 4322 · Micah

Micah 2:1-13: in context

1Woe to those who devise iniquity and work evil on their beds! When the morning is light, they practice it, because it is in the power of their hand. 2They covet fields and seize them, and houses, then take them away. They oppress a man and his house, even a man and his heritage. 3Therefore the LORD says: “Behold, I am planning against these people a disaster, from which you will not remove your necks, neither will you walk haughtily, for it is an evil time. 4In that day they will take up a parable against you, and lament with a doleful lamentation, saying, ‘We are utterly ruined! My people’s possession is divided up. Indeed he takes it from me and assigns our fields to traitors!’” 5Therefore you will have no one who divides the land by lot in the LORD’s assembly. 6“Don’t prophesy!”—they prophesy— “Don’t prophesy about these things. Disgrace won’t overtake us.” 7Shall it be said, O house of Jacob, “Is the LORD’s Spirit angry? Are these his doings? Don’t my words do good to him who walks blamelessly?” 8But lately my people have risen up as an enemy. You strip the robe and clothing from those who pass by without a care, returning from battle. 9You drive the women of my people out from their pleasant houses; from their young children you take away my blessing forever. 10Arise, and depart! For this is not your resting place, because of uncleanness that destroys, even with a grievous destruction. 11If a man walking in a spirit of falsehood lies, saying, “I will prophesy to you of wine and of strong drink,” he would be the prophet of this people. 12I will surely assemble all of you, Jacob. I will surely gather the remnant of Israel. I will put them together as the sheep of Bozrah, as a flock in the middle of their pasture. They will swarm with people. 13He who breaks open the way goes up before them. They break through the gate, and go out. Their king passes on before them, with the LORD at their head.

Micah pronounces woe on those who lie awake at night devising evil and rise in the morning to carry it out, simply because it is in their power to do so. They covet fields and seize them, covet houses and take them, oppressing a man and his household, robbing people of their inheritance.

Their sin begins in coveting and, because they have the power to act on it, becomes outright theft and oppression. There is a sharp warning here about the abuse of power. These were not desperate people stealing to survive; they were people with the means to take what they wanted, and they used that power to strip the vulnerable of their homes and land. Because it is in the power of their hand, Micah says, they do it, the ability to do wrong becoming, for them, license to do it. But God sees, and he declares he is devising disaster against them. The fact that we can do something to another's harm does not make it right; the power to take is not permission to take.

When it is in my power to take advantage of someone weaker, do I remember that the ability to do wrong is not permission to do it, and that God sees and will answer how the strong treat the weak?

Sources

Micah 2:1: "Woe to those who devise iniquity and work evil on their beds!... they practice it, because it is in the power of their hand."
Micah 2:2: "They covet fields and seize them, and houses, then take them away. They oppress a man and his house."
Micah 2:3: "Behold, I am planning against these people a disaster, from which you will not remove your necks."