Prophets in the Bible talk a lot about doom and destruction. Micah included. As I read through the first half of chapter two, I am convicted of my own sin. How much time do I spend, as Micah says, “devising evil plans?” The word evil is aggressive, so truthfully answering that question requires a little more digging into what evil is. The Bible has much to say about it. Consider these:
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Psalms 10:7 (ESV) His mouth is filled with cursing and deceit and oppression, under his tongue are mischief and iniquity.
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Ephesians 4:29 (ESV) Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.
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Matthew 15:18-20 (ESV) what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. 19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. 20 These are what defile a person.
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Ecclesiastes 5:10 (ESV) He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity.
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Proverbs 25:2-3 (NLT) It is God’s privilege to conceal things and the king’s privilege to discover them. No one can comprehend the height of heaven, the depth of the earth or all that goes on in the king’s mind!
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Luke 12:15 (NLT) “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.”
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Galatians 5:19-21 (NLT) When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these.
These few verses are very revealing. Evil is everywhere. Including our hearts and minds. Micah warns us, again, of the harsh consequences that accompany them. It is in this harsh conversation that I find myself wanting and needing a savior.
Thankfully, the calling of the prophets was not to forecast doom and destruction. Instead, they are announcing hope and salvation. God will gather the faithful, he says in verse 12. Even better, he reminds us that God can break us free. He will send “the breaker.” The Breaker, he says, will go before us and make a new way (v13).
Of course, we know who “the Breaker” is. He is Jesus. The one who goes before us. The one who pays the price and breaks us free from the bondage of sin.