--- title: "Micah 4 - Study King James Bible with calvins commentary on the bible" description: "Read Micah 4 with calvins commentary on the bible commentary. 1 But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be" image: "/_app/immutable/assets/missing.C7wGMEZ6.jpg" url: "https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/calvins-commentary-on-the-bible/micah/4" --- [ Read](/kjv/micah/4)[ Commentary](/study/micah/4)[ Interlinear](/interlinear/micah/4) Audio 1 But in the last days it shall come to pass, *that* the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it. 2 And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. 3 ¶ And he shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.* 4 But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make *them* afraid: for the mouth of the LORD of hosts hath spoken *it*. 5 For all people will walk every one in the name of his god, and we will walk in the name of the LORD our God for ever and ever. 6 In that day, saith the LORD, will I assemble her that halteth, and I will gather her that is driven out, and her that I have afflicted; 7 And I will make her that halted a remnant, and her that was cast far off a strong nation: and the LORD shall reign over them in mount Zion from henceforth, even for ever. 8 ¶ And thou, O tower of the flock, the strong hold of the daughter of Zion, unto thee shall it come, even the first dominion; the kingdom shall come to the daughter of Jerusalem. 9 Now why dost thou cry out aloud? *is there* no king in thee? is thy counsellor perished? for pangs have taken thee as a woman in travail. 10 Be in pain, and labour to bring forth, O daughter of Zion, like a woman in travail: for now shalt thou go forth out of the city, and thou shalt dwell in the field, and thou shalt go *even* to Babylon; there shalt thou be delivered; there the LORD shall redeem thee from the hand of thine enemies. 11 ¶ Now also many nations are gathered against thee, that say, Let her be defiled, and let our eye look upon Zion. 12 But they know not the thoughts of the LORD, neither understand they his counsel: for he shall gather them as the sheaves into the floor. 13 Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion: for I will make thine horn iron, and I will make thy hoofs brass: and thou shalt beat in pieces many people: and I will consecrate their gain unto the LORD, and their substance unto the Lord of the whole earth. [Micah 3](/study/micah/3) [Micah 5](/study/micah/5) ## Commentary To verse 1 Here Micah begins his address to the faithful, who were a remnant among that people; for though the infection had nearly extended over the whole body, there were yet a few, we know, who sincerely worshipped God. Hence Micah, that he might not dishearten God’s children by extreme terror, reasonably adds what we have now heard, — that though for a time the temple would be demolished and laid waste, it would yet be only for a season, for the Lord would be again mindful of his covenant. When, therefore, the Prophet had hitherto spoken of God’s dreadful vengeance, he directed his discourse to the whole people and to the princess; but now, especially, and as it were apart, addresses the pious and sincere servants of God; as though he said, “There is now a reason why I should speak to the few: I have hitherto spoken of the near judgment of God on the king’s counselors, the priests and the prophets; in short, on the whole community, because they are all become wicked and ungodly; a contempt of God and an irreclaimable obstinacy have pervaded the whole body. Let them therefore have what they have deserved. But now I address the children of God by themselves, for I have something to say to them.” For though the Prophet publicly proclaimed this promise, there is yet no doubt but that he had regard only to the children of God, for others were not capable of receiving this consolation; nay, he had shortly before condemned the extreme security of hypocrites, inasmuch as they leaned upon God; that is, relied on a false pretense of religion, in thinking that they were redeemed by a lawful price when they had offered their sacrifices. And we know that we meet with the same thing in the writings of the Prophets, and that it is a practice common among them to add consolations to threatening, not for the sake of the whole people, but to sustain the faithful in their hope, who would have despaired, had not a helping hand been stretched forth to them: for the faithful, we know, tremble, as soon as God manifests any token of wrath; for the more any one is touched with the fear of God, the more he dreads his judgment, and fears on account of his threatening. We hence see how necessary it is to moderate threatenings and terrors, when prophets and teachers have a regard to the children of God; for, as I have said, they are without these fearful enough. Let us then know that Micah has hitherto directed his discourse to the wicked despisers of God, who yet put on the cloak of religion; but now he turns his address to the true and pious worshipers of God. And he further so addresses the faithful of his age, that his doctrine especially belongs to us now; for how has it been, that the kingdom of God has been propagated through all parts of the earth? How has it been, that the truth of the gospel has come to us, and that we are made partakers with the ancient people of the same adoption, except that this prophecy has been fulfilled? Then the calling of the Gentiles, and consequently our salvation, is included in this prophecy. But the Prophet says, *And it shall be in the extremity of days,* (114) *that the mount of the house of Jehovah shall be set in order* (115) *on the top of mountains* The extremity of days the Prophet no doubt calls the coming of Christ, for then it was that the Church of God was built anew; in short, since it was Christ that introduced the renovation of the world, his advent is rightly called a new age; and hence it is also said to be the extremity of days: and this mode of expression very frequently occurs in Scripture; and we know that the time of the gospel is expressly called the last days and the last time by John, ([John 2:18](/kjv/john/2/18),) as well as by the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews, ([Hebrews 1:2](/kjv/hebrews/1/2),) and also by Paul, ([2 Timothy 3:1](/kjv/2-timothy/3/1);) and this way of speaking they borrowed from the prophets. On this subject some remarks were made on [Joel 2:0](/kjv/joel/2/0). Paul gives us the reason for this mode of speaking in [1 Corinthians 10:11](/kjv/1-corinthians/10/11): “Upon whom,” he says, “the ends of the world are come.” As Christ then brought in the completion of all things at his coming, the Prophet rightly says that it would be the last days when God would restore his Church by the hand of the Redeemer. At the same time, Micah no doubt intended to intimate that the time of God’s wrath would not be short, but designed to show that its course would be for a long time. *It shall* then *be in the last of days;* that is, when the Lord shall have executed his vengeance by demolishing the temple, by destroying the city, and by reducing the holy place into a solitude, this dreadful devastation shall continue, not for one year, nor for two; in a word, it will not remain only for forty or fifty years, but the Lord will let loose the reins of his wrath, that their minds may long languish, and that no restoration may be evident. We now then understand the Prophet’s design as to the last days. He calls the mount, *the mount of the house of Jehovah,* (116) in a sense different from what he did before; for then it was, as we have stated by way of concession; and now he sets forth the reason why God did not wish wholly to cast aside that mount; for he commanded his temple to be built there. It is the same, then, as though he said, — “This ought not to be ascribed to the holiness of the mountain, as if it excelled other mountains in dignity; but because there the temple was founded, not by the authority of men, but by a celestial oracle, as it is sufficiently known.” *The mount* then *of the house of Jehovah shall be set in order on the top of the mountains,* that is it shall surpass in height all other mountains; *and it shall be raised,* he says*, above the highest summits, and assemble* (117) *there shall all nations.* It is certain, that by these words of the Prophet is to be understood no visible eminence of situation: for that mount was not increased at the coming of Christ; and they who lived in the time of the Prophet entertained no gross idea of this kind. But he speaks here of the eminence of dignity, — that God would give to mount Zion a distinction so eminent, that all other mountains would yield to its honor. And how was this done? The explanation follows in the next verse. Lest, then, any one thought that there would be some visible change in mount Zion, that it would increase in size, the Prophet immediately explains what he meant and says, at the end of the verse, Come shall nations to God. It is now easy to see what its elevation was to be, — that God designed this mount to be, as it were, a royal seat. As under the monarchy of the king of Persia, the whole of the east, we know, was subject to one tower of the Persian; so also, when mount Zion became the seat of sovereign power, God designed to reign there, and there he designed that the whole world should be subject to him; and this is the reason and the Prophet said that it would be higher than all other mountains. Hence his meaning, in this expression, is sufficiently evident. (114) *In extremitate dierum,* באחרית הימים, in the posteriority or postremity of the days; επ εσχατων των ημερων, in the last days.—*Sept.* “In the latter days,” or, “in the end of days.”—*Newcome.* “In the last of the days.”—*Henderson.* See [Jeremiah 23:20](/kjv/jeremiah/23/20); [Ezekiel 38:8](/kjv/ezekiel/38/8); [Daniel 10:14](/kjv/daniel/10/14); [Hosea 3:5](/kjv/hosea/3/5) *Kimchi,* as quoted by *Lowth,* says, “Whenever the latter days are mentioned in Scripture, the days of the Messiah are always meant.” — *Ed.* (115) *Dispositus* *,* נכזן — *constitus* *,* constituted — *praeparatus* *,* prepared— *firmatus* *,* made firm — are the words by which the term is commonly expressed. It comes from כון, which *Leigh* justly says, means “aptly and timely to frame, and likewise to make firm and sure;” and he adds, “The word noteth *the ordering, perfecting,* and *fast establishing* of anything.” How suitably then it is here used: it is a mountain (which means evidently the Church) that is fitly framed, ordered, and firmly established. — *Ed.* (116) *Marckius* adduces the opinions of the ancients as to the signification of this “mount.” Some, such as *Tertullian, Jerome,* and *Augustine,* interpret it of Christ; while others, namely, *Origen,* the two *Cyrils,* and *Chrysostom,* regard it as signifying the Church; and with the latter most modern commentators agree. Here the consent of moderns exceeds that of the ancients; and it is no doubt sounder and wiser. — *Ed.* (117) *Convenient,* ונהרו, literally, “and flow;” σπευσουσι — hasten, *Sept.* It is flowing like that of a river, or of a strong current, and implies copiousness and spontaneity. “There shall be,” says Henry, “a constant stream of believers flowing in from all parts into the Church, as the people of the Jews flowed into the temple, while it was standing, to worship there.” *Kimchi* says, that this word means to “run to what is pleasing or delightful,” —”*currere ad beneplacitum, hoc est, ad id quod cupias* An old author, quoted by *Leigh,* says, that it implies abundance and celerity — *affluentiam cum celeritate* It is rendered “flow together” in [Jeremiah 51:44](/kjv/jeremiah/51/44). Instead of “peoples,” עמים, Isaiah has כל חגוים, “all the nations.” One MS. Has the same here, and three have כל before עמים, and this seems to be the correct reading. עם, in the plural number, is synonymous with גוים, meaning nations. The rest of this verse is exactly the same in the two Prophets, except that נכון, “prepared,” is differently placed, and הוא, “it,” is added by Micah after נשא, “exalted.” In the second verse, which is the third in Isaiah, there is a complete verbal identity, except that גוים and עמים are reversed, and that ו before אל is wanting in Isaiah; but it is supplied in several MSS. In the third, the fourth in Isaiah, there are verbal varieties in the two first lines, the four remaining are exactly the same with the exception of a paragogic ן, *nun,* added to a verb by Micah, and the verb ישאו is singular in Isaiah. In the two lines referred to, there is also an addition of עד רחוק, “afar of,” in Micah. **Isaiah**. ושפט בין הגוים 4. והוכיחלעמים רבים And he shall judge among the nation, And shall convince many peoples. Micah. whwkyx lgwyM eumyM ed rxwq wspj byN emyM rbyM And he shall judge among many peoples, And shall convince strong nations afar off. With this verse the passage ends in Isaiah; Micah adds another: and this, with the two other circumstances — that the passage is fuller and more connected with the context here than in Isaiah, may seem to favor the opinion that Isaiah, and not Micah, was the copyist; but the words, with which the passage is introduced in Isaiah, forbid such a supposition. “*Bishop Lowth*, on [Isaiah 2:2](/kjv/isaiah/2/2), thinks that Micah took this passage from Isaiah. It is true that he has improved it after the manner of imitators. Or, the Spirit may have inspired both with this prediction: or both may have copied some common original, the words of a Prophet well known at the time. — *Newcome.* ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#website","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com","name":"Real Bible Believers","description":"RBB","publisher":{"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#/schema/person/e966585dde703268e7f6ae890ea98509"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/search?q={search_term_string}","query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/calvins-commentary-on-the-bible/micah/4#primaryimage","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/_app/immutable/assets/missing.C7wGMEZ6.jpg","contentUrl":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/_app/immutable/assets/missing.C7wGMEZ6.jpg","width":672,"height":448,"caption":"Real Bible Believers"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/calvins-commentary-on-the-bible/micah/4#webpage","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/calvins-commentary-on-the-bible/micah/4","name":"Micah 4 - Study King James Bible with calvins commentary on the bible","isPartOf":{"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/calvins-commentary-on-the-bible/micah/4#primaryimage"},"author":{"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#/schema/person/e966585dde703268e7f6ae890ea98509"},"description":"Read Micah 4 with calvins commentary on the bible commentary. 1 But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/calvins-commentary-on-the-bible/micah/4#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/calvins-commentary-on-the-bible/micah/4"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/calvins-commentary-on-the-bible/micah/4#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/","name":"Home"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study","name":"Study Bible"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/calvins-commentary-on-the-bible","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/calvins-commentary-on-the-bible","name":"calvins commentary on the bible"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"item":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/calvins-commentary-on-the-bible/micah","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/calvins-commentary-on-the-bible/micah","name":"Micah"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":5,"item":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/calvins-commentary-on-the-bible/micah/4","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/calvins-commentary-on-the-bible/micah/4","name":"4"}}]},{"@type":["Person","Organization"],"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#/schema/person/e966585dde703268e7f6ae890ea98509","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#personlogo","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/android-chrome-512x512.png","contentUrl":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/android-chrome-512x512.png","width":512,"height":512},"logo":{"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#personlogo"},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/RBiblebeliever","https://www.facebook.com/RBibleBelievers"]}]} ```