These are a Few of My Favorite Adversative Conjunctions - Micah 3:8
February 9, 2023 | by: Dale Thiele | 0 Comments
Posted in: Pastoral Encouragement
I love adversative conjunctions because they exalt the power and grace of God by uniting two opposing statements that present seemingly impossible scenarios. Let me highlight a few of my favorites.
I preached on this text in our recent Advent sermon series. I love the contrast highlighted by the use of the adversative conjunction. This one, I believe, impacts us in a very relevant way. Let me lay out the context.
Micah served as a prophet between 740 and 700 BC. The Jews had been spilt into two nations for nearly 200 years at this point. The northern kingdom of Israel had long endured under the leadership of godless kings. Most prominent was Ahab and his wife Jezebel, who had multiple confrontations with Elijah. In spite of their utterly godless culture, Israel enjoyed stability and prosperity in the mid 8th century BC.
The southern kingdom of Judah swayed back and forth under godless and godly kings. Micah began his ministry shortly after king Uzziah died. Uzziah reigned for 52 years in Judah. So both Judah and Israel were enjoying political and economic stability when Micah began his ministry. And yet, Micah opens his prophecy by stating, “Behold, the Lord is coming out of his place, and will come down and tread upon the high places of the earth. And the mountains will melt under him, and the valleys split open, like wax before the fire, like waters poured down a steep place” (1:3-4).
Why all the “doom and gloom” when both Israel and Judah were enjoying relative stability and prosperity? Micah explains, “All this for the transgression of Jacob and for the sins of the house of Israel. What is the transgression of Jacob? Is it not Samaria? And what is the high place of Judah? Is it not Jerusalem?” (1:5). In spite of the prosperity, spiritual decay had deeply corrupted both nations. And God was raising up the Assyrian Empire to carry out his judgment.
In chapter 3 Micah calls out the heads and rulers of the land. They did not carry out justice. They hated the good and loved the evil. They devoured the people. They proclaimed false messages. They were greedy for gain through bribery. The spiritual decay of the land trickled down from the top leaders of the land.
This is where the adversative conjunction shines brightly on an alternative path. Micah says in 3:8, “But as for me, I am filled with power, with the Spirit of the Lord, and with justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression and to Israel his sin.” Micah understood the importance to stand apart from the corrupt culture that engulfed the nations around him. But he was also humble enough to acknowledge that this was not of his own strength or doing. The power to stand apart came from the Spirit of the Lord. By God’s strength, Micah would endure in the dark place, heralding the truth about sin, justice, and God.
What about us? The people of God will always live in a land corrupted by spiritual decay. No amount of prosperity or stability can guarantee that we can relax. Like Micah, we also need to make the conscious decision to humbly rely on the strength of the Lord to stand apart. Will you say with Micah, no matter how dark the darkness becomes, “But as for me, I am filled with power, with the Spirit of the Lord”?
