Commentary on Joel Amos Obadiah Jonah Micah and Nahum John Calvin
MINOR PROPHETS
doubt, as the name of God is more excellent than any thing in the whole world, so the worship of him ought to be regarded as of more importance than all those duties by which we prove our love towards men. But the Prophet, as I have already said, was not so particular in observing order; his main object was to show how men were to prove that they seriously feared God and kept his Law: he afterwards speaks of God's worship. But his manner of speaking, when he says, that men ought to be humble, that they may walk with their God, is worthy of special notice. Condemned, then, is here all pride, and also all the confidence of the flesh: for whosoever arrogates to himself even the least thing, does, in a manner, contend with God as with an opposing party. The true way then of walking with God is, when we thoroughly humble ourselves, yea, when we bring ourselves down to nothing; for it is the very beginning of worshipping and glorifying God when men entertain humble and low opinion of themselves. Let us now proceed ---
Micah 6:9
9. The Lord's voice crieth unto the city, and the man of wisdom shall see thy name: hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it.
9. Vox Jehovae ad civitatem (vel, ad expergefaciendum) clamat (ad verbum, clamabit;) et vir intelligentiae videbit nomen tuum: audite virgam, et quis testificetur eam.
The Prophet complains here that he and other teachers did but little, though their cry resounded and was heard by the whole people. He therefore says, that the voice of God cried; as though he had said that there was no excuse for ignorance, for God had indiscriminately exhorted them all to repentance. Now, since what was taught was common to them all, the Prophet deplores their perverseness, for very few were attentive; and the fable was sung, according to the proverb, to the deaf. We must then notice the word cry; the voice of God, he says, crieth. God did not whisper in the ear of one or two, but he designed his voice to be heard by all from the least to the greatest. The Prophets then did cry loud enough, but there were no ears to hear them.
We may take the word {,}לעירlaoir, in two ways. {,}עירoir, means a city. But some derive it from {,}עורour, and render it as if it were written {,}להעירlaeoir.
If {,}הhe is put in, it must be rendered, To rouse; and the letter {,}הhe, may be concealed under the point chamets; and this sense would be the most suitable, The voice of Jehovah cries to arouse or awaken; that is though the people are torpid, and as it were overpowered with sleep, for they indulged themselves in their sins; yet the voice of God ought to be sufÏcient to arouse them all: however sleepy they might have been, there was yet power enough in the doctrine of the Law, which the Prophet daily proclaimed. But still this voice, by which the whole people ought to have been awakened, was not heard!
Proverbs 11:2; but its meaning there is evident, for it is opposed to pride, ,{}זדוןwhich means a swelling pride, such as fills one with high notions of one's self. Then the opposite of this is to be humble from a sense of one's own emptiness. As it is here to the infinitive Hiphil, its literal meaning is what Calvin assigns to it --- tohumble one's self. And the best rendering of this line would be --- ``And to humble thyself to walk with God.'' The Septuagint renders it {ετοιμον} {εναι} --- to be ready; Theodotion, {ασφαλιζου}; Vulgate, solicitum But these seem not to have understood the word. The Welsh version is exactly and literally the Hebrew --- Ac ymostwng I rodio gyda 'th Dduw. Gostwng is to humble, and by adding ym, and dropping the g, the verb has exactly the meaning of the Hiphil in Hebrew---to humble one's self. They are, indeed, some verbs in Welsh which admit of all the modifications of the Hebrew verbs, being active, passive, causative, and reflective. --- Ed.