Micah 7:1

Micah 7:1 says, Woe is me! for I am as when they have gathered the summer fruits, as the grapegleanings of the vintage: there is no cluster to eat: my soul desired the firstripe fruit.  Micah felt nothing but woe because of the sins of God's people.  When we today see those who call themselves followers of Christ living strictly by the standards of the world, we should feel a sense of woe.  Micah said that he desired the first fruits and not the gleanings.  We should likewise desire the first fruits that come from following God's will.  Everything else, no matter how good it may look, will only be a gleaning.  Verse two adds, The good man is perished out of the earth: and there is none upright among men: they all lie in wait for blood; they hunt every man his brother with a net.  We need to remember that Micah was speaking to God's chosen people.  Micah said that all the good men had perished and that none walked upright.  We know that there has always been a remnant that remained faithful to God, but we are not called to preserve the remnant but to make disciples.  We may see the world as almost totally evil, but our calling is not to give up in despair, but to witness boldly for Christ.  Verse three continues, That they may do evil with both hands earnestly, the prince asketh, and the judge asketh for a reward; and the great man, he uttereth his mischievous desire: so they wrap it up.  Micah said that those in power only wanted what would bring them rewards. He said they did evil with both hands earnestly.  The leaders and judges really didn't even make a pretense of fairness.  When we see corruption and greed in the world today, we should not be surprised, but neither should we give up in defeat.  Verse four states, The best of them is as a brier: the most upright is sharper than a thorn hedge: the day of thy watchmen and thy visitation cometh; now shall be their perplexity.  Micah said that the best of God's people were like a brier, ready to snare anyone who came in contact with them.  Matthew Henry asks if these were the actions of the best, then what could be expected of the worst.  This was indeed a sad state for those who called themselves God's people to reach.  Verse five adds, Trust ye not in a friend, put ye not confidence in a guide: keep the doors of thy mouth from her that lieth in thy bosom.  Micah said that they were not to put their trust in anyone, even those the closest to them.  When it comes to salvation, we today can put our trust in no one but Christ.  Hopefully we can trust at least those closest to us to only want what is best for us, but this is often not the case.  Ultimately, our faith must be in God alone.  Verse six continues, For the son dishonoureth the father, the daughter riseth up against her mother, the daughter in law against her mother in law; a man’s enemies are the men of his own house.  This sounds a lot like what we hear about in the world today.  Verse seven declares, Therefore I will look unto the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me.  Micah concludes what I had just said, and that is that we can ultimately rely on God alone for deliverance.  We must wait on God for His timing to be right.  Verse eight adds, Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD shall be a light unto me.  This is a warning to those of the world who rejoice when a Christian stumbles.  What they need to realize is that through Christ our victory is assured.  Verse nine continues, I will bear the indignation of the LORD, because I have sinned against him, until he plead my cause, and execute judgment for me: he will bring me forth to the light, and I shall behold his righteousness.  Like Micah, we can only accept God's judgment when we sin against Him.  As followers of Christ, God will raise us up to an everlasting relationship with Him.