The
Kingdom Shall Come To Her
Micah 4:6 “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.”
1. The Down & Out
2. The Up & In
3.
The Remnant Nation
Five times the word “her” appears in these verses [verses six and seven].
Who is she … “that halteth”?
We need to find out who “she” is.
It is in verse eight that we will find out who “she” is.
She is “the daughter of Zion”, or “the daughter of Jerusalem.” [Israel]
1. The Down & Out
Verse six: “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;"
This “daughter of Zion” is described by the Spirit of God as “her that halteth”, and as “her that is driven out”, and as her who is “afflicted.” [God afflicted Israel because of her sin.]
The prophet Zephaniah says as much in Zephaniah chapter three, verse nineteen: “Behold, at that time I will undo all that afflict thee: and I will save her that halteth, and gather her that was driven out; and I will get them praise and fame in every land where they have been put to shame.” [Zephaniah 3:19]
Now, for this word “halteth”, what does it mean?
It means this. It describes someone … who has stopped walking. It is someone … who can no longer walk. It is someone … who even hesitates to move forward, or already cannot move forward on their own any more. They are … done! They are LAME! One who “halteth” is one who is lame.
Here is another possibility. Someone who “halteth” is stuck between two opinions. This was Israel’s problem! Do you remember what the prophet Elijah had said to all the people in his day? This is located in First Kings chapter eighteen verse twenty-one: “And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the Lord be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word.” [1 Kings 18:21]
People that are HALTED between two opinions … are the very people who are the lame and the crippled. [SIN does this thing!] They are stuck. They are done! Is not this the lot for all of us in this life? We all come into this world halted [lame] [crippled].
Now, go ahead and fast forward to the New Testament story, which is found in John chapter five in the first several verses. Note the plight of the poor folk lying by the pool, which was near the sheep market in Jerusalem? “In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water.” [John 5:3]
Does the scene here look familiar to you? These are the people who are the down and outers. They are the halted! They are the withered! They are the stopped of the world. They are the blind. They cannot do for themselves. They are the helpless.
[They are the “impotent”.]
They are the down and out!
They are the afflicted [of God].
This described me in 1973. I was down and out. I was afflicted of God … but what happened? Jesus Christ saved me!
Let me ask you this.
Are you down and out?
Are you afflicted of God?
Jesus Christ wants to “save” you.
2. The Up & In
Verse seven: “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."
Soon this will happen to the nation of Israel! She will be assembled! She will be gathered! [Even now this is happening.]
Now, here is a lesson that will come home to us today. Are you ready?
To be assembled, and to be gathered, when formerly you are withered, lame, or crippled … is a supernatural event [a miracle]. To be assembled and to be gathered is a great elevation … unlike anything man could ever do in the flesh.
What we have here, [in Micah] reminds me of what was taught by Jesus Christ when He was on this earth [in the book of Luke, in chapter fourteen]: “When thou art bidden of any man to a wedding, sit not down in the highest room; lest a more honourable man than thou be bidden of him;” [Luke 14:8]
Now, what should we do in this situation according to Jesus Christ? We should sit down at the lowest place in our gatherings, so as to make ready our heart [as one who is halt, or as one who has been driven out, or as one who is one of the “down and outers” of this world.
Now, we are ready for verse nine and ten: “And he that bade thee and him come and say to thee, Give this man place; and thou begin with shame to take the lowest room. But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room; that when he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto thee, Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee.” [Luke 14:9-10]
Here is our lesson. To be elevated, one must first be made low. “For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.” [Luke 14:11]
Israel is her … “that halteth”, and is her … that is “driven out”. Yet Israel, in the near future, will be “assembled”, and will “be gathered” as a “remnant”, and become “a strong nation”, against all odds, and against all possibility.
It will be a supernatural event! We have this, which is found in Matthew chapter nineteen, verse twenty-six: “But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.” [Matthew 19:26]
This is what one must do to be elevated, that is, to go up. To go UP and to get IN, one must first, go DOWN and be on the OUTSIDE!
This analogous to how one must be saved. One must die to self before one will live. “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.” [John 12:24-25]
3. The Remnant Nation
Verse eight: “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.”
Now again, in spite of all of the odds, and in spite of opposition from the world, and from the Devil, and from all his cohorts, the Kingdom of Heaven will come to the nation of Israel. The supreme authority for all of Heaven and Earth is the “dominion” [the government] of the Son of Jesus Christ, and will extend from ZION, which is Jerusalem.
• [Numbers 24:19] “Out of Jacob shall come he that shall have dominion, and shall destroy him that remaineth of the city.”
• [Jude 1:25] “To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.”
• [Revelation 1:6] “And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.”
The “first dominion” will be the millennial Kingdom Of Heaven, then beyond that, going into eternity the “dominion” will be “for ever and ever.”
You can put your life on it.
What the Lord taught His disciples when he was
teaching them how to pray … will most certainly …
come to pass. “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be
done in earth, as it is in heaven.”
[Matthew 6:10]