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COMMENTARY ON MICAH, CHAPTER ONE The word of the Lord came to Micah of Morathi in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah (v.1). GAIN IT SHOULD be understood that the Hebrew text has Moresheth in place of Morathi, the intention being to give the name not of the father but of his native place; they say Morathi was a town or little city of the country of the Jews. The other translators agree with this text as well; so Morathi would not be the prophet’s father; instead, by mention of Moresheth, as I said, there is a reference to his native place.1 We need now to study what the words were that came to him. Which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem; that is, he sees future events in a vision, as it were, troubles that had not then come to pass or were at the very doors, which he received not only in his mind but as far as possible by sight (603)—a vision, that is—and of which he dreaded the outcome. So he necessarily delivers his prophecy concerning Samaria and Jerusalem. Listen to the words, all you peoples, and let the earth and all its inhabitants give heed. The Lord God will give witness to you, the Lord from his holy house (v.2). He bids them be ready to respond, bending their ear, as it were, to grasp in detail the force of the divine sayings. Now, the fact that the account comes not from human will or intention but actually from God, who has control of all things, he confirms by adding, The Lord will give witness to you. In other words, he is saying, Even if it is I, Micah, who delivers the message, even if as a man I perhaps act as mediator, still it is the God of all in person who adjures you, lending his own voice to his lordly oracles. He will therefore be a witness to you, the one to whom you erected this celebrated and splendid Temple, 183 1. Cyril does not follow Jerome in proceeding to locate Moresheth. 184 CYRIL OF ALEXANDRIA to whom the divine altar was raised by you, to whom you have been instructed by Law to show reverence, who has ever spoken to the holy prophets from his own house. Before the others he spoke to blessed Moses, who erected that ancient tabernacle in the wilderness; he used to speak from above the mercy seat, and, as the sacred text says, “Moses would speak, and God would reply (604) to him in a mighty sound.” He now adjures you, it says, from his house; so listen, peoples, and let the earth give heed. Similar to this is the statement in Isaiah, “Listen, heaven, and give heed, earth, for the Lord has spoken.”2 While the Most High does not dwell in handmade temples of stone, therefore, yet since we claim the holy houses are erected to the glory of God, consequently we believe it is not unworthy of the God of all to dwell in them, even though filling the heavens, the earth, and the nether regions. Now, you would be justified in applying this also to Christ when he calls to salvation not only peoples who were descended from Abraham, but also the whole earth. He adjures them, in fact, by saying in the words of David, “Hear this, all nations; give ear, all you who dwell in the world.”3 There is no doubting the fact that the Word has come down from heaven to us, as it were, from his own house, which is very dear to him. It would not be wrong to speak of heaven as God’s house when the inspired Scriptures speak of the earthly Zion, taken as a type of the church, as his house and city; the divinely inspired David somewhere sings, “Glorious things have been said of you, city of God.”4 So the church of Christ, who fills all things in his divine nature, would be, as it were, a city and house. For, lo, the Lord is issuing forth from his place; he will walk upon (605) the high places of the earth. Mountains will shake under him, and the valleys will melt like wax in the face of fire and like water falling in descent (vv.3–4). Such a passage is very obscure and full of riddles; but we are obliged...

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