Book of Micah (English: Mîykāh Hebrew)

The sixth of the twelve minor prophets in the Old Testament. It contains the prophecies of Micah and consists of seven chapters. Micah was from Moreshite, about 30 kilometers southwest of Jerusalem, and was active in the 8th century BC. In contrast to his contemporary Isaiah, who was from the upper class of Jerusalem, Micah is said to have been a prophet based in rural areas who sought justice from the perspective of the poor. He denounced the tyranny of the ruling class in the cities and the corruption of religious people, announced the arrival of God's thorough judgment, and said that even the holy city of Jerusalem would be handed over to the enemy and destroyed. He said that the essence of religion is not in festivals and rituals, but in the practice of justice and love, and living humbly with God. His prophecy (chapter 5) that the Savior would appear not in the holy city of Jerusalem but in the small provincial town of Bethlehem is quoted in the New Testament as a prophecy pointing to the birth of Jesus Christ. The famous prophecy of universal peace, "They will beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks," is found in chapter 4 (the same prophecy is also found in chapter 2 of Isaiah).

[Kiyoshige Naohiro]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

『旧約聖書』中の十二小預言書の第6書。ミカの預言を収録し、7章からなる。ミカはエルサレムの南西30キロメートル余りのモレシテの出身で、紀元前8世紀に活躍した。同時代のイザヤがエルサレムの上流階級の出身であるのとは対照的に、農村を基盤として貧しい者の立場から正義を求めた預言者といわれる。都会の支配層の暴政、宗教家の腐敗堕落を糾弾し、神の徹底的な審判の到来を告げ、聖都エルサレムといえども敵の手に渡されて滅びると語った。宗教の本質は、祭礼や儀式にあるのではなく、正義と愛の実践、謙遵に神とともに生きることにあるとした。救い主は、聖都エルサレムでなく、地方の小さい町ベスレヘムから登場するとの預言（5章）は、イエス・キリストの誕生をさす預言として『新約聖書』に引用されている。「つるぎを打ちかえて　すきとし、やりを打ちかえて　かまとする」との有名な万国平和預言は4章にある（同じものが「イザヤ書」2章にも収められている）。

［清重尚弘］

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