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"Therefore I will wail and howl"

Text: Micah 1:8

MICAH’S LAMENT

Even as Micah had to deliver this word from the Lord to Israel, his heart was deeply burdened and he mourned greatly.

“Therefore I will wail and howl,
I will go stripped and naked;
I will make a wailing like the jackals
And a mourning like the ostriches.”
Micah 1:8

1. Deep sorrow was expressed

a) Though rebuke had to be given.

b) God’s judgment was declared.

c) And Israel rightly deserved the punishment.

d) Micah felt a deep sense of sorrow.

2. “Therefore I will wail and howl”

a) These are expressions of deep sadness.

b) Wailing and howling were not typical expressions of sorrow.

3. “I will go stripped and naked”

a) This need not be taken literally.

b) Micah was saying that he did not feel as if he should dress up normally to greet the day.

c) There was such a sense of sorrow felt, it was like the sorrow of one who did not have enough clothes to wear.

4. “I will make a wailing like the jackals”

a) Jackals howl on some evenings.

b) The sound produced was long-drawn and mournful.

5. “And a mourning like the ostriches”

a) When an ostrich senses danger it lowers its long neck to the ground.

b) It is like a person in mourning; the head is bowed down low.

A DEEP SENSE OF GRIEF

Why was this sense of grief so deep? How could Micah feel this way as he pondered the fate of Samaria?

1. He had a gentle and noble soul.

2. He could not help but note the terrible decline of the nation of Israel to such low and desperate straits.

3. He had a deep sense of affection and affinity to Israel for he shared the same roots!