to crowd · verb, hithpael imperfect, 2nd person feminine singular
troops
גְּד֔וּדge.Dud
H1416
a crowd (especially of soldiers) · noun, common masculine singular absolute
daughter
בַתvat-
H1323
a daughter (used in the same wide sense as other terms… · noun, common feminine singular construct
troops
גְּדוּדgᵉdûwd
H1416
a crowd (especially of soldiers)
laid
שָׂ֣םsam
H7760
to put (used in a great variety of applications · verb, qal perfect, 3rd person masculine singular
siege
מָצ֖וֹרma.Tzor
H4692
something hemming in · noun, common masculine singular absolute
smite
יַכּ֣וּya.Ku
H5221
to strike (lightly or severely · verb, hiphil imperfect, 3rd person masculine plural
judge
שֹׁפֵ֥טsho.Fet
H8199
to judge · verb, qal active participle, masculine singular construct
Israel
יִשְׂרָאֵֽלYis.ra.'El
H3478
Jisrael · proper noun, a place name
rod
בַּשֵּׁ֙בֶט֙ba.She.vet
H7626
a scion · preposition with the article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
cheek
הַלְּחִ֔יha.le.Chi
H3895
the cheek (from its fleshiness) · definite article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Lamentations 3:30 He giveth his cheek to him that smiteth him: he is filled full with reproach.
Job 16:10 They have gaped upon me with their mouth; they have smitten me upon the cheek reproachfully; they have gathered themselves together against…
Isaiah 33:22 For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; he will save us.
Matthew 26:67 Then did they spit in his face, and buffeted him; and others smote him with the palms of their hands,
John 18:22 And when he had thus spoken, one of the officers which stood by struck Jesus with the palm of his hand, saying, Answerest thou the high prie…
John 19:3 And said, Hail, King of the Jews! and they smote him with their hands.
Deuteronomy 28:49 The LORD shall bring a nation against thee from far, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flieth; a nation whose tongue thou sha…
2 Kings 25:1-3 And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon c…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Micah 5:1-6
Here, as before, we have,
I. The abasement and distress of Zion, Mic 5:1. The Jewish nation, for many years before the captivity, dwindled, and fell into disgrace: Now gather thyself in troops, O daughter of troops! It is either a summons to Zion's enemies, that had troops at their service, to come and do their worst against her (God will suffer them to do it), or a challenge to Zion's friends, that had troops too at command, to come and do their best for her; Let them gather in troops, yet it shall be to no purpose; for, says the prophet, in the name of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, He has laid siege against us; the king of Assyria has, the king of Babylon has, and we know not which way to…
O daughter of troops - The Chaldeans, whose armies were composed of troops from various nations.
He (Nebuchadnezzar) hath laid siege against us; (Jerusalem ); they shall smite the judge of Israel (Zedekiah) with a rod upon the cheek - They shall offer him the greatest indignity. They slew his sons before his face; and then put out his eyes, loaded him with chains, and carried him captive to Babylon.
John Gill on Micah 5:1
Now gather thyself in troops, O daughter of troops,.... Not Jerusalem, full of people, called to draw out their forces, and fall upon the enemy besieging them, whether Chaldeans or Romans; but rather the Babylonians, whose armies were large, and their troops numerous; who are called upon by the people of God, encouraged by the foregoing prophecies, as well as by what follows, to come forth with all their forces, and muster up all their armies, and exert all the power and strength they had, thus suiting them; being assured, by the above promises, that in the issue they should prevail over all their enemies: unless the Romans should be intended, to whom this character of "daughter of troops" w…
Micah 5:1-2
1. Now gather thyself in troops, O daughter of troops: he hath laid siege against us: they shall smite the judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek.
1. [140] Nunc colligas te (vel, obsidione cingeris, ut alii vertunt) filia congregationis (hoc est, turmae;) obsidionem posuit contra nos; in virga percutient ad maxillam judicem Israel.
2. But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.
2. Et tu Beth-lehem Ephrata, parva ad essendum (ut ita loquar) inter millia Jehudah; ex te mihi egredietur ad essendum dominat…
The Church Fathers
So he says that Samaria will be surrounded and encompassed by the hostile peoples. Not only will they strike her cheek with their hand, which is more bearable, but they will crush her with rods, which is especially cruel. This signifies the shameful and miserable distress of captivity, for it is unquestionable that to strike the cheek is a special dishonor. Considering that they also struck her with rods, they have caused extreme hardship and debasement. Governed by the tribe of Ephrem, Samaria is dishonored. She is in shame and suffering. However, the striking hand will stop, and we will not taste misery if only we do our best to refrain from provoking the wrath of the Lord of all by trespassing or eagerly committing sins, which are hateful to him. If we honor him with virtuousness instead, then we will enjoy prosperity and will live a joyous and commendable life.
(Chapter 5, Verse 1) Now you will be devastated, daughter of a robber: sieges have been placed upon us; they will strike the judge of Israel on the cheek with a rod. LXX: Now the daughter will be obstructed with an obstruction; distress has been placed upon us; they will strike the tribes of Israel on the cheek with a rod. Not that one tribe strikes the cheek of another, but that others strike the tribes of Israel on the cheek. Indeed, I have promised you, O daughter of Zion, that there will come a time when I will place an iron horn upon you, and your hooves will be made of bronze, and by the multitude of demons being shattered, you will offer whatever they had previously possessed to the Lord (Romans 11) of the entire earth. But because this will happen when the fullness of the Gentiles has come in and all Israel has been saved, now for the time being you are being laid waste, or as it is said in Hebrew, destroyed. For you are not called Circumcision according to the Apostle (Philippians 3), but rather cutting off: nor do I call you my daughter, but the daughter of a thief, which in Hebrew is called Bath Gedud (), that is, always ready to plunder for the devil. For you have made my house a den of thieves, you have fought against me, and your sons have laid siege against me, and against the Son, and against my Spirit. Is it not an insult to the Trinity, when by your hand the Romans struck the head of the judge of Israel with a rod and a reed, saying: Prophesy to us, O Christ, who is it that struck you (Matt. 26:60)? Or when one of your servants struck him on the cheek, saying: Is this how you answer the high priest (John 18:22)? According to the Hebrew, to which the interpretations of Aquila and Symmachus, and Theodotion, and the fifth edition agree. But according to the LXX, the meaning is much higher and is understood as if from its own beginning. Now the synagogue is obstructed by obstruction: and those who are closed in it will say: He has placed distress upon us; and subject to Roman authorities, they will be struck on the cheekbones by the three Israels. For the Lord has taken away from Judah and from Jerusalem the strong and mighty, and the wise architect, and the intelligent listener (or helper), and its ways are closed and blocked up even until today, and it cannot go out of captivity; but it is pressed down by the harshest rule (Isaiah 3:1-2).…
Dictionary and topics
Cheek — Smiting on the cheek was accounted a grievous injury and insult (Job 16:10; Lam. 3:30; Micah 5:1). The admonition (Luke 6:29), “Unto him that smiteth thee on the one cheek offer also the other,”…
Hoshea — Salvation. (1.) The original name of the son of Nun, afterwards called Joshua (Num. 13:8, 16; Deut. 32:44). (2.) 1 Chr. 27:20. The ruler of Ephraim in David’s time. (3.) The last king of Israel. He…
War — The Israelites had to take possession of the Promised Land by conquest. They had to engage in a long and bloody war before the Canaanitish tribes were finally subdued. Except in the case of Jericho…
Court · CONTEMPT OF — CONTEMPT OF
Persecution · OF JESUS — OF JESUS
Prophecies Respecting Christ · His being smitten on the cheek — His being smitten on the cheek
Sieges · Illustrative Of: The judgments of God — Illustrative Of: The judgments of God
Titles And Names Of Christ · Judge of Israel — Judge of Israel
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
This section calls Israel to prepare for the vicious onslaught of Israel’s enemy, Assyria (5:5b-6). This siege of terror, death, and destruction will not annihilate Israel, for God will bring forth a ruler (5:2-5a) to lead his people back from exile. God’s preservation and purification of the remnant (5:7-14) will complete their restoration as God’s victorious people.
5:1 Israel’s leader was defeated by the Assyrians (cp. 6:9). Striking a person with a rod expressed contempt (cp. 1 Kgs 22:24).
Rashi on Micah 5:1
And you, Bethlehem Ephrathah—whence David emanated, as it is stated (I Sam. 17:58): “The son of your bondsman, Jesse the Bethlehemite.” And Bethlehem is called Ephrath, as it is said (Gen. 48: 7): “On the road to Ephrath, that is Bethlehem.”
you should have been the lowest of the clans of Judah—You should have been the lowest of the clans of Judah because of the stigma of Ruth the Moabitess in you.
from you shall emerge for Me—the Messiah, son of David, and so Scripture says (Ps. 118:22): “The stone the builders had rejected became a cornerstone.”
and his origin is from of old—“Before the sun his name is Yinnon” (Ps. 72:17).
