Micah study section
Micah word studies
A handful of Hebrew words carry the theology of Micah. Tap the speaker next to any word to hear it pronounced.
Key words
מִשְׁפָּט (mishpat) — “Justice”
Usage: Micah 3:1, 8; 6:8
Meaning: Justice, right judgment, the fair treatment of others, especially the weak.
Theological Significance: Mishpat is the first thing the LORD requires. Perfectly embodied in Christ, who “will not fail... till he has established justice in the earth,” it is the standard by which leaders and peoples are measured (Micah 6:8; Isaiah 42:4).
חֶסֶד (chesed) — “Kindness, Steadfast Love”
Usage: Micah 6:8; 7:18, 20
Meaning: Steadfast, loyal love; covenant kindness and mercy. God requires us to “love chesed” and Himself “delights in steadfast love.”
Theological Significance: Chesed is both what God requires and what God is. It is fully revealed in Christ, in whom God’s steadfast love pardons iniquity and keeps covenant forever (Micah 7:18; Ephesians 2:4-7).
הַצְנֵעַ (hatsnea) — “To Walk Humbly”
Usage: Micah 6:8
Meaning: To be humble, modest, circumspect; to walk carefully and lowly. “To walk humbly with your God.”
Theological Significance: Humble walking with God is the posture of true faith, perfectly modeled by Christ, who “humbled himself” and walked in lowly obedience, and who gives grace to the humble (Micah 6:8; Philippians 2:8; James 4:6).
שְׁאֵרִית (she’erit) — “Remnant”
Usage: Micah 2:12; 4:7; 5:7-8; 7:18
Meaning: Remnant, remainder, those who survive and are preserved.
Theological Significance: God’s promise to preserve a she’erit runs through Micah and all the prophets, fulfilled in the remnant “chosen by grace” who are saved in Christ (Micah 5:7; Romans 11:5).
נָשָׂא עָוֹן (nasa avon) — “To Pardon Iniquity”
Usage: Micah 7:18
Meaning: To lift, bear, carry away iniquity; hence to pardon and forgive. “Pardoning iniquity.”
Theological Significance: God’s lifting away of sin is fulfilled at the cross, where Christ “bore our sins in his body” and God casts them “into the depths of the sea,” removing them forever (Micah 7:18-19; 1 Peter 2:24).
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