Micah 7:20Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

He forgives transgressions and offers mercy, yet “withholdeth not the evidence of his wrath.” The phrase “in the sight” can be understood as “to the end” or “forever.” We were cast away in Adam but are received through Christ; in the former, we were cursed, but in the latter, we are blessed again; for “as by one man's transgression many are put to death, ... so also by one man's justification” many shall live (Rom. 5:15, 18). Therefore, He has turned away from His anger, “as He who wills mercy”; and during His incarnation, He will wash away the sins of humanity as if they were cast into the sea. He has promised the holy fathers, namely Abraham and Jacob, that He would multiply their descendants like the stars in the sky, assuring them that He will fulfill His promises. They will be recognized as the fathers of many nations, their children not only counted among the line of Israel but also among those who are heirs of the promise. Those who have faith, both from the uncircumcised and those who are from lawful circumcision, are united in spiritual harmony; for it is noted, “Not all ... that are of Israel, these are Israel; ... but the children of the promise are counted to the seed” (Rom. 9:6, 8). Those who share in this faith shall be blessed alongside faithful Abraham. The concept of blessing signifies the grace found in Christ, through whom, and in union with whom, we offer glory to God the Father, with the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen.

m that are left of His inheritance He hath not withheld wrath for a witness,’ is this: If He showed mercy to the Gentiles, who failed to heed His commandments, and to those remaining of His people He was unwilling to charge with their offenses, not exhibiting His anger as evidence of just retribution, what then shall He do for His flock, which grazes among Mount Carmel, in Bashan and Gilead? Indeed, yearning for compassion and repentance, He will show us mercy, bearing our heavy burdens of sin and iniquity, which are heavier than a talent of lead, and He will cast them into the depths, not allowing us to suffer their weight (Zechariah 5). He will grant truth to Jacob and mercy to Abraham, so that to a people under His care, always eager to strive, He in Christ will deliver truth, and to the multitude of nations (for Abraham, the father of many nations) He will impart mercy, as He swore to our forebears, echoing the promises of old; this indicates that some nations will be saved through truth, and others through mercy. In the phrase, ‘He will not extend His fury further,’ where we have translated as ‘further,’ Symmachus rendered it ‘forever,’ Theodotion as ‘to the end,’ while the LXX and the Fifth Edition say ‘in testimony’; in Hebrew, the term used (לעד) can mean both further and forever, as well as ‘testimony.’ Thus, at the conclusion of this text, I will finalize my work with an appeal to God, asking, ‘O God, who is like unto You? Forgive the transgressions of Your servant, hold no sin against the remnant of my soul, do not lead me into Your anger, nor overwhelm me with Your wrath, for You are merciful, and great is Your mercy. Turn and show mercy to me: cast down my sins and sink them into the depths of the sea, that the salt and bitterness of my faults may vanish in the abyss of error. Grant the truth You promised to Your servant Jacob, and the mercy promised to Your friend Abraham, and rescue my soul from the pursuers of Your prophets, Ahab and Jezebel, as I vowed to my ancestors in ages past, declaring, I live, saith the Lord. I do not desire the death of the sinner, but that he turn and live’ (Ezekiel 33:11) and similarly, ‘You shall breathe from the depths of your soul and be saved’ (Exodus 30:5). At that moment, my opponent will see and be filled with shame, she who now taunts me, ‘Where is the Lord your God?’ (Psalms 41:4, 11). I will witness Your vengeance upon her, and she will become as muck in the street; she shall be trampled, hindered from building her cities of clay and straw again.

Following this powerful symbolism, we, too, having been released from the affliction of the evil one through baptism, must tend to our own salvation by continually praising the Benefactor, adhering to His commandments, and walking in the way of the saints, so that we may attain the blessed conclusion of this journey alongside them, through the grace and compassion of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom belongs glory, along with the Father and the Holy Spirit, both now and forever. Amen.