The prophecy of Micah of Moresheth in the days of the kings Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah – the first two of whom were profoundly evil and wicked kings of Judah, but the third of whom was a righteous and just ruler who walked in the ways of the Lord.

5 ^[a] Now muster your troops, O daughter^[b] of troops;
    siege is laid against us;
with a rod they strike the judge of Israel
    on the cheek.
^2 [c] But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,
    who are too little to be among the clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me
    one who is to be ruler in Israel,
whose coming forth is from of old,
    from ancient days.
³ Therefore he shall give them up until the time
    when she who is in labor has given birth;
then the rest of his brothers shall return
    to the people of Israel.
⁴ And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord,
    in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great
    to the ends of the earth.
⁵ And he shall be their peace.

When the Assyrian comes into our land
    and treads in our palaces,
then we will raise against him seven shepherds
    and eight princes of men;
⁶ they shall shepherd the land of Assyria with the sword,
    and the land of Nimrod at its entrances;
and he shall deliver us from the Assyrian
    when he comes into our land
    and treads within our border.

And here’s your weekly dose of Scripturally correct sermons to get your Sunday off to the right start: