WALKING PARTNER
Play Audio
If you prefer listening to today’s Bible guide reading, play this audio file.
If the audio bar is not appearing, click here to play the audio.
Opening Prayer
Holy Spirit, continue to increase my understanding of who I am in Christ. Continue to teach me how to walk in his ways.
Read MICAH 6
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
The Lord’s Case Against Israel
6 Listen to what the Lord says:
“Stand up, plead my case before the mountains;
let the hills hear what you have to say.
2 “Hear, you mountains, the Lord’s accusation;
listen, you everlasting foundations of the earth.
For the Lord has a case against his people;
he is lodging a charge against Israel.
3 “My people, what have I done to you?
How have I burdened you? Answer me.
4 I brought you up out of Egypt
and redeemed you from the land of slavery.
I sent Moses to lead you,
also Aaron and Miriam.
5 My people, remember
what Balak king of Moab plotted
and what Balaam son of Beor answered.
Remember your journey from Shittim to Gilgal,
that you may know the righteous acts of the Lord.”
6 With what shall I come before the Lord
and bow down before the exalted God?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
with calves a year old?
7 Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,
with ten thousand rivers of olive oil?
Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
8 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly[a] with your God.
Israel’s Guilt and Punishment
9 Listen! The Lord is calling to the city—
and to fear your name is wisdom—
“Heed the rod and the One who appointed it.[b]
10 Am I still to forget your ill-gotten treasures, you wicked house,
and the short ephah,[c] which is accursed?
11 Shall I acquit someone with dishonest scales,
with a bag of false weights?
12 Your rich people are violent;
your inhabitants are liars
and their tongues speak deceitfully.
13 Therefore, I have begun to destroy you,
to ruin[d] you because of your sins.
14 You will eat but not be satisfied;
your stomach will still be empty.[e]
You will store up but save nothing,
because what you save[f] I will give to the sword.
15 You will plant but not harvest;
you will press olives but not use the oil,
you will crush grapes but not drink the wine.
16 You have observed the statutes of Omri
and all the practices of Ahab’s house;
you have followed their traditions.
Therefore I will give you over to ruin
and your people to derision;
you will bear the scorn of the nations.[g]”
Footnotes
- Micah 6:8 Or prudently
- Micah 6:9 The meaning of the Hebrew for this line is uncertain.
- Micah 6:10 An ephah was a dry measure.
- Micah 6:13 Or Therefore, I will make you ill and destroy you; / I will ruin
- Micah 6:14 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
- Micah 6:14 Or You will press toward birth but not give birth, / and what you bring to birth
- Micah 6:16 Septuagint; Hebrew scorn due my people
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
‘There is no place where earth’s sorrows / Are more felt than up in Heaven; / There is no place where earth’s failings / Have such kindly judgment given.’* Take your sorrows and failings to the place of tender mercyIsrael is on trial, and God is making his accusations (v. 2). Despite all of his kindness to them (vv. 4, 5), they have rejected him, walking away after other gods (v. 16).
So, how to put things right with God? One response Micah considers is to make impossible religious commitments (vv. 6, 7). Perhaps today, we are not tempted to offer thousands of rams, but maybe we resolve to pray harder, never miss church, give more than a tithe, and read the Bible in a year. All good things, but not the heart of our relationship with God.
Israel had to learn that the good life God requires is not a ‘right religion’ but a ‘right relationship’ with God and others. Never mind the year-old calves (v. 6); start showing mercy to those who offend you, and act justly in your dealings with others (v. 8). Easier said than done, and such a generous life can only be resourced by humbly walking with God. Only time spent in God’s presence can shape us into God’s people.
Apply
What does it mean for you, to ‘walk humbly with your God’? How does walking with him affect your relationships at home, at work, and with friends? Why not literally go out for a walk with God and talk it through with him?
Closing prayer
Father, the wideness of your mercy is beyond any measure. Thank you that you extend it to me each day, not because I deserve it but because your love for me is also beyond measure.
*‘There’s a Wideness in God’s Mercy’, Frederick W Faber, 1814–1863.
Book and Author Intros
Extras
Click here to sign up to receive the EXTRAs via email each quarter.
© 2025 Scripture Union U.S.A. All rights reserved. Reproduction of the whole or any part of the contents without written permission is prohibited.
Discovery is published in the USA under license from Scripture Union England and Wales, Trinity House, Opal Court, Opal Drive, Fox Milne, Milton Keynes, MK15 0DF.