Mic 3:5

“"The sun will go down" upon those prophets who lead my people astray, dwelling in darkness. "It will be night for you, without vision, and it will be dark for you, without dawn." "For, when [the spirit] goes out of a man, it goes about wandering." It does this quite by nature. [The Lord] rendered this judgment with regard to [the people]: "Thus will it be for this generation." That is, in the days of the prophets the evil spirit had gone out from them, [that spirit] that was sin itself.”

“(V. 5 seq.) This is what the Lord says about the prophets who deceive my people: they bite with their teeth and proclaim peace. But if someone does not give them something to eat, they declare war against him. Therefore, night will be for you instead of a vision and darkness instead of divination. The sun will go down on the prophets and the day will be darkened for them. Those who see visions will be put to shame, and the diviners will be confounded. They will all cover their faces because there is no answer from God. However, I am filled with the power of the spirit of the Lord, with justice and strength, to proclaim Jacob's wickedness and Israel's sin. LXX: Thus says the Lord concerning the prophets who deceive my people, who bite with their teeth and proclaim peace, but there is no word from their mouths. They have sanctified a battle against him. Therefore, night shall be to you instead of vision, and darkness instead of divination. The sun shall go down on the prophets, and the day shall be dark for them. Those who see dreams shall be confused, and the soothsayers shall be mocked. All these will speak against them because there is no one who listens to them. Only I will fill them with the power of the spirit of the Lord, with justice and strength, to proclaim Jacob's wickedness and Israel's sins. We read that there were false prophets in Israel, who, because they lacked the gift of peace, which was not given to them, preached, and if someone did not give gifts, even if he was holy, they would announce that the wrath of God would come upon him. Therefore, it is now said to them that they speak falsehoods, and their words are not prophecy, but false divination: they do not have light, but darkness and error. And when the opposite of what they promised is fulfilled, then they will be covered in confusion, because, it is said, there was no answer from God. Now neither can the power of demons deceive, to deceive them by their own deceit. The oracles will be silent, the unclean spirit will be silent, and it will not dare to mock. This is about false prophets. Again, a speech is introduced about the prophet speaking of himself, while they falsely predict, and with confusion and disgrace hidden, I, who speak, speak from the Holy Spirit, and I speak the judgment of the Lord and the power of truth. And when false prophets bite with their teeth and proclaim peace, I fearlessly proclaim the wickedness of Jacob and the sin of Israel; for they have worshipped either idols or crucified the Son of God. But if we wish to follow the Septuagint, which is said concerning heretics who are truly false prophets and say, 'Thus says the Lord,' and the Lord did not send them, we will not be led astray. For they deceive the people of God by their former error, and they do this in order to consume them, either simply by accepting gifts or mystically in the slaughter of their souls, and they promise them peace and heavenly kingdoms and say, 'You do not need to live constantly and holy, have faith in what we teach and you will attain all the promises of the Lord.' Those who speak these things, rather than appeasing the wrath of the Lord, actually provoke it and sanctify the battle against them. Therefore, O heretics, who think you have prophecy, and you imitate the Church of God, where you deem there to be vision, there it will harm you; and where you boast of prophetic prediction, there the unclean spirit will speak. For the sun of justice will kill such prophets, and they will see their darkness and be confounded. And when they are shown to be more divine than prophets, they will laugh at their dreams, and the people who were previously deceived by them will speak against them. Then even the teachers themselves will repent, and no one will listen to them except me whom they have offended. And because I am merciful and do not desire the death of the sinner (Ezek. XVIII), but rather want them to turn back and live, when I hear them, I will give them the power of my spirit, and I will fill them with my judgment and strength, so that those who previously deceived the people with flattery will later deter them by proclaiming the truth and lead them back to the right path, and those who were the cause of error will begin to heal the wounds they have inflicted and become a source of healing. Take note, in the present place, that someone can be taught after sin, if indeed they have washed away their previous sins with worthy penance. Hence, even David speaks after adultery and murder in the psalm: You will sprinkle me with hyssop and I shall be cleansed; You will wash me, and I shall be made whiter than snow. He is not satisfied with his own purity alone, but adds: Restore to me the joy of your salvation and strengthen me with a generous spirit. And when you have done this, he says, I will teach the wicked your ways, and the impious will be converted to you (Psalm 50).”

“Here he attacks the false prophets, as before he had attacked the "princes." make my people err--knowingly mislead My people by not denouncing their sins as incurring judgment. bite with . . . teeth, and cry, Peace--that is, who, so long as they are supplied with food, promise peace and prosperity in their prophecies. he that putteth not into their mouths, they . . . prepare war against him--Whenever they are not supplied with food, they foretell war and calamity. prepare war--literally, "sanctify war," that is, proclaim it as a holy judgment of God because they are not fed (see on Jer 6:4; compare Isa 13:3; Joe 1:14).”

“In the second strophe, Micah turns from the godless princes and judges to the prophets who lead the people astray, with whom he contrasts the true prophets and their ways. Mic 3:5. Thus saith Jehovah concerning the prophets who lead my people astray, who bite with their teeth, and preach peace; and whoever should put nothing into their mouths, against him they sanctify war. Mic 3:6. Therefore night to you because of the visions, and darkness to you because of the soothsaying! and the sun will set over the prophets, and the day blacken itself over them. Mic 3:7. And the seers will be ashamed, and the soothsayers blush, and all cover their beard, because (there is) no answer of God. Mic 3:8. But I, I am filled with power, with the Spirit of Jehovah, and with judgment and strength, to show to Jacob his transgression, and to Israel his sin." As the first strophe attaches itself to Mic 2:1-2, so does the second to Mic 2:6 and Mic 2:11, carrying out still further what is there affirmed concerning the false prophets. Micah describes them as people who predict peace and prosperity for a morsel of bread, and thereby lead the people astray, setting before them prosperity and salvation, instead of preaching repentance to them, by charging them with their sins. Thus they became accomplices of the wicked rulers, with whom they are therefore classed in Mic 3:11, together with the wicked priests. המּתעים, leading astray (cf. Isa 3:12; Isa 9:15) my people, namely, by failing to charge them with their sins, and preach repentance, as the true prophets do, and predicting prosperity for bread and payment. The words, "who bite with their teeth," are to be connected closely with the next clause, "and they preach peace," in the sense of "who preach peace if they can bite with their teeth," i.e., if they receive something to bite (or eat). This explanation, which has already been expressed by the Chaldee, is necessarily required by the antithesis, "but whoever puts nothing into their mouth," i.e., gives them nothing to eat, notwithstanding the fact that in other passages nâshakh only signifies to bite, in the sense of to wound, and is the word generally applied to the bite of a snake (Amo 5:19; Gen 49:17; Num 21:6, Num 21:8). If, however, we understand the biting with the teeth as a figurative representation of the words of the prophets who always preach prosperity, and of the injury they do to the real welfare of the people (Ros., Casp., and others), the obvious antithesis of the two double clauses of Mic 3:5 is totally destroyed. The harsh expression, to "bite with the teeth," in the sense of "to eat," is perfectly in harmony with the harsh words of Mic 3:2 and Mic 3:3. Qiddēsh milchâmâh, to sanctify war, i.e., to preach a holy war (cf. Joe 3:9), or, in reality, to proclaim the vengeance of God. For this shall night and darkness burst upon them. Night and darkness denote primarily the calamity which would come upon the false prophets (unto you) in connection with the judgment (Mic 2:4). The sun which sets to them is the sun of salvation or prosperity (Amo 8:9; Jer 15:9); and the day which becomes black over them is the day of judgment, which is darkness, and not light (Amo 5:18). This calamity is heightened by the fact that they will then stand ashamed, because their own former prophecies are thereby proved to be lies, and fresh, true prophecies fail them, because God gives no answer. "Convicted by the result, they are thus utterly put to shame, because God does not help them out of their trouble by any word of revelation" (Hitzig). Bōsh, to be ashamed, when connected with châphēr (cf. Jer 15:9; Psa 35:26., etc.), signifies to become pale with shame; châphēr, to blush, with min causae, to denote the thing of which a man is ashamed. Qōsemı̄m (diviners) alternates with chōzı̄m (seers), because these false prophets had no visions of God, but only divinations out of their own hearts. ‛Atâh sâphâm: to cover the beard, i.e., to cover the face up to the nose, is a sign of mourning (Lev 13:45), here of trouble and shame (cf. Eze 24:17), and is really equivalent to covering the head (Jer 14:4; Est 6:12). Ma‛ănēh, the construct state of the substantive, but in the sense of the participle; some codd. have indeed מענה. In Mic 3:8 Micah contrasts himself and his own doings with these false prophets, as being filled with power by the Spirit of Jehovah (i.e., through His assistance) and with judgment. Mishpât, governed by מלא, is the divine justice which the prophet has to proclaim, and gebhūrâh strength, manliness, to hold up before the people their sins and the justice of God. In this divine strength he can and must declare their unrighteousness to all ranks of the people, and predict the punishment of God (Mic 3:9-12).”