who is like God?

Confidence In God’s Commitment

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18 Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity
    and passing over transgression
    for the remnant of his inheritance?
He does not retain his anger forever,
    because he delights in steadfast love.
19 He will again have compassion on us;
    he will tread our iniquities underfoot.
You will cast all our sins
    into the depths of the sea.
20 You will show faithfulness to Jacob
    and steadfast love to Abraham,
as you have sworn to our fathers
    from the days of old. – Micah 7:18-20 ESV

God’s response to Micah’s prayer had a profound impact on him. Hearing Yahweh state that He would once again show His chosen people “marvelous things” (Micah 7:15 ESV), and restore the nation to its former glory, caused Micah to express his gratitude in worship. He acknowledges that God is totally unique and without equal, asking rhetorically, “Who is a God like you?” For Micah, the answer is clear: No one is like God. The false gods, byproducts of man’s fertile and sinful imagination, were all vengeful, unforgiving deities who ruled over mere mortals in anger and judgment, and for their own vainglory. But not Yahweh. He “pardons the guilt of the remnant,  overlooking the sins of his special people” (Micah 7:18 NLT).

This thought blew Micah away because he was well aware of the guilt of his people. He had witnessed it firsthand and had personal experience with their stubborn refusal to admit and confess that guilt. The people of Judah deserved all that was coming to them. They had repeatedly rejected the pleas of men like Micah, Isaiah, and Jeremiah, calling them to repent and return to the Lord. And yet, God had graciously expressed His intent to redeem and restore a remnant of them.

And Micah knows that this gracious response from God is totally undeserved and unmerited. Any future forgiveness and restoration the people of God experience will be due to His mercy and love.

You will not stay angry with your people forever, because you delight in showing unfailing love. – Micah 7:18 NLT

Micah’s words reflect his familiarity with the writings of Moses, found in the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible. In the book of Exodus, Moses recorded his encounter with God on top of Mount Sinai. This was his second trip to the top of the mountain. His first had resulted in God giving him the Ten Commandments, written on tablets of stone. But when Moses had returned to the Israelite base camp with God’s law in hand, he had discovered the people of God celebrating and worshiping in front of a golden calf, constructed for them by Aaron, his own brother.

Then Moses turned and went down from the mountain with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand, tablets that were written on both sides; on the front and on the back they were written. The tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets. – Exodus 32:15-16 ESV

And as soon as he came near the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, Moses’ anger burned hot, and he threw the tablets out of his hands and broke them at the foot of the mountain. He took the calf that they had made and burned it with fire and ground it to powder and scattered it on the water and made the people of Israel drink it. – Exodus 32:19-20 ESV

God had just given Moses the law, His code of conduct for His chosen people. But when Moses had returned to camp, he found the people of God worshiping a false god, displaying the true condition of their hearts. When Moses had not returned in a timely fashion, they had feared the worst and decided to replace Moses with Aaron and the God of Moses with one of their own making.

And God punished all those who took part in the rebellion against Him by subjecting them to a devastating and deadly plague. The rest of the nation, those who had refused to take part in the idolatry and insubordination, He forgave. And when Moses had returned to the top of the mountain to receive the second set of tablets inscribed with God’s commands, He had received the following message from Yahweh.

“Yahweh! The Lord!
    The God of compassion and mercy!
I am slow to anger
    and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.
I lavish unfailing love to a thousand generations.
    I forgive iniquity, rebellion, and sin.” – Exodus 34:6-7 NLT

This message from God was in direct response to a request from Moses that he might see God’s glory. Moses had heard from God. He had seen manifestations of God’s glory in the form of the burning bush and the pillars of fire and cloud. But with this request, he was asking to see God face to face. And God had told him, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The Lord.’ And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy” (Exodus 33:19 ESV). But God made it clear that His glory was too great for Moses to handle.

“…you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live.” – Exodus 33:20 ESV

When Moses had returned to the top of Mount Sinai, God kept His promise and allowed Moses to get a fleeting glimpse of His glory. And it was then that He described Himself as the God of compassion and mercy, slow to anger, and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness. God’s character is the true essence of His glory. And Micah seemed to understand the reality of that sentiment.

He was completely blown away by God’s mercy and love. This great God who had made the universe and all it contained, was going to graciously forgive the sins of His rebellious people. And the thought of it left Micah struggling to put into words just how amazing this grace of God really was.

Once again you will have compassion on us.
    You will trample our sins under your feet
    and throw them into the depths of the ocean! – Micah 7:19 NLT

Micah knew his people deserved nothing but the wrath of God. He was not blindly optimistic, somehow hoping that they would one day get their proverbial act together and return to God on their own accord. No, he knew that their pattern of stubbornness and spiritual infidelity would continue. And yet, he also knew that God would forgive. He knew what Zechariah, his fellow prophet, knew. God was going to show compassion on His wayward and sin-prone people.

“I will strengthen the house of Judah,
    and I will save the house of Joseph.
I will bring them back because I have compassion on them,
    and they shall be as though I had not rejected them,
    for I am the Lord their God and I will answer them.” – Zechariah 10:6 ESV

Micah was confident in the compassion of God because he believed in the trustworthiness of God. He was intimately familiar with the promises that God had made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

“And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” – Genesis 12:2-3 ESV

“And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you. And I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession, and I will be their God.” – Genesis 17:7-8 ESV

“I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply. A nation and a company of nations shall come from you, and kings shall come from your own body. The land that I gave to Abraham and Isaac I will give to you, and I will give the land to your offspring after you.” – Genesis 35:11-12 ESV

Over and over again, God had recommitted Himself to Abraham and his descendants, guaranteeing His intentions to keep His promises. In spite of all their sinful ways, God had never reneged on His covenant promises. While they had proven themselves to be unfaithful, He had remained completely faithful and unwavering in His commitment to do all that He had said He would do. And Micah had taken God at His word. Which led him to boldly and confidently exclaim:

You will show us your faithfulness and unfailing love
    as you promised to our ancestors Abraham and Jacob long ago. – Micah 7:20 NLT

For Micah, it wasn’t a matter of if, but only when. He knew that God was going to keep His word. He was completely confident that every single promise God had made would come to fulfillment – at just the right time and in just the right way. Because he knew this about his God:

God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?
 – Numbers 23:19 NLT

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message (MSG)Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

Who Is A God Like You?

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18 Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity
    and passing over transgression
    for the remnant of his inheritance?
He does not retain his anger forever,
    because he delights in steadfast love.
19 He will again have compassion on us;
    he will tread our iniquities underfoot.
You will cast all our sins
    into the depths of the sea.
20 You will show faithfulness to Jacob
    and steadfast love to Abraham,
as you have sworn to our fathers
    from the days of old. – Micah 7:18-20 ESV

It was Warren Wiersbe who wrote, “Few passages in Scripture contain so much ‘distilled theology’ as Micah 7:18-20” (Warren Wiersbe, “Micah,” The Bible Exposition Commentary/Prophets). And his assessment could not be more accurate. These four verses are absolutely brimming with theological insights into the character and nature of God. And this amazing thing is that they come at the end of a book that warns of God’s coming judgment against a sinful and rebellious people.

This is the same man who opened chapter 7 with the statement, “Woe is me!” He was living during a time of great turmoil and stress and having to deal with the pending fall of his nation’s capital and the utter devastation of his own people. And yet, in the midst of it all, Micah is able to praise God, the very one who was bringing judgment against Israel and Judah.

While he was sadly confident that God would fulfill His promise to punish His disobedient children, Micah was also completely convinced of God’s plans to restore them. He saw no conflict or contradiction between these two aspects of God’s divine plan for His people. They had sinned against God and deserved His discipline. God was simply doing what any human father would do who loves his children but in perfect righteousness and justice.

My child, don’t reject the Lord’s discipline,
    and don’t be upset when he corrects you.
For the Lord corrects those he loves,
    just as a father corrects a child in whom he delights. – Proverbs 3:11-12 NLT

Yet Micah also knew that God was committed to keeping the promises He had made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He had made a covenant to these men, guaranteeing to make of them a great nation, and promising to provide shower their descendants with His blessings.

Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” – Genesis 12:1-3 ESV

And the Lord appeared to him [Isaac] and said, …“Sojourn in this land, and I will be with you and will bless you, for to you and to your offspring I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath that I swore to Abraham your father. I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and will give to your offspring all these lands. And in your offspring all the nations of the earth shall be blessed…” – Genesis 26:2-4 ESV

And behold, the Lord stood above it and said [to Jacob], “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed.” – Genesis 28:13-14 ESV

God had made a commitment to remain faithful to HIs chosen people and Micah was willing to take God at His word. He opens this prayer of praise by asking the rhetorical question: “Who is a God like you?” Micah wasn’t expecting a response from God, because he already knew the answer. This “question-as-a-statement” device is found throughout Scripture and is intended to declare the greatness and transcendence of God. Moses declared:

“Who is like you, O Lord, among the gods?
    Who is like you, majestic in holiness,
    awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?” – Exodus 15:11 ESV

David wrote:

“O Lord, who is like you,
delivering the poor
    from him who is too strong for him,
    the poor and needy from him who robs him?” – Psalm 35:10 ESV

And another unknown psalmist adds:

“Who is like the Lord our God,
    who is seated on high,
who looks far down
    on the heavens and the earth?” – Psalm 113:5-6 ESV

Micah’s own name meant, “Who is like Yahweh?” His parents had given him a name that would constantly remind him of the unique nature of his God. And Micah believed it. But the one aspect of his incomparable God that Micah focused on was His willingness to forgive. What Micah couldn’t stop thinking about that his God “pardons the guilt of the remnant, overlooking the sins of his special people” (Micah 7:18 NLT). The false gods of the pagan nations were not known for their forgiving spirits. They were harsh, vindictive, and quick to mete out judgment, and yet, the people of Israel had made a habit of worshiping these gods in place of the one true God.

The problem with false gods is that they are nothing more than the creations of men. They don’t actually exist. And because they are the creations of men’s imaginations, they are little more than humans with supernatural powers. These gods bear a striking resemblance to fallen mankind, manifesting the same capacity to display uncontrolled anger, greed, vengeance, lust, and a blatant disregard for humanity.

But Micah’s God was different. Yes, He was going to judge His people for their sins, but His judgment would be followed by compassion, love, and forgiveness.

You will not stay angry with your people forever,
    because you delight in showing unfailing love. – Micah 7:18 NLT

Micah would have been very familiar with the story of when God had descended upon Mount Sinai and had declared to Moses:

“Yahweh! The Lord!
    The God of compassion and mercy!
I am slow to anger
    and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.
I lavish unfailing love to a thousand generations.
    I forgive iniquity, rebellion, and sin.
But I do not excuse the guilty.
    I lay the sins of the parents upon their children and grandchildren;
the entire family is affected—
    even children in the third and fourth generations.” – Exodus 34:6-7 NLT

The God of Moses was the God of Micah. And he rested in the knowledge that what God had declared to Moses hundreds of years earlier was still true because his God never changes. He never goes back on His Word. He is faithful to keep all His promises and commitments “to a thousand generations.”

And Moses declared his trust in God’s word by stating, “you will have compassion on us. You will trample our sins under your feet and throw them into the depths of the ocean!” (Micah 7:19 NLT). The great king, David, had written a psalm that echoed this same sentiment, declaring the unprecedented character of Yahweh.

The Lord is merciful and gracious,
    slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
He will not always chide,
    nor will he keep his anger forever.
He does not deal with us according to our sins,
    nor repay us according to our iniquities.
For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
    so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
as far as the east is from the west,
    so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
As a father shows compassion to his children,
    so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.
For he knows our frame;
    he remembers that we are dust. – Psalm 103:9-12 ESV

And Micah placed his hope and trust in the very same God that David worshiped and adored. This prophet of God, who had spent years delivering a call of repentance to his disobedient countrymen, was placing his confidence in what he knew about Yahweh. The days ahead were filled with destruction and devastation, but Micah rested in the word of God. He was a loving, compassionate, and forgiving God. He was a covenant-keeping God.

God had promised to bless the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and Micah was fully convinced that He would. God had declared that those very same people would be a blessing to the nations of the world, and Micah was confident that, one day, they would be. He rested his hopes in the character of his God. He placed his confidence in the integrity, righteousness, and holiness of Him who was like no other.

Micah began this prayer of praise with the question: Who is a God like you? And he answered his own question by declaring the unparalleled mercy, grace, love, and forgiveness of his God. There was and never will be anyone like God.

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message (MSG)Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson