Attributed commentary excerpt
John Gill's Exposition on Micah 5:2
A historical reference excerpt for this verse. Read it alongside the biblical text and other available sources.
Exposition of the Old and New Testament
John Gill (1697–1771) · 18th-century historical commentary
Source: BibleWord.ai's local reference edition of this named work.
But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, etc.] But though Jerusalem should be besieged and taken, and the land of Judea laid waste, yet, before all this should be, the Messiah should be born in Bethlehem, of which this is a prophecy, as is evident from (<400204>Matthew 2:4-6); the place is called by both the names it went by, to point it out the more distinctly, and with the greater certainty, (<013519>Genesis 35:19); the former signifies “the house of bread”, and a proper place for Christ to be born in, who is the bread of life; and it has the name of the latter from its fruitfulness, being a place of pasture, and as we find it was at the time of our Lord’s birth; for near it shepherds were then watching over their flocks; and it is here added, to distinguish it from another Bethlehem in the tribe of Zebulun, (<061915>Joshua 19:15); from which tribe the Messiah was not to come, but from the tribe of Judah; and in which this Bethlehem was, and therefore called, by Matthew, Bethlehem in the land of Judah; as it appears this was, from (<080101>Ruth 1:1,2); and from the Septuagint version of (<061560>Joshua 15:60), where, as Jerom observes, it was added by the Greek interpreters, or erased out of the Hebrew text by the wickedness of the Jews: the former seems most correct; [though] thou be little among the thousands of Judah; this supplement of ours is according to Kimchi’s reading and sense of the words; which, in some measure, accounts for the difference between the prophet and the Evangelist Matthew, by whom this place is said to be “not the least”, (<400206>Matthew 2:6), as it might, and yet be little; besides, it might be little at one time, in Micah’s time, yet not little at another time; in Matthew’s; it might be little with respect to some circumstances, as to pompous buildings, and number of inhabitants, and yet not little on account of its being the birth place of great men, as Jesse, David, and especially the Messiah: or the words may be rendered with an interrogation, “art thou little?” etc.f148; thou art not: or thus, it is a “little [thing] to be among the thousands of Judah”f149; a greater honour shall be put upon thee, by being the place of the Messiah’s birth. Moreover, Mr, Pocock has shown out of R. Tanchum, both in his commentary on this place, and elsewheref150, that the word ry[x signifies both “little” and “great”, or of great note and esteem. The tribes of Israel were divided into tens, hundreds, and thousands, over which there was a head or prince; hence, in Matthew, these are called “the princes of Judah”, (<400206>Matthew 2:6); [yet] out of thee shall he come forth unto me [that is] to be ruler in Israel; not Hezekiah, who very probably was now born at the time of this prophecy; nor was he born at Bethlehem, nor a ruler in Israel, only king of Judah: nor Zerubbabel, who was born in Babylon, as his name shows, was governor of Judah, but not of Israel; nor can it be said of him, or any mere man, what is said in the next clause: but the Messiah is intended, as the Targum, Jarchi, and Kimchi confess, and other Jewish writers. The Targum is, “out of thee shall come forth before me the Messiah, that he may exercise dominion over Israel.” Jarchi’s note is, “out of thee shall come forth unto me Messiah, the son of David;” and so he says, “the stone which the builders refused”, etc. (<19B822>Psalm 118:22); plainly suggesting that that passage also belongs to the Messiah, as it certainly does. Kimchi’s paraphrase is, “although thou…
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