Word Studies - Part 7

Micah 6:8 – He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God. (NKJV)

Strong’s # 6800 sana` (saw-nah´)

Lexicons/Bible Dictionaries

Strong’s – to humiliate, humble, lowly

Vine’s – to bring low, to humble

Word Study (OT) – humble, act meekly, not arrogant or boastful, living according to the meekness and humility

Brown-Driver-Briggs – be modest, humble, reserved, showing a humble walk with God.

NIV Hebrew – humble, modest

NASB Hebrew – to be modest or humble

NIDOTTE – modest, humble, humility


Translations

KJV – He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

NASB95 – He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?

ESV – He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?

NLT – No, O people, the LORD has already told you what is good, and this is what he requires: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.

AMP – He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, and to love kindness and mercy, and to humble yourself and walk humbly with your God?

NIV – He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.

MSG – But he’s already made it plain how to live, what to do, what GOD is looking for in men and women. It’s quite simple: Do what is fair and just to your neighbor, be compassionate and loyal in your love, and don’t take yourself too seriously – take God seriously.

NRSV – He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?

Darby – He hath shewn thee, O man, what is good: and what doth Jehovah require of thee, but to do justly, and to love goodness, and to walk humbly with thy God?

Young’s – He hath declared to thee, O man, what [is] good; Yea, what is Jehovah requiring of thee, except — to do judgment, and love kindness, And lowly to walk with thy God?


Commentaries

Wesley – To walk humbly before God one must maintain a constant fellowship with God that is marked by a humble attitude, and holy faith.

Clarke – To walk humbly before God implies that one has acknowledged one’s iniquity and has submitted to be saved through the sacrifice of Jesus, realizing this is the only way. Without this humbling of one’s soul it is impossible to walk with the Lord.

McGee – This verse must never be misconstrued as indicating a religion of works. Micah is answering questions put to him by those in the Northern Kingdom who had not been educated about God and who wanted to know how to approach the Living God. Micah’s answer to this question is that an external show is insufficient to meet the requirements of the Lord, rather one must be changed on the inside which is consistent with the transformation that occurs through the Holy Spirit.

Expositor’s – Throughout the Mosaic law there is an undercurrent of justice, and Micah repeats that theme again by calling the people to act justly, and to freely show kindness and mercy to people. This is much easier to achieve if one is walking humbly before God, which means to live in a conscious and continuous fellowship with God.

Craigie – Christianity is a religion of relationship, and at the heart of that relationship is one’s daily walk with God, and a humble walk with God directly corresponds with practicing justice, and showing kindness. Yet, despite this fact, there is inherency in every human to be proud and independent, therefore the need to be reminded to walk humbly with God.

Achtemeier – If one walks humbly with God, that means that one walks in a constant communion with God in a modest, lowly, self-effacing manner with one’s attention and focus on God. When one walks humbly with God one is seeking the will of the Lord, and accepting the guidance and correction of God.

Boice – God is the Almight, the Creator of heaven and earth, one has no choice but to walk humbly with Him when one realizes precisely who He is.

Word Application

To walk humbly before God is to understand that God is holy and righteous, and sinful man is not, as humanity on its own is sinful and filled with iniquity. It is only through the sacrifice of Jesus that one can even dare to enter the presence of God. Before Jesus atoned for the sins of believers, the High Priest would enter the Holy of Holies once a year with great fear and trepidation as if the rituals for cleansing had not been completed perfectly, entering the Holy of Holies would result in the death of the High Priest. The sacrifice of Jesus allows the believer to be viewed as holy in the eyes of God, and one must not forget that it was only through this act of sacrificial love that one can have this privilege of entering God’s presence. Therefore one must not walk proudly before God, as the chief reason one can walk with God is because God paid a heavy price to allow it.
Walking humbly before God is more than an acknowledgement of one’s sinful condition, it is also the maintaining of a right relationship with God through prayer (and confession), studying scripture, and spending time with God. It is maintaining a fellowship with God based on a holy faith and humble attitude that acknowledges that God is the only God, and mankind is not. From this right and humble relationship with God one is more equipped to fulfill the commandment of God to love one Him, to love one another, and to love justice and mercy.