God Saw Their Sin

Have you ever thought that sinning was no big deal because God wouldn’t notice? That the unseen God wouldn’t care about a trivial transgression?

The Book of Micah opens with a warning against such thinking:

Hear, all you peoples!
Listen, O earth, and all that is in it!
Let the Lord GOD be a witness against you,
The Lord from His holy temple.
(Micah 1:2)

Though the Lord is enthroned in His holy temple, He is still the all-seeing witness. His testimony of sins is true, for He cannot lie (Numbers 23:19).

God saw the wickedness that Samaria and Jerusalem, the capitals of Israel and Judah, respectively, had committed (Micah 1:5).

But God’s gaze didn’t stop there.

The chapter goes on to foretell the downfall of 11 cities in Judah: Gath; Beth Aphrah; Shaphir; Zaanan; Beth Ezel; Maroth; Lachish; Moresheth Gath; Achzib; Mareshah; Adullam.

When we read the Bible, we may skim over such names—just as we might have with the list above.

But God’s eyes do not simply drift over these places. These are not just places to Him. They are where thousands of souls—His beloved people—dwell.

Micah deliberately crafts warnings and laments for each of these cities, weaving in rich wordplay based on their names (Micah 1:10-15).

If Micah put such care into tailoring each line, how much more intentional must God be in watching over and warning each city?

^{Figure 1: A map of the ancient Judean cities listed in Micah 1 (The ESV Study Bible: English Standard Version, 2008)}

A Sobering Thought for Our Time

Living in Singapore, I find something striking about the geography of these cities:

• Lachish to Jerusalem: ~40 km

• Gath to Bethlehem: ~32 km

In comparison, Singapore is about

• 50 km from east to west

• 27 km from north to south

If God took such notice of these 11 cities, how much more does He see all that happens in our small city-state and our church here? How would we fare in His eyes?

We can take heart that God’s watchful eyes are for blessing, too: “For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him.” (2 Chronicles 16:9)

When we understand how God sees, we won’t stay silent—we’ll echo Jesus, calling our neighbours back to Him. When we understand how God sees, we’ll live out His holiness—and we'll be known to Him (2 Corinthians 5:11).

God sees you. Choose wisely.

Citations

1. “Micah Prophesies Destruction.” The ESV Study Bible: English Standard Version., Crossway Bibles, 2008.