Are you sure the KJV has translated the word for "he" correctly?
Different translations have "they" or "People", including the New King James. Plus, I looked up maps of ancient Assyria and I don't think it went as far east as where Teheran is located.
Thanks for the translations of the verse, but you might recall that we had a discussion about this verse about three months ago and we agreed that the verse needs to be read in context. I save many of my longer posts in Word documents and I also save all of my posts that are informational, and I know right where to find them, so here is what you said and how I responded.
All we're really using is verse 12, though. What is verse 13 talking about, and what is the rest of the chapter talking about? Is it all a Messianic prophecy? If it's only verse 12, then it's hard for me to accept one verse taken out of context, so, hopefully, you can tie in the rest of the chapter.
Okay, I will try to tie it in…
Micah 7 King James Version (KJV)
7 Woe is me! for I am as when they have gathered the summer fruits, as the grapegleanings of the vintage: there is no cluster to eat: my soul desired the firstripe fruit.
2 The good man is perished out of the earth: and there is none upright among men: they all lie in wait for blood; they hunt every man his brother with a net.
3 That they may do evil with both hands earnestly, the prince asketh, and the judge asketh for a reward; and the great man, he uttereth his mischievous desire: so they wrap it up.
4 The best of them is as a brier: the most upright is sharper than a thorn hedge: the day of thy watchmen and thy visitation cometh; now shall be their perplexity.
5 Trust ye not in a friend, put ye not confidence in a guide: keep the doors of thy mouth from her that lieth in thy bosom.
6 For the son dishonoureth the father, the daughter riseth up against her mother, the daughter in law against her mother in law; a man's enemies are the men of his own house.
I think that the gist of verses 1-6 is summarized in verse 2 -- The good man is perished out of the earth: and there is none upright among men – and verses 1-6 are a lead-in to the verses that come after that.
7 Therefore I will look unto the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me.
8 Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light unto me.
9 I will bear the indignation of the Lord, because I have sinned against him, until he plead my cause, and execute judgment for me: he will bring me forth to the light, and I shall behold his righteousness.
10 Then she that is mine enemy shall see it, and shame shall cover her which said unto me, Where is the Lord thy God? mine eyes shall behold her: now shall she be trodden down as the mire of the streets.
Then, in verses 7-10, he says he will look to the Lord, because man has failed (which he described in verses 1-6).
7 Therefore I will look unto the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me.
Verse 7 is a lead-in to verses 11-20, which are about the Lord, the Lord of Hosts who will come in the Person of the Messiah. Micah describes what will happen in that day. All these things happened in the days of Baha’u’llah.
11 In the day that thy walls are to be built, in that day shall the decree be far removed.
The decree was removed in 1844:
Edict of Toleration 1844
An
edict of toleration is a declaration, made by a government or ruler and states, that members of a given
religionwill not be persecuted for engaging in their religious practices and traditions. The edict implies tacit acceptance of the religion rather than its endorsement by the ruling power.
Edict of toleration - Wikipedia
Verse 12 describes where the Messiah will come from and go to:
12 In that day also he shall come even to thee from Assyria, and from the fortified cities, and from the fortress even to the river, and from sea to sea, and from mountain to mountain.
Verses 13-20 describe what the land would look like and what the Messiah would do.
13 Notwithstanding the land shall be desolate because of them that dwell therein, for the fruit of their doings.
14 Feed thy people with thy rod, the flock of thine heritage, which dwell solitarily in the wood, in the midst of Carmel: let them feed in Bashan and Gilead, as in the days of old.
15 According to the days of thy coming out of the land of Egypt will I shew unto him marvellous things.
16 The nations shall see and be confounded at all their might: they shall lay their hand upon their mouth, their ears shall be deaf.
17 They shall lick the dust like a serpent, they shall move out of their holes like worms of the earth: they shall be afraid of the Lord our God, and shall fear because of thee.
18 Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? heretaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy.
19 He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.
20 Thou wilt perform the truth to Jacob, and the mercy to Abraham, which thou hast sworn unto our fathers from the days of old.
All of this can be tied in with what William Sears wrote in his book
Thief in the Night.
Sears listed many things the Messiah would do but I am clipping out only the parts that pertain to Micah 7. In the book, Sears explained exactly how Baha’u’llah fulfilled these prophecies.
1. He would come from Assyria.
2. He would come from the fortified cities.
3. He would come from a fortress to a river.
4. He would come from sea to sea.
5. He would come from mountain to mountain.
6. The land to which he came would be desolate.
7. He would feed his flock in the midst of Mount Carmel.
8. He would work his wonders for a period equal to the days which the Jews spent coming out of Egypt.
Thief in the Night, p. 122
Now that I am discussing the prophecies of Micah, here are a few more that were fulfilled. Sears continues on…..
Frankly, I felt that a fulfillment of these prophecies would be sufficient by itself to establish the authenticity of the Messiah, for in addition to these eight prophesies, Bahá’u’lláh had also fulfilled Micah’s prophesies that the Messiah must:
1. Come as a Messenger of God and tread upon the high places of the earth.
2. Appear in the day when the children of Israel would be gathered into their own land.
3. Establish his house in the mountain.
4. Draw the people to it in a flow of love.
5. Send forth His love from that mountain.
6. Go to Babylon.
7. Withdraw from the city.
8. Dwell in the wilderness and the field.
9. Give birth in Babylon that would redeem the children of Israel.
Thief in the Night, pp. 122-123
Even if the Bible prophecies were the ONLY proof of who Baha’u’llah was, that would be enough for me, if I believed in the Bible. I do believe in the Bible so they are ample proof for me. As I said to a Christian on another thread yesterday:
I am not sure what you would consider trustworthy. I was never a Christian so my basis for belief in Baha’u’llah was the same as your basis for believing in Jesus -- His Person, His life and His mission, and the scriptures that He wrote. If I was a Christian, my basis for believing there was another Prophet/Messenger who would come after Jesus would be the promises Jesus made and what is in the OT about the Messiah to come. I would want to know if Baha’u’llah fulfilled Jesus’ promises and the OT prophecies.
The Bible prophecies and how they were fulfilled by Baha’u’llah are all outlined in this book that can be read online at your leisure:
William Sears, Thief in the Night