Micah 4:3

3 And he will be judge between great peoples, and strong nations far away will be ruled by his decisions; their swords will be hammered into plough-blades and their spears into vine-knives: nations will no longer be lifting up their swords against one another, and knowledge of war will have gone for ever.

Micah 4:3 Meaning and Commentary

Micah 4:3

And he shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations
afar off
That are in the most distant parts of the world; not only the isles afar off, but the remotest parts of the continent, the American nations found out since. In ( Isaiah 2:4 ) , it is, "and he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people"; that is, the King Messiah, as Aben Ezra, Kimchi, and Ben Melech. Some render it, "it shall judge" and interpret it either of the Church, the mountain of the Lord's house; or of the word and doctrine of the Lord; or of the Lord in the church, by the ministry of the word, The phrase, "afar off", is not in ( Isaiah 2:4 ) ; which the Targum interprets "for ever", and the "strong nations" of strong kings; signifying that the kingdom of Christ should not only be to the ends or the earth, but should endure for ever, unto distant time, even till it shall be no more; as well as shall reach to distant lands, as to situation, and to the Gentiles afar off, as to state and condition; see ( Ephesians 2:14 ) ; and they shall beat their swords into plough shares, and their spears
into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up a sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war any more;
which as yet has never been fulfilled; but will be the case when Christ's kingdom appears in its glory, and the kingdoms of this world become his, and all the enemies of the church are destroyed; (See Gill on Isaiah 2:4). These words are by the Jews ^F15 applied to the days of the Messiah.

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FOOTNOTES:

F15 T. Bab. Sabbat, fol. 63. 1.

Micah 4:3 In-Context

1 But in the last days it will come about that the mountain of the Lord's house will be placed on the top of the mountains, and be lifted up over the hills; and peoples will be flowing to it.

2 And a number of nations will go and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will give us knowledge of his ways and we will be guided by his word: for from Zion the law will go out, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.

3 And he will be judge between great peoples, and strong nations far away will be ruled by his decisions; their swords will be hammered into plough-blades and their spears into vine-knives: nations will no longer be lifting up their swords against one another, and knowledge of war will have gone for ever.

4 But every man will be seated under his vine and under his fig-tree, and no one will be a cause of fear to them: for the mouth of the Lord of armies has said it.

5 For all the peoples will be walking, every one in the name of his god, and we will be walking in the name of the Lord our God for ever and ever.