Context: Micah prophesied in Judah in the 8th century BC, contemporary with Isaiah and Hosea. Like Amos, he is a prophet of social justice and the poor; like Isaiah, he has remarkable messianic visions. The book alternates cycles of judgment and restoration.

Specific accusations: Leaders who "tear the skin" of their people (3:2–3), prophets who prophesy only for what they receive (3:11), priests who teach for pay. The corruption of leaders brings judgment upon the entire nation. Chapter 3:12 — "Zion shall be plowed as a field, Jerusalem shall become a heap of ruins" — was so shocking it was quoted decades later to save Jeremiah from execution (Jer 26:18).

The greater prophecies: Micah 5:2 is one of the most precise messianic prophecies in the OT: "But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel" — quoted by the scribes when the magi asked where the Messiah would be born (Matt 2:6). And Micah's most famous verse — 6:8 — defines the ethics God wants in three requirements: "to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God."