God’s crushing victory brings submission and acknowledgment of His sovereignty.
They will lick the dust like a serpent,
Like reptiles of the earth.
They will come trembling out of their fortresses;
To the LORD our God they will come in dread
And they will be afraid before You. (v.17) This verse conveys a vivid image of humiliated adversaries who realize the power of God and approach Him in fear. The act of “licking the dust” calls to mind the serpent’s curse in the Garden of Eden, where the serpent was condemned to slither on its belly and eat dust (Genesis 3:14). Here in Micah 7:17, the prophet warns that foreign nations in opposition to the LORD would sink into a posture of submission and awe, ultimately acknowledging His sovereignty. The prophet Micah delivered his oracles sometime between 750 and 686 BC, during a period where the Northern Kingdom of Israel was about to fall to Assyria and the Southern Kingdom of Judah faced impending threats.
The trembling of these nations “out of their fortresses” demonstrates that their defenses and pride are no match for God. They leave behind any illusions of self-reliance, approaching the LORD with fear. Historically, fortresses were literal strongholds enclosing cities and kingdoms, reflecting both the might of a city’s defenses and its inhabitants’ military confidence. Yet Micah’s prophecy reveals that such human-designed defenses crumble in the presence of the Almighty God, prompting both collective and individual humility.
In a broader biblical sense, this imagery foreshadows how all spiritual forces of darkness and opposing powers bow to God’s authority and ultimately to Jesus, who triumphs over cosmic powers of evil (Luke 10:19; Colossians 2:15). Although Micah’s geographical sphere largely centered in Judah—an area including Jerusalem and its surroundings—its meaning reverberates far beyond. Every nation, regardless of its place on the map, is subject to God’s rule and will eventually acknowledge the LORD, even if it is prompted by dread.
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Micah 7:17 meaning
They will lick the dust like a serpent,
Like reptiles of the earth.
They will come trembling out of their fortresses;
To the LORD our God they will come in dread
And they will be afraid before You. (v.17) This verse conveys a vivid image of humiliated adversaries who realize the power of God and approach Him in fear. The act of “licking the dust” calls to mind the serpent’s curse in the Garden of Eden, where the serpent was condemned to slither on its belly and eat dust (Genesis 3:14). Here in Micah 7:17, the prophet warns that foreign nations in opposition to the LORD would sink into a posture of submission and awe, ultimately acknowledging His sovereignty. The prophet Micah delivered his oracles sometime between 750 and 686 BC, during a period where the Northern Kingdom of Israel was about to fall to Assyria and the Southern Kingdom of Judah faced impending threats.
The trembling of these nations “out of their fortresses” demonstrates that their defenses and pride are no match for God. They leave behind any illusions of self-reliance, approaching the LORD with fear. Historically, fortresses were literal strongholds enclosing cities and kingdoms, reflecting both the might of a city’s defenses and its inhabitants’ military confidence. Yet Micah’s prophecy reveals that such human-designed defenses crumble in the presence of the Almighty God, prompting both collective and individual humility.
In a broader biblical sense, this imagery foreshadows how all spiritual forces of darkness and opposing powers bow to God’s authority and ultimately to Jesus, who triumphs over cosmic powers of evil (Luke 10:19; Colossians 2:15). Although Micah’s geographical sphere largely centered in Judah—an area including Jerusalem and its surroundings—its meaning reverberates far beyond. Every nation, regardless of its place on the map, is subject to God’s rule and will eventually acknowledge the LORD, even if it is prompted by dread.