Micah 7:17 (ASV)

Passage

They shall lick the dust like a serpent; like crawling things of the earth they shall come trembling out of their close places; they shall come with fear unto Jehovah our God, and shall be afraid because of thee.

Nearby Context

Micah 7:15 As in the days of thy coming forth out of the land of Egypt will I show unto them marvellous things.

Micah 7:16 The nations shall see and be ashamed of all their might; they shall lay their hand upon their mouth; their ears shall be deaf.

Micah 7:17 They shall lick the dust like a serpent; like crawling things of the earth they shall come trembling out of their close places; they shall come with fear unto Jehovah our God, and shall be afraid because of thee.

Micah 7:18 Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth over the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in lovingkindness.

Micah 7:19 He will again have compassion upon us; he will tread our iniquities under foot; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "shall", "lick", "dust", "like", "serpent", "crawling", and "things". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "shall" and "lick", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 16's "The nations shall see and be ashamed..." into verse 18's "Who is a God like unto thee...", so "shall" and "lick" belong inside that flow. In Micah context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "shall" and "lick" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.