In this pericope Micah responded to God's goodness, just reviewed, as the Israelites should have responded. His was the reasonable response in view of Yahweh's loyal love for His people (cf. Rom. 12:1-2).
6:6 The prophet, for His people, asked himself what offering He should bring to the exalted Lord in heaven that would be appropriate in view of Yahweh's mercies to the Israelites throughout their history. Would burnt offerings of year-old calves be suitable, since they were the very best offerings and expressed the worshipper's total personal dedication to Yahweh (cf. Lev. 9:2-3; 22:27)?
6:7 Or would the Lord take pleasure if he offered Him thousands of rams and an extravagant amount of oil, like Solomon and other kings had done (cf. Lev. 2:1-16; 1 Kings 3:4; 8:63; 2 Chron. 30:24; 35:7)? Neither the quality of a sacrifice nor its quantity was the important issue. Perhaps making the ultimate sacrifice and offering his firstborn son to atone for his sins would please the Lord. Micah, of course, did not believe that these sacrifices by themselves would please Him, but he used them as examples of ritual worship that the Israelites thought would satisfy God.
6:8 No, these sacrifices were not what the Lord wanted. He had already told the Israelites what would be good (beneficial) for them when they sinned (cf. Deut. 10:12, 18; 1 Sam. 12:24; Hos. 12:6). He wanted each of His people ("O man") to change his or her behavior.37Specifically, He wanted them to practice justice rather than continuing to plot and practice unfairness and injustice toward one another (cf. v. 11; 2:1-2; 3:1-3). He also wanted them to love kindness, to practice loyal love (Heb. hesed) by carrying through their commitments to help one another, as He had with them (cf. v. 12; 2:8-9; 3:10-11). And He wanted them to walk humbly with Him, to live their lives modestly trusting and depending on Him rather than arrogantly relying on themselves (cf. 2:3). There is a progression in these requirements from what is external to what is internal and from human relations to divine relations. Doing justice toward other people demands loving kindness, which necessitates walking humbly in fellowship with God.38
This verse contains one of the most succinct and powerful expressions of Yahweh's essential requirements in the Bible (cf. Matt. 22:37-39; 23:23; 1 Cor. 13:4; 2 Cor. 6:6; Col. 3:12; James 1:27; 1 Pet. 1:2; 5:5). It explains the essence of spiritual reality in contrast to mere ritual worship. Though the Lord asked His people to worship Him in formal ways, which the Mosaic Covenant spelled out, His primary desire was for a heart attitude marked by the characteristics Micah articulated (cf. Ps. 51:16-17; Jer. 7:22-26).
"No vital relationship with God is possible if one is unfaithful to the responsibilities arising out of his God-given relationships with his fellow men."39
