A repeated failing in Israel was that of leaders failing to be the leaders they were meant to be. The primary purpose of a leader is to "embrace justice". Instead Israel's rulers were hating good and loving evil. Of course, we see this pattern repeated time and time again, whether it be at a national level, or on a smaller scale in organisations and companies. When people see power as an opportunity to get their own ends they start to treat people as objects to be exploited. Then a time would come when these same rulers would cry out to the Lord, but He would not answer them, and the reason he would not answer is because of the evil they had done.
The prophets were no better. A leader is meant to rule on God's behalf, a prophet is meant to speak on God's behalf. This does not mean every single word a prophet says is a direct communication from God, but that what the prophet says is based on God's word, not on human thinking. But the prophets of the day were speaking for money, not for God. All prophets, preachers and teachers need to beware of falling into the same trap.
So a time of darkness would come when there would be no revelation. This indicates that there is a time when they could hear God, but chose to speak out of the flesh. So the revelation would be stopped.
Micah, on the other hand, was a true prophet of God. He was filled with power and the Spirit, and with justice and might. So he declared the sin and transgressions of the nation. Today society wants to silence the church, but it is part of the role of the church to declare a nation's sins to it.
The leaders, prophets and priests were utterly deluded. They thought that God would still be with them, that He would still protect them. If we turn away from God, He will turn away from us.
So Jerusalem would be come utterly desolated.
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