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Micah 1-7
GOD’S WORD Translation
Micah 1-7
GOD’S WORD Translation
The Prophet Micah
1 The Lord spoke his word to Micah, who was from Moresheth, when Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah were kings of Judah. This is the vision that Micah saw about Samaria and Jerusalem.
The Capital Cities of Israel and Judah Destroyed
2 Listen, all you people!
Pay attention, earth and all who are on it.
The Almighty Lord will be a witness against you.
The Lord will be a witness from his holy temple.
3 The Lord is going to come from his place.
He is going to come down and step on the worship places of the earth.
4 Mountains will melt under him like wax near a fire.
Valleys will split apart like water pouring down a steep hill.
5 All this is because of Jacob’s crime and Israel’s sin.
What is Jacob’s crime? Isn’t it Samaria?
What is Judah’s worship place? Isn’t it Jerusalem?
6 So I will turn Samaria into a pile of rubble,
a place for planting vineyards.
I will roll its stones down into a valley and expose its foundations.
7 All its idols will be smashed to pieces.
All its wages for being a prostitute will be burned.
All its statues will be turned into a pile of rubble.
Samaria collected its wages for being a prostitute.
That money will again pay for prostitutes.
8 I will mourn and cry because of this.
I will walk around barefoot and naked.
I will cry like a jackal and mourn like an ostrich.
9 Samaria’s wounds are incurable.
⌞The news about Samaria⌟ will come to Judah.
It will reach the gates of my people in Jerusalem.
10 Don’t report it in Gath. Don’t cry there.
Roll in the dust of Beth Leaphrah.[a]
11 Pass by, naked and ashamed, inhabitants of Shaphir.
Don’t come out, inhabitants of Zaanan.
Beth Ezel is in mourning.
It will take its support away from you.
12 Wait anxiously for good, inhabitants of Maroth.
From the Lord disaster will come on the gates of Jerusalem.
13 Harness the horses to the chariots, inhabitants of Lachish.
You were the first to lead the people of Zion into sin.
The rebellious acts of Israel are found in you.
14 That is why you will give farewell gifts to Moresheth Gath.
The town of Achzib will betray the kings of Israel.
15 I will again bring a conqueror against the inhabitants of Mareshah.
The glory of Israel will come to Adullam.
16 Shave your head in mourning for the children you love.
Make yourselves as bald as vultures
because your children will be taken from you into exile.
Israel’s Sins Are Condemned
2 How horrible it will be for those who invent trouble
and work out plans for disaster while in bed.
When the morning dawns, they carry out their plans
because they are able to.
2 They desire ⌞other people’s⌟ fields, so they seize them.
They desire ⌞people’s⌟ houses, so they take them.
They cheat a man and his family,
a man and his inheritance.
3 So this is what the Lord says:
I’m planning a disaster to punish your family.
You won’t be able to rescue yourselves.
You will no longer be able to walk proudly.
This will be a time of disaster.
4 When that day comes, people will make fun of you.
They will sing this sad song about you:
“We are completely ruined.
The Lord gives our people’s possessions ⌞to others⌟.
He takes them from us.
He divides our fields among our captors.”
5 That is why none of you in the Lord’s assembly will draw lots
to divide your property.
6 Your prophets say, “Don’t prophesy!
Don’t prophesy such things!
Disgrace will never overtake us.”
7 Should the descendants of Jacob be asked:
Has the Spirit of the Lord become impatient with you?
Has he done these things?
Are his words good for those who live honestly?
8 Recently, my people have turned into enemies.
You take coats from those who pass by without a care
as they return from war.
9 You force the women among my people out of their pleasant homes
and take my glory away from their children forever.
10 Get up, and go away!
This is not a place to rest!
It will be destroyed, completely destroyed,
because it offends me.
11 Liars and frauds may go around and say,
“We will preach to you about wine and liquor.”
They would be just the type of preacher you want.
Israel Will Be Gathered Again by the Lord
12 I will surely gather all of you, Jacob.
I will surely bring together the few people left in Israel.
I will gather them together like sheep in a pen,
like a flock in its pasture.
They will make a lot of noise
because there will be so many people.
13 ⌞The Lord⌟ will open the way and lead them.
They will break out, go through the gate, and leave.
Their king will travel in front of them.
The Lord will lead the people.
Israel’s Sinful Leaders—Rulers, Prophets, and Priests
3 Then I said:
Listen, you leaders of Jacob, you rulers of the nation of Israel.
You should know justice.
2 You hate good and love evil.
You strip the skin off my people and the flesh off their bones.
3 You eat my people’s flesh.
You strip off their skin.
You break their bones to pieces.
You chop them up like meat for a pot, like stew meat for a kettle.
4 Then you will cry to the Lord,
but he will not answer you.
He will hide his face from you at that time
because you have done evil things.
5 This is what the Lord says about the prophets who mislead my people:
When they have something to eat, they say, “All is well!”
But they declare a holy war against those who don’t feed them.
6 That is why you will have nights without visions.
You will have darkness without revelations.
The sun will set on the prophets,
and the day will turn dark for them.
7 Seers [b] will be put to shame.
Those who practice witchcraft will be disgraced.
All of them will cover their faces, because God won’t answer them.
8 But I am filled with the power of the Lord’s Spirit,
with justice, and with strength.
So I will tell ⌞the descendants of⌟ Jacob about their crimes
and ⌞the nation of⌟ Israel about its sins.
9 Listen to this, you leaders of the descendants of Jacob,
you rulers of the nation of Israel.
You despise justice and pervert everything that is right.
10 You build Zion on bloodshed and Jerusalem on wickedness.
11 Your leaders exchange justice for bribes.
Your priests teach for a price.
Your prophets tell the future for money.
But they rely on the Lord when they say,
“After all, the Lord is with us.
Nothing bad will happen to us.”
12 Because of you,
Zion will be plowed like a field,
Jerusalem will become a pile of rubble,
and the temple mountain will become a worship site
covered with trees.
The Lord Will Teach the Nations(A)
4 In the last days the mountain of the Lord’s house
will be established as the highest of the mountains
and raised above the hills.
People will stream to it.
2 Then many nations will come and say,
“Let’s go to the mountain of the Lord,
to the house of the God of Jacob.
He will teach us his ways so that we may live by them.”
The teachings will go out from Zion.
The Lord’s word will go out from Jerusalem.
3 Then he will judge disputes between many people
and settle arguments between many nations far and wide.
They will hammer their swords into plowblades
and their spears into pruning shears.
Nations will never fight against each other,
and they will never train for war again.
4 They will sit under their grapevines and their fig trees,
and no one will make them afraid.
The Lord of Armies has spoken.
5 All the nations live by the names of their gods,
but we will live by the name of the Lord our God forever.
6 “When that day comes,” declares the Lord,
“I will gather those who are lame.
I will bring together those who are scattered
and those whom I have injured.
7 I will change those who are lame into a faithful people.
I will change those who are forced away into a strong nation.”
The Lord will rule them on Mount Zion now and forever.
8 You, Jerusalem, watchtower of the flock,
stronghold of the people of Zion,
your former government will come back to you.
The kingdom will return to the people of Jerusalem.
9 Now why are you crying so loudly?
Don’t you have a king?
Has your counselor died?
Pain grips you like a woman in labor.
10 Daughter of Zion, writhe in pain and groan like a woman in labor.
Now you will leave the city,
live in the open fields,
and go to Babylon.
There you will be rescued.
There the Lord will reclaim you from your enemies.
11 But now many nations gather against you.
They say, “Let’s dishonor Zion and gloat over it.”
12 They don’t know the thoughts of the Lord or understand his plan.
He will bring them together
like cut grain on the threshing floor.[c]
13 Get up and thresh,[d] people of Zion.
I will make your horns as hard as iron
and your hoofs as hard as bronze.
You will smash many nations into small pieces.
You will claim their loot for the Lord,
their wealth for the Lord of the whole earth.
5 [e]Now, gather your troops, you city of troops.
We are under attack.
Enemies will strike the judge of Israel on the cheek with a stick.
The Lord’s Leader for Israel
2 You, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
are too small to be included among Judah’s cities.
Yet, from you Israel’s future ruler will come for me.
His origins go back to the distant past, to days long ago.
3 That is why the Lord will abandon Israel
until the time a mother has a child.
Then the rest of the Lord’s people will return to the people of Israel.
4 The child will become the shepherd of his flock.
⌞He will lead them⌟ with the strength of the Lord,
with the majestic name of the Lord his God.
They will live in safety
because his greatness will reach the ends of the earth.
5 This man will be their peace.
When the Assyrians invade our land and trample our palaces,
we will attack them with seven shepherds and eight leaders.
6 They will rule Assyria with their swords
and the country of Nimrod with drawn swords.
They will rescue us from the Assyrians
when they come into our land
and walk within our territory.
7 Then the few people left from Jacob will be among many people
like dew from the Lord, like showers on the grass.
They do not put their hope in humans or wait for mortals.
8 The few people left from Jacob will be among the nations,
among many people.
They will be like a lion among animals in the forest,
like a young lion among flocks of sheep.
When a lion hunts,
it tramples ⌞its victims⌟ and tears ⌞them⌟ to pieces,
and there is no one to rescue them.
9 You will use your power against your opponents,
and all your enemies will be destroyed.
10 “When that day comes,” declares the Lord,
“I will destroy your horses
and demolish your chariots.
11 I will destroy the cities in your land
and tear down all your fortresses.
12 I will destroy your sorcerers,
and you will have no more fortunetellers.
13 I will destroy your idols and your sacred monuments.
You will no longer worship what your hands have made.
14 I will pull out your poles dedicated to the goddess Asherah.
I will wipe out your cities.
15 I will take revenge with great anger
on the nations that do not obey me.”
The Lord’s Lawsuit against His People
6 Now listen to what the Lord is saying,
“Stand up! Plead your case in front of the mountains,
and let the hills listen to your request.
2 Listen to the Lord’s lawsuit, you mountains.
Listen, you strong foundations of the earth.
The Lord has filed a lawsuit against his people.
He is arguing his case against Israel.
3 “My people, what have I done to you?
How have I tried your patience? Answer me!
4 I brought you out of Egypt and freed you from slavery.
I sent Moses, Aaron, and Miriam to lead you.
5 My people, remember what King Balak of Moab planned ⌞to do to you⌟
and how Balaam, son of Beor, responded to him.
Remember ⌞your journey⌟ from Shittim to Gilgal
so that you may know the victories of the Lord.”
6 What should I bring when I come into the Lord’s presence,
when I bow in front of the God of heaven?
Should I bring him year-old calves as burnt offerings?
7 Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams
or with endless streams of olive oil?
Should I give him my firstborn child because of my rebellious acts?
Should I give him my young child for my sin?
8 You mortals, the Lord has told you what is good.
This is what the Lord requires from you:
to do what is right,
to love mercy,
and to live humbly with your God.
9 The voice of the Lord calls out to the city.
(The fear of your name is wisdom.)
“Listen, you tribe assembled in the city.[f]
10 I have cursed all the wicked people who use their money for evil
and use inaccurate weights and measures.
11 I cannot tolerate dishonest scales
and bags filled with inaccurate weights.
12 The rich people in the city are violent.
Those who live in the city speak lies,
and their tongues speak deceitfully.
13 I have begun to strike you with heavy blows
and to ruin you because of your sins.
14 You will eat, but you won’t be full.
So you will always be hungry.
You will put things away, but you won’t save them.
Anything you save I will destroy.
15 You will plant, but you won’t harvest.
You will crush olives, but you won’t rub the oil on your skin.
You will make new wine, but you won’t drink it.
16 You have kept Omri’s laws
and all the practices of the descendants of Ahab,
and you have followed their advice.
That is why I will ruin you.
Your people will be ridiculed.
You will bear the disgrace of my people.”
The Lord’s People Confess Their Sin
7 Poor me!
I am like those gathering summer fruit,
like those picking grapes.
But there aren’t any grapes to eat
or any ripened figs that I crave.
2 Faithful people are gone from the earth,
and no one is decent.
All people lie in ambush to commit murder.
They trap each other with nets.
3 Their hands are skilled in doing evil.
Officials ask for gifts.
Judges accept bribes.
Powerful people dictate what they want.
So they scheme together.
4 The best of them is like a briar.
The most decent person is sharper than thornbushes.
The day you thought you would be punished has come.
Now is the time you will be confused.
5 Don’t trust your neighbors.
Don’t have confidence in ⌞your⌟ friends.
Keep your mouth shut even when a woman is lying in your arms.
6 A son treats his father with contempt.
A daughter rebels against her mother.
A daughter-in-law rebels against her mother-in-law.
People’s enemies are the members of their own families.
7 I will look to the Lord.
I will wait for God to save me.
I will wait for my God to listen to me.
8 Don’t laugh at me, my enemies.
Although I’ve fallen, I will get up.
Although I sit in the dark, the Lord is my light.
9 I have sinned against the Lord.
So I will endure his fury
until he takes up my cause and wins my case.
He will bring me into the light,
and I will see his victory.
10 Then my enemies will see this, and they will be covered with shame,
because they asked me, “Where is the Lord your God?”
Now I look at them.
They are trampled like mud in the streets.
11 The day for rebuilding your walls
and extending your borders is coming.
12 When that day comes, your people will come to you
from Assyria and the cities of Egypt,
from Egypt to the Euphrates River,
from sea to sea, and from mountain to mountain.
13 The earth will become a wasteland for those who live on it
because of what the people living there have done.
14 With your shepherd’s staff, take care of your people,
the sheep that belong to you.
They live alone in the woods, in fertile pastures.
Let them feed in Bashan and Gilead like before.
15 Let us see miracles
like the time you came out of Egypt.
16 Nations will see this and be ashamed in spite of all their strength.
They will put their hands over their mouths.
Their ears will become deaf.
17 They will lick dust like snakes,
like animals that crawl on the ground.
They will come out of their hiding places trembling.
They will turn away from your presence in fear, O Lord our God.
They will be afraid of you.
18 Who is a God like you?
You forgive sin
and overlook the rebellion of your faithful people.
You will not be angry forever,
because you would rather show mercy.
19 You will again have compassion on us.
You will overcome our wrongdoing.
You will throw all our sins into the deep sea.
20 You will be faithful to Jacob.
You will have mercy on Abraham
as you swore by an oath to our ancestors long ago.
Footnotes
- 1:10 Or “I rolled in the dust of Beth Leaphrah.”
- 3:7 A seer is a prophet.
- 4:12 A threshing floor is an outdoor area where grain is separated from its husks.
- 4:13 Threshing is the process of beating stalks to separate them from the grain.
- 5:1 Micah 5:1–15 in English Bibles is Micah 4:14–5:14 in the Hebrew Bible.
- 6:9 Greek; Masoretic Text “Listen to the stick and the one who appointed it.”
Micah 1-7
New International Version
Micah 1-7
New International Version
1 The word of the Lord that came to Micah of Moresheth(A) during the reigns of Jotham,(B) Ahaz(C) and Hezekiah,(D) kings of Judah(E)—the vision(F) he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.
2 Hear,(G) you peoples, all of you,(H)
listen, earth(I) and all who live in it,
that the Sovereign Lord may bear witness(J) against you,
the Lord from his holy temple.(K)
Judgment Against Samaria and Jerusalem
3 Look! The Lord is coming from his dwelling(L) place;
he comes down(M) and treads on the heights of the earth.(N)
4 The mountains melt(O) beneath him(P)
and the valleys split apart,(Q)
like wax before the fire,
like water rushing down a slope.
5 All this is because of Jacob’s transgression,
because of the sins of the people of Israel.
What is Jacob’s transgression?
Is it not Samaria?(R)
What is Judah’s high place?
Is it not Jerusalem?
6 “Therefore I will make Samaria a heap of rubble,
a place for planting vineyards.(S)
I will pour her stones(T) into the valley
and lay bare her foundations.(U)
7 All her idols(V) will be broken to pieces;(W)
all her temple gifts will be burned with fire;
I will destroy all her images.(X)
Since she gathered her gifts from the wages of prostitutes,(Y)
as the wages of prostitutes they will again be used.”
Weeping and Mourning
8 Because of this I will weep(Z) and wail;
I will go about barefoot(AA) and naked.
I will howl like a jackal
and moan like an owl.
9 For Samaria’s plague(AB) is incurable;(AC)
it has spread to Judah.(AD)
It has reached the very gate(AE) of my people,
even to Jerusalem itself.
10 Tell it not in Gath[a];
weep not at all.
In Beth Ophrah[b]
roll in the dust.
11 Pass by naked(AF) and in shame,
you who live in Shaphir.[c]
Those who live in Zaanan[d]
will not come out.
Beth Ezel is in mourning;
it no longer protects you.
12 Those who live in Maroth[e] writhe in pain,
waiting for relief,(AG)
because disaster(AH) has come from the Lord,
even to the gate of Jerusalem.
13 You who live in Lachish,(AI)
harness fast horses to the chariot.
You are where the sin of Daughter Zion(AJ) began,
for the transgressions of Israel were found in you.
14 Therefore you will give parting gifts(AK)
to Moresheth(AL) Gath.
The town of Akzib[f](AM) will prove deceptive(AN)
to the kings of Israel.
15 I will bring a conqueror against you
who live in Mareshah.[g](AO)
The nobles of Israel
will flee to Adullam.(AP)
16 Shave(AQ) your head in mourning
for the children in whom you delight;
make yourself as bald as the vulture,
for they will go from you into exile.(AR)
Human Plans and God’s Plans
2 Woe to those who plan iniquity,
to those who plot evil(AS) on their beds!(AT)
At morning’s light they carry it out
because it is in their power to do it.
2 They covet fields(AU) and seize them,(AV)
and houses, and take them.
They defraud(AW) people of their homes,
they rob them of their inheritance.(AX)
3 Therefore, the Lord says:
“I am planning disaster(AY) against this people,
from which you cannot save yourselves.
You will no longer walk proudly,(AZ)
for it will be a time of calamity.
4 In that day people will ridicule you;
they will taunt you with this mournful song:
‘We are utterly ruined;(BA)
my people’s possession is divided up.(BB)
He takes it from me!
He assigns our fields to traitors.’”
False Prophets
6 “Do not prophesy,” their prophets say.
“Do not prophesy about these things;
disgrace(BE) will not overtake us.(BF)”
7 You descendants of Jacob, should it be said,
“Does the Lord become[h] impatient?
Does he do such things?”
“Do not my words do good(BG)
to the one whose ways are upright?(BH)
8 Lately my people have risen up
like an enemy.
You strip off the rich robe
from those who pass by without a care,
like men returning from battle.
9 You drive the women of my people
from their pleasant homes.(BI)
You take away my blessing
from their children forever.
10 Get up, go away!
For this is not your resting place,(BJ)
because it is defiled,(BK)
it is ruined, beyond all remedy.
11 If a liar and deceiver(BL) comes and says,
‘I will prophesy for you plenty of wine and beer,’(BM)
that would be just the prophet for this people!(BN)
Deliverance Promised
12 “I will surely gather all of you, Jacob;
I will surely bring together the remnant(BO) of Israel.
I will bring them together like sheep in a pen,
like a flock in its pasture;
the place will throng with people.(BP)
13 The One who breaks open the way will go up before(BQ) them;
they will break through the gate(BR) and go out.
Their King will pass through before them,
the Lord at their head.”
Leaders and Prophets Rebuked
3 Then I said,
“Listen, you leaders(BS) of Jacob,
you rulers of Israel.
Should you not embrace justice,
2 you who hate good and love evil;
who tear the skin from my people
and the flesh from their bones;(BT)
3 who eat my people’s flesh,(BU)
strip off their skin
and break their bones in pieces;(BV)
who chop(BW) them up like meat for the pan,
like flesh for the pot?(BX)”
4 Then they will cry out to the Lord,
but he will not answer them.(BY)
At that time he will hide his face(BZ) from them
because of the evil they have done.(CA)
5 This is what the Lord says:
“As for the prophets
who lead my people astray,(CB)
they proclaim ‘peace’(CC)
if they have something to eat,
but prepare to wage war against anyone
who refuses to feed them.
6 Therefore night will come over you, without visions,
and darkness, without divination.(CD)
The sun will set for the prophets,(CE)
and the day will go dark for them.(CF)
7 The seers will be ashamed(CG)
and the diviners disgraced.(CH)
They will all cover(CI) their faces(CJ)
because there is no answer from God.(CK)”
8 But as for me, I am filled with power,
with the Spirit of the Lord,
and with justice and might,
to declare to Jacob his transgression,
to Israel his sin.(CL)
9 Hear this, you leaders of Jacob,
you rulers of Israel,
who despise justice
and distort all that is right;(CM)
10 who build(CN) Zion with bloodshed,(CO)
and Jerusalem with wickedness.(CP)
11 Her leaders judge for a bribe,(CQ)
her priests teach for a price,(CR)
and her prophets tell fortunes for money.(CS)
Yet they look(CT) for the Lord’s support and say,
“Is not the Lord among us?
No disaster will come upon us.”(CU)
12 Therefore because of you,
Zion will be plowed like a field,
Jerusalem will become a heap of rubble,(CV)
the temple(CW) hill a mound overgrown with thickets.(CX)
The Mountain of the Lord(CY)
4 In the last days
the mountain(CZ) of the Lord’s temple will be established
as the highest of the mountains;
it will be exalted above the hills,(DA)
and peoples will stream to it.(DB)
2 Many nations will come and say,
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,(DC)
to the temple of the God of Jacob.(DD)
He will teach us(DE) his ways,(DF)
so that we may walk in his paths.”
The law(DG) will go out from Zion,
the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
3 He will judge between many peoples
and will settle disputes for strong nations far and wide.(DH)
They will beat their swords into plowshares
and their spears into pruning hooks.(DI)
Nation will not take up sword against nation,
nor will they train for war(DJ) anymore.(DK)
4 Everyone will sit under their own vine
and under their own fig tree,(DL)
and no one will make them afraid,(DM)
for the Lord Almighty has spoken.(DN)
5 All the nations may walk
in the name of their gods,(DO)
but we will walk in the name of the Lord
our God for ever and ever.(DP)
The Lord’s Plan
6 “In that day,” declares the Lord,
“I will gather the lame;(DQ)
I will assemble the exiles(DR)
and those I have brought to grief.(DS)
7 I will make the lame my remnant,(DT)
those driven away a strong nation.(DU)
The Lord will rule over them in Mount Zion(DV)
from that day and forever.(DW)
8 As for you, watchtower of the flock,
stronghold[i] of Daughter Zion,
the former dominion will be restored(DX) to you;
kingship will come to Daughter Jerusalem.(DY)”
9 Why do you now cry aloud—
have you no king[j](DZ)?
Has your ruler[k] perished,
that pain seizes you like that of a woman in labor?(EA)
10 Writhe in agony, Daughter Zion,
like a woman in labor,
for now you must leave the city
to camp in the open field.
You will go to Babylon;(EB)
there you will be rescued.
There the Lord will redeem(EC) you
out of the hand of your enemies.
11 But now many nations
are gathered against you.
They say, “Let her be defiled,
let our eyes gloat(ED) over Zion!”
12 But they do not know
the thoughts of the Lord;
they do not understand his plan,(EE)
that he has gathered them like sheaves to the threshing floor.
13 “Rise and thresh,(EF) Daughter Zion,
for I will give you horns of iron;
I will give you hooves of bronze,
and you will break to pieces many nations.”(EG)
You will devote their ill-gotten gains to the Lord,(EH)
their wealth to the Lord of all the earth.
A Promised Ruler From Bethlehem
5 [l]Marshal your troops now, city of troops,
for a siege is laid against us.
They will strike Israel’s ruler
on the cheek(EI) with a rod.
2 “But you, Bethlehem(EJ) Ephrathah,(EK)
though you are small among the clans[m] of Judah,
out of you will come for me
one who will be ruler(EL) over Israel,
whose origins are from of old,(EM)
from ancient times.”(EN)
3 Therefore Israel will be abandoned(EO)
until the time when she who is in labor bears a son,
and the rest of his brothers return
to join the Israelites.
4 He will stand and shepherd his flock(EP)
in the strength of the Lord,
in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
And they will live securely, for then his greatness(EQ)
will reach to the ends of the earth.
5 And he will be our peace(ER)
when the Assyrians invade(ES) our land
and march through our fortresses.
We will raise against them seven shepherds,
even eight commanders,(ET)
6 who will rule[n] the land of Assyria with the sword,
the land of Nimrod(EU) with drawn sword.[o](EV)
He will deliver us from the Assyrians
when they invade our land
and march across our borders.(EW)
7 The remnant(EX) of Jacob will be
in the midst of many peoples
like dew(EY) from the Lord,
like showers on the grass,(EZ)
which do not wait for anyone
or depend on man.
8 The remnant of Jacob will be among the nations,
in the midst of many peoples,
like a lion among the beasts of the forest,(FA)
like a young lion among flocks of sheep,
which mauls and mangles(FB) as it goes,
and no one can rescue.(FC)
9 Your hand will be lifted up(FD) in triumph over your enemies,
and all your foes will be destroyed.
10 “In that day,” declares the Lord,
“I will destroy your horses from among you
and demolish your chariots.(FE)
11 I will destroy the cities(FF) of your land
and tear down all your strongholds.(FG)
12 I will destroy your witchcraft
and you will no longer cast spells.(FH)
13 I will destroy your idols(FI)
and your sacred stones from among you;(FJ)
you will no longer bow down
to the work of your hands.(FK)
14 I will uproot from among you your Asherah poles[p](FL)
when I demolish your cities.
15 I will take vengeance(FM) in anger and wrath
on the nations that have not obeyed me.”
The Lord’s Case Against Israel
6 Listen to what the Lord says:
“Stand up, plead my case before the mountains;(FN)
let the hills hear what you have to say.
2 “Hear,(FO) you mountains, the Lord’s accusation;(FP)
listen, you everlasting foundations of the earth.
For the Lord has a case(FQ) against his people;
he is lodging a charge(FR) against Israel.
3 “My people, what have I done to you?
How have I burdened(FS) you?(FT) Answer me.
4 I brought you up out of Egypt(FU)
and redeemed you from the land of slavery.(FV)
I sent Moses(FW) to lead you,
also Aaron(FX) and Miriam.(FY)
5 My people, remember
what Balak(FZ) king of Moab plotted
and what Balaam son of Beor answered.
Remember your journey from Shittim(GA) to Gilgal,(GB)
that you may know the righteous acts(GC) of the Lord.”
6 With what shall I come before(GD) the Lord
and bow down before the exalted God?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
with calves a year old?(GE)
7 Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,(GF)
with ten thousand rivers of olive oil?(GG)
Shall I offer my firstborn(GH) for my transgression,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?(GI)
8 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly(GJ) and to love mercy
and to walk humbly[q](GK) with your God.(GL)
Israel’s Guilt and Punishment
9 Listen! The Lord is calling to the city—
and to fear your name is wisdom—
“Heed the rod(GM) and the One who appointed it.[r]
10 Am I still to forget your ill-gotten treasures, you wicked house,
and the short ephah,[s] which is accursed?(GN)
11 Shall I acquit someone with dishonest scales,(GO)
with a bag of false weights?(GP)
12 Your rich people are violent;(GQ)
your inhabitants are liars(GR)
and their tongues speak deceitfully.(GS)
13 Therefore, I have begun to destroy(GT) you,
to ruin[t] you because of your sins.
14 You will eat but not be satisfied;(GU)
your stomach will still be empty.[u]
You will store up but save nothing,(GV)
because what you save[v] I will give to the sword.
15 You will plant but not harvest;(GW)
you will press olives but not use the oil,
you will crush grapes but not drink the wine.(GX)
16 You have observed the statutes of Omri(GY)
and all the practices of Ahab’s(GZ) house;
you have followed their traditions.(HA)
Therefore I will give you over to ruin(HB)
and your people to derision;
you will bear the scorn(HC) of the nations.[w]”
Israel’s Misery
7 What misery is mine!
I am like one who gathers summer fruit
at the gleaning of the vineyard;
there is no cluster of grapes to eat,
none of the early figs(HD) that I crave.
2 The faithful have been swept from the land;(HE)
not one(HF) upright person remains.
Everyone lies in wait(HG) to shed blood;(HH)
they hunt each other(HI) with nets.(HJ)
3 Both hands are skilled in doing evil;(HK)
the ruler demands gifts,
the judge accepts bribes,(HL)
the powerful dictate what they desire—
they all conspire together.
4 The best of them is like a brier,(HM)
the most upright worse than a thorn(HN) hedge.
The day God visits you has come,
the day your watchmen sound the alarm.
Now is the time of your confusion.(HO)
5 Do not trust a neighbor;
put no confidence in a friend.(HP)
Even with the woman who lies in your embrace
guard the words of your lips.
6 For a son dishonors his father,
a daughter rises up against her mother,(HQ)
a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law—
a man’s enemies are the members of his own household.(HR)
7 But as for me, I watch(HS) in hope(HT) for the Lord,
I wait for God my Savior;
my God will hear(HU) me.
Israel Will Rise
8 Do not gloat over me,(HV) my enemy!
Though I have fallen, I will rise.(HW)
Though I sit in darkness,
the Lord will be my light.(HX)
9 Because I have sinned against him,
I will bear the Lord’s wrath,(HY)
until he pleads my case(HZ)
and upholds my cause.
He will bring me out into the light;(IA)
I will see his righteousness.(IB)
10 Then my enemy will see it
and will be covered with shame,(IC)
she who said to me,
“Where is the Lord your God?”(ID)
My eyes will see her downfall;(IE)
even now she will be trampled(IF) underfoot
like mire in the streets.
11 The day for building your walls(IG) will come,
the day for extending your boundaries.
12 In that day people will come to you
from Assyria(IH) and the cities of Egypt,
even from Egypt to the Euphrates
and from sea to sea
and from mountain to mountain.(II)
13 The earth will become desolate because of its inhabitants,
as the result of their deeds.(IJ)
Prayer and Praise
14 Shepherd(IK) your people with your staff,(IL)
the flock of your inheritance,
which lives by itself in a forest,
in fertile pasturelands.[x](IM)
Let them feed in Bashan(IN) and Gilead(IO)
as in days long ago.(IP)
15 “As in the days when you came out of Egypt,
I will show them my wonders.(IQ)”
16 Nations will see and be ashamed,(IR)
deprived of all their power.
They will put their hands over their mouths(IS)
and their ears will become deaf.
17 They will lick dust(IT) like a snake,
like creatures that crawl on the ground.
They will come trembling(IU) out of their dens;
they will turn in fear(IV) to the Lord our God
and will be afraid of you.
18 Who is a God(IW) like you,
who pardons sin(IX) and forgives(IY) the transgression
of the remnant(IZ) of his inheritance?(JA)
You do not stay angry(JB) forever
but delight to show mercy.(JC)
19 You will again have compassion on us;
you will tread our sins underfoot
and hurl all our iniquities(JD) into the depths of the sea.(JE)
20 You will be faithful to Jacob,
and show love to Abraham,(JF)
as you pledged on oath to our ancestors(JG)
in days long ago.(JH)
Footnotes
- Micah 1:10 Gath sounds like the Hebrew for tell.
- Micah 1:10 Beth Ophrah means house of dust.
- Micah 1:11 Shaphir means pleasant.
- Micah 1:11 Zaanan sounds like the Hebrew for come out.
- Micah 1:12 Maroth sounds like the Hebrew for bitter.
- Micah 1:14 Akzib means deception.
- Micah 1:15 Mareshah sounds like the Hebrew for conqueror.
- Micah 2:7 Or Is the Spirit of the Lord
- Micah 4:8 Or hill
- Micah 4:9 Or King
- Micah 4:9 Or Ruler
- Micah 5:1 In Hebrew texts 5:1 is numbered 4:14, and 5:2-15 is numbered 5:1-14.
- Micah 5:2 Or rulers
- Micah 5:6 Or crush
- Micah 5:6 Or Nimrod in its gates
- Micah 5:14 That is, wooden symbols of the goddess Asherah
- Micah 6:8 Or prudently
- Micah 6:9 The meaning of the Hebrew for this line is uncertain.
- Micah 6:10 An ephah was a dry measure.
- Micah 6:13 Or Therefore, I will make you ill and destroy you; / I will ruin
- Micah 6:14 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
- Micah 6:14 Or You will press toward birth but not give birth, / and what you bring to birth
- Micah 6:16 Septuagint; Hebrew scorn due my people
- Micah 7:14 Or in the middle of Carmel
GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)
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New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.