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Micah 6-7
New American Standard Bible
Micah 6-7
New American Standard Bible
God’s Indictment of His People
6 Hear now what the Lord is saying,
“Arise, plead your case [a]before the mountains,
And let the hills hear your voice.
2 Listen, you mountains, to the indictment by the Lord,
And you enduring (A)foundations of the earth,
Because the (B)Lord has a case against His people;
And He will dispute with Israel.
3 (C)My people, (D)what have I done to you,
And (E)how have I wearied you? Answer Me.
4 Indeed, I (F)brought you up from the land of Egypt,
I (G)redeemed you from the house of slavery,
And I sent before you (H)Moses, Aaron, and (I)Miriam.
5 My people, remember now
What (J)Balak king of Moab planned
And what Balaam son of Beor answered him,
And what happened from (K)Shittim to (L)Gilgal,
[b]So that you might know the (M)righteous acts of the Lord.”
What God Requires of Mankind
6 (N)With what shall I come to the Lord
And bow myself before the God on high?
Shall I come to Him with (O)burnt offerings,
With yearling calves?
7 Does the Lord take pleasure in (P)thousands of rams,
In ten thousand rivers of [c]oil?
Shall I give Him my (Q)firstborn for my wrongdoings,
The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
8 He has (R)told you, mortal one, what is good;
And (S)what does the Lord require of you
But to (T)do justice, to (U)love [d]kindness,
And to walk [e](V)humbly with your God?
9 The voice of the Lord will call to the city—
And it is sound wisdom to fear Your name:
“[f]Hear, you tribe. Who has designated [g]its time?
10 Is there still a person in the wicked house,
Along with treasures of (W)wickedness,
And a [h](X)short measure that is cursed?
11 Can I justify dishonest (Y)balances,
And a bag of fraudulent weights?
12 For the rich people of [i]the city are full of (Z)violence,
Her residents speak (AA)lies,
And their (AB)tongue is deceitful in their mouth.
13 So also I will make you (AC)sick, striking you down,
(AD)Making you desolate because of your sins.
14 You will eat, but you will (AE)not be satisfied,
And your filth will be in your midst.
You will try to remove valuables for safekeeping,
But you will (AF)not save it all,
And what you do save I will turn over to the sword.
15 You will sow but you will (AG)not harvest.
You will tread the olive press but will not anoint yourself with oil;
And tread out sweet wine, but you will (AH)not drink any wine.
16 The statutes of (AI)Omri
And every work of the house of (AJ)Ahab are maintained,
And you (AK)walk by their plans.
Therefore I will give you up for (AL)destruction,
And [j]your inhabitants for [k](AM)derision,
And you will suffer the (AN)taunting of My people.”
The Prophet Acknowledges Injustice
7 Woe to me! For I am
Like harvests of summer fruit, like gleanings of (AO)grapes.
There is not a cluster of grapes left to eat,
Nor an (AP)early fig, which [l]I crave.
2 The [m]godly person has (AQ)perished from the land,
And there is no upright person among mankind.
All of them lie in wait for (AR)bloodshed;
Each of them hunts the other with a (AS)net.
3 As for evil, both hands do it (AT)well.
The leader asks for a (AU)bribe, also the judge,
And the great one speaks the capricious desire of his soul;
So they plot it together.
4 The best of them is like a (AV)thorn bush,
The most upright like a (AW)thorn hedge.
The day [n]when you post your watchmen,
Your (AX)punishment is coming.
Then their (AY)confusion will occur.
5 Do not (AZ)trust in a neighbor;
Do not have confidence in a close friend.
Guard [o]your lips
From her who lies [p]in your arms.
6 For (BA)son disavows father,
Daughter rises up against her mother,
Daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
(BB)A person’s enemies are the people of his own household.
God Is the Source of Salvation and Light
7 But as for me, I will (BC)be on the watch for the Lord;
I will (BD)wait for the God of my salvation.
My (BE)God will hear me.
8 (BF)Do not rejoice over me, (BG)enemy of mine.
Though I fall I will (BH)rise;
Though I live in darkness, the Lord is a (BI)light for me.
9 I will endure the rage of the Lord
Because I have sinned against Him,
Until He (BJ)pleads my case and executes justice for me.
He will bring me out to the (BK)light,
And I will look at His [q](BL)righteousness.
10 Then my enemy will see,
And shame will cover her who (BM)said to me,
“Where is the Lord your God?”
My eyes will look at her;
[r]At that time she will [s]be (BN)trampled down
Like mud of the streets.
11 It will be a day for (BO)building your walls.
On that day your boundary will be extended.
12 It will be a day when [t]they will (BP)come to you
From Assyria and the cities of Egypt,
From Egypt even to the Euphrates River,
Even from sea to sea and mountain to mountain.
13 And the earth will become a (BQ)wasteland because of her inhabitants,
On account of the (BR)fruit of their deeds.
14 (BS)Shepherd Your people with Your (BT)scepter,
The flock of Your [u]possession
Which lives by itself in the woodland,
In the midst of [v]a fruitful field.
Let them feed in (BU)Bashan and Gilead
(BV)As in the days of old.
15 “As in the days when you went out from the land of Egypt,
I will show [w](BW)you miracles.”
16 Nations (BX)will see and be ashamed
Of all their might.
They will (BY)put their hand on their mouth,
Their ears will be deaf.
17 They will (BZ)lick up dust like a snake,
Like [x](CA)reptiles of the earth.
They will come (CB)trembling out of their [y]fortresses;
To the Lord our God they will come in (CC)trepidation,
And they will be afraid of You.
18 Who is a God like You, who (CD)pardons wrongdoing
And passes over a rebellious act of the (CE)remnant of His [z]possession?
He does not (CF)retain His anger forever,
Because He (CG)delights in mercy.
19 He will again take pity on us;
(CH)He will trample on our wrongdoings.
Yes, You will (CI)cast all [aa]their sins
Into the depths of the sea.
20 You will give [ab](CJ)truth to Jacob
And favor to Abraham,
Which You (CK)swore to our forefathers
From the days of old.
Footnotes
- Micah 6:1 Lit with
- Micah 6:5 Lit In order to know
- Micah 6:7 I.e., olive oil
- Micah 6:8 Or loyalty
- Micah 6:8 Or circumspectly
- Micah 6:9 Or Hear about the rod and who designated it
- Micah 6:9 Lit it
- Micah 6:10 Lit shrunken ephah
- Micah 6:12 Lit her are
- Micah 6:16 Lit her
- Micah 6:16 Lit whistling (in mockery)
- Micah 7:1 Lit my soul desires
- Micah 7:2 Or faithful
- Micah 7:4 Lit of your
- Micah 7:5 Lit the openings of your mouth
- Micah 7:5 Lit on your chest
- Micah 7:9 I.e., right dealing
- Micah 7:10 Lit Now
- Micah 7:10 Lit become a trampled place
- Micah 7:12 Lit he
- Micah 7:14 Or inheritance
- Micah 7:14 Or Carmel
- Micah 7:15 Lit him
- Micah 7:17 Lit crawling things
- Micah 7:17 Or prisons
- Micah 7:18 Or inheritance
- Micah 7:19 Several ancient versions our
- Micah 7:20 Or faithfulness
Micah 6-7
New International Version
Micah 6-7
New International Version
The Lord’s Case Against Israel
6 Listen to what the Lord says:
“Stand up, plead my case before the mountains;(A)
let the hills hear what you have to say.
2 “Hear,(B) you mountains, the Lord’s accusation;(C)
listen, you everlasting foundations of the earth.
For the Lord has a case(D) against his people;
he is lodging a charge(E) against Israel.
3 “My people, what have I done to you?
How have I burdened(F) you?(G) Answer me.
4 I brought you up out of Egypt(H)
and redeemed you from the land of slavery.(I)
I sent Moses(J) to lead you,
also Aaron(K) and Miriam.(L)
5 My people, remember
what Balak(M) king of Moab plotted
and what Balaam son of Beor answered.
Remember your journey from Shittim(N) to Gilgal,(O)
that you may know the righteous acts(P) of the Lord.”
6 With what shall I come before(Q) the Lord
and bow down before the exalted God?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
with calves a year old?(R)
7 Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,(S)
with ten thousand rivers of olive oil?(T)
Shall I offer my firstborn(U) for my transgression,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?(V)
8 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly(W) and to love mercy
and to walk humbly[a](X) with your God.(Y)
Israel’s Guilt and Punishment
9 Listen! The Lord is calling to the city—
and to fear your name is wisdom—
“Heed the rod(Z) and the One who appointed it.[b]
10 Am I still to forget your ill-gotten treasures, you wicked house,
and the short ephah,[c] which is accursed?(AA)
11 Shall I acquit someone with dishonest scales,(AB)
with a bag of false weights?(AC)
12 Your rich people are violent;(AD)
your inhabitants are liars(AE)
and their tongues speak deceitfully.(AF)
13 Therefore, I have begun to destroy(AG) you,
to ruin[d] you because of your sins.
14 You will eat but not be satisfied;(AH)
your stomach will still be empty.[e]
You will store up but save nothing,(AI)
because what you save[f] I will give to the sword.
15 You will plant but not harvest;(AJ)
you will press olives but not use the oil,
you will crush grapes but not drink the wine.(AK)
16 You have observed the statutes of Omri(AL)
and all the practices of Ahab’s(AM) house;
you have followed their traditions.(AN)
Therefore I will give you over to ruin(AO)
and your people to derision;
you will bear the scorn(AP) of the nations.[g]”
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(AQ) that I crave.
2 The faithful have been swept from the land;(AR)
not one(AS) upright person remains.
Everyone lies in wait(AT) to shed blood;(AU)
they hunt each other(AV) with nets.(AW)
3 Both hands are skilled in doing evil;(AX)
the ruler demands gifts,
the judge accepts bribes,(AY)
the powerful dictate what they desire—
they all conspire together.
4 The best of them is like a brier,(AZ)
the most upright worse than a thorn(BA) hedge.
The day God visits you has come,
the day your watchmen sound the alarm.
Now is the time of your confusion.(BB)
5 Do not trust a neighbor;
put no confidence in a friend.(BC)
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,(BD)
a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law—
a man’s enemies are the members of his own household.(BE)
7 But as for me, I watch(BF) in hope(BG) for the Lord,
I wait for God my Savior;
my God will hear(BH) me.
Israel Will Rise
8 Do not gloat over me,(BI) my enemy!
Though I have fallen, I will rise.(BJ)
Though I sit in darkness,
the Lord will be my light.(BK)
9 Because I have sinned against him,
I will bear the Lord’s wrath,(BL)
until he pleads my case(BM)
and upholds my cause.
He will bring me out into the light;(BN)
I will see his righteousness.(BO)
10 Then my enemy will see it
and will be covered with shame,(BP)
she who said to me,
“Where is the Lord your God?”(BQ)
My eyes will see her downfall;(BR)
even now she will be trampled(BS) underfoot
like mire in the streets.
11 The day for building your walls(BT) will come,
the day for extending your boundaries.
12 In that day people will come to you
from Assyria(BU) and the cities of Egypt,
even from Egypt to the Euphrates
and from sea to sea
and from mountain to mountain.(BV)
13 The earth will become desolate because of its inhabitants,
as the result of their deeds.(BW)
Prayer and Praise
14 Shepherd(BX) your people with your staff,(BY)
the flock of your inheritance,
which lives by itself in a forest,
in fertile pasturelands.[h](BZ)
Let them feed in Bashan(CA) and Gilead(CB)
as in days long ago.(CC)
15 “As in the days when you came out of Egypt,
I will show them my wonders.(CD)”
16 Nations will see and be ashamed,(CE)
deprived of all their power.
They will put their hands over their mouths(CF)
and their ears will become deaf.
17 They will lick dust(CG) like a snake,
like creatures that crawl on the ground.
They will come trembling(CH) out of their dens;
they will turn in fear(CI) to the Lord our God
and will be afraid of you.
18 Who is a God(CJ) like you,
who pardons sin(CK) and forgives(CL) the transgression
of the remnant(CM) of his inheritance?(CN)
You do not stay angry(CO) forever
but delight to show mercy.(CP)
19 You will again have compassion on us;
you will tread our sins underfoot
and hurl all our iniquities(CQ) into the depths of the sea.(CR)
20 You will be faithful to Jacob,
and show love to Abraham,(CS)
as you pledged on oath to our ancestors(CT)
in days long ago.(CU)
Footnotes
- 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
New American Standard Bible (NASB) 
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New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.