弥迦书 1
Chinese New Version (Traditional)
以色列和猶大犯罪受罰
1 在猶大王約坦、亞哈斯、希西家執政的時候，耶和華的話臨到摩利沙人彌迦，是他看到關於撒瑪利亞和耶路撒冷的話。
2 萬民哪！你們都要聽；
地和地上所遍滿的，你們要聆聽；
主耶和華要指證你們的不是，
主必從他的聖殿指證你們的不是。
3 看哪！耶和華離開自己的地方，
他降下來，踏在地的高處。
4 群山在他腳下融化，
眾谷裂開，
如蠟在火前一般，
像水沖下斜坡一般，
5 這都是因為雅各的過犯，
以色列家的罪惡。
雅各的過犯是甚麼呢？
不就是撒瑪利亞嗎？
猶大家的罪惡是甚麼呢？
不就是耶路撒冷嗎？
撒瑪利亞的刑罰
6 所以我必使撒瑪利亞變成田間的廢堆，
作栽種葡萄之處；
我必把撒瑪利亞的石頭倒在谷中，
連它的根基都露出來。
7 它一切雕刻的偶像必被打碎；
它全部的錢財，都要用火燒盡；
它所有的偶像，我都要毀滅；
因為從妓女錢財榨取的，
最後也必歸為妓女的錢財。
猶大的刑罰
8 為此我要痛哭哀號，
赤膊光腳而行；
又要哀號如豺狼，
悲鳴像鴕鳥。
9 因為撒瑪利亞的創傷無法醫治，
並且殃及猶大，
直逼我子民的城門，
就是耶路撒冷。
10 不要在迦特報信，
不要在巴歌哭泣；
卻要在伯．亞弗拉打滾於塵土中。
11 沙斐的居民哪！你們赤身羞愧走過去吧。
撒南的居民不敢出來（“不敢出來”或譯：“也逃不掉。”）；
伯．以薛人的哀號，要把你們立足之地奪去。
12 瑪律的居民，
急待得著幸福，
因有災禍從耶和華那裡降下，
臨到耶路撒冷的城門。
13 拉吉的居民哪！
要用快馬套車，
這就是錫安子民（“子民”原文作“女子”）罪惡的開端；
因為以色列的過犯，
都在你那裡找到了。
14 因此要把妝奩，
送給摩利設．迦特；
亞革悉的各家，
必用詭詐對待以色列的眾王。
15 瑪利沙的居民哪！
我要再使那征服你的來到你那裡；
以色列的榮耀，必去到亞杜蘭。
16 猶大啊！為你所喜愛的兒女，
你要剃頭，使你的頭光禿，
完全光禿如同禿鷹；
因為他們都從你那裡被擄去了。
Micah 1
Contemporary English Version
1 (A) I am Micah from Moresheth.[a] And this is the message about Samaria and Jerusalem[b] that the Lord gave to me when Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah[c] were the kings of Judah.
Judgment on Samaria
2 Listen, all of you!
Earth and everything on it,
pay close attention.
The Lord God accuses you
from his holy temple.[d]
3 And he will come down
to crush underfoot
every pagan altar.
4 Mountains will melt
beneath his feet
like wax beside a fire.
Valleys will vanish like water
rushing down a ravine.
5 This will happen because of
the terrible sins of Israel,
the descendants of Jacob.
Samaria has led Israel to sin,
and pagan altars at Jerusalem
have made Judah sin.
6 So the Lord will leave Samaria
in ruins—
merely an empty field
where vineyards are planted.
He will scatter its stones
and destroy its foundations.
7 Samaria's idols will be smashed,
and the wages
of temple prostitutes[e]
will be destroyed by fire.
Silver and gold from those idols
will then be used by foreigners
as payment for prostitutes.
Judah Is Doomed
8 Because of this tragedy,[f]
I go barefoot and naked.
My crying and weeping
sound like howling wolves
or ostriches.
9 The nation is fatally wounded.
Judah is doomed.
Jerusalem will fall.
10 Don't tell it in Gath!
Don't even cry.
Instead, roll in the dust
at Beth-Leaphrah.[g]
11 Depart naked and ashamed,
you people of Shaphir.[h]
The town of Bethezel[i] mourns
because no one from Zaanan[j]
went out to help.[k]
12 Everyone in Maroth[l]
hoped for the best,
but the Lord sent disaster
down on Jerusalem.
13 Get the war chariots ready,
you people of Lachish.[m]
You led Jerusalem into sin,
just as Israel did.[n]
14 Now you will have to give
a going-away gift[o]
to Moresheth.[p]
Israel's kings will discover
that they cannot trust
the town of Achzib.[q]
15 People of Mareshah,[r]
the Lord will send someone
to capture your town.
Then Israel's glorious king
will be forced to hide
in Adullam Cave.[s]
16 Judah, shave your head
as bald as a vulture
and start mourning.
Your precious children[t]
will be dragged off
to a foreign country.
Footnotes
- 1.1 Moresheth: A town in southern Judah not far from Gath. In verse 14 it is called Moresheth-Gath.
- 1.1 Samaria and Jerusalem: Samaria was the capital of the northern kingdom (Israel), and Jerusalem was the capital of the southern kingdom (Judah).
- 1.1 Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah: Jotham, the son of Uzziah, ruled Judah 740–736 b.c.; Ahaz, the son of Jotham, ruled 736–716 b.c.; Hezekiah, the son of Ahaz, ruled 716–687 b.c.
- 1.2 holy temple: Possibly the one in heaven, though it may be the Jerusalem temple.
- 1.7 wages of temple prostitutes: At pagan temples, people had sex with prostitutes as a way of worshiping the idols, and the money earned in this way was used to support the pagan religion.
- 1.8 this tragedy: Either the destruction of Samaria (verses 6,7) or the coming destruction of Judah and Jerusalem.
- 1.10 Gath … Beth-Leaphrah: Gath was a Philistine city; Beth-Leaphrah is unknown, but in Hebrew it sounds like “House of Dust.”
- 1.11 Shaphir: Mentioned only here in the Old Testament; in Hebrew “Shaphir” means “beautiful.”
- 1.11 Bethezel: Mentioned only here in the Old Testament; in Hebrew “Bethezel” means “house next door.”
- 1.11 Zaanan: Mentioned only here in the Old Testament; in Hebrew “Zaanan” means “one who goes out.”
- 1.11 The town … help: Or “No one from Zaanan refused to desert their town, and Bethezel mourns because it is left undefended.”
- 1.12 Maroth: Mentioned only here in the Old Testament; in Hebrew “Maroth” means “bitter.”
- 1.13 Lachish: The chief city of southwest Judah, about 48 kilometers from Jerusalem.
- 1.13 led … sin … did: Or “You led Jerusalem and Israel into sin.” In Hebrew “Lachish” sounds like “a team of horses (that pulls a war chariot).” And the sin may be that Lachish led the nation to trust the power of war chariots instead of the Lord. But the sin could be idolatry or some false teachings that were brought in from Egypt by way of Lachish.
- 1.14 going-away gift: The gift (dowry) that a bride's father gave her when she left the home of her parents to live with the family of her husband. In Hebrew the word for “bride” or “fiancee” sounds like “Moresheth.”
- 1.14 Moresheth: Hebrew “Moresheth-Gath”; the home of Micah (see verse 1).
- 1.14 Achzib: Meaning “lie” or “deception” was near Adullam Cave (verse 15), where David hid from King Saul (see 1 Samuel 22.1,2). Micah probably means that the people of Israel (including their king) will have to run for their lives, but will find that all hope for escape is merely a “lie” (see verse 15).
- 1.15 Mareshah: Sounds something like the Hebrew word for “conqueror” and was only a few kilometers northeast of Lachish.
- 1.15 Adullam Cave: See the note at 1.14.
- 1.16 precious children: The towns mentioned in verses 10-15.
Chinese New Version (CNV). Copyright © 1976, 1992, 1999, 2001, 2005 by Worldwide Bible Society.
Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.
