The Messiah Will Be Born at Bethlehem

Now gather yourself in troops,
O daughter of troops;
He has laid siege against us;
They will (A)strike the judge of Israel with a rod on the cheek.

The Coming Messiah

“But you, (B)Bethlehem (C)Ephrathah,
Though you are little (D)among the (E)thousands of Judah,
Yet out of you shall come forth to Me
The One to be (F)Ruler in Israel,
(G)Whose goings forth are from of old,
From [a]everlasting.”

Therefore He shall give them up,
Until the time that (H)she who is in labor has given birth;
Then (I)the remnant of His brethren
Shall return to the children of Israel.
And He shall stand and (J)feed[b] His flock
In the strength of the Lord,
In the majesty of the name of the Lord His God;
And they shall abide,
For now He (K)shall be great
To the ends of the earth;
And this One (L)shall be peace.

Judgment on Israel’s Enemies

When the Assyrian comes into our land,
And when he treads in our palaces,
Then we will raise against him
Seven shepherds and eight princely men.
They shall [c]waste with the sword the land of Assyria,
And the land of (M)Nimrod at its entrances;
Thus He shall (N)deliver us from the Assyrian,
When he comes into our land
And when he treads within our borders.

Then (O)the remnant of Jacob
Shall be in the midst of many peoples,
(P)Like dew from the Lord,
Like showers on the grass,
That [d]tarry for no man
Nor [e]wait for the sons of men.
And the remnant of Jacob
Shall be among the Gentiles,
In the midst of many peoples,
Like a (Q)lion among the beasts of the forest,
Like a young lion among flocks of sheep,
Who, if he passes through,
Both treads down and tears in pieces,
And none can deliver.
Your hand shall be lifted against your adversaries,
And all your enemies shall be [f]cut off.

10 “And it shall be in that day,” says the Lord,
“That I will (R)cut[g] off your (S)horses from your midst
And destroy your (T)chariots.
11 I will cut off the cities of your land
And throw down all your strongholds.
12 I will cut off sorceries from your hand,
And you shall have no (U)soothsayers.
13 (V)Your carved images I will also cut off,
And your sacred pillars from your midst;
You shall (W)no more worship the work of your hands;
14 I will pluck your [h]wooden images from your midst;
Thus I will destroy your cities.
15 And I will (X)execute vengeance in anger and fury
On the nations that have not [i]heard.”

Footnotes

  1. Micah 5:2 Lit. the days of eternity
  2. Micah 5:4 shepherd
  3. Micah 5:6 devastate
  4. Micah 5:7 wait
  5. Micah 5:7 delay
  6. Micah 5:9 destroyed
  7. Micah 5:10 destroy
  8. Micah 5:14 Heb. Asherim, Canaanite deities
  9. Micah 5:15 obeyed

[a]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

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.
That is why Yahweh will abandon Israel
    until the time a mother has a child.
    Then the rest of Yahweh’s people will return to the people of Israel.
The child will become the shepherd of his flock.
    He will lead them with the strength of Yahweh,
        with the majestic name of Yahweh his Elohim.
    They will live in safety
        because his greatness will reach the ends of the earth.
            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.
        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.
Then the few people left from Jacob will be among many people
    like dew from Yahweh, like showers on the grass.
        They do not put their hope in humans or wait for mortals.
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.
You will use your power against your opponents,
    and all your enemies will be destroyed.

10 “When that day comes,” declares Yahweh,
    “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.”

Footnotes

  1. Micah 5:1 Micah 5:1–15 in English Bibles is Micah 4:14–5:14 in the Hebrew Bible.