The word of the Lord that came to Micah (A)of Moresheth (B)in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw (C)concerning (D)Samaria and Jerusalem.

The Coming Destruction

(E)Hear, you peoples, all of you;[a]
    (F)pay attention, O earth, and all that is in it,
and (G)let the Lord God be a witness against you,
    (H)the Lord from his holy temple.
For behold, (I)the Lord is coming out of (J)his place,
    and will come down and (K)tread upon the high places of the earth.
And (L)the mountains will melt under him,
    and the valleys will split open,
like wax before the fire,
    like waters poured down a steep place.
All this is for (M)the transgression of Jacob
    and for the sins of the house of Israel.
(N)What is the transgression of Jacob?
    Is it not (O)Samaria?
And what is (P)the high place of Judah?
    Is it not Jerusalem?
Therefore I will make (Q)Samaria (R)a heap in the open country,
    a place for planting vineyards,
and I will pour down her stones (S)into the valley
    and (T)uncover her foundations.
All (U)her carved images shall be beaten to pieces,
    (V)all her wages shall be burned with fire,
    and all her idols I will lay waste,
for from (W)the fee of a prostitute she gathered them,
    and to the fee of a prostitute they shall return.

(X)For this I will lament and wail;
    I will go (Y)stripped and naked;
I will make lamentation (Z)like the jackals,
    and mourning (AA)like the ostriches.
(AB)For her wound is incurable,
    and it has come to Judah;
it has reached to the gate of my people,
    to Jerusalem.

10 (AC)Tell it not in (AD)Gath;
    weep not at all;
in Beth-le-aphrah
    (AE)roll yourselves in the dust.
11 Pass on your way,
    inhabitants of Shaphir,
    (AF)in nakedness and shame;
the inhabitants of Zaanan
    do not come out;
the lamentation of Beth-ezel
    shall take away from you its standing place.
12 For the inhabitants of Maroth
    wait anxiously for good,
because disaster has come down (AG)from the Lord
    to the gate of Jerusalem.
13 Harness the steeds to the chariots,
    inhabitants of (AH)Lachish;
it was the beginning of sin
    to the daughter of Zion,
for in you were found
    (AI)the transgressions of Israel.
14 Therefore you shall give parting gifts[b]
    to (AJ)Moresheth-gath;
the houses of (AK)Achzib shall be a deceitful thing
    to the kings of Israel.
15 I will again bring (AL)a conqueror to you,
    inhabitants of (AM)Mareshah;
the glory of Israel
    shall come to (AN)Adullam.
16 (AO)Make yourselves bald and cut off your hair,
    for the children of your delight;
(AP)make yourselves as bald as the eagle,
    for they shall go from you into exile.

Footnotes

  1. Micah 1:2 Hebrew all of them
  2. Micah 1:14 Or give dowry

The Impending Doom of Samaria and Jerusalem

The word of Yahweh that came to Micah the Morashtite in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, the kings of Judah, that he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem:

Hear, all you peoples;
    give heed, O earth and its fullness.
And let the Lord Yahweh be against you as a witness,
    the Lord from his holy temple.[a]
For behold, Yahweh is coming out from his place,
    and he will come down and tread upon the high places of the earth.
The mountains will melt under him
    and the valleys will burst open,
like wax before the fire,
    like water rushing down a slope.
All this is for the rebellion of Jacob,
    and for the sins of the house of Israel.
What is the rebellion of Jacob?
    Is it not Samaria?
And what are the high places of Judah?
    Are they not Jerusalem?
So I will make Samaria as a heap of rubble in the field,
    a place for planting a vineyard.
And I will pour down her stones into the valley
    and uncover her foundations.
Then all her idols will be broken in pieces,
    and all her prostitution wages will be burned in the fire,
    and all her idols I will make a desolation,
For from the wage of a prostitute she gathered them,
    and to the wage of a prostitute they will return.
On account of this I will lament and wail.
    I will go about barefoot and naked.
I will make a lamentation like the jackals,
    and a mourning ceremony like the ostriches.[b]
For her wounds are incurable,
    because it has come to Judah.
    It has reached to the gate of my people, to Jerusalem.
10 Do not tell it in Gath;
    you must not weep at all.
In Beth-le-Aphrah
    roll yourself in dust.
11 Pass on, you inhabitants of Shaphir,
    in naked shame.
The inhabitants of Zaanan do not come forth;
    the wailing of Beth-ha-Ezel will take its protection from you.
12 For the inhabitants of Maroth
    writhed for good,
because disaster has come down from Yahweh
    to the gate of Jerusalem.
13 Harness the chariot to the team of horses,
    O inhabitants of Lachish;
it is the beginning of sin
    for the daughter of Zion,
for the transgressions of Israel
    were found in you.
14 Therefore you will give parting gifts
    to Moresheth-Gath;
the houses of Achzib will be a deception
    to the kings of Israel.
15 I will again bring the conqueror upon you,
    O inhabitants of Mareshah;
the glory of Israel
    will come to Adullam.
16 Make yourselves bald
    and cut off your hair
    for the children of your pleasure.
Expand your baldness as the eagle,
    for they will go into exile away from you.

Footnotes

  1. Micah 1:2 Literally “the temple of his holiness”
  2. Micah 1:8 Literally “daughters of an ostrich”