Micah 1
New Living Translation
1 The Lord gave this message to Micah of Moresheth during the years when Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah were kings of Judah. The visions he saw concerned both Samaria and Jerusalem.
Grief over Samaria and Jerusalem
2 Attention! Let all the people of the world listen!
Let the earth and everything in it hear.
The Sovereign Lord is making accusations against you;
the Lord speaks from his holy Temple.
3 Look! The Lord is coming!
He leaves his throne in heaven
and tramples the heights of the earth.
4 The mountains melt beneath his feet
and flow into the valleys
like wax in a fire,
like water pouring down a hill.
5 And why is this happening?
Because of the rebellion of Israel[a]—
yes, the sins of the whole nation.
Who is to blame for Israel’s rebellion?
Samaria, its capital city!
Where is the center of idolatry in Judah?
In Jerusalem, its capital!
6 “So I, the Lord, will make the city of Samaria
a heap of ruins.
Her streets will be plowed up
for planting vineyards.
I will roll the stones of her walls into the valley below,
exposing her foundations.
7 All her carved images will be smashed.
All her sacred treasures will be burned.
These things were bought with the money
earned by her prostitution,
and they will now be carried away
to pay prostitutes elsewhere.”
8 Therefore, I will mourn and lament.
I will walk around barefoot and naked.
I will howl like a jackal
and moan like an owl.
9 For my people’s wound
is too deep to heal.
It has reached into Judah,
even to the gates of Jerusalem.
10 Don’t tell our enemies in Gath[b];
don’t weep at all.
You people in Beth-leaphrah,[c]
roll in the dust to show your despair.
11 You people in Shaphir,[d]
go as captives into exile—naked and ashamed.
The people of Zaanan[e]
dare not come outside their walls.
The people of Beth-ezel[f] mourn,
for their house has no support.
12 The people of Maroth[g] anxiously wait for relief,
but only bitterness awaits them
as the Lord’s judgment reaches
even to the gates of Jerusalem.
13 Harness your chariot horses and flee,
you people of Lachish.[h]
You were the first city in Judah
to follow Israel in her rebellion,
and you led Jerusalem[i] into sin.
14 Send farewell gifts to Moresheth-gath[j];
there is no hope of saving it.
The town of Aczib[k]
has deceived the kings of Israel.
15 O people of Mareshah,[l]
I will bring a conqueror to capture your town.
And the leaders[m] of Israel
will go to Adullam.
16 Oh, people of Judah, shave your heads in sorrow,
for the children you love will be snatched away.
Make yourselves as bald as a vulture,
for your little ones will be exiled to distant lands.
Footnotes
- 1:5 Hebrew Jacob; also in 1:5b. The names “Jacob” and “Israel” are often interchanged throughout the Old Testament, referring sometimes to the individual patriarch and sometimes to the nation.
- 1:10a Gath sounds like the Hebrew term for “tell.”
- 1:10b Beth-leaphrah means “house of dust.”
- 1:11a Shaphir means “pleasant.”
- 1:11b Zaanan sounds like the Hebrew term for “come out.”
- 1:11c Beth-ezel means “adjoining house.”
- 1:12 Maroth sounds like the Hebrew term for “bitter.”
- 1:13a Lachish sounds like the Hebrew term for “team of horses.”
- 1:13b Hebrew the daughter of Zion.
- 1:14a Moresheth sounds like the Hebrew term for “gift” or “dowry.”
- 1:14b Aczib means “deception.”
- 1:15a Mareshah sounds like the Hebrew term for “conqueror.”
- 1:15b Hebrew the glory.
Micah 1
Christian Standard Bible
1 The word of the Lord that came(A) to Micah(B) the Moreshite(C)—what he saw regarding Samaria and Jerusalem in the days of Jotham,(D) Ahaz,(E) and Hezekiah,(F) kings of Judah.
Coming Judgment on Israel
2 Listen, all you peoples;(G)
pay attention, earth[a] and everyone in it!(H)
The Lord God will be a witness against you,(I)
the Lord, from his holy temple.(J)
3 Look, the Lord is leaving his place(K)
and coming down to trample
the heights[b] of the earth.(L)
4 The mountains will melt beneath him,
and the valleys will split apart,
like wax near a fire,(M)
like water cascading down a mountainside.
5 All this will happen because of Jacob’s rebellion
and the sins of the house of Israel.
What is the rebellion of Jacob?
Isn’t it Samaria?(N)
And what is the high place of Judah?(O)
Isn’t it Jerusalem?
6 Therefore, I will make Samaria
a heap of ruins(P) in the countryside,
a planting area(Q) for a vineyard.
I will roll her stones(R) into the valley
and expose her foundations.(S)
7 All her carved images will be smashed(T) to pieces;
all her wages(U) will be burned in the fire,
and I will destroy all her idols.
Since she collected the wages of a prostitute,(V)
they will be used again for a prostitute.
Micah’s Lament
8 Because of this I will lament and wail;
I will walk barefoot and naked.(W)
I will howl like the jackals(X)
and mourn like ostriches.[c]
9 For her wound is incurable(Y)
and has reached even Judah;(Z)
it has approached my people’s city gate,(AA)
as far as Jerusalem.
10 Don’t announce it in Gath,(AB)
don’t weep at all.
Roll in the dust in Beth-leaphrah.
11 Depart in shameful nakedness,(AC)
you residents of Shaphir;
the residents of Zaanan(AD) will not come out.
Beth-ezel is lamenting;
its support[d] is taken from you.
12 Though the residents of Maroth
anxiously wait for something good,(AE)
disaster has come from the Lord(AF)
to the gate of Jerusalem.
13 Harness the horses to the chariot,
you residents of Lachish.(AG)
This was the beginning of sin for Daughter Zion
because Israel’s acts of rebellion(AH) can be traced to you.
14 Therefore, send farewell gifts(AI) to Moresheth-gath;
the houses of Achzib(AJ) are a deception(AK)
to the kings of Israel.
15 I will again bring a conqueror
against you who live in Mareshah.(AL)
The nobility[e] of Israel will come to Adullam.(AM)
16 Shave yourselves bald and cut off your hair(AN)
in sorrow for your precious children;
make yourselves as bald as an eagle,
for they have been taken from you into exile.(AO)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.