Micah 1
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
1 The word of the Lord that came to Micah of Moresheth in the days of Kings Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah of Judah, which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.(A)
Judgment Pronounced against Samaria
2 Hear, you peoples, all of you;
listen, O earth, and all that is in it,
and let the Lord God be a witness against you,
the Lord from his holy temple.(B)
3 For the Lord is coming out of his place
and will come down and tread upon the high places of the earth.(C)
4 Then the mountains will melt under him,
and the valleys will burst open
like wax near the fire,
like waters poured down a slope.(D)
5 All this is for the transgression of Jacob
and for the sins of the house of Israel.
What is the transgression of Jacob?
Is it not Samaria?
And what is the high place[a] of Judah?
Is it not Jerusalem?(E)
6 Therefore I will make Samaria a heap in the open country,
a place for planting vineyards.
I will pour down her stones into the valley
and uncover her foundations.(F)
7 All her images shall be beaten to pieces,
all her wages shall be burned with fire,
and all her idols I will lay waste;
for as the wages of a prostitute she gathered them,
and as the wages of a prostitute they shall again be used.(G)
The Doom of the Cities of Judah
8 For this I will lament and wail;
I will go barefoot and naked;
I will make lamentation like the jackals
and mourning like the ostriches.(H)
9 For her wound[b] is incurable.
It has come to Judah;
it has reached to the gate of my people,
to Jerusalem.(I)
10 Tell it not in Gath;
weep not at all;
in Beth-leaphrah
roll yourselves in the dust.(J)
11 Pass on your way,
inhabitants of Shaphir,
in nakedness and shame;
the inhabitants of Zaanan
do not come forth;
Beth-ezel is wailing
and shall remove its support from you.(K)
12 For the inhabitants of Maroth
wait anxiously for good,
yet disaster has come down from the Lord
to the gate of Jerusalem.(L)
13 Harness the steeds to the chariots,
inhabitants of Lachish;
it was the beginning of sin
to daughter Zion,
for in you were found
the transgressions of Israel.(M)
14 Therefore you shall give parting gifts
to Moresheth-gath;
the houses of Achzib shall be a deception
to the kings of Israel.(N)
15 I will again bring a conqueror upon you,
inhabitants of Mareshah;
the glory of Israel
shall come to Adullam.(O)
16 Make yourselves bald and cut off your hair
for your pampered children;
make yourselves as bald as the eagle,
for they have gone from you into exile.(P)
Micah 1
Common English Bible
The Lord is coming!
1 The Lord’s word that came to Micah of Moresheth in the days of Judah’s Kings Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem:
2 Listen, all you peoples!
Pay attention, earth, and all that fills it!
May the Lord God be a witness against you,
the Lord from his holy temple.
3 Look! The Lord is coming out from his place;
he will go down and tread on the shrines of the earth.
4 Then the mountains will melt under him;
the valleys will split apart,
like wax yielding to the fire,
like waters poured down a slope.
5 All this is for the crime of Jacob
and the sins of the house of Israel.
Who is responsible for the crime of Jacob?[a]
Isn’t it Samaria?
Who is responsible for[b] the shrines of Judah?
Isn’t it Jerusalem?
6 So I will make Samaria a pile of rubble in the open field,
a place for planting vineyards.
I will pour her stones into the valley;
her foundations I will lay bare.
7 All her images will be beaten to pieces;
all her wages will be burned;
I will make all her idols worthless.
Since she gathered them from the wages of a prostitute,
they will again become wages of a prostitute.
8 On account of this, I will cry out and howl;
I will go about barefoot and stripped.
I will cry out like the jackals,
and mourn like the ostriches.
Destruction looms
9 Indeed, Zion has been weakened by her wounds!
It has come as far as Judah;
he has struck as far as the gate of my people,
as far as Jerusalem.
10 In Gath tell it not; no need to weep there![c]
In Beth-le-aphrah, roll yourself in the dust!
11 Pass by (for your sake),[d] inhabitants of Shaphir!
In nakedness and shame she will not go out, inhabitants of Zaanan.
The cry of Beth-ezel
will take away from you[e] any place to stand.
12 How she longs for good, inhabitants of Maroth!
Calamity has come down from the Lord to the gate of Jerusalem.
13 Harness the horses to the chariot, inhabitants of Lachish!
It was the beginning of sin for Daughter Zion;
the crimes of Israel have been found in you.
14 Therefore, you will give good-bye gifts to Moresheth-gath;
the houses of Achzib have become a deception for the kings of Israel.
15 Again I will bring to you the one who conquers, inhabitants of Mareshah;
the glory of Israel will come as far as Adullam.
16 Make yourself bald and cut off your hair
because of your cherished children!
Make yourself as bald as the vulture,
for they have gone from you into exile.
Footnotes
- Micah 1:5 Heb lacks responsible for.
- Micah 1:5 Heb lacks responsible for.
- Micah 1:10 Heb lacks there.
- Micah 1:11 You (plural)
- Micah 1:11 You (feminine singular)
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible