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Micah 6:9-16
The Voice
Micah 6:9-16
The Voice
9 The voice of the Eternal cries out to the city of Jerusalem,
and the wise fear Your name.
Many Christians wonder what God wants from faithful followers. Does He want them to sacrifice everything for Him? Does He want them to keep strict codes of behavior—refuse to do this or always do that? People in the past and people today have all sorts of opinions about how the faithful should act; and in several other places in the Bible, all of the so-called laws, rules, regulations, and suggestions are boiled down to their simplest form: in order to make God happy, do what is right, love kindness, and live with compassion toward others; walk in right relation to the God of Abraham, and do so humbly. By doing these things, Micah says, God’s followers will please Him and live happy lives. In Matthew 22:34-40, Jesus similarly says people are to worship only one God; to love that God with heart, mind, body, and soul; and to love their neighbors as themselves.
Eternal One: Listen, all of you gathered there, (tribe and people):[a]
10 Can I overlook the treasures of wickedness
Stored away in the house of the wicked,
the dishonest scales and measures that I hate?
11 Can I overlook the one who uses crooked scales
and bags of dishonest weights to cheat the innocent?
12 Her rich are filled with violence, her citizens speak lies,
and the words of their mouths can never be trusted.
13 That is why I will strike you down with disease,[b]
destroy you because of your wrongdoing.
14 You will eat, but you will never be satisfied;[c]
you will always feel the gnawing pangs of hunger.
You will store away but never keep safe;
what you have put aside I will destroy with the sword.
15 You will sow grain but never reap it;
you will plant olives but never anoint yourself with their sweet oil;
You will harvest vineyards for juice but never drink the wine.
16 For you have followed the ways of Omri
and all the works of the kingdom of Ahab,
And you have followed their paths of wickedness.
That is why I can justifiably decimate you.
Your citizens will be the subject of satire and mockery,
and you will bear the scorn My people deserve.[d]
Micah 6:9-16
New International Version
Micah 6:9-16
New International Version
Israel’s Guilt and Punishment
9 Listen! The Lord is calling to the city—
and to fear your name is wisdom—
“Heed the rod(A) and the One who appointed it.[a]
10 Am I still to forget your ill-gotten treasures, you wicked house,
and the short ephah,[b] which is accursed?(B)
11 Shall I acquit someone with dishonest scales,(C)
with a bag of false weights?(D)
12 Your rich people are violent;(E)
your inhabitants are liars(F)
and their tongues speak deceitfully.(G)
13 Therefore, I have begun to destroy(H) you,
to ruin[c] you because of your sins.
14 You will eat but not be satisfied;(I)
your stomach will still be empty.[d]
You will store up but save nothing,(J)
because what you save[e] I will give to the sword.
15 You will plant but not harvest;(K)
you will press olives but not use the oil,
you will crush grapes but not drink the wine.(L)
16 You have observed the statutes of Omri(M)
and all the practices of Ahab’s(N) house;
you have followed their traditions.(O)
Therefore I will give you over to ruin(P)
and your people to derision;
you will bear the scorn(Q) of the nations.[f]”
Footnotes
- Micah 6:9 The meaning of the Hebrew for this line is uncertain.
- Micah 6:10 An ephah was a dry measure.
- Micah 6:13 Or Therefore, I will make you ill and destroy you; / I will ruin
- Micah 6:14 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
- Micah 6:14 Or You will press toward birth but not give birth, / and what you bring to birth
- Micah 6:16 Septuagint; Hebrew scorn due my people
The Voice (VOICE)
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.