Wait for the God of Salvation

Woe is me! For I have become
    (A)as when the summer fruit has been gathered,
    as when the grapes have been gleaned:
there is no cluster to eat,
    no (B)first-ripe fig that my soul desires.
(C)The godly has perished from the earth,
    and (D)there is no one upright among mankind;
(E)they all lie in wait for blood,
    and (F)each hunts the other with a net.
(G)Their hands are on what is evil, to do it well;
    (H)the prince and (I)the judge ask for a bribe,
and the great man utters the evil desire of his soul;
    thus they weave it together.
The best of them is (J)like a brier,
    the most upright of them a thorn hedge.
The day of (K)your watchmen, of your punishment, has come;
    (L)now their confusion is at hand.
(M)Put no trust in a neighbor;
    have no confidence in a friend;
guard (N)the doors of your mouth
    from her who lies in your arms;[a]
for (O)the son treats the father with contempt,
    the daughter rises up against her mother,
the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
    (P)a man's enemies are the men of his own house.
But as for me, I will look to the Lord;
    (Q)I will wait for the God of my salvation;
    my God will hear me.

(R)Rejoice not over me, O (S)my enemy;
    (T)when I fall, I shall rise;
(U)when I sit in darkness,
    the Lord will be a light to me.
(V)I will bear the indignation of the Lord
    because I have sinned against him,
until (W)he pleads my cause
    and executes judgment for me.
(X)He will bring me out to the light;
    I shall look upon his vindication.
10 Then (Y)my enemy will see,
    and shame will cover her who (Z)said to me,
    “Where is the Lord your God?”
(AA)My eyes will look upon her;
    now she will be trampled down
    (AB)like the mire of the streets.

11 (AC)A day for the building of your walls!
    In that day the boundary shall be far extended.
12 In that day they[b] will come to you,
    (AD)from Assyria and the cities of Egypt,
and from Egypt to (AE)the River,[c]
    (AF)from sea to sea and from mountain to mountain.
13 But (AG)the earth will be desolate
    because of its inhabitants,
    for the fruit of their deeds.

14 (AH)Shepherd your people (AI)with your staff,
    the flock of your inheritance,
who dwell alone in a forest
    (AJ)in the midst of (AK)a garden land;[d]
let them graze in Bashan and Gilead
    as in the days of old.
15 (AL)As in the days when you came out of the land of Egypt,
    I will show them[e] marvelous things.
16 (AM)The nations shall see and be ashamed of all their might;
(AN)they shall lay their hands on their mouths;
    their ears shall be deaf;
17 (AO)they shall lick the dust like a serpent,
    like the crawling things of the earth;
(AP)they shall come trembling out of their strongholds;
    (AQ)they shall turn in dread to the Lord our God,
    and they shall be in fear of you.

God's Steadfast Love and Compassion

18 (AR)Who is a God like you, (AS)pardoning iniquity
    and passing over transgression
    (AT)for the remnant of his inheritance?
(AU)He does not retain his anger forever,
    because he delights in steadfast love.
19 He will (AV)again have compassion on us;
    (AW)he will tread our iniquities underfoot.
(AX)You will cast all our[f] sins
    into the depths of the sea.
20 (AY)You will show faithfulness to Jacob
    and steadfast love to Abraham,
(AZ)as you have sworn to our fathers
    from the days of old.

Footnotes

  1. Micah 7:5 Hebrew bosom
  2. Micah 7:12 Hebrew he
  3. Micah 7:12 That is, the Euphrates
  4. Micah 7:14 Hebrew of Carmel
  5. Micah 7:15 Hebrew him
  6. Micah 7:19 Hebrew their

The prophet laments

I’m doomed!
    I’ve become like one who,
        even after the summer fruit has been gathered,
        after the ripened fruits have been collected,
            has no cluster of grapes to eat,
            no ripe fig that I might desire.
Faithful ones have perished from the land;
        there is no righteous one among humanity.
    All of them lie in wait for bloodshed;
        they hunt each other with nets.
Their hands are skilled at doing evil.
    Official and judge alike ask for a bribe;
        the powerful speak however they like;
            this is how they conspire.
The good among them are like a briar;
        those who do the right thing are like a thorny thicket.
            (A day for your lookouts![a]
            Your punishment has arrived.
            The confusion of the wicked[b] is nearby.)
Don’t rely on a friend;
        put no trust in a companion;
        guard the doors of your mouth from she who lies in your embrace.
Son disrespects father;
        a daughter rises up against her mother,
        a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
        the enemies of a man are those of his own household.
But me! I will keep watch for the Lord;
        I will wait for the God of my salvation;
            my God will hear me.

Zion speaks

Do not rejoice[c] over me, my enemy,
        because when I fall, I will rise;
            if I sit in darkness, the Lord is my light.
I must bear the raging of the Lord,
    for I have sinned against him,
        until he decides my case and provides justice for me.
    He will bring me out into the light;
        I will see by means of his righteousness.
10     Then my enemy will see;
        shame will cover her who said to me:
            “Where is the Lord your God?”
    My eyes will see her ruin;[d]
        now she will become something to be trampled,
            like mud in the streets.

Micah responds to Zion

11 A day for the building of your walls!
        On that day, the boundary will be distant.
12         On that day, they will come to you from Assyria and the cities of Egypt,
            from Egypt to the River,
            from sea to sea,
            and from mountain to mountain.
13 And the earth will become desolate because of her inhabitants,
        because of the fruit of their actions.

Micah intercedes for the people

14 Shepherd your people with your staff,
        the sheep of your inheritance,
        those dwelling alone in a forest in the midst of Carmel.
    Let them graze in Bashan and Gilead, as a long time ago.

God agrees

15 As in the days when you came out of the land of Egypt,
        I will show Israel wonderful things.

The prophet continues

16 Nations will see and be ashamed of all their strength;
        they will cover their mouths;
        their ears will be deaf.
17 They will lick dust like the snake,
        like things that crawl on the ground.
They will come trembling from their strongholds to the Lord our God;
        they will dread and fear you!
18 Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity,
        overlooking the sin of the few remaining for his inheritance?
    He doesn’t hold on to his anger forever;
        he delights in faithful love.
19 He will once again have compassion on us;
        he will tread down our iniquities.
You will hurl all our sins into the depths of the sea.
20 You will provide faithfulness to Jacob, faithful love to Abraham,
        as you swore to our ancestors a long time ago.

Footnotes

  1. Micah 7:4 Heb uncertain
  2. Micah 7:4 Heb lacks the wicked.
  3. Micah 7:8 Rejoice (feminine singular)
  4. Micah 7:10 Heb lacks ruin.