Micah 1
World English Bible
1 Yahweh’s[a] word that came to Micah the Morashtite in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.
2 Hear, you peoples, all of you.
Listen, O earth, and all that is therein:
and let the Lord[b] Yahweh be witness against you,
the Lord from his holy temple.
3 For, behold,[c] Yahweh comes out of his place,
and will come down and tread on the high places of the earth.
4 The mountains melt under him,
and the valleys split apart,
like wax before the fire,
like waters that are poured down a steep place.
5 “All this is for the disobedience of Jacob,
and for the sins of the house of Israel.
What is the disobedience of Jacob?
Isn’t it Samaria?
And what are the high places of Judah?
Aren’t they Jerusalem?
6 Therefore I will make Samaria like a rubble heap of the field,
like places for planting vineyards;
and I will pour down its stones into the valley,
and I will uncover its foundations.
7 All her idols will be beaten to pieces,
and all her temple gifts will be burned with fire,
and all her images I will destroy;
for of the hire of a prostitute has she gathered them,
and to the hire of a prostitute shall they return.”
8 For this I will lament and wail;
I will go stripped and naked;
I will howl like the jackals,
and moan like the daughters of owls.
9 For her wounds are incurable;
for it has come even to Judah.
It reaches to the gate of my people,
even to Jerusalem.
10 Don’t tell it in Gath.
Don’t weep at all.
At Beth Ophrah[d] I have rolled myself in the dust.
11 Pass on, inhabitant of Shaphir, in nakedness and shame.
The inhabitant of Zaanan won’t come out.
The wailing of Beth Ezel will take from you his protection.
12 For the inhabitant of Maroth waits anxiously for good,
because evil has come down from Yahweh to the gate of Jerusalem.
13 Harness the chariot to the swift steed, inhabitant of Lachish.
She was the beginning of sin to the daughter of Zion;
For the transgressions of Israel were found in you.
14 Therefore you will give a parting gift to Moresheth Gath.
The houses of Achzib will be a deceitful thing to the kings of Israel.
15 I will yet bring to you, inhabitant of Mareshah, him who will possess you.
He who is the glory of Israel will come to Adullam.
16 Shave your heads,
and cut off your hair for the children of your delight.
Enlarge your baldness like the vulture;
for they have gone into captivity from you!
Footnotes
- 1:1 “Yahweh” is God’s proper Name, sometimes rendered “LORD” (all caps) in other translations.
- 1:2 The word translated “Lord” is “Adonai.”
- 1:3 “Behold”, from “הִנֵּה”, means look at, take notice, observe, see, or gaze at. It is often used as an interjection.
- 1:10 Beth Ophrah means literally “House of Dust.”
Micah 1
International Standard Version
God’s Coming Judgment
1 This message from the Lord came to Micah[a] of Moresheth during the reigns of[b] the Judean kings Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah concerning the vision he saw about Samaria and Jerusalem:
2 “Listen, people! All of you!
Earth! Pay attention, and all you inhabitants of it!
May the Lord God be a witness against you—
the Lord from his holy Temple.
3 Look here! The Lord is coming from his place!
He will come down
and will trample down the high places[c] throughout the land.
4 The mountains will melt under him
and the valleys will split apart,
like wax in the presence of fire
and like water gushing down a steep incline.
5 All this comes about due to the transgression of Jacob,
and due to the sins of the house of Israel.
What is Jacob’s sin? It’s Samaria, isn’t it?
And what’s Judah’s high place?[d] It’s Jerusalem, isn’t it?
6 “So I will turn Samaria into a mound of dirt in a field,
a place to plant vineyards.
And I will dump her building stones into the valley,
uncovering her foundation.
7 All of her carved images will be crushed to pieces,
all the earnings of her prostitution will be burned up,
and I will destroy all her idols;
because she collected the wages of prostitution,
and to the wages of prostitution they will return.”
The Coming Destruction
8 “Therefore I will cry out and grieve loudly;
I will walk around stripped and naked.
I will cry out like a jackal
and mourn like a company of ostriches.
9 For Samaria’s[e] injury is fatal,
reaching all the way to Judah,
extending even to the gate of my people—to Jerusalem.”
10 “Don’t discuss it in Gath![f]
Don’t cry bitterly in Akim![g]
Roll in the ashes, Beth-leaphrah!
11 Run away, you residents of Shaphir,
displaying your shameful nakedness.
Don’t come out, you residents of Zaanan![h]
Your firm standing will disappear as Beth-ezel mourns.
12 Even though the inhabitants of Maroth long for success,
nevertheless evil descended from the Lord to the gate of Jerusalem.
13 “You inhabitants of Lachish, harness your chariot to your swiftest steed—
the daughter of Zion has begun to sin—
because within you the transgressions of Israel were revealed.
14 Therefore give your gifts to Moresheth-gath;
that is, the houses of Achzib as a deceitful symbol[i] to the kings of Israel.
15 Nevertheless, I will deliver an heir to you, inhabitants of Mareshah—
to Adullam the glory of Israel will come.
16 “Shave your head
and cut off your locks as you mourn your beloved children.
Make yourself bald as an eagle,
because they will go from you into exile!”
Footnotes
- Micah 1:1 The Heb. name Micah means Who is like the Lord?
- Micah 1:1 Lit. days
- Micah 1:3 I.e. the sites of idol worship
- Micah 1:5 I.e. the sites of idol worship
- Micah 1:9 Lit. her
- Micah 1:10 A city in Philistia
- Micah 1:10 So LXX; MT reads Don’t cry at all
- Micah 1:11 A city of Judah
- Micah 1:14 Or a lie
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