Woe to Evildoers

Woe to those who devise iniquity,
And [a]work out evil on their beds!
At (A)morning light they practice it,
Because it is in the power of their hand.
They (B)covet fields and take them by violence,
Also houses, and seize them.
So they oppress a man and his house,
A man and his inheritance.

Therefore thus says the Lord:

“Behold, against this (C)family I am devising (D)disaster,
From which you cannot remove your necks;
Nor shall you walk haughtily,
For this is an evil time.
In that day one shall take up a proverb against you,
And (E)lament with a bitter lamentation, saying:
‘We are utterly destroyed!
He has changed the [b]heritage of my people;
How He has removed it from me!
To [c]a turncoat He has divided our fields.’ ”

Therefore you will have no [d]one to determine boundaries by lot
In the assembly of the Lord.

Lying Prophets

“Do not prattle,” you say to those who [e]prophesy.
So they shall not prophesy [f]to you;
[g]They shall not return insult for insult.
You who are named the house of Jacob:
“Is the Spirit of the Lord restricted?
Are these His doings?
Do not My words do good
To him who walks uprightly?

“Lately My people have risen up as an enemy—
You pull off the robe with the garment
From those who trust you, as they pass by,
Like men returned from war.
The women of My people you cast out
From their pleasant houses;
From their children
You have taken away My glory forever.

10 “Arise and depart,
For this is not your (F)rest;
Because it is (G)defiled, it shall destroy,
Yes, with utter destruction.
11 If a man should walk in a false spirit
And speak a lie, saying,
‘I will [h]prophesy to you [i]of wine and drink,’
Even he would be the (H)prattler of this people.

Israel Restored

12 “I(I) will surely assemble all of you, O Jacob,
I will surely gather the remnant of Israel;
I will put them together (J)like sheep of [j]the fold,
Like a flock in the midst of their pasture;
(K)They shall make a loud noise because of so many people.
13 The one who breaks open will come up before them;
They will break out,
Pass through the gate,
And go out by it;
(L)Their king will pass before them,
(M)With the Lord at their head.”

Footnotes

  1. Micah 2:1 Plan
  2. Micah 2:4 Lit. portion
  3. Micah 2:4 Lit. one turning back, an apostate
  4. Micah 2:5 Lit. one casting a surveyor’s line
  5. Micah 2:6 Or preach, lit. drip words
  6. Micah 2:6 Lit. to these
  7. Micah 2:6 Vg. He shall not take shame
  8. Micah 2:11 Or preach, lit. drip
  9. Micah 2:11 concerning
  10. Micah 2:12 Heb. Bozrah

The Evil Plans of People

How terrible it will be for people who plan wickedness.
    They lie on their beds and make evil plans.
When the morning light comes, they do the things they planned.
    They do them just because they have the power to do so.
They want fields; so they take them.
    They want houses; so they take them.
They cheat a man and take his house.
    They cheat a man and take his property.

That is why the Lord says:

“Look, I am planning trouble against such people.
    You won’t be able to save yourselves.
You will no longer walk proudly,
    because it will be a terrible time.
At that time people will make fun of you.
    They will sing this sad song about you:
‘We are completely ruined.
    The Lord has taken away our land.
Yes, he has taken our land away from us.
    He has divided our fields among our enemies!’”
So you will have no land for people to measure.
    They will not throw lots to divide the land among the Lord’s people.

Micah Is Asked Not to Prophesy

People say, “Don’t prophesy to us!
    Don’t say those bad things about us!
    Nothing like that will happen to us!”
But I must say this, people of Jacob.
    The Lord is becoming angry about what you have done.
If you lived right,
    I could say nice words to you.
But recently, my people have become my enemy.
    You take the coats from people who pass by.
They think they are safe.
    But you rob them
as if they were prisoners of war.
You’ve forced the women of my people
    from their nice houses.
You’ve taken my glory
    from their children forever.
10 Get up and leave.
    This is not your promised place of rest anymore.
You have made this place unclean.
    It is doomed to destruction.
11 But you people want a false prophet
    who will tell you nothing but lies.
You want one who promises to prophesy good things for you
    if you give him wine and beer.
    He’s just the prophet for you.

The Lord Promises to Rescue His People

12 “Yes, people of Jacob, I will bring all of you together.
    I will bring together all those left alive in Israel.
I’ll put them together like sheep in a pen,
    like a flock in its pasture.
    Then the place will be filled with many people.
13 Someone will open the way and lead the people out.
    The people will break through the gate and leave the city where they were held captive.
Their king will go out in front of them.
    The Lord will lead his people.”