Leaders and Prophets Rebuked

Then I said,

“Listen, you leaders(A) of Jacob,
    you rulers of Israel.
Should you not embrace justice,
    you who hate good and love evil;
who tear the skin from my people
    and the flesh from their bones;(B)
who eat my people’s flesh,(C)
    strip off their skin
    and break their bones in pieces;(D)
who chop(E) them up like meat for the pan,
    like flesh for the pot?(F)

Then they will cry out to the Lord,
    but he will not answer them.(G)
At that time he will hide his face(H) from them
    because of the evil they have done.(I)

This is what the Lord says:

“As for the prophets
    who lead my people astray,(J)
they proclaim ‘peace’(K)
    if they have something to eat,
but prepare to wage war against anyone
    who refuses to feed them.
Therefore night will come over you, without visions,
    and darkness, without divination.(L)
The sun will set for the prophets,(M)
    and the day will go dark for them.(N)
The seers will be ashamed(O)
    and the diviners disgraced.(P)
They will all cover(Q) their faces(R)
    because there is no answer from God.(S)
But as for me, I am filled with power,
    with the Spirit of the Lord,
    and with justice and might,
to declare to Jacob his transgression,
    to Israel his sin.(T)

Hear this, you leaders of Jacob,
    you rulers of Israel,
who despise justice
    and distort all that is right;(U)
10 who build(V) Zion with bloodshed,(W)
    and Jerusalem with wickedness.(X)
11 Her leaders judge for a bribe,(Y)
    her priests teach for a price,(Z)
    and her prophets tell fortunes for money.(AA)
Yet they look(AB) for the Lord’s support and say,
    “Is not the Lord among us?
    No disaster will come upon us.”(AC)
12 Therefore because of you,
    Zion will be plowed like a field,
Jerusalem will become a heap of rubble,(AD)
    the temple(AE) hill a mound overgrown with thickets.(AF)

A i mea ahau, Whakarongo mai, e nga upoko o Hakopa, e nga ariki o te whare o Iharaira: He teka ianei mo koutou te matauranga ki te whakawa?

E kino na ki te pai, e aroha na ki te kino; e tihore na i to ratou kiri i o ratou tinana, i to ratou kikokiko i o ratou wheua;

E kai na hoki i nga kikokiko o taku iwi; e tihore na i to ratou kiri i o ratou tinana, e wawahi na i o ratou wheua: ae ra, e tapatapahia rawatia ana e ratou, ano he mea mo te kohua, ano he kikokiko i roto i te kohua nui.

Ko reira ratou karanga ai ki a Ihowa, heoi e kore ia e whakahoki kupu ki a ratou: ae ra, ka huna e ia tona mata ki a ratou i taua wa, ka rite ki to ratou kino i mahia e ratou.

Ko te kupu tenei a Ihowa mo nga poropiti e whakapohehe nei i taku iwi, e ngau nei o ratou niho, me te karanga, He rongo mau! a ki te kahore e komotia e tetahi he mea ki o ratou mangai, ka tino anga ratou ki te whakataka whawhai ki a ia.

Mo reira ko te po mo koutou, e kore ai he kite ki a koutou; a ka pouri ki a koutou, e kore ai koutou e kite tikanga; a ka to te ra ki nga poropiti, a ka mangu te awatea ki runga ki a ratou.

A tera e whakama nga matakite, e numinumi hoki nga tohunga tuaahu; ae ra, tera ratou katoa e arai i o ratou ngutu; no te mea kahore he kupu whakahoki a te Atua.

Otiia he pono, kua ki ahau i te kaha, he mea na te wairua o Ihowa, i te whakawa hoki, i te mana, kia whakaaturia ai e ahau ki a Hakopa tona poka ke, ki a Iharaira tona hara.

Tena ra, whakarongo ki tenei, e nga upoko o te whare o Hakopa, e nga ariki hoki o te whare o Iharaira, e whakarihariha na ki te whakawa, e whakapeau ke na i te tika katoa.

10 E hanga ana ratou i Hiona ki te toto, i Hiruharama ki te he.

11 E whakawa ana ona upoko, he mea na te patipati, e whakaako ana ona tohunga, he mea na te utu; ko ona poropiti na te hiriwa i kite tikanga ai; otiia kei te whakawhirinaki ratou ki a Ihowa, kei te mea, He teka ianei kei roto a Ihowa i a tatou? e k ore tetahi he e pa ki a tatou.

12 Mo reira ka parautia a Hiona, ano he mara, he mea mo koutou, a ka waiho a Hiruharama hei puranga, ka rite hoki te maunga o te whare ki nga wahi tiketike o te ngahere.

Wicked Rulers and Prophets

And I said:

“Hear now, O heads of Jacob,
And you (A)rulers of the house of Israel:
(B)Is it not for you to know justice?
You who hate good and love evil;
Who strip the skin from [a]My people,
And the flesh from their bones;
Who also (C)eat the flesh of My people,
Flay their skin from them,
Break their bones,
And chop them in pieces
Like meat for the pot,
(D)Like flesh in the caldron.”

Then (E)they will cry to the Lord,
But He will not hear them;
He will even hide His face from them at that time,
Because they have been evil in their deeds.

Thus says the Lord (F)concerning the prophets
Who make my people stray;
Who chant [b]“Peace”
[c]While they (G)chew with their teeth,
But who prepare war against him
(H)Who puts nothing into their mouths:
“Therefore(I) you shall have night without [d]vision,
And you shall have darkness without divination;
The sun shall go down on the prophets,
And the day shall be dark for (J)them.
So the seers shall be ashamed,
And the diviners abashed;
Indeed they shall all cover their lips;
(K)For there is no answer from God.”

But truly I am full of power by the Spirit of the Lord,
And of justice and might,
(L)To declare to Jacob his transgression
And to Israel his sin.
Now hear this,
You heads of the house of Jacob
And rulers of the house of Israel,
Who abhor justice
And [e]pervert all equity,
10 (M)Who build up Zion with (N)bloodshed
And Jerusalem with iniquity:
11 (O)Her heads judge for a bribe,
(P)Her priests teach for pay,
And her prophets divine for [f]money.
(Q)Yet they lean on the Lord, and say,
“Is not the Lord among us?
No harm can come upon us.”
12 Therefore because of you
Zion shall be (R)plowed like a field,
(S)Jerusalem shall become heaps of ruins,
And (T)the mountain of the [g]temple
Like the bare hills of the forest.

Footnotes

  1. Micah 3:2 Lit. them
  2. Micah 3:5 All is well
  3. Micah 3:5 For those who feed them
  4. Micah 3:6 Prophetic revelation
  5. Micah 3:9 Lit. twist
  6. Micah 3:11 Lit. silver
  7. Micah 3:12 Lit. house