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The Expectation of Renewal[a]

Chapter 4

We Shall Go to the Mountain of God

In days to come,
    the mountain of the Lord’s house
will be established as the highest of the mountains,
    towering above other hills.
Peoples will stream toward it;
    many nations will come and say,
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
    to the house of the God of Jacob,
so that he may teach us his ways
    and we may walk in his paths.”
For out of Zion will instruction go forth,
    and from Jerusalem the word of the Lord.
He will judge between many peoples
    and serve as an arbiter,
    between mighty and distant nations.
They will beat their swords into plowshares
    and their spears into pruning hooks.
Nation will not take up the sword against nation,
    nor will they ever again be trained for war.
Each man will sit under his own vine
    or under his own fig tree
with no cause for alarm,
    for the mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken.
For all the peoples go forth,
    each in the name of its god,
but we will walk in the name of the Lord, our God,
    forever and ever.

Gathering Up the Dispersed Flock

On that day, says the Lord,
    I will gather the lame;
I will assemble those who have been driven away
    and those whom I have afflicted.
I will make the lame into a remnant,
    and turn into a strong nation those who were cast off.
The Lord will reign over them on Mount Zion
    now and forevermore.
As for you, O tower of the flock,[b]
    hill of daughter Zion,
the promises made to you
    will be fulfilled,
and your former security will be restored,
    the sovereignty of daughter Jerusalem.

A Sorrowful Childbirth

Why are you now crying out?
    Have you no king any longer,
    or has your counselor perished,
that you are afflicted with pains
    like a woman in labor?
10 Writhe in pain and cry aloud,
    O daughter Zion,
    like a woman in labor.
For now you must go forth from the city
    and camp in the open country.
You will go to Babylon
    where you will be saved.
There the Lord will deliver you
    from the hands of your enemies.

The Nations Crush the Land of God

11 But now many nations
    are gathered against you.
They say, “Let her be profaned;
    let us gloat over Zion.”
12 However, they do not know
    the thoughts of the Lord
    or comprehend his plan.
For he has gathered them
    like sheaves on the threshing floor.
13 Arise and thresh,
    O daughter of Zion,
for I will make your horn like iron
    and your hooves like bronze
    so that you may crush many peoples.
You shall devote their ill-gotten gains to the Lord,
    their wealth to the Lord of the whole earth.

From You Bethlehem There Will Be Born the One Who Will Rule[c]

14 Now withdraw behind your walls,
    for they have laid siege against you.
With a rod they will strike on the cheek
    the ruler of Israel.

Footnotes

  1. Micah 4:1 In this section it is difficult to determine what is from Micah and what is postexilic.
  2. Micah 4:8 Tower of the flock: a symbolic name for Jerusalem.
  3. Micah 4:14 As had already happened in the past, the new leader, the new David, is to come from a modest rural family (see 1 Sam 16:1-13; 17:12), and the prophet sings of his glory. As we read in St. Matthew (Mt 2:5-6) and St. John (Jn 7:42), in the time of Jesus this oracle was interpreted as predicting the birthplace of the Messiah. It is a fine example of how God chooses someone unexpected and weak in order to confound the mighty and the strong (see Jdg 6:15; 1 Sam 9:21; 1 Cor 1:27). Speaking of the woman who is to give birth (Mic 5:2), the prophet alludes to the promise given by Isaiah (Isa 7:14) some years before, in which the Christian tradition, following the lead of the first Gospel (Mt 1:23), sees a veiled announcement of the birth of Jesus.

But in the last days Mount Zion will be the most renowned of all the mountains of the world, praised by all nations; people from all over the world will make pilgrimages there.

“Come,” they will say to one another, “let us visit the mountain of the Lord, and see the Temple of the God of Israel; he will tell us what to do, and we will do it.” For in those days the whole world will be ruled by the Lord from Jerusalem! He will issue his laws and announce his decrees from there.

He will arbitrate among the nations and dictate to strong nations far away. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; nations shall no longer fight each other, for all war will end. There will be universal peace, and all the military academies and training camps will be closed down.

Everyone will live quietly in his own home in peace and prosperity, for there will be nothing to fear. The Lord himself has promised this. (Therefore we will follow the Lord our God forever and ever, even though all the nations around us worship idols!)

In that coming day, the Lord says that he will bring back his punished people—sick and lame and dispossessed— and make them strong again in their own land, a mighty nation, and the Lord himself shall be their King from Mount Zion forever. O Jerusalem—the Watchtower of God’s people—your royal might and power will come back to you again, just as before.

But for now, you scream in terror. Where is your king to lead you? He is dead! Where are your wise men? All are gone! Pain has gripped you like a woman in labor. 10 Writhe and groan in your terrible pain, O people of Zion, for you must leave this city and live in the fields; you will be sent far away into exile in Babylon. But there I will rescue you and free you from the grip of your enemies.

11 True, many nations have gathered together against you, calling for your blood, eager to destroy you. 12 But they do not know the thoughts of the Lord nor understand his plan, for the time will come when the Lord will gather together the enemies of his people like sheaves upon the threshing floor, helpless before Israel.

13 Rise, thresh, O daughter of Zion; I will give you horns of iron and hoofs of brass; you will trample to pieces many people, and you will give their wealth as offerings to the Lord, the Lord of all the earth.

Israel ska återvända till sitt land

(A) Det ska ske i den yttersta tiden

        att berget med Herrens hus
        ska stå fast grundat
    och vara högst bland bergen,
        upphöjt över höjderna.
    Och alla folk ska strömma dit.
(B) och många folk ska gå i väg och säga:
    ”Kom, låt oss gå upp
        till Herrens berg,
            till Jakobs Guds hus.
    Han ska lära oss sina vägar
        så att vi kan vandra
            på hans stigar.”
    För undervisningen
        ska gå ut från Sion,
    Herrens ord från Jerusalem.
(C) Han ska döma mellan många folk
    och skipa rätt åt mäktiga hednafolk,
        ända bort i fjärran land.
    Då ska de smida sina svärd
            till plogbillar
        och sina spjut till vingårdsknivar.
    Folken ska inte lyfta svärd
        mot varandra
    och inte mer öva för krig.[a]
(D) Var och en ska sitta
    under sin vinstock och sitt fikonträd[b]
        utan fruktan,
    för så har Herren Sebaots mun talat.
(E) Alla andra folk vandrar
        vart och ett i sin guds namn,
    men vi ska vandra
        i Herren vår Guds namn,
    alltid och för evigt.

(F) På den dagen, säger Herren,
        ska jag samla de haltande
    och föra samman de fördrivna
        och dem som jag har plågat.
(G) Jag ska göra de haltande till en rest
    och de fördrivna
        till ett mäktigt folk,
    och Herren ska vara kung
        över dem på Sions berg
            från nu och till evig tid.
(H) Och du Herdetorn,
        dottern Sions kulle,
    till dig ska det komma,
        det forna herraväldet ska komma,
    dottern Jerusalems kungadöme.

(I) Men varför ropar du så högt?
    Finns det ingen kung hos dig,
        är din rådgivare borta
    eftersom du gripits av vånda
        likt en barnaföderska?
10 (J) Vrid dig i födslosmärtor
    likt en födande kvinna,
        dotter Sion,
    för nu måste du dra ut ur staden
        och bo på öppna fältet.
    Ända till Babel[c] ska du komma.
        Där ska du befrias,
    där ska Herren förlossa dig
        ur dina fienders hand.

11 (K) Nu samlas många folk mot dig,
        och de säger:
    ”Hon ska bli orenad,
        och våra ögon ska se
            med lust på Sion.”
12 (L) Men de känner inte
        Herrens tankar,
    de förstår inte hans rådslut,
        att han har samlat dem
            som kärvar till tröskplatsen.
13 (M) Res dig och tröska[d], dotter Sion,
    för jag ska ge dig horn av järn
        och klövar av koppar.
    Du ska krossa många folk
        och viga bytet från dem åt Herren,
    deras skatter åt hela jordens Herre.

Footnotes

  1. 4:1f Stycket återfinns även i Jesaja 2:2-4. De två profeterna var samtida och kände troligen varandra.
  2. 4:4 under sin vinstock och sitt fikonträd   Uttryck för trygghet och gott liv (jfr 1 Kung 4:25, Sak 3:10).
  3. 4:10 till Babel   Hit fördes folket bort över hundra år senare, 597 och 587 f Kr (se 2 Kung 24-25). De befriades av perserkungen Koresh 539 f Kr (Esra 1) och fick återvända till sitt land (vers 6).
  4. 4:13 tröska   Att krossa skördad säd på tröskplatsen (Jes 28:28), en bild för våldsam behandling.