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The Lord’s Future Reign

In the last days, the mountain of the Lord’s house
    will be the highest of all—
    the most important place on earth.
It will be raised above the other hills,
    and people from all over the world will stream there to worship.
People from many nations will come and say,
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
    to the house of Jacob’s God.
There he will teach us his ways,
    and we will walk in his paths.”
For the Lord’s teaching will go out from Zion;
    his word will go out from Jerusalem.
The Lord will mediate between peoples
    and will settle disputes between strong nations far away.
They will hammer their swords into plowshares
    and their spears into pruning hooks.
Nation will no longer fight against nation,
    nor train for war anymore.
Everyone will live in peace and prosperity,
    enjoying their own grapevines and fig trees,
    for there will be nothing to fear.
The Lord of Heaven’s Armies
    has made this promise!
Though the nations around us follow their idols,
    we will follow the Lord our God forever and ever.

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Better Days Ahead for Jerusalem

And in future days[a] the Lord’s Temple Mount will be the most important mountain of all;[b]
it will be more prominent than other hills.[c]
People will stream to it.
Many nations will come, saying,
“Come on! Let’s go up to the Lord’s mountain,
to the temple of Jacob’s God,
so he can teach us his ways
and we can live by his laws.”[d]
For instruction will proceed from Zion,
the Lord’s message from Jerusalem.
He will arbitrate[e] between many peoples
and settle disputes between many[f] distant nations.[g]
They will beat their swords into plowshares,[h]
and their spears into pruning hooks.[i]
Nations will not use weapons[j] against other nations,
and they will no longer train for war.
Each will sit under his own grapevine
or under his own fig tree without any fear.[k]
The Lord of Heaven’s Armies has decreed it.[l]
Though all the nations follow their respective gods,[m]
we will follow[n] the Lord our God forever.

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Footnotes

  1. Micah 4:1 sn Cf. Isa 2:2. See the note at Gen 49:1.
  2. Micah 4:1 tn Heb “will be established as the head of the mountains.”
  3. Micah 4:1 tn Heb “it will be lifted up above the hills.”
  4. Micah 4:2 tn Heb “and we can walk in his paths.”
  5. Micah 4:3 tn Or “judge.”
  6. Micah 4:3 tn Or “mighty” (NASB); KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV “strong”; TEV “among the great powers.”
  7. Micah 4:3 tn Heb “[for many nations] to a distance.”
  8. Micah 4:3 sn Instead of referring to the large plow as a whole, the plowshare is simply the metal tip which actually breaks the earth and cuts the furrow.
  9. Micah 4:3 sn This implement was used to prune the vines, i.e., to cut off extra leaves and young shoots (M. Klingbeil, NIDOTTE 1:1117-18). It was a short knife with a curved hook at the end sharpened on the inside like a sickle.
  10. Micah 4:3 tn Heb “take up the sword.”
  11. Micah 4:4 tn Heb “and there will be no one making [him] afraid.”
  12. Micah 4:4 tn Heb “for the mouth of the Lord…has spoken.”
  13. Micah 4:5 tn Heb “walk each in the name of his god.” The term “name” here has the idea of “authority.” To “walk in the name” of a god is to recognize the god’s authority as binding over one’s life.
  14. Micah 4:5 tn Heb “walk in the name of.”