The Messiah Will Be Born at Bethlehem

Now gather yourself in troops,
O daughter of troops;
He has laid siege against us;
They will (A)strike the judge of Israel with a rod on the cheek.

The Coming Messiah

“But you, (B)Bethlehem (C)Ephrathah,
Though you are little (D)among the (E)thousands of Judah,
Yet out of you shall come forth to Me
The One to be (F)Ruler in Israel,
(G)Whose goings forth are from of old,
From [a]everlasting.”

Therefore He shall give them up,
Until the time that (H)she who is in labor has given birth;
Then (I)the remnant of His brethren
Shall return to the children of Israel.
And He shall stand and (J)feed[b] His flock
In the strength of the Lord,
In the majesty of the name of the Lord His God;
And they shall abide,
For now He (K)shall be great
To the ends of the earth;
And this One (L)shall be peace.

Judgment on Israel’s Enemies

When the Assyrian comes into our land,
And when he treads in our palaces,
Then we will raise against him
Seven shepherds and eight princely men.
They shall [c]waste with the sword the land of Assyria,
And the land of (M)Nimrod at its entrances;
Thus He shall (N)deliver us from the Assyrian,
When he comes into our land
And when he treads within our borders.

Then (O)the remnant of Jacob
Shall be in the midst of many peoples,
(P)Like dew from the Lord,
Like showers on the grass,
That [d]tarry for no man
Nor [e]wait for the sons of men.
And the remnant of Jacob
Shall be among the Gentiles,
In the midst of many peoples,
Like a (Q)lion among the beasts of the forest,
Like a young lion among flocks of sheep,
Who, if he passes through,
Both treads down and tears in pieces,
And none can deliver.
Your hand shall be lifted against your adversaries,
And all your enemies shall be [f]cut off.

10 “And it shall be in that day,” says the Lord,
“That I will (R)cut[g] off your (S)horses from your midst
And destroy your (T)chariots.
11 I will cut off the cities of your land
And throw down all your strongholds.
12 I will cut off sorceries from your hand,
And you shall have no (U)soothsayers.
13 (V)Your carved images I will also cut off,
And your sacred pillars from your midst;
You shall (W)no more worship the work of your hands;
14 I will pluck your [h]wooden images from your midst;
Thus I will destroy your cities.
15 And I will (X)execute vengeance in anger and fury
On the nations that have not [i]heard.”

Notas al pie

  1. Micah 5:2 Lit. the days of eternity
  2. Micah 5:4 shepherd
  3. Micah 5:6 devastate
  4. Micah 5:7 wait
  5. Micah 5:7 delay
  6. Micah 5:9 destroyed
  7. Micah 5:10 destroy
  8. Micah 5:14 Heb. Asherim, Canaanite deities
  9. Micah 5:15 obeyed

The Ruler to Be Born in Bethlehem

[a] Now muster your troops, O daughter[b] of troops;
    siege is laid against us;
with a rod (A)they strike the judge of Israel
    on the cheek.
[c] (B)But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,
    who are too little to be among the clans of (C)Judah,
from you shall come forth for me
    one who is to be (D)ruler in Israel,
(E)whose coming forth is (F)from of old,
    from ancient days.
Therefore he shall give them up (G)until the time
    when she who is in labor has given birth;
then (H)the rest of his brothers shall return
    to the people of Israel.
And he shall stand (I)and shepherd his flock (J)in the strength of the Lord,
    in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
And they shall dwell secure, for now (K)he shall be great
    to the ends of the earth.
And he shall be (L)their peace.

(M)When the Assyrian comes into our land
    and treads in our palaces,
then we will raise against him seven (N)shepherds
    and eight princes of men;
they shall shepherd the land of Assyria with the sword,
    and the land of (O)Nimrod at its entrances;
and he shall deliver us from the Assyrian
    (P)when he comes into our land
    and treads within our border.

A Remnant Shall Be Delivered

Then (Q)the remnant of Jacob shall be
    in the midst of many peoples
like dew from the Lord,
    like showers on the grass,
which delay not for a man
    nor wait for the children of man.
And (R)the remnant of Jacob shall be among the nations,
    in the midst of many peoples,
like a lion among the beasts of the forest,
    like a young lion among the flocks of sheep,
(S)which, when it goes through, treads down
    and tears in pieces, and there is none to deliver.
Your hand shall (T)be lifted up over your adversaries,
    and all your enemies shall be cut off.

10 And (U)in that day, declares the Lord,
    (V)I will cut off your horses from among you
    and will destroy your chariots;
11 (W)and I will cut off the cities of your land
    and throw down all your strongholds;
12 and I will cut off (X)sorceries from your hand,
    and (Y)you shall have no more tellers of fortunes;
13 and (Z)I will cut off your carved images
    and (AA)your pillars from among you,
(AB)and you shall bow down no more
    to the work of your hands;
14 and I will root out your (AC)Asherah images from among you
    (AD)and destroy your cities.
15 And in anger and wrath (AE)I will execute vengeance
    on the nations that did not obey.

Notas al pie

  1. Micah 5:1 Ch 4:14 in Hebrew
  2. Micah 5:1 That is, city
  3. Micah 5:2 Ch 5:1 in Hebrew

God Pleads with Israel

Hear now what the Lord says:

“Arise, plead your case before the mountains,
And let the hills hear your voice.
(A)Hear, O you mountains, (B)the Lord’s complaint,
And you strong foundations of the earth;
For (C)the Lord has a complaint against His people,
And He will [a]contend with Israel.

“O My people, what (D)have I done to you?
And how have I (E)wearied you?
Testify against Me.
(F)For I brought you up from the land of Egypt,
I redeemed you from the house of bondage;
And I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.
O My people, remember now
What (G)Balak king of Moab counseled,
And what Balaam the son of Beor answered him,
From [b]Acacia Grove to Gilgal,
That you may know (H)the righteousness of the Lord.”

With what shall I come before the Lord,
And bow myself before the High God?
Shall I come before Him with burnt offerings,
With calves a year old?
(I)Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,
Ten thousand (J)rivers of oil?
(K)Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression,
[c]The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?

He has (L)shown you, O man, what is good;
And what does the Lord require of you
But (M)to do justly,
To love [d]mercy,
And to walk humbly with your God?

Punishment of Israel’s Injustice

The Lord’s voice cries to the city—
Wisdom shall see Your name:

“Hear the rod!
Who has appointed it?
10 Are there yet the treasures of wickedness
In the house of the wicked,
And the short measure that is an abomination?
11 Shall I count pure those with (N)the wicked scales,
And with the bag of deceitful weights?
12 For her rich men are full of (O)violence,
Her inhabitants have spoken lies,
And (P)their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.

13 “Therefore I will also (Q)make you sick by striking you,
By making you desolate because of your sins.
14 (R)You shall eat, but not be satisfied;
[e]Hunger shall be in your midst.
You may carry some away,[f] but shall not save them;
And what you do rescue I will give over to the sword.

15 “You shall (S)sow, but not reap;
You shall tread the olives, but not anoint yourselves with oil;
And make sweet wine, but not drink wine.
16 For the statutes of (T)Omri are (U)kept;
All the works of Ahab’s house are done;
And you walk in their counsels,
That I may make you a [g]desolation,
And your inhabitants a hissing.
Therefore you shall bear the (V)reproach of [h]My people.”

Notas al pie

  1. Micah 6:2 bring charges against
  2. Micah 6:5 Heb. Shittim, Num. 25:1; Josh. 2:1; 3:1
  3. Micah 6:7 My own child
  4. Micah 6:8 Or lovingkindness
  5. Micah 6:14 Or Emptiness or Humiliation
  6. Micah 6:14 Tg., Vg. You shall take hold
  7. Micah 6:16 Or object of horror
  8. Micah 6:16 So with MT, Tg., Vg.; LXX nations

The Indictment of the Lord

(A)Hear what the Lord says:
Arise, plead your case before the mountains,
    and let the hills hear your voice.
(B)Hear, you mountains, (C)the indictment of the Lord,
    and you enduring foundations of the earth,
for the Lord has an indictment against his people,
    and he will contend with Israel.

“O my people, (D)what have I done to you?
    (E)How have I wearied you? Answer me!
For (F)I brought you up from the land of Egypt
    and (G)redeemed you from the house of slavery,
and I sent before you Moses,
    Aaron, and (H)Miriam.
O my people, remember (I)what Balak king of Moab devised,
    and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him,
and what happened from (J)Shittim to Gilgal,
    that you may know (K)the righteous acts of the Lord.”

What Does the Lord Require?

(L)“With what shall I come before the Lord,
    and bow myself before (M)God on high?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
    with calves a year old?
(N)Will the Lord be pleased with[a] thousands of rams,
    with ten thousands of rivers of oil?
(O)Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression,
    the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”
He has told you, O man, what is good;
    and (P)what does the Lord require of you
but to do justice, and to love kindness,[b]
    and to (Q)walk humbly with your God?

Destruction of the Wicked

The voice of the Lord cries to the city—
    and it is sound wisdom to fear (R)your name:
“Hear of (S)the rod and of him who appointed it![c]
10     Can I forget any longer the treasures[d] of wickedness in the house of the wicked,
    and the scant measure that is accursed?
11 Shall I acquit the man (T)with wicked scales
    and with a bag of deceitful weights?
12 Your[e] rich men are (U)full of violence;
    your inhabitants (V)speak lies,
    and (W)their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.
13 Therefore I strike you with a grievous blow,
    (X)making you desolate because of your sins.
14 (Y)You shall eat, but not be satisfied,
    and there shall be hunger within you;
you shall put away, but not preserve,
    and what you preserve I will give to the sword.
15 (Z)You shall sow, but not reap;
    you shall tread olives, but not anoint yourselves with oil;
    you shall tread grapes, but not drink wine.
16 For you have kept the statutes of (AA)Omri,[f]
    and all the works of the house of (AB)Ahab;
    and you have walked in their counsels,
that I may make you (AC)a desolation, and your[g] inhabitants (AD)a hissing;
    so you shall bear (AE)the scorn of my people.”

Notas al pie

  1. Micah 6:7 Or Will the Lord accept
  2. Micah 6:8 Or steadfast love
  3. Micah 6:9 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
  4. Micah 6:10 Or Are there still treasures
  5. Micah 6:12 Hebrew whose
  6. Micah 6:16 Hebrew For the statutes of Omri are kept
  7. Micah 6:16 Hebrew its

Sorrow for Israel’s Sins

Woe is me!
For I am like those who gather summer fruits,
Like those who (A)glean vintage grapes;
There is no cluster to eat
Of the first-ripe fruit which (B)my soul desires.
The (C)faithful[a] man has perished from the earth,
And there is no one upright among men.
They all lie in wait for blood;
(D)Every man hunts his brother with a net.

That they may successfully do evil with both hands—
The prince asks for gifts,
The judge seeks a (E)bribe,
And the great man utters his evil desire;
So they scheme together.
The best of them is (F)like a brier;
The most upright is sharper than a thorn hedge;
The day of your watchman and your punishment comes;
Now shall be their perplexity.

(G)Do not trust in a friend;
Do not put your confidence in a companion;
Guard the doors of your mouth
From her who lies in your (H)bosom.
For (I)son dishonors father,
Daughter rises against her mother,
Daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
A man’s enemies are the men of his own household.
Therefore I will look to the Lord;
I will (J)wait for the God of my salvation;
My God will hear me.

Israel’s Confession and Comfort

(K)Do not rejoice over me, my enemy;
(L)When I fall, I will arise;
When I sit in darkness,
The Lord will be a light to me.
(M)I will bear the indignation of the Lord,
Because I have sinned against Him,
Until He pleads my (N)case
And executes justice for me.
He will bring me forth to the light;
I will see His righteousness.
10 Then she who is my enemy will see,
And (O)shame will cover her who said to me,
(P)“Where is the Lord your God?”
My eyes will see her;
Now she will be trampled down
Like mud in the streets.

11 In the day when your (Q)walls are to be built,
In that day [b]the decree shall go far and wide.
12 In that day (R)they[c] shall come to you
From Assyria and the [d]fortified cities,
From the [e]fortress to [f]the River,
From sea to sea,
And mountain to mountain.
13 Yet the land shall be desolate
Because of those who dwell in it,
And (S)for the fruit of their deeds.

God Will Forgive Israel

14 Shepherd Your people with Your staff,
The flock of Your heritage,
Who dwell [g]solitarily in a (T)woodland,
In the midst of Carmel;
Let them feed in Bashan and Gilead,
As in days of old.

15 “As(U) in the days when you came out of the land of Egypt,
I will show [h]them (V)wonders.”

16 The nations (W)shall see and be ashamed of all their might;
(X)They shall put their hand over their mouth;
Their ears shall be deaf.
17 They shall lick the (Y)dust like a serpent;
(Z)They shall crawl from their holes like [i]snakes of the earth.
(AA)They shall be afraid of the Lord our God,
And shall fear because of You.
18 (AB)Who is a God like You,
(AC)Pardoning iniquity
And passing over the transgression of (AD)the remnant of His heritage?

(AE)He does not retain His anger forever,
Because He delights in (AF)mercy.[j]
19 He will again have compassion on us,
And will subdue our iniquities.

You will cast all [k]our sins
Into the depths of the sea.
20 (AG)You will give truth to Jacob
And [l]mercy to Abraham,
(AH)Which You have sworn to our fathers
From days of old.

Notas al pie

  1. Micah 7:2 Or loyal
  2. Micah 7:11 Or the boundary shall be extended
  3. Micah 7:12 Lit. he, collective of the captives
  4. Micah 7:12 Heb. arey mazor, possibly cities of Egypt
  5. Micah 7:12 Heb. mazor, possibly Egypt
  6. Micah 7:12 The Euphrates
  7. Micah 7:14 Alone
  8. Micah 7:15 Lit. him, collective for the captives
  9. Micah 7:17 Lit. crawlers
  10. Micah 7:18 Or lovingkindness
  11. Micah 7:19 Lit. their
  12. Micah 7:20 Or lovingkindness

Wait for the God of Salvation

Woe is me! For I have become
    (A)as when the summer fruit has been gathered,
    as when the grapes have been gleaned:
there is no cluster to eat,
    no (B)first-ripe fig that my soul desires.
(C)The godly has perished from the earth,
    and (D)there is no one upright among mankind;
(E)they all lie in wait for blood,
    and (F)each hunts the other with a net.
(G)Their hands are on what is evil, to do it well;
    (H)the prince and (I)the judge ask for a bribe,
and the great man utters the evil desire of his soul;
    thus they weave it together.
The best of them is (J)like a brier,
    the most upright of them a thorn hedge.
The day of (K)your watchmen, of your punishment, has come;
    (L)now their confusion is at hand.
(M)Put no trust in a neighbor;
    have no confidence in a friend;
guard (N)the doors of your mouth
    from her who lies in your arms;[a]
for (O)the son treats the father with contempt,
    the daughter rises up against her mother,
the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
    (P)a man's enemies are the men of his own house.
But as for me, I will look to the Lord;
    (Q)I will wait for the God of my salvation;
    my God will hear me.

(R)Rejoice not over me, O (S)my enemy;
    (T)when I fall, I shall rise;
(U)when I sit in darkness,
    the Lord will be a light to me.
(V)I will bear the indignation of the Lord
    because I have sinned against him,
until (W)he pleads my cause
    and executes judgment for me.
(X)He will bring me out to the light;
    I shall look upon his vindication.
10 Then (Y)my enemy will see,
    and shame will cover her who (Z)said to me,
    “Where is the Lord your God?”
(AA)My eyes will look upon her;
    now she will be trampled down
    (AB)like the mire of the streets.

11 (AC)A day for the building of your walls!
    In that day the boundary shall be far extended.
12 In that day they[b] will come to you,
    (AD)from Assyria and the cities of Egypt,
and from Egypt to (AE)the River,[c]
    (AF)from sea to sea and from mountain to mountain.
13 But (AG)the earth will be desolate
    because of its inhabitants,
    for the fruit of their deeds.

14 (AH)Shepherd your people (AI)with your staff,
    the flock of your inheritance,
who dwell alone in a forest
    (AJ)in the midst of (AK)a garden land;[d]
let them graze in Bashan and Gilead
    as in the days of old.
15 (AL)As in the days when you came out of the land of Egypt,
    I will show them[e] marvelous things.
16 (AM)The nations shall see and be ashamed of all their might;
(AN)they shall lay their hands on their mouths;
    their ears shall be deaf;
17 (AO)they shall lick the dust like a serpent,
    like the crawling things of the earth;
(AP)they shall come trembling out of their strongholds;
    (AQ)they shall turn in dread to the Lord our God,
    and they shall be in fear of you.

God's Steadfast Love and Compassion

18 (AR)Who is a God like you, (AS)pardoning iniquity
    and passing over transgression
    (AT)for the remnant of his inheritance?
(AU)He does not retain his anger forever,
    because he delights in steadfast love.
19 He will (AV)again have compassion on us;
    (AW)he will tread our iniquities underfoot.
(AX)You will cast all our[f] sins
    into the depths of the sea.
20 (AY)You will show faithfulness to Jacob
    and steadfast love to Abraham,
(AZ)as you have sworn to our fathers
    from the days of old.

Notas al pie

  1. Micah 7:5 Hebrew bosom
  2. Micah 7:12 Hebrew he
  3. Micah 7:12 That is, the Euphrates
  4. Micah 7:14 Hebrew of Carmel
  5. Micah 7:15 Hebrew him
  6. Micah 7:19 Hebrew their

Waiting for the Redemption of the Lord

A Song of Ascents.

130 Out (A)of the depths I have cried to You, O Lord;
Lord, hear my voice!
Let Your ears be attentive
To the voice of my supplications.

(B)If You, Lord, should [a]mark iniquities,
O Lord, who could (C)stand?
But there is (D)forgiveness with You,
That (E)You may be feared.

(F)I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
And (G)in His word I do hope.
(H)My soul waits for the Lord
More than those who watch for the morning—
Yes, more than those who watch for the morning.

(I)O Israel, hope in the Lord;
For (J)with the Lord there is mercy,
And with Him is abundant redemption.
And (K)He shall redeem Israel
From all his iniquities.

Notas al pie

  1. Psalm 130:3 take note of

My Soul Waits for the Lord

A Song of (A)Ascents.

130 Out of (B)the depths I cry to you, O Lord!
    O Lord, hear my voice!
(C)Let your ears be attentive
    to (D)the voice of my pleas for mercy!

If you, O Lord, should (E)mark iniquities,
    O Lord, who could (F)stand?
But with you there is (G)forgiveness,
    (H)that you may be feared.

I (I)wait for the Lord, (J)my soul waits,
    and (K)in his word I hope;
my soul (L)waits for the Lord
    more than (M)watchmen for (N)the morning,
    more than watchmen for the morning.

O Israel, (O)hope in the Lord!
    For (P)with the Lord there is steadfast love,
    and with him is plentiful redemption.
And he will (Q)redeem Israel
    from all his iniquities.