Micah 6
King James Version
6 Hear ye now what the Lord saith; Arise, contend thou before the mountains, and let the hills hear thy voice.
2 Hear ye, O mountains, the Lord's controversy, and ye strong foundations of the earth: for the Lord hath a controversy with his people, and he will plead with Israel.
3 O my people, what have I done unto thee? and wherein have I wearied thee? testify against me.
4 For I brought thee up out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed thee out of the house of servants; and I sent before thee Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.
5 O my people, remember now what Balak king of Moab consulted, and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him from Shittim unto Gilgal; that ye may know the righteousness of the Lord.
6 Wherewith shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before the high God? shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old?
7 Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
8 He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?
9 The Lord's voice crieth unto the city, and the man of wisdom shall see thy name: hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it.
10 Are there yet the treasures of wickedness in the house of the wicked, and the scant measure that is abominable?
11 Shall I count them pure with the wicked balances, and with the bag of deceitful weights?
12 For the rich men thereof are full of violence, and the inhabitants thereof have spoken lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.
13 Therefore also will I make thee sick in smiting thee, in making thee desolate because of thy sins.
14 Thou shalt eat, but not be satisfied; and thy casting down shall be in the midst of thee; and thou shalt take hold, but shalt not deliver; and that which thou deliverest will I give up to the sword.
15 Thou shalt sow, but thou shalt not reap; thou shalt tread the olives, but thou shalt not anoint thee with oil; and sweet wine, but shalt not drink wine.
16 For the statutes of Omri are kept, and all the works of the house of Ahab, and ye walk in their counsels; that I should make thee a desolation, and the inhabitants thereof an hissing: therefore ye shall bear the reproach of my people.
Micah 6
1599 Geneva Bible
6 An exhortation to the dumb creatures to hear the judgment against Israel being unkind. 6 What manner of sacrifices do please God.
1 Hearken ye now what the Lord saith, Arise thou, and contend before the [a]mountains, and let the hills hear thy voice.
2 Hear ye, O mountains, the Lord’s quarrel, and ye mighty foundations of the earth: for the Lord hath a quarrel against his people, and he will plead with Israel.
3 O my people, what have I done unto thee? or wherein have I grieved thee? testify against me.
4 Surely I [b]brought thee up out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed thee out of the house of servants, and I have sent before thee, Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.
5 O my people, remember now what Balak king of Moab had devised, and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him, from [c]Shittim unto Gilgal, that ye may know the [d]righteousness of the Lord.
6 Wherewith [e]shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before the high God? shall I come before him with burnt offerings, and with calves of a year old?
7 Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousand rivers of oil? shall I give my [f]firstborn for my transgression, even the fruit of my body, for the sin of my soul?
8 He hath showed thee, O man, what is good, and what the Lord requireth of thee: [g]surely to do justly, and to love mercy, and to humble thyself, to walk with thy God.
9 The Lord’s voice crieth unto the [h]city, and the man of wisdom shall see thy name: Hear the rod, and who hath appointed it.
10 Are yet the treasures of wickedness in the house of the wicked, and the scant measure, that is abominable?
11 Shall I justify the wicked balances, and the bag of deceitful weights?
12 For the rich men thereof [i]are full of cruelty, and the inhabitants thereof have spoken lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.
13 Therefore also will I make thee sick in smiting thee, and in making thee desolate, because of thy sins.
14 Thou shalt eat and not be satisfied, and [j]thy casting down shall be in the midst of thee, and thou [k]shalt take hold, but shalt not deliver, and that which thou deliverest, will I give up to the sword.
15 Thou shalt sow, but not reap: Thou shalt tread the olives, but thou shalt not anoint thee with oil, and make sweet wine, but shall not drink wine.
16 For the [l]statutes of Omri are kept, and all the manner of the house of Ahab, and ye walk in their counsels, that I should make thee waste, and the inhabitants thereof an hissing: therefore ye shall bear the reproach of my people.
Footnotes
- Micah 6:1 He took the high mountains and hard rocks to witness against the obstinacy of his people.
- Micah 6:4 I have not hurt thee, but bestowed infinite benefits upon thee.
- Micah 6:5 That is, remember my benefits from the beginning how I delivered you from Balaam’s curse, and also spared you from Shittim, which was in the plain of Moab, till I brought you into the land promised.
- Micah 6:5 That is, the truth of his promise and his manifold benefits toward you.
- Micah 6:6 Thus the people by hypocrisy ask how to please God and are content to offer sacrifices, but will not change their lives.
- Micah 6:7 There is nothing so dear to man, but the hypocrites will offer it unto God, if they think thereby to avoid his anger: but they will never be brought to mortify their own affections, and to give themselves willingly to serve God as he commandeth.
- Micah 6:8 The Prophet in few words calleth them to the observation of the second Table, to know if they will obey God aright or no, saying that God hath prescribed them to do this.
- Micah 6:9 Meaning, that when God speaketh to any city or nation, the godly will acknowledge his majesty and consider not the mortal man that bringeth the threatening, but God that sendeth it.
- Micah 6:12 That is, of Jerusalem.
- Micah 6:14 Thou shalt be consumed with inward grief and evils.
- Micah 6:14 Meaning, that the city should go about to save her men, as they that lay hold on that which they would preserve.
- Micah 6:16 You have received all the corruption and idolatry, wherewith the ten tribes were infected under Omri and Ahab his son: and to excuse your doings, you allege the King’s authority by his statutes, and also wisdom and policy in so doing, but you shall not escape punishment: but as I have shown you great favor, and taken you for my people, so shall your plagues be accordingly, Luke 12:47.
Micah 6
English Standard Version
The Indictment of the Lord
6 (A)Hear what the Lord says:
Arise, plead your case before the mountains,
and let the hills hear your voice.
2 (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.
3 “O my people, (D)what have I done to you?
(E)How have I wearied you? Answer me!
4 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.
5 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?
6 (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?
7 (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?”
8 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
9 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.”
Footnotes
- Micah 6:7 Or Will the Lord accept
- Micah 6:8 Or steadfast love
- Micah 6:9 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
- Micah 6:10 Or Are there still treasures
- Micah 6:12 Hebrew whose
- Micah 6:16 Hebrew For the statutes of Omri are kept
- Micah 6:16 Hebrew its
Geneva Bible, 1599 Edition. Published by Tolle Lege Press. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles, reviews, and broadcasts.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
