Micah 7
New American Standard Bible 1995
The Prophet Acknowledges
7 Woe is me! For I am
Like the fruit pickers, like the (A)grape gatherers.
There is not a cluster of grapes to eat,
Or a (B)first-ripe fig which [a]I crave.
2 The [b]godly person has (C)perished from the land,
And there is no upright person among men.
All of them lie in wait for (D)bloodshed;
Each of them hunts the other with a (E)net.
3 Concerning evil, both hands do it (F)well.
The prince asks, also the judge, for a (G)bribe,
And a great man speaks the desire of his soul;
So they weave it together.
4 The best of them is like a (H)briar,
The most upright like a (I)thorn hedge.
The day when you post your watchmen,
Your (J)punishment will come.
Then their (K)confusion will occur.
5 Do not (L)trust in a neighbor;
Do not have confidence in a friend.
From her who lies in your bosom
Guard [c]your lips.
6 For (M)son treats father contemptuously,
Daughter rises up against her mother,
Daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
(N)A man’s enemies are the men of his own household.
God Is the Source of Salvation and Light
7 But as for me, I will (O)watch expectantly for the Lord;
I will (P)wait for the God of my salvation.
My (Q)God will hear me.
8 (R)Do not rejoice over me, O (S)my enemy.
Though I fall I will (T)rise;
Though I dwell in darkness, the Lord is a (U)light for me.
9 I will bear the indignation of the Lord
Because I have sinned against Him,
Until He (V)pleads my case and executes justice for me.
He will bring me out to the (W)light,
And I will see His [d](X)righteousness.
10 Then my enemy will see,
And shame will cover her who (Y)said to me,
“Where is the Lord your God?”
My eyes will look on her;
[e]At that time she will [f]be (Z)trampled down
Like mire of the streets.
11 It will be a day for (AA)building your walls.
On that day will your boundary be extended.
12 It will be a day when [g]they will (AB)come to you
From Assyria and the cities of Egypt,
From Egypt even to the [h]Euphrates,
Even from sea to sea and mountain to mountain.
13 And the earth will become (AC)desolate because of her inhabitants,
On account of the (AD)fruit of their deeds.
14 (AE)Shepherd Your people with Your (AF)scepter,
The flock of Your [i]possession
Which dwells by itself in the woodland,
In the midst of [j]a fruitful field.
Let them feed in (AG)Bashan and Gilead
(AH)As in the days of old.
15 “As in the days when you came out from the land of Egypt,
I will show [k](AI)you miracles.”
16 Nations (AJ)will see and be ashamed
Of all their might.
They will (AK)put their hand on their mouth,
Their ears will be deaf.
17 They will (AL)lick the dust like a serpent,
Like (AM)reptiles of the earth.
They will come (AN)trembling out of their [l]fortresses;
To the Lord our God they will come in (AO)dread
And they will be afraid before You.
18 Who is a God like You, who (AP)pardons iniquity
And passes over the rebellious act of the (AQ)remnant of His [m]possession?
He does not (AR)retain His anger forever,
Because He (AS)delights in [n]unchanging love.
19 He will again have compassion on us;
(AT)He will tread our iniquities under foot.
Yes, You will (AU)cast all [o]their sins
Into the depths of the sea.
20 You will give [p](AV)truth to Jacob
And [q]unchanging love to Abraham,
Which You (AW)swore to our forefathers
From the days of old.
Footnotes
- Micah 7:1 Lit my soul
- Micah 7:2 Or loyal
- Micah 7:5 Lit openings of your mouth
- Micah 7:9 I.e. right dealing
- Micah 7:10 Lit Now
- Micah 7:10 Lit become a trampled place
- Micah 7:12 Lit he
- Micah 7:12 Lit River
- Micah 7:14 Or inheritance
- Micah 7:14 Or Carmel
- Micah 7:15 Lit him
- Micah 7:17 Lit fastnesses
- Micah 7:18 Or inheritance
- Micah 7:18 Or lovingkindness
- Micah 7:19 Several ancient versions read our
- Micah 7:20 Or faithfulness
- Micah 7:20 Or lovingkindness
Micah 7
New King James Version
Sorrow for Israel’s Sins
7 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.
2 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.
3 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.
4 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.
5 (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.
6 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.
7 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
8 (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.
9 (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.
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.
Footnotes
- Micah 7:2 Or loyal
- Micah 7:11 Or the boundary shall be extended
- Micah 7:12 Lit. he, collective of the captives
- Micah 7:12 Heb. arey mazor, possibly cities of Egypt
- Micah 7:12 Heb. mazor, possibly Egypt
- Micah 7:12 The Euphrates
- Micah 7:14 Alone
- Micah 7:15 Lit. him, collective for the captives
- Micah 7:17 Lit. crawlers
- Micah 7:18 Or lovingkindness
- Micah 7:19 Lit. their
- Micah 7:20 Or lovingkindness
Micah 7
International Standard Version
The Evil Behavior of the People
7 Poor me!
I feel like those who harvest summer fruit,
or like those who pick grapes—
there are no clusters to eat
or any fresh fruit that I want.
2 The faithful have died off,
and there is not one upright human being in the land.
They all stalk one another[a] with lethal intent,
a man will even hunt his own brother with a net.
3 And speaking of evil,
they practice it eagerly—with both hands!
Both leader and judge demand a bribe,
the famous confess their perverted desires,
and they scheme together.
4 The best of them is like a thorn,
and their most upright like a hedge of thorns.
The day announced by[b] your watchmen—
and by your own calculations—approaches.
Now it’s your time to be[c] confused!
5 Don’t trust your friends,
don’t confide in a companion,
watch what you say to your wife.[d]
6 The son disrespects his father,
the daughter rebels against her mother,
the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law,
and a man’s enemies are the people of his own house.[e]
Micah Looks to God
7 But as for me, I will look to the Lord;
I will wait for the God who will deliver me.
My God will hear me.
8 Don’t be glad on my account, my enemy.
When I fall, I’ll get up.
Though I sit in darkness,
the Lord is a light for me.
9 I will endure the Lord’s anger—
since I have sinned against him—
until he takes over my defense,
administers justice on my behalf,
and brings me out to the light,
where I will gaze on his righteousness.
10 Then my enemy will observe it,
and shame will engulf the ones[f] who asked me,
‘Where is the Lord your God?’
My own eyes will see them,[g]
they[h] will be trampled on like mud in the streets.
A Word of Restoration
11 When the time comes[i] for rebuilding your walls,
that time[j] will surely be extended.[k]
12 At that time[l] armies[m] will invade you from Assyria,
from Egyptian cities to the Euphrates[n] River,
from sea to sea
and from mountain to mountain.
13 The land will become desolate
because of its inhabitants,
and as a result of their behavior.
14 Use your rod to shepherd your people,
the flock that belongs to you,
that lives alone in the forest of Carmel.
Let them find pasture in Bashan and Gilead,
as they did long ago.
15 As I did when[o] you came out of the land of Egypt,
I will show you[p] awesome things.
16 The nations will look on
and will be ashamed in spite of all their power;
they will cup their hands over their mouths,
and their ears will be deaf.
17 They will lick the dust like a serpent;
they will crawl from their strongholds like snakes.
They will fear the Lord our God.
They will be terrified because of you.
Who is like God?
18 Is there any God like you,
forgiving iniquity,
passing over transgressions by the survivors who are your[q] heritage?[r]
He is not angry forever,
because he delights in gracious love.
19 He will again show us compassion;
he will subdue our iniquities.
You will hurl all their sins into the deepest sea.
20 You will remain true to Jacob,
and merciful to Abraham,
as you promised our ancestors long ago.
Footnotes
- Micah 7:2 The Heb. lacks one another
- Micah 7:4 Lit. day of
- Micah 7:4 The Heb. lacks time to be
- Micah 7:5 Lit. her who lies near your bosom
- Micah 7:6 Cf. Matt 10:34-36
- Micah 7:10 Lit. will bury her
- Micah 7:10 Lit. her
- Micah 7:10 Lit. she
- Micah 7:11 Lit. In the day
- Micah 7:11 Lit. in the day
- Micah 7:11 Or that day the decree will be removed far away
- Micah 7:12 Lit. At that day
- Micah 7:12 Lit. they
- Micah 7:12 The Heb. lacks Euphrates
- Micah 7:15 Lit. As in the days
- Micah 7:15 Lit. him
- Micah 7:18 Lit. his
- Micah 7:18 I.e. God’s people
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 1995-2014 by ISV Foundation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. Used by permission of Davidson Press, LLC.
