Micah 7
English Standard Version
Wait for the God of Salvation
7 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.
2 (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.
3 (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.
4 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.
5 (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]
6 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.
7 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.
8 (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.
9 (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.
Footnotes
- Micah 7:5 Hebrew bosom
- Micah 7:12 Hebrew he
- Micah 7:12 That is, the Euphrates
- Micah 7:14 Hebrew of Carmel
- Micah 7:15 Hebrew him
- Micah 7:19 Hebrew their
Micah 7
Lexham English Bible
Wait Upon Yahweh
7 Woe is me! For I have become
like the gatherings of summer,
like the gleanings of the grape harvest,
when there is no cluster of grapes to eat
or early ripened fruit that my soul desires.
2 The faithful person has perished from the land,
and there is none who is upright among humankind.
All of them lie in wait;
each hunts his brother with a net.
3 Their hands are upon evil, to do it well;
the official and the judge ask for the bribe,
and the great man utters the evil desire of his soul;
and they weave it together.
4 The best of them is like a brier;
the most upright worse than a thorn hedge.
The day of your watchman, your punishment, has come;
now their confusion will come.
5 Do not put faith in a friend;
put no trust in a close friend.
Guard the doorways of your mouth
from the one who lies in your lap.
6 For a son treats a father with contempt;
a daughter rises up against her mother,
a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
the enemies of a man are the men of his own house.
7 But as for me, I will look to Yahweh;
I will wait for the God of my salvation.
My God will hear me.
8 You should not rejoice over me, O my enemy!
When I fall I will stand up;
when I sit in darkness
Yahweh will be a light for me.
9 I will bear the rage of Yahweh,
for I have sinned against him,
until he pleads my cause
and executes my justice.
He will bring me out to the light;
I will see his righteousness.
10 Then my enemy will see,
and shame will cover her who said to me,
“Where is Yahweh your God?”
My eyes will look upon her;
now she will become a trampling place,
like mud in the streets.
11 A day for building your walls;
on that day he will extend your boundary.
12 On that day he will come to you
from Assyria and the cities of Egypt,
and from Egypt to the River,
and from sea to sea
and mountain to mountain.
13 But the earth will be a desolation
because of its inhabitants,
for the fruit of their deeds.
14 Shepherd your people with your staff,
the flock of your inheritance,
those dwelling alone in a forest
in the midst of Carmel.
Let them feed in Bashan and Gilead,
as in the days of old.
15 As in the days when you came out
from the land of Egypt
I will show him wondrous things.
16 The nations will see and be ashamed
because of all their might.
They will lay the hand on the mouth;
their ears will be deaf.
17 They will lick the dust like the serpent,
like the crawling things of the earth.
They will come trembling from their strongholds
to Yahweh our God.
Let them fear and be afraid of you.
18 Who is a God like you, forgiving sin
and passing over rebellion for the remnant of his inheritance?
He does not retain his anger forever,
for he delights in loyal love.
19 He will again have compassion[a] on us;
he will trample our iniquities.
And you will hurl all their sins
in the depths of the sea.
20 You will show faithfulness to Jacob,
and loyal love to Abraham,
as you have sworn to our ancestors[b]
from the days of old.
Footnotes
- Micah 7:19 Literally “He will return, he will have compassion”
- Micah 7:20 Or “fathers”
Micah 7
New International Version
Israel’s Misery
7 What misery is mine!
I am like one who gathers summer fruit
at the gleaning of the vineyard;
there is no cluster of grapes to eat,
none of the early figs(A) that I crave.
2 The faithful have been swept from the land;(B)
not one(C) upright person remains.
Everyone lies in wait(D) to shed blood;(E)
they hunt each other(F) with nets.(G)
3 Both hands are skilled in doing evil;(H)
the ruler demands gifts,
the judge accepts bribes,(I)
the powerful dictate what they desire—
they all conspire together.
4 The best of them is like a brier,(J)
the most upright worse than a thorn(K) hedge.
The day God visits you has come,
the day your watchmen sound the alarm.
Now is the time of your confusion.(L)
5 Do not trust a neighbor;
put no confidence in a friend.(M)
Even with the woman who lies in your embrace
guard the words of your lips.
6 For a son dishonors his father,
a daughter rises up against her mother,(N)
a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law—
a man’s enemies are the members of his own household.(O)
7 But as for me, I watch(P) in hope(Q) for the Lord,
I wait for God my Savior;
my God will hear(R) me.
Israel Will Rise
8 Do not gloat over me,(S) my enemy!
Though I have fallen, I will rise.(T)
Though I sit in darkness,
the Lord will be my light.(U)
9 Because I have sinned against him,
I will bear the Lord’s wrath,(V)
until he pleads my case(W)
and upholds my cause.
He will bring me out into the light;(X)
I will see his righteousness.(Y)
10 Then my enemy will see it
and will be covered with shame,(Z)
she who said to me,
“Where is the Lord your God?”(AA)
My eyes will see her downfall;(AB)
even now she will be trampled(AC) underfoot
like mire in the streets.
11 The day for building your walls(AD) will come,
the day for extending your boundaries.
12 In that day people will come to you
from Assyria(AE) and the cities of Egypt,
even from Egypt to the Euphrates
and from sea to sea
and from mountain to mountain.(AF)
13 The earth will become desolate because of its inhabitants,
as the result of their deeds.(AG)
Prayer and Praise
14 Shepherd(AH) your people with your staff,(AI)
the flock of your inheritance,
which lives by itself in a forest,
in fertile pasturelands.[a](AJ)
Let them feed in Bashan(AK) and Gilead(AL)
as in days long ago.(AM)
15 “As in the days when you came out of Egypt,
I will show them my wonders.(AN)”
16 Nations will see and be ashamed,(AO)
deprived of all their power.
They will put their hands over their mouths(AP)
and their ears will become deaf.
17 They will lick dust(AQ) like a snake,
like creatures that crawl on the ground.
They will come trembling(AR) out of their dens;
they will turn in fear(AS) to the Lord our God
and will be afraid of you.
18 Who is a God(AT) like you,
who pardons sin(AU) and forgives(AV) the transgression
of the remnant(AW) of his inheritance?(AX)
You do not stay angry(AY) forever
but delight to show mercy.(AZ)
19 You will again have compassion on us;
you will tread our sins underfoot
and hurl all our iniquities(BA) into the depths of the sea.(BB)
20 You will be faithful to Jacob,
and show love to Abraham,(BC)
as you pledged on oath to our ancestors(BD)
in days long ago.(BE)
Footnotes
- Micah 7:14 Or in the middle of Carmel
Micah 7
The Message
Stick Around to See What God Will Do
7 1-6 I’m overwhelmed with sorrow!
sunk in a swamp of despair!
I’m like someone who goes to the garden
to pick cabbages and carrots and corn
And returns empty-handed,
finds nothing for soup or sandwich or salad.
There’s not a decent person in sight.
Right-living humans are extinct.
They’re all out for one another’s blood,
animals preying on each other.
They’ve all become experts in evil.
Corrupt leaders demand bribes.
The powerful rich
make sure they get what they want.
The best and brightest are thistles.
The top of the line is crabgrass.
But no longer: It’s exam time.
Look at them slinking away in disgrace!
Don’t trust your neighbor,
don’t confide in your friend.
Watch your words,
even with your spouse.
Neighborhoods and families are falling to pieces.
The closer they are—sons, daughters, in-laws—
The worse they can be.
Your own family is the enemy.
* * *
7 But me, I’m not giving up.
I’m sticking around to see what God will do.
I’m waiting for God to make things right.
I’m counting on God to listen to me.
Spreading Your Wings
8-10 Don’t, enemy, crow over me.
I’m down, but I’m not out.
I’m sitting in the dark right now,
but God is my light.
I can take God’s punishing rage.
I deserve it—I sinned.
But it’s not forever. He’s on my side
and is going to get me out of this.
He’ll turn on the lights and show me his ways.
I’ll see the whole picture and how right he is.
And my enemy will see it, too,
and be discredited—yes, disgraced!
This enemy who kept taunting,
“So where is this God of yours?”
I’m going to see it with these, my own eyes—
my enemy disgraced, trash in the gutter.
* * *
11-13 Oh, that will be a day! A day for rebuilding your city,
a day for stretching your arms, spreading your wings!
All your dispersed and scattered people will come back,
old friends and family from faraway places,
From Assyria in the east to Egypt in the west,
from across the seas and out of the mountains.
But there’ll be a reversal for everyone else—massive depopulation—
because of the way they lived, the things they did.
14-17 Shepherd, O God, your people with your staff,
your dear and precious flock.
Uniquely yours in a grove of trees,
centered in lotus land.
Let them graze in lush Bashan
as in the old days in green Gilead.
Reproduce the miracle-wonders
of our exodus from Egypt.
And the godless nations: Put them in their place—
humiliated in their arrogance, speechless and clueless.
Make them slink like snakes, crawl like cockroaches,
come out of their holes from under their rocks
And face our God.
Fill them with holy fear and trembling.
* * *
18-20 Where is the god who can compare with you—
wiping the slate clean of guilt,
Turning a blind eye, a deaf ear,
to the past sins of your purged and precious people?
You don’t nurse your anger and don’t stay angry long,
for mercy is your specialty. That’s what you love most.
And compassion is on its way to us.
You’ll stamp out our wrongdoing.
You’ll sink our sins
to the bottom of the ocean.
You’ll stay true to your word to Father Jacob
and continue the compassion you showed Grandfather Abraham—
Everything you promised our ancestors
from a long time ago.
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Copyright © 2011 by Global Bible Initiative
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson

