Micah 1
1The Lord gave this message to Micah of Moresheth during the years when Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah were kings of Judah. The visions he saw concerned both Samaria and Jerusalem.H1697H3068H4318H4183H3117H3147H271H3169H4428H3063H2372H8111H33892Attention! Let all the people of the world listen! Let the earth and everything in it hear. The Sovereign Lord is making accusations against you; the Lord speaks from his holy Temple.H8085H5971H7181H776H4393H136H3069H5707H136H6944H19643Look! The Lord is coming! He leaves his throne in heaven and tramples the heights of the earth.H3068H3318H4725H3381H1869H1116H7764The mountains melt beneath his feet and flow into the valleys like wax in a fire, like water pouring down a hill.H2022H4549H6010H1234H1749H6440H784H4325H5064H41745And why is this happening? Because of the rebellion of Israel—yes, the sins of the whole nation. Who is to blame for Israel’s rebellion? Samaria, its capital city! Where is the center of idolatry in Judah? In Jerusalem, its capital!H6588H3290H2403H1004H3478H6588H3290H8111H1116H3063H33896“So I, the Lord, will make the city of Samaria a heap of ruins. Her streets will be plowed up for planting vineyards. I will roll the stones of her walls into the valley below, exposing her foundations.H7760H8111H5856H7704H4302H3754H5064H68H1516H1540H32477All her carved images will be smashed. All her sacred treasures will be burned. These things were bought with the money earned by her prostitution, and they will now be carried away to pay prostitutes elsewhere.”H6456H3807H868H8313H784H6091H7760H8077H6908H868H2181H7725H868H21818Therefore, I will mourn and lament. I will walk around barefoot and naked. I will howl like a jackal and moan like an owl.H5594H3213H3212H7758H7758H6174H6213H4553H8577H60H1323H32849For my people’s wound is too deep to heal. It has reached into Judah, even to the gates of Jerusalem.H4347H605H935H3063H5060H8179H5971H338910Don’t tell our enemies in Gath; don’t weep at all. You people in Beth-leaphrah, roll in the dust to show your despair.H5046H1661H1058H1058H1036H6428H6428H608311You people in Shaphir, go as captives into exile—naked and ashamed. The people of Zaanan dare not come outside their walls. The people of Beth-ezel mourn, for their house has no support.H5674H3427H8208H1322H6181H3427H6630H3318H4553H1018H3947H597912The people of Maroth anxiously wait for relief, but only bitterness awaits them as the Lord’s judgment reaches even to the gates of Jerusalem.H3427H4796H2342H2896H7451H3381H3068H8179H338913Harness your chariot horses and flee, you people of Lachish. You were the first city in Judah to follow Israel in her rebellion, and you led Jerusalem into sin.H3427H3923H7573H4818H7409H7225H2403H1323H6726H6588H3478H467214Send farewell gifts to Moresheth-gath; there is no hope of saving it. The town of Aczib has deceived the kings of Israel.H5414H7964H4182H1004H392H391H4428H347815O people of Mareshah, I will bring a conqueror to capture your town. And the leaders of Israel will go to Adullam.H935H3423H3427H4762H935H5725H3519H347816Oh, people of Judah, shave your heads in sorrow, for the children you love will be snatched away. Make yourselves as bald as a vulture, for your little ones will be exiled to distant lands.H7139H1494H8588H1121H7337H7144H5404H1540
Micah 2
2What sorrow awaits you who lie awake at night, thinking up evil plans. You rise at dawn and hurry to carry them out, simply because you have the power to do so.H1945H2803H205H6466H7451H4904H1242H216H6213H3426H410H30272When you want a piece of land, you find a way to seize it. When you want someone’s house, you take it by fraud and violence. You cheat a man of his property, stealing his family’s inheritance.H2530H7704H1497H1004H5375H6231H1397H1004H376H51593But this is what the Lord says. “I will reward your evil with evil; you won’t be able to pull your neck out of the noose. You will no longer walk around proudly, for it will be a terrible time.”H559H3068H4940H2803H7451H4185H6677H3212H7317H6256H74514In that day your enemies will make fun of you by singing this song of despair about you. “We are finished, completely ruined! God has confiscated our land, taking it from us. He has given our fields to those who betrayed us.”H3117H5375H4912H5091H5093H5092H559H7703H7703H4171H2506H5971H4185H7725H2505H77045Others will set your boundaries then, and the Lord’s people will have no say in how the land is divided.H7993H2256H1486H6951H30686“Don’t say such things,” the people respond. “Don’t prophesy like that. Such disasters will never come our way!”H5197H5197H5197H5253H36397Should you talk that way, O family of Israel? Will the Lord’s Spirit have patience with such behavior? If you would do what is right, you would find my words comforting.H559H1004H3290H7307H3068H7114H4611H1697H3190H1980H34778Yet to this very hour my people rise against me like an enemy! You steal the shirts right off the backs of those who trusted you, making them as ragged as men returning from battle.H865H5971H6965H341H6584H145H4136H8008H5674H983H7725H44219You have evicted women from their pleasant homes and forever stripped their children of all that God would give them.H802H5971H1644H8588H1004H5768H3947H1926H576910Up! Begone! This is no longer your land and home, for you have filled it with sin and ruined it completely.H6965H3212H4496H2930H2254H4834H225611Suppose a prophet full of lies would say to you, “I’ll preach to you the joys of wine and alcohol!” That’s just the kind of prophet you would like!H3863H376H1980H7307H8267H3576H5197H3196H7941H5197H597112“Someday, O Israel, I will gather you; I will gather the remnant who are left. I will bring you together again like sheep in a pen, like a flock in its pasture. Yes, your land will again be filled with noisy crowds!H622H622H3290H6908H6908H7611H3478H7760H3162H6629H1223H1224H5739H8432H1699H1949H12013Your leader will break out and lead you out of exile, out through the gates of the enemy cities, back to your own land. Your king will lead you; the Lord himself will guide you.”H6555H5927H6440H6555H5674H8179H3318H4428H5674H6440H3068H7218
Micah 3
3I said, “Listen, you leaders of Israel! You are supposed to know right from wrong,H559H8085H7218H3290H7101H1004H3478H3045H49412but you are the very ones who hate good and love evil. You skin my people alive and tear the flesh from their bones.H8130H2896H157H7451H1497H5785H7607H61063Yes, you eat my people’s flesh, strip off their skin, and break their bones. You chop them up like meat for the cooking pot.H398H7607H5971H6584H5785H6476H6106H6566H5518H1320H8432H70374Then you beg the Lord for help in times of trouble! Do you really expect him to answer? After all the evil you have done, he won’t even look at you!”H2199H3068H6030H5641H6440H6256H7489H46115This is what the Lord says. “You false prophets are leading my people astray! You promise peace for those who give you food, but you declare war on those who refuse to feed you.H559H3068H5030H5971H8582H5391H8127H7121H7965H5414H6310H6942H44216Now the night will close around you, cutting off all your visions. Darkness will cover you, putting an end to your predictions. The sun will set for you prophets, and your day will come to an end.H3915H2377H2821H2821H7080H8121H935H5030H3117H69377Then you seers will be put to shame, and you fortune-tellers will be disgraced. And you will cover your faces because there is no answer from God.”H2374H954H7080H2659H5844H8222H4617H4308But as for me, I am filled with power—with the Spirit of the Lord. I am filled with justice and strength to boldly declare Israel’s sin and rebellion.H199H4390H3581H7307H3068H4941H1369H5046H3290H6588H3478H24039Listen to me, you leaders of Israel! You hate justice and twist all that is right.H8085H7218H1004H3290H7101H1004H3478H8581H4941H6140H347710You are building Jerusalem on a foundation of murder and corruption.H1129H6726H1818H3389H576611You rulers make decisions based on bribes; you priests teach God’s laws only for a price; you prophets won’t prophesy unless you are paid. Yet all of you claim to depend on the Lord. “No harm can come to us,” you say, “for the Lord is here among us.”H7218H8199H7810H3548H3384H4242H5030H7080H3701H8172H3068H559H3068H7130H7451H93512Because of you, Mount Zion will be plowed like an open field; Jerusalem will be reduced to ruins! A thicket will grow on the heights where the Temple now stands.H6726H1558H2790H7704H3389H5856H2022H1004H1116H3293
Micah 4
4In 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.H319H3117H2022H1004H3068H3559H7218H2022H5375H1389H5971H51022People 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.H7227H1471H1980H559H3212H5927H2022H3068H1004H430H3290H3384H1870H3212H734H8451H3318H6726H1697H3068H33893The 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.H8199H7227H5971H3198H6099H1471H7350H3807H2719H855H2595H4211H1471H5375H2719H1471H3925H44214Everyone 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!H3427H376H1612H8384H2729H6310H3068H6635H16965Though the nations around us follow their idols, we will follow the Lord our God forever and ever.H5971H3212H376H8034H430H3212H8034H3068H430H5769H57036“In that coming day,” says the Lord, “I will gather together those who are lame, those who have been exiles, and those whom I have filled with grief.H3117H5002H3068H622H6760H6908H5080H74897Those who are weak will survive as a remnant; those who were exiles will become a strong nation. Then I, the Lord, will rule from Jerusalem① as their king forever.”/ ①Hebrew Mount Zion.H7760H6760H7611H1972H6099H1471H3068H4427H2022H6726H5704H57698As for you, Jerusalem, the citadel of God’s people, your royal might and power will come back to you again. The kingship will be restored to my precious Jerusalem.H4026H5739H4029H6076H1323H6726H857H7223H4475H4467H935H1323H33899But why are you now screaming in terror? Have you no king to lead you? Have your wise people all died? Pain has gripped you like a woman in childbirth.H7321H7452H4428H3289H6H2427H2388H320510Writhe and groan like a woman in labor, you people of Jerusalem, for now you must leave this city to live in the open country. You will soon be sent in exile to distant Babylon. But the Lord will rescue you there; he will redeem you from the grip of your enemies.H2342H1518H1323H6726H3205H3318H7151H7931H7704H935H894H5337H3068H1350H3709H34111Now many nations have gathered against you. “Let her be desecrated,” they say. “Let us see the destruction of Jerusalem.”H7227H1471H622H559H2610H5869H2372H672612But they do not know the Lord’s thoughts or understand his plan. These nations don’t know that he is gathering them together to be beaten and trampled like sheaves of grain on a threshing floor.H3045H4284H3068H995H6098H6908H5995H163713“Rise up and crush the nations, O Jerusalem!” says the Lord. “For I will give you iron horns and bronze hooves, so you can trample many nations to pieces. You will present their stolen riches to the Lord, their wealth to the Lord of all the earth.”H6965H1758H1323H6726H7760H7161H1270H7760H6541H5154H1854H7227H5971H2763H1215H3068H2428H113H776
Micah 5
5Mobilize! Marshal your troops! The enemy is laying siege to Jerusalem. They will strike Israel’s leader in the face with a rod.H1413H1416H1323H1416H7760H4692H5221H8199H3478H7626H3895 2But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village among all the people of Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel will come from you, one whose origins are from the distant past.H1035H672H6810H505H3063H3318H4910H3478H4163H6924H3117H5769 3The people of Israel will be abandoned to their enemies until the woman in labor gives birth. Then at last his fellow countrymen will return from exile to their own land.H5414H6256H3205H3205H3499H251H7725H1121H3478 4And he will stand to lead his flock with the Lord’s strength, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. Then his people will live there undisturbed, for he will be highly honored around the world.H5975H7462H5797H3068H1347H8034H3068H430H3427H1431H657H776 5And he will be the source of peace. When the Assyrians invade our land and break through our defenses, we will appoint seven rulers to watch over us, eight princes to lead us.H7965H804H935H776H1869H759H6965H7651H7462H8083H5257H120 6They will rule Assyria with drawn swords and enter the gates of the land of Nimrod. He will rescue us from the Assyrians when they pour over the borders to invade our land.H7462H776H804H2719H776H5248H6607H5337H804H935H776H1869H1366 7Then the remnant left in Israel will take their place among the nations. They will be like dew sent by the Lord or like rain falling on the grass, which no one can hold back and no one can restrain.H7611H3290H7130H7227H5971H2919H3068H7241H6212H6960H376H3176H1121H120 8The remnant left in Israel will take their place among the nations. They will be like a lion among the animals of the forest, like a strong young lion among flocks of sheep and goats, pouncing and tearing as they go with no rescuer in sight.H7611H3290H1471H7130H7227H5971H738H929H3293H3715H5739H6629H5674H7429H2963H5337 9The people of Israel will stand up to their foes, and all their enemies will be wiped out.H3027H7311H6862H341H3772 10“In that day,” says the Lord, “I will slaughter your horses and destroy your chariots.H3117H5002H3068H3772H5483H7130H6H4818 11I will tear down your walls and demolish your defenses.H3772H6145H5892H776H2040H4013 12I will put an end to all witchcraft, and there will be no more fortune-tellers.H3772H3785H3027H6049 13I will destroy all your idols and sacred pillars, so you will never again worship the work of your own hands.H6456H3772H4676H7130H7812H4639H3027 14I will abolish your idol shrines with their Asherah poles and destroy your pagan cities.H5428H842H7130H8045H6145H5892 15I will pour out my vengeance on all the nations that refuse to obey me.”H6213H5359H639H2534H1471H8085
Micah 6
6Listen to what the Lord is saying. “Stand up and state your case against me. Let the mountains and hills be called to witness your complaints.H8085H3068H559H6965H7378H2022H1389H8085H69632And now, O mountains, listen to the Lord’s complaint! He has a case against his people. He will bring charges against Israel.H8085H2022H3068H7379H386H4146H776H3068H7379H5971H3198H34783“O my people, what have I done to you? What have I done to make you tired of me? Answer me!H5971H6213H3811H60304For I brought you out of Egypt and redeemed you from slavery. I sent Moses, Aaron, and Miriam to help you.H5927H776H4714H6299H1004H5650H7971H6440H4872H175H48135Don’t you remember, my people, how King Balak of Moab tried to have you cursed and how Balaam son of Beor blessed you instead? And remember your journey from Acacia Grove to Gilgal, when I, the Lord, did everything I could to teach you about my faithfulness.”H5971H2142H1111H4428H4124H3289H1109H1121H1160H6030H7851H1537H3045H6666H30686What can we bring to the Lord? What kind of offerings should we give him? Should we bow before God with offerings of yearling calves?H6923H3068H3721H4791H430H6923H5930H5695H8141H11217Should we offer him thousands of rams and ten thousand rivers of olive oil? Should we sacrifice our firstborn children to pay for our sins?H3068H7521H505H352H7233H5158H8081H5414H1060H6588H6529H990H2403H53158No, O people, the Lord has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you. to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.H5046H120H2896H3068H1875H6213H4941H160H2617H3212H6800H4309Fear the Lord if you are wise! His voice calls to everyone in Jerusalem. “The armies of destruction are coming; the Lord is sending them.H3068H6963H7121H5892H8454H7200H8034H8085H4294H325910What shall I say about the homes of the wicked filled with treasures gained by cheating? What about the disgusting practice of measuring out grain with dishonest measures?H786H214H7562H376H1004H7563H7332H374H219411How can I tolerate your merchants who use dishonest scales and weights?H2135H7562H3976H3599H4820H6812The rich among you have become wealthy through extortion and violence. Your citizens are so used to lying that their tongues can no longer tell the truth.H6223H4390H2555H3427H1696H8267H3956H7423H631013“Therefore, I will wound you! I will bring you to ruin for all your sins.H2470H5221H8074H240314You will eat but never have enough. Your hunger pangs and emptiness will remain. And though you try to save your money, it will come to nothing in the end. You will save a little, but I will give it to those who conquer you.H398H7646H3445H7130H5253H6403H6403H5414H271915You will plant crops but not harvest them. You will press your olives but not get enough oil to anoint yourselves. You will trample the grapes but get no juice to make your wine.H2232H7114H1869H2132H5480H8081H8492H8354H319616You keep only the laws of evil King Omri; you follow only the example of wicked King Ahab! Therefore, I will make an example of you, bringing you to complete ruin. You will be treated with contempt, mocked by all who see you.”H2708H6018H8104H4639H1004H256H3212H4156H5414H8047H3427H8322H5375H2781H5971
Micah 7
7How miserable I am! I feel like the fruit picker after the harvest who can find nothing to eat. Not a cluster of grapes or a single early fig can be found to satisfy my hunger.H480H625H7019H5955H1210H811H398H5315H183H10632The godly people have all disappeared; not one honest person is left on the earth. They are all murderers, setting traps even for their own brothers.H2623H6H776H3477H120H693H1818H6679H376H251H27643Both their hands are equally skilled at doing evil! Officials and judges alike demand bribes. The people with influence get what they want, and together they scheme to twist justice.H7451H3709H3190H8269H7592H8199H7966H1419H1696H1942H5315H56864Even the best of them is like a brier; the most honest is as dangerous as a hedge of thorns. But your judgment day is coming swiftly now. Your time of punishment is here, a time of confusion.H2896H2312H3477H4534H3117H6822H6486H935H39985Don’t trust anyone—not your best friend or even your wife!H539H7453H982H441H8104H6607H6310H7901H24366For the son despises his father. The daughter defies her mother. The daughter-in-law defies her mother-in-law. Your enemies are right in your own household!H1121H5034H1H1323H6965H517H3618H2545H376H341H582H10047As for me, I look to the Lord for help. I wait confidently for God to save me, and my God will certainly hear me.H6822H3068H3176H430H3468H430H80858Do not gloat over me, my enemies! For though I fall, I will rise again. Though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light.H8055H341H5307H6965H3427H2822H3068H2169I will be patient as the Lord punishes me, for I have sinned against him. But after that, he will take up my case and give me justice for all I have suffered from my enemies. The Lord will bring me into the light, and I will see his righteousness.H5375H2197H3068H2398H7378H7379H6213H4941H3318H216H7200H666610Then my enemies will see that the Lord is on my side. They will be ashamed that they taunted me, saying, “So where is the Lord—that God of yours?” With my own eyes I will see their downfall; they will be trampled like mud in the streets.H341H7200H955H3680H559H3068H430H5869H7200H4823H2916H235111In that day, Israel, your cities will be rebuilt, and your borders will be extended.H3117H1447H1129H3117H2706H736812People from many lands will come and honor you—from Assyria all the way to the towns of Egypt, from Egypt all the way to the Euphrates River, and from distant seas and mountains.H3117H935H804H4693H5892H4693H5104H3220H3220H2022H202213But the land will become empty and desolate because of the wickedness of those who live there.H776H8077H3427H6529H461114O Lord, protect your people with your shepherd’s staff; lead your flock, your special possession. Though they live alone in a thicket on the heights of Mount Carmel, let them graze in the fertile pastures of Bashan and Gilead as they did long ago.H7462H5971H7626H6629H5159H7931H910H3293H8432H3760H7462H1316H1568H3117H576915“Yes,” says the Lord, “I will do mighty miracles for you, like those I did when I rescued you from slavery in Egypt.”H3117H3318H776H4714H7200H638116All the nations of the world will stand amazed at what the Lord will do for you. They will be embarrassed at their feeble power. They will cover their mouths in silent awe, deaf to everything around them.H1471H7200H954H1369H7760H3027H6310H241H279017Like snakes crawling from their holes, they will come out to meet the Lord our God. They will fear him greatly, trembling in terror at his presence.H3897H6083H5175H7264H4526H2119H776H6342H3068H430H337218Where is another God like you, who pardons the guilt of the remnant, overlooking the sins of his special people? You will not stay angry with your people forever, because you delight in showing unfailing love.H410H5375H5771H5674H6588H7611H5159H2388H639H5703H2654H261719Once again you will have compassion on us. You will trample our sins under your feet and throw them into the depths of the ocean!H7725H7355H3533H5771H7993H2403H4688H322020You will show us your faithfulness and unfailing love as you promised to our ancestors Abraham and Jacob long ago.H5414H571H3290H2617H85H7650H1H3117H6924
Dublin, OH
—yes, the sins of the whole nation. Who is to blame for Israel’s rebellion? Samaria, its capital city! Where is the center of idolatry in Judah? In Jerusalem, its capital!H6588
