Micah 2:7

2:7 Does the family¹ of Jacob say,²

‘The Lord’s patience³ can’t be exhausted –

he would never do such things’?⁴

To be sure, my commands bring a reward

for those who obey them,⁵

Micah 7:3

7:3 They are determined to be experts at doing evil;⁶

government officials and judges take bribes,⁷

prominent men make demands,

and they all do what is necessary to satisfy them.⁸

¹tn Heb “house” (so many English versions); CEV “descendants.’

²tc The MT has אָמוּר (’amur), an otherwise unattested passive participle, which is better emended to אָמוֹר (’amor), an infinitive absolute functioning as a finite verb (see BDB 55 s.v. אָמַר).

³tn The Hebrew word רוּחַ (ruach) often means “Spirit” when used of the Lord, but here it seems to have an abstract sense, “patience.” See BDB 925 s.v. 3.d.

⁴tn Heb “Has the patience of the Lord run short? Or are these his deeds?” The rhetorical questions expect the answer, “No, of course not.” The people contest the prophet’s claims that the Lord’s judgment is falling on the nation.

⁵tn Heb “Do not my words accomplish good for the one who walks uprightly?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “Of course they do!” The Lord begins his response to the claim of the house of Jacob that they are immune to judgment (see v. 7a). He points out that the godly are indeed rewarded, but then he goes on to show that those in the house of Jacob are not godly and can expect divine judgment, not blessing (vv. 8-11). Some emend “my words” to “his words.” In this case, v. 7b is a continuation of the immediately preceding quotation. The people, thinking they are godly, confidently ask, “Do not his [God’s] words accomplish good for the one who walks uprightly?”

⁶tn Heb “upon evil [are their] hands to do [it] well.”

⁷tn Heb “the official asks – and the judge – for a bribe.”

⁸tn More literally, “the great one announces what his appetite desires and they weave it together.” Apparently this means that subordinates plot and maneuver to make sure the prominent man’s desires materialize.