Micah 6:2

6:2 Hear the Lord’s accusation, you mountains,

you enduring foundations of the earth!

For the Lord has a case against his people;

he has a dispute with Israel! ¹ 

Micah 4:3

4:3 He will arbitrate ²  between many peoples

and settle disputes between many ³  distant nations. ⁴ 

They will beat their swords into plowshares, ⁵ 

and their spears into pruning hooks. ⁶ 

Nations will not use weapons ⁷  against other nations,

and they will no longer train for war.

¹ tn This verse briefly interrupts the Lord’s statement (see vv. 1, 3) as the prophet summons the mountains as witnesses. Because of this v. 2 has been placed in parentheses in the translation.

² tn Or “judge.”

³ tn Or “mighty” (NASB); KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV “strong”; TEV “among the great powers.”

⁴ tn Heb “[for many nations] to a distance.”

⁵ sn Instead of referring to the large plow as a whole, the plowshare is simply the metal tip which actually breaks the earth and cuts the furrow.

⁶ sn This implement was used to prune the vines, i.e., to cut off extra leaves and young shoots (M. Klingbeil, NIDOTTE 1:1117-18). It was a short knife with a curved hook at the end sharpened on the inside like a sickle.

⁷ tn Heb “take up the sword.”