Micah 1:13

1:13 Residents of Lachish, ¹  hitch the horses to the chariots!

You ²  influenced Daughter Zion ³  to sin, ⁴ 

for Israel’s rebellious deeds can be traced back ⁵  to you!

Micah 2:1

Land Robbers Will Lose their Land

2:1 Those who devise sinful plans are as good as dead, ⁶ 

those who dream about doing evil as they lie in bed. ⁷ 

As soon as morning dawns they carry out their plans, ⁸ 

because they have the power to do so.

Micah 4:4-5

4:4 Each will sit under his own grapevine

or under his own fig tree without any fear. ⁹ 

The Lord who commands armies has decreed it. ¹⁰ 

4:5 Though all the nations follow their respective gods, ¹¹ 

we will follow ¹²  the Lord our God forever.

Micah 4:9

4:9 Jerusalem, why are you ¹³  now shouting so loudly? ¹⁴ 

Has your king disappeared? ¹⁵ 

Has your wise leader ¹⁶  been destroyed?

Is this why ¹⁷  pain grips ¹⁸  you as if you were a woman in labor?

Micah 5:4-5

5:4 He will assume his post ¹⁹  and shepherd the people ²⁰  by the Lord’s strength,

by the sovereign authority of the Lord his God. ²¹ 

They will live securely, ²²  for at that time he will be honored ²³ 

even in the distant regions of ²⁴  the earth.

5:5 He will give us peace. ²⁵ 

Should the Assyrians try to invade our land

and attempt to set foot in our fortresses, ²⁶ 

we will send ²⁷  against them seven ²⁸  shepherd-rulers, ²⁹ 

make that eight commanders. ³⁰ 

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! ³¹ 

Micah 6:4

6:4 In fact, I brought you up from the land of Egypt,

I delivered you from that place of slavery.

I sent Moses, Aaron, and Miriam to lead you. ³² 

Micah 7:1

Micah Laments Judah’s Sin

7:1 I am depressed! ³³ 

Indeed, ³⁴  it is as if the summer fruit has been gathered,

and the grapes have been harvested. ³⁵ 

There is no grape cluster to eat,

no fresh figs that I crave so much. ³⁶ 

Micah 7:6

7:6 For a son thinks his father is a fool,

a daughter challenges ³⁷  her mother,

and a daughter-in-law her mother-in-law;

a man’s enemies are his own servants. ³⁸ 

Micah 7:9

7:9 I must endure ³⁹  the Lord’s anger,

for I have sinned against him.

But then ⁴⁰  he will defend my cause, ⁴¹ 

and accomplish justice on my behalf.

He will lead me out into the light;

I will experience firsthand ⁴²  his deliverance. ⁴³ 

Micah 7:18

7:18 There is no other God like you! ⁴⁴ 

You ⁴⁵  forgive sin

and pardon ⁴⁶  the rebellion

of those who remain among your people. ⁴⁷ 

You do not remain angry forever, ⁴⁸ 

but delight in showing loyal love.

[1:13]  ¹ sn The place name Lachish sounds like the Hebrew word for “team [of horses].”

[1:13]  ² tn Heb “she”; this has been translated as second person (“you”) in keeping with the direct address to the residents of Lachish in the previous line.

[1:13]  ³ sn The epithet Daughter Zion pictures the city of Jerusalem as a young lady.

[1:13]  ⁴ tn Heb “She was the beginning of sin for Daughter Zion.”

[1:13]  ⁵ tn Heb “for in you was found the transgressions of Israel.”

[2:1]  ⁶ tn Heb “Woe to those who plan sin.” The Hebrew term הוֹי (hoy, “woe”; “ah”) was a cry used in mourning the dead.

[2:1]  ⁷ tn Heb “those who do evil upon their beds.”

[2:1]  ⁸ tn Heb “at the light of morning they do it.”

[4:4]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and there will be no one making [him] afraid.”

[4:4]  ¹² tn Heb “for the mouth of the Lord of Hosts has spoken.”

[4:5]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “walk each in the name of his god.” The term “name” here has the idea of “authority.” To “walk in the name” of a god is to recognize the god’s authority as binding over one’s life.

[4:5]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “walk in the name of.”

[4:9]  ²¹ tn The Hebrew form is feminine singular, indicating that Jerusalem, personified as a young woman, is now addressed (see v. 10). In v. 8 the tower/fortress was addressed with masculine forms, so there is clearly a shift in addressee here. “Jerusalem” has been supplied in the translation at the beginning of v. 9 to make this shift apparent.

[4:9]  ²² tn Heb “Now why are you shouting [with] a shout.”

[4:9]  ²³ tn Heb “Is there no king over you?”

[4:9]  ²⁴ tn Traditionally, “counselor” (cf. KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV). This refers to the king mentioned in the previous line; the title points to the king’s roles as chief strategist and policy maker, both of which required extraordinary wisdom.

[4:9]  ²⁵ tn Heb “that.” The Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) is used here in a resultative sense; for this use see R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 73, §450.

[4:9]  ²⁶ tn Heb “grabs hold of, seizes.”

[5:4]  ²⁶ tn Heb “stand up”; NAB “stand firm”; NASB “will arise.”

[5:4]  ²⁷ tn The words “the people” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[5:4]  ²⁸ tn Heb “by the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.”

[5:4]  ²⁹ tn The words “in peace” are supplied in the translation for clarification. Perhaps וְיָשָׁבוּ (vÿyashavu, “and they will live”) should be emended to וְשָׁבוּ (vÿshavu, “and they will return”).

[5:4]  ³⁰ tn Heb “be great.”

[5:4]  ³¹ tn Or “to the ends of.”

[5:5]  ³¹ tn Heb “and this one will be peace”; ASV “and this man shall be our peace” (cf. Eph 2:14).

[5:5]  ³² tc Some prefer to read “in our land,” emending the text to בְּאַדְמָתֵנוּ (bÿ’admatenu).

[5:5]  ³³ tn Heb “raise up.”

[5:5]  ³⁴ sn The numbers seven and eight here symbolize completeness and emphasize that Israel will have more than enough military leadership and strength to withstand the Assyrian advance.

[5:5]  ³⁵ tn Heb “shepherds.”

[5:5]  ³⁶ tn Heb “and eight leaders of men.”

[6:2]  ³⁶ 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.

[6:4]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “before you.”

[7:1]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “woe to me!” In light of the image that follows, perhaps one could translate, “I am disappointed.”

[7:1]  ⁴⁷ tn Or “for.”

[7:1]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “I am like the gathering of the summer fruit, like the gleanings of the harvest.” Micah is not comparing himself to the harvested fruit. There is an ellipsis here, as the second half of the verse makes clear. The idea is, “I am like [one at the time] the summer fruit is gathered and the grapes are harvested.”

[7:1]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “my appetite craves.”

[7:6]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “rises up against.”

[7:6]  ⁵² tn Heb “the enemies of a man are the men of his house.”

[7:9]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “lift, bear.”

[7:9]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “until.”

[7:9]  ⁵⁸ tn Or “plead my case” (NASB and NIV both similar); NRSV “until he takes my side.”

[7:9]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “see.”

[7:9]  ⁶⁰ tn Or “justice, vindication.”

[7:18]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “Who is a God like you?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “No one!”

[7:18]  ⁶² tn Heb “one who.” The prayer moves from direct address (second person) in v. 18a to a descriptive (third person) style in vv. 18b-19a and then back to direct address (second person) in vv. 19b-20. Due to considerations of English style and the unfamiliarity of the modern reader with alternation of persons in Hebrew poetry, the entire section has been rendered as direct address (second person) in the translation.

[7:18]  ⁶³ tn Heb “pass over.”

[7:18]  ⁶⁴ tn Heb “of the remnant of his inheritance.”

[7:18]  ⁶⁵ tn Heb “he does not keep hold of his anger forever.”