Micah 2:4

2:4 In that day people will sing this taunt song to you –

they will mock you with this lament: ¹ 

‘We are completely destroyed;

they sell off ²  the property of my people.

How they remove it from me! ³ 

They assign our fields to the conqueror.’ ⁴ 

Micah 4:3

4:3 He will arbitrate ⁵  between many peoples

and settle disputes between many ⁶  distant nations. ⁷ 

They will beat their swords into plowshares, ⁸ 

and their spears into pruning hooks. ⁹ 

Nations will not use weapons ¹⁰  against other nations,

and they will no longer train for war.

[2:4]  ¹ tc The form נִהְיָה (nihyah) should be omitted as dittographic (note the preceding וְנָהָה נְהִי vÿnahah nÿhiy).

[2:4]  ² tn Or “exchange.” The LXX suggests a reading יִמַּד (yimmad) from מָדַד (madad, “to measure”). In this case one could translate, “the property of my people is measured out [i.e., for resale].”

[2:4]  ³ tn Heb “how one removes for me.” Apparently the preposition has the nuance “from” here (cf. KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).

[2:4]  ⁴ tc The Hebrew term שׁוֹבֵב (shovev, “the one turning back”) elsewhere has the nuance “apostate” (cf. NASB) or “traitor” (cf. NIV). The translation assumes an emendation to שָׁבָה (shavah, “captor”).

[4:3]  ⁵ tn Or “judge.”

[4:3]  ⁶ tn Or “mighty” (NASB); KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV “strong”; TEV “among the great powers.”

[4:3]  ⁷ tn Heb “[for many nations] to a distance.”

[4:3]  ⁸ 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.

[4:3]  ⁹ 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.

[4:3]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “take up the sword.”