Micah 4:9

4:9 Jerusalem, why are you ¹  now shouting so loudly? ² 

Has your king disappeared? ³ 

Has your wise leader ⁴  been destroyed?

Is this why ⁵  pain grips ⁶  you as if you were a woman in labor?

Micah 5:1

5:1 (4:14) ⁷  But now slash yourself, ⁸  daughter surrounded by soldiers! ⁹ 

We are besieged!

With a scepter ¹⁰  they strike Israel’s ruler ¹¹ 

on the side of his face.

Micah 5:4

5:4 He will assume his post ¹²  and shepherd the people ¹³  by the Lord’s strength,

by the sovereign authority of the Lord his God. ¹⁴ 

They will live securely, ¹⁵  for at that time he will be honored ¹⁶ 

even in the distant regions of ¹⁷  the earth.

Micah 7:10

7:10 When my enemies see this, they will be covered with shame.

They say ¹⁸  to me, “Where is the Lord your God?”

I will gloat over them. ¹⁹ 

Then they will be trampled down ²⁰ 

like mud in the streets.

[4:9]  ¹ 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]  ² tn Heb “Now why are you shouting [with] a shout.”

[4:9]  ³ tn Heb “Is there no king over you?”

[4:9]  ⁴ 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]  ⁵ 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]  ⁶ tn Heb “grabs hold of, seizes.”

[5:1]  ⁷ sn Beginning with 5:1, the verse numbers through 5:15 in the English Bible differ by one from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 5:1 ET = 4:14 HT, 5:2 ET = 5:1 HT, 5:3 ET = 5:2 HT, etc., through 5:15 ET = 5:14 HT. From 6:1 the verse numbers in the English Bible and the Hebrew Bible are again the same.

[5:1]  ⁸ tn The Hebrew verb גָדַד (gadad) can be translated “slash yourself” or “gather in troops.” A number of English translations are based on the latter meaning (e.g., NASB, NIV, NLT).

[5:1]  ⁹ tn Heb “daughter of a troop of warriors.”

[5:1]  ¹⁰ tn Or “staff”; KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT “rod”; CEV “stick”; NCV “club.”

[5:1]  ¹¹ tn Traditionally, “the judge of Israel” (so KJV, NASB).

[5:4]  ¹³ tn Heb “stand up”; NAB “stand firm”; NASB “will arise.”

[5:4]  ¹⁴ tn The words “the people” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[5:4]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “by the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.”

[5:4]  ¹⁶ 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]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “be great.”

[5:4]  ¹⁸ tn Or “to the ends of.”

[7:10]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “who say.” A new sentence was begun here in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[7:10]  ²⁰ tn Heb “My eyes will look on them.”

[7:10]  ²¹ tn Heb “a trampled-down place.”