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 7:18

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

You ⁸  forgive sin

and pardon ⁹  the rebellion

of those who remain among your people. ¹⁰ 

You do not remain angry forever, ¹¹ 

but delight in showing loyal love.

[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.”

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

[7:18]  ⁸ 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]  ⁹ tn Heb “pass over.”

[7:18]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “of the remnant of his inheritance.”

[7:18]  ¹¹ tn Heb “he does not keep hold of his anger forever.”