Micah 5:1

5:1 (4:14) ¹  But now slash yourself, ²  daughter surrounded by soldiers! ³ 

We are besieged!

With a scepter ⁴  they strike Israel’s ruler ⁵ 

on the side of his face.

Micah 7:3

7:3 They are determined to be experts at doing evil; ⁶ 

government officials and judges take bribes, ⁷ 

prominent men make demands,

and they all do what is necessary to satisfy them. ⁸ 

Micah 3:11

3:11 Her ⁹  leaders take bribes when they decide legal cases, ¹⁰ 

her priests proclaim rulings for profit,

and her prophets read omens for pay.

Yet they claim to trust ¹¹  the Lord and say,

“The Lord is among us. ¹² 

Disaster will not overtake ¹³  us!”

Micah 4:3

4:3 He will arbitrate ¹⁴  between many peoples

and settle disputes between many ¹⁵  distant nations. ¹⁶ 

They will beat their swords into plowshares, ¹⁷ 

and their spears into pruning hooks. ¹⁸ 

Nations will not use weapons ¹⁹  against other nations,

and they will no longer train for war.

[5:1]  ¹ 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]  ² 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]  ³ tn Heb “daughter of a troop of warriors.”

[5:1]  ⁴ tn Or “staff”; KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT “rod”; CEV “stick”; NCV “club.”

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

[7:3]  ⁶ tn Heb “upon evil [are their] hands to do [it] well.”

[7:3]  ⁷ tn Heb “the official asks – and the judge – for a bribe.”

[7:3]  ⁸ tn More literally, “the great one announces what his appetite desires and they weave it together.” Apparently this means that subordinates plot and maneuver to make sure the prominent man’s desires materialize.

[3:11]  ¹¹ sn The pronoun Her refers to Jerusalem (note the previous line).

[3:11]  ¹² tn Heb “judge for a bribe.”

[3:11]  ¹³ tn Heb “they lean upon” (so KJV, NIV, NRSV); NAB “rely on.”

[3:11]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “Is not the Lord in our midst?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “Of course he is!”

[3:11]  ¹⁵ tn Or “come upon” (so many English versions); NCV “happen to us”; CEV “come to us.”

[4:3]  ¹⁶ tn Or “judge.”

[4:3]  ¹⁷ tn Or “mighty” (NASB); KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV “strong”; TEV “among the great powers.”

[4:3]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “[for many nations] to a distance.”

[4:3]  ¹⁹ 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]  ²⁰ 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]  ²¹ tn Heb “take up the sword.”