He will assume his post ¹  and shepherd the people ²  by the Lord’s strength, by the sovereign authority of the Lord his God. ³  They will live securely, ⁴  for at that time he will be honored ⁵  even in the distant regions of ⁶  the earth.

Look, ¹  the Lord is coming out of his dwelling place! He will descend and march on the earth’s mountaintops! ² 

Indeed, the residents of Maroth ¹  hope for something good to happen, ²  though the Lord has sent disaster against the city of Jerusalem. ³ 

Therefore no one will assign you land in the Lord’s community. ¹ 

“In that day,” says the Lord, “I will gather the lame, and assemble the outcasts whom I injured. ¹ 

But they do not know what the Lord is planning; they do not understand his strategy. He has gathered them like stalks of grain to be threshed ¹  at the threshing floor.

“In that day,” says the Lord, “I will destroy ¹  your horses from your midst, and smash your chariots.

With what should I ¹  enter the Lord’s presence? With what ²  should I bow before the sovereign God? ³  Should I enter his presence with burnt offerings, with year-old calves?

Listen! The Lord is calling ¹  to the city! It is wise to respect your authority, O Lord! ²  Listen, O nation, and those assembled in the city! ³ 

Her ¹  leaders take bribes when they decide legal cases, ²  her priests proclaim rulings for profit, and her prophets read omens for pay. Yet they claim to trust ³  the Lord and say, “The Lord is among us. ⁴  Disaster will not overtake ⁵  us!”

Many nations will come, saying, “Come on! Let’s go up to the Lord’s mountain, to the temple ¹  of Jacob’s God, so he can teach us his commands ²  and we can live by his laws.” ³  For Zion will be the source of instruction; the Lord’s teachings will proceed from Jerusalem. ⁴ 

This is the prophetic message that the Lord gave to ¹  Micah of Moresheth. He delivered this message ²  during the reigns of ³  Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah. The prophecies pertain to ⁴  Samaria ⁵  and Jerusalem. ⁶ 

Listen, all you nations! ¹  Pay attention, all inhabitants of earth! ²  The sovereign Lord will testify ³  against you; the Lord will accuse you ⁴  from his majestic palace. ⁵ 

Does the family ¹  of Jacob say, ²  ‘The Lord’s patience ³  can’t be exhausted – he would never do such things’? ⁴  To be sure, my commands bring a reward for those who obey them, ⁵ 

Someday these sinners will cry to the Lord for help, ¹  but he will not answer them. He will hide his face from them at that time, because they have done such wicked deeds.”

But I ¹  am full of the courage that the Lord’s Spirit gives, and have a strong commitment to justice. ²  This enables me to confront Jacob with its rebellion, and Israel with its sin. ³ 

In the future ¹  the Lord’s Temple Mount will be the most important mountain of all; ²  it will be more prominent than other hills. ³  People will stream to it.

Each will sit under his own grapevine or under his own fig tree without any fear. ¹  The Lord who commands armies has decreed it. ² 

Though all the nations follow their respective gods, ¹  we will follow ²  the Lord our God forever.

I will transform the lame into the nucleus of a new nation, ¹  and those far off ²  into a mighty nation. The Lord will reign over them on Mount Zion, from that day forward and forevermore.” ³