| New American Standard Bible 1995 | NET Bible |
| 1The word of the LORD which came to Micah of Moresheth in the days of Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem. | 1This is the prophetic message that the LORD gave to Micah of Moresheth. He delivered this message during the reigns of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah. The prophecies pertain to Samaria and Jerusalem. |
| 2Hear, O peoples, all of you; Listen, O earth and all it contains, And let the Lord GOD be a witness against you, The Lord from His holy temple. | 2Listen, all you nations! Pay attention, all inhabitants of earth! The sovereign LORD will testify against you; the LORD will accuse you from his majestic palace. |
| 3For behold, the LORD is coming forth from His place. He will come down and tread on the high places of the earth. | 3Look, the LORD is coming out of his dwelling place! He will descend and march on the earth's mountaintops! |
| 4The mountains will melt under Him And the valleys will be split, Like wax before the fire, Like water poured down a steep place. | 4The mountains will disintegrate beneath him, and the valleys will be split in two. The mountains will melt like wax in a fire, the rocks will slide down like water cascading down a steep slope. |
| 5All this is for the rebellion of Jacob And for the sins of the house of Israel. What is the rebellion of Jacob? Is it not Samaria? What is the high place of Judah? Is it not Jerusalem? | 5All this is because of Jacob's rebellion and the sins of the nation of Israel. How has Jacob rebelled, you ask? Samaria epitomizes their rebellion! Where are Judah's pagan worship centers, you ask? They are right in Jerusalem! |
| 6For I will make Samaria a heap of ruins in the open country, Planting places for a vineyard. I will pour her stones down into the valley And will lay bare her foundations. | 6"I will turn Samaria into a heap of ruins in an open field--vineyards will be planted there! I will tumble the rubble of her stone walls down into the valley, and tear down her fortifications to their foundations. |
| 7All of her idols will be smashed, All of her earnings will be burned with fire And all of her images I will make desolate, For she collected them from a harlot's earnings, And to the earnings of a harlot they will return. | 7All her carved idols will be smashed to pieces; all her metal cult statues will be destroyed by fire. I will make a waste heap of all her images. Since she gathered the metal as a prostitute collects her wages, the idols will become a prostitute's wages again." |
| 8Because of this I must lament and wail, I must go barefoot and naked; I must make a lament like the jackals And a mourning like the ostriches. | 8For this reason I will mourn and wail; I will walk around barefoot and without my outer garments. I will howl like a wild dog, and screech like an owl. |
| 9For her wound is incurable, For it has come to Judah; It has reached the gate of my people, Even to Jerusalem. | 9For Samaria's disease is incurable. It has infected Judah; it has spread to the leadership of my people and has even contaminated Jerusalem! |
| 10Tell it not in Gath, Weep not at all. At Beth-le-aphrah roll yourself in the dust. | 10Don't spread the news in Gath! Don't shed even a single tear! In Beth Leaphrah sit in the dust! |
| 11Go on your way, inhabitant of Shaphir, in shameful nakedness. The inhabitant of Zaanan does not escape. The lamentation of Beth-ezel: "He will take from you its support." | 11Residents of Shaphir, pass by in nakedness and humiliation! The residents of Zaanan can't leave their city. Beth Ezel mourns, "He takes from you what he desires." |
| 12For the inhabitant of Maroth Becomes weak waiting for good, Because a calamity has come down from the LORD To the gate of Jerusalem. | 12Indeed, the residents of Maroth hope for something good to happen, though the LORD has sent disaster against the city of Jerusalem. |
| 13Harness the chariot to the team of horses, O inhabitant of Lachish-- She was the beginning of sin To the daughter of Zion-- Because in you were found The rebellious acts of Israel. | 13Residents of Lachish, hitch the horses to the chariots! You influenced Daughter Zion to sin, for Israel's rebellious deeds can be traced back to you! |
| 14Therefore you will give parting gifts On behalf of Moresheth-gath; The houses of Achzib will become a deception To the kings of Israel. | 14Therefore you will have to say farewell to Moresheth Gath. The residents of Achzib will be as disappointing as a dried up well to the kings of Israel. |
| 15Moreover, I will bring on you The one who takes possession, O inhabitant of Mareshah. The glory of Israel will enter Adullam. | 15Residents of Mareshah, a conqueror will attack you, the leaders of Israel shall flee to Adullam. |
| 16Make yourself bald and cut off your hair, Because of the children of your delight; Extend your baldness like the eagle, For they will go from you into exile. | 16Shave your heads bald as you mourn for the children you love; shave your foreheads as bald as an eagle, for they are taken from you into exile. |
| New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit //www.lockman.org | NET Bible copyright © 1996-2006 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. //netbible.com. Used by permission. All rights reserved. |
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