Judgment to Come 1This is the word of the LORD that came to Micah the Moreshite in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah—what he saw regarding Samaria and Jerusalem: 2Hear, O peoples, all of you; listen, O earth, and everyone in it! May the Lord GOD bear witness against you, the Lord from His holy temple. 3For behold, the LORD comes forth from His dwelling place; He will come down and tread on the high places of the earth. 4The mountains will melt beneath Him, and the valleys will split apart, like wax before the fire, like water rushing down a slope. 5All this is for the transgression of Jacob and the sins of the house of Israel. What is the transgression of Jacob? Is it not Samaria? And what is the high place of Judah? 6Therefore I will make Samaria a heap of rubble in the open field, a planting area for a vineyard. I will pour her stones into the valley 7All her carved images will be smashed to pieces; all her wages will be burned in the fire, and I will destroy all her idols. Since she collected the wages of a prostitute, they will be used again on a prostitute. Weeping and Mourning 8Because of this I will lament and wail; I will walk barefoot and naked. I will howl like a jackala and mourn like an ostrich.b 9For her wound is incurable; it has reached even Judah; it has approached the gate of my people, 10Do not tell it in Gath;c do not weep at all. Roll in the dust in Beth-leaphrah.d 11Depart in shameful nakedness, O dwellers of Shaphir.e The dwellers of Zaananf will not come out. Beth-ezelg is in mourning; its support is taken from you. 12For the dwellers of Marothh pined for good, but calamity came down from the LORD, even to the gate of Jerusalem. 13Harness your chariot horses, O dweller of Lachish.i You were the beginning of sin to the Daughter of Zion, for the transgressions of Israel were found in you. 14Therefore, send farewell giftsj to Moresheth-gath;k the houses of Achzibl will prove deceptive 15I will again bring a conqueror against you, O dweller of Mareshah.m The glory of Israel will come to Adullam. 16Shave yourselves bald and cut off your hair in mourning for your precious children; make yourselves as bald as an eagle, for they will go from you into exile. Footnotes: 8 a Or a serpent or a dragon 8 b Literally like daughters of an ostrich or like daughters of an owl 10 c Gath sounds like the Hebrew for tell . 10 d Beth-Leaphrah means house of dust . 11 e Shaphir means pleasant . 11 f Zaanan sounds like the Hebrew for come out . 11 g Beth-ezel means adjoining house . 12 h Maroth sounds like the Hebrew for bitter . 13 i Lachish sounds like the Hebrew term for team of horses . 14 j Or give dowry 14 k Moresheth sounds like the Hebrew for gift or dowry . 14 l Achzib means deception . 15 m Mareshah sounds like the Hebrew for conqueror . The Berean Bible (www.Berean.Bible) Berean Study Bible (BSB) © 2016, 2020 by Bible Hub and Berean.Bible. Used by Permission. All rights Reserved. Free downloads and licensing available. See also the Berean Literal Bible and Berean Interlinear Bible. OpenBible.com |