Mic 1 | HCSB | STEP | The word of the Lord that came to Micah the Moreshite – what he saw regarding Samaria and Jerusalem in the days of Jotham , Ahaz , and Hezekiah , kings of Judah .

Micah 1

Micah

1 The word of the Lord that came ^a to Micah ^b the Moreshite ^c – what he saw regarding Samaria and Jerusalem in the days of Jotham, ^d Ahaz, ^e and Hezekiah, ^f kings of Judah.

Coming Judgment on Israel

2 Listen, all you peoples; ^g
pay attention, earth ^{▼▼Or land} and everyone in it! ⁱ
The Lord God will be a witness against you, ^j
the Lord, from His holy temple. ^k
3 Look, the Lord is leaving His place ^l
and coming down to trample
the heights ^{▼▼Or high places} of the earth. ⁿ
4 The mountains will melt beneath Him,
and the valleys will split apart,
like wax near a fire, ^o
like water cascading down a mountainside.
5 All this will happen because of Jacob’s rebellion
and the sins of the house of Israel.
What is the rebellion of Jacob?
Isn’t it Samaria? ^p
And what is the ^{▼▼high place(s): An ancient place of worship most often associated with pagan religions, usually built on an elevated location}high place of Judah? ^r
Isn’t it Jerusalem?
6 Therefore, I will make Samaria
a heap of ruins ^s in the countryside,
a planting area ^t for a vineyard.
I will roll her stones ^u into the valley
and expose her foundations. ^v
7 All her carved images will be smashed ^w to pieces;
all her wages ^x will be burned in the fire,
and I will destroy all her idols.
Since she collected the wages of a prostitute, ^y
they will be used again for a prostitute.

Micah’s Lament

8 Because of this I will lament and wail;
I will walk barefoot and naked. ^z
I will howl like the jackals ^aa
and mourn like ostriches. ^{▼▼Or eagle owls; lit daughters of the desert}
9 For her wound is incurable ^ac
and has reached even Judah; ^ad
it has approached the gate of my people, ^ae
as far as Jerusalem.

10 Don’t announce it in Gath, ^af
don’t weep at all.
Roll in the dust in Beth-leaphrah.
11 Depart in shameful nakedness, ^ag
you residents of Shaphir;
the residents of Zaanan ^ah will not come out.
Beth-ezel is lamenting;
its support ^{▼▼Lit its standing place; Hb obscure} is taken from you.
12 Though the residents of Maroth
anxiously wait for something good, ^aj
disaster has come from the Lord ^ak
to the gate of Jerusalem.
13 Harness the horses to the chariot,
you residents of Lachish. ^al
This was the beginning of sin for Daughter ^{▼▼Zion: Originally a term for the fortified section of Jerusalem and then, by extension, used for the temple and the city of Jerusalem both in the present time and in the future}Zion,
because Israel’s acts of rebellion ^an can be traced to you.
14 Therefore, send farewell gifts ^ao to Moresheth-gath;
the houses of Achzib ^ap are a deception ^aq
to the kings of Israel.
15 I will again bring a conqueror
against you who live in Mareshah. ^ar
The nobility ^{▼▼Lit glory} of Israel will come to Adullam. ^at
16 Shave yourselves bald and cut off your hair ^au
in sorrow for your precious children;
make yourselves as bald as an eagle,
for they have been taken from you into exile. ^av