Mikha 3:1

God Will Judge Judah’s Sinful Leaders

3:1 I said,

“Listen, you leaders ¹  of Jacob,

you rulers of the nation ²  of Israel!

You ought to know what is just, ³ 

Mikha 4:9

4:9 Jerusalem, why are you ⁴  now shouting so loudly? ⁵ 

Has your king disappeared? ⁶ 

Has your wise leader ⁷  been destroyed?

Is this why ⁸  pain grips ⁹  you as if you were a woman in labor?

[3:1]  ¹ tn Heb “heads.”

[3:1]  ² tn Heb “house.”

[3:1]  ³ tn Heb “Should you not know justice?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “Of course you should!”

[4:9]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew form is feminine singular, indicating that Jerusalem, personified as a young woman, is now addressed (see v. 10). In v. 8 the tower/fortress was addressed with masculine forms, so there is clearly a shift in addressee here. “Jerusalem” has been supplied in the translation at the beginning of v. 9 to make this shift apparent.

[4:9]  ⁵ tn Heb “Now why are you shouting [with] a shout.”

[4:9]  ⁶ tn Heb “Is there no king over you?”

[4:9]  ⁷ tn Traditionally, “counselor” (cf. KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV). This refers to the king mentioned in the previous line; the title points to the king’s roles as chief strategist and policy maker, both of which required extraordinary wisdom.

[4:9]  ⁸ tn Heb “that.” The Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) is used here in a resultative sense; for this use see R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 73, §450.

[4:9]  ⁹ tn Heb “grabs hold of, seizes.”