Micah 6:9

6:9 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 

Micah 7:1

Micah Laments Judah’s Sin

7:1 I am depressed! ⁴ 

Indeed, ⁵  it is as if the summer fruit has been gathered,

and the grapes have been harvested. ⁶ 

There is no grape cluster to eat,

no fresh figs that I crave so much. ⁷ 

¹ tn Or “the voice of the Lord is calling.” The translation understands קוֹל (qol, “voice”) as equivalent to an imperative.

² tn Heb “one who sees your name is wisdom.” It is probably better to emend יִרְאֶה (yir’eh, “he sees”) to יִרְאָה (yir’ah, “fearing”). One may then translate, “fearing your name is wisdom.” The Lord’s “name” here stands by metonymy for his authority.

³ tn Heb (apparently) “Listen [to] the staff and the one who appointed it.” Verse 10 then begins with עוֹד (yod, “still” or “again”). The translation assumes an emendation to שִׁמְעוּ מַטֶּה וּמוֹעֵד הָעִיר (shim’u matteh umo’ed ha’ir, “listen, O tribe and the assembly of the city”).

⁴ tn Heb “woe to me!” In light of the image that follows, perhaps one could translate, “I am disappointed.”

⁵ tn Or “for.”

⁶ tn Heb “I am like the gathering of the summer fruit, like the gleanings of the harvest.” Micah is not comparing himself to the harvested fruit. There is an ellipsis here, as the second half of the verse makes clear. The idea is, “I am like [one at the time] the summer fruit is gathered and the grapes are harvested.”

⁷ tn Heb “my appetite craves.”