Mikha 1:5

1:5 All this is because of Jacob’s rebellion

and ¹  the sins of the nation ²  of Israel.

How has Jacob rebelled, you ask? ³ 

Samaria epitomizes their rebellion! ⁴ 

Where are Judah’s pagan worship centers, you ask? ⁵ 

They are right in Jerusalem! ⁶ 

Mikha 7:19

7:19 You will once again ⁷  have mercy on us;

you will conquer ⁸  our evil deeds;

you will hurl our ⁹  sins into the depths of the sea. ¹⁰ 

Mikha 1:13

1:13 Residents of Lachish, ¹¹  hitch the horses to the chariots!

You ¹²  influenced Daughter Zion ¹³  to sin, ¹⁴ 

for Israel’s rebellious deeds can be traced back ¹⁵  to you!

Mikha 6:7

6:7 Will the Lord accept a thousand rams,

or ten thousand streams of olive oil?

Should I give him my firstborn child as payment for my rebellion,

my offspring – my own flesh and blood – for my sin? ¹⁶ 

Mikha 3:8

3:8 But I ¹⁷  am full of the courage that the Lord’s Spirit gives,

and have a strong commitment to justice. ¹⁸ 

This enables me to confront Jacob with its rebellion,

and Israel with its sin. ¹⁹ 

Mikha 7:18

7:18 There is no other God like you! ²⁰ 

You ²¹  forgive sin

and pardon ²²  the rebellion

of those who remain among your people. ²³ 

You do not remain angry forever, ²⁴ 

but delight in showing loyal love.

Mikha 6:11

6:11 I do not condone the use of rigged scales,

or a bag of deceptive weights. ²⁵ 

Mikha 3:1

God Will Judge Judah’s Sinful Leaders

3:1 I said,

“Listen, you leaders ²⁶  of Jacob,

you rulers of the nation ²⁷  of Israel!

You ought to know what is just, ²⁸ 

Mikha 2:1

Land Robbers Will Lose their Land

2:1 Those who devise sinful plans are as good as dead, ²⁹ 

those who dream about doing evil as they lie in bed. ³⁰ 

As soon as morning dawns they carry out their plans, ³¹ 

because they have the power to do so.

Mikha 5:2

A King Will Come and a Remnant Will Prosper

5:2 (5:1) As for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, ³² 

seemingly insignificant ³³  among the clans of Judah –

from you a king will emerge who will rule over Israel on my behalf, ³⁴ 

one whose origins ³⁵  are in the distant past. ³⁶ 

[1:5]  ¹ tn Heb “and because of.” This was simplified in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[1:5]  ² tn Heb “house.”

[1:5]  ³ tn Heb “What is the rebellion of Jacob?”

[1:5]  ⁴ tn Heb “Is it not Samaria?” The negated rhetorical question expects the answer, “It certainly is!” To make this clear the question has been translated as a strong affirmative statement.

[1:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “What are Judah’s high places?”

[1:5]  ⁶ tn Heb “Is it not Jerusalem?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “It certainly is!”

[1:5]  sn In vv. 2-5 Micah narrows the scope of God’s judgment from the nations (vv. 2-4) to his covenant people (v. 5). Universal judgment is coming, but ironically Israel is the focal point of God’s anger. In v. 5c the prophet includes Judah within the scope of divine judgment, for it has followed in the pagan steps of the northern kingdom. He accomplishes this with rhetorical skill. In v. 5b he develops the first assertion of v. 5a (“All of this is because of Jacob’s rebellion”). One expects in v. 5c an elaboration of the second assertion in v. 5a (“and the sins of the nation of Israel”), which one assumes, in light of v. 5b, pertains to the northern kingdom. But the prophet specifies the “sins” as “high places” and makes it clear that “the nation of Israel” includes Judah. Verses 6-7 further develop v. 5b (judgment on the northern kingdom), while vv. 8-16 expand on v. 5c (judgment on Judah).

[1:5]  map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[7:19]  ⁷ tn The verb יָשׁוּב (yashuv, “he will return”) is here used adverbially in relation to the following verb, indicating that the Lord will again show mercy.

[7:19]  ⁸ tn Some prefer to read יִכְבֹּס (yikhbos, “he will cleanse”; see HALOT 459 s.v. כבס pi). If the MT is taken as it stands, sin is personified as an enemy that the Lord subdues.

[7:19]  ⁹ tn Heb “their sins,” but the final mem (ם) may be enclitic rather than a pronominal suffix. In this case the suffix from the preceding line (“our”) may be understood as doing double duty.

[7:19]  ¹⁰ sn In this metaphor the Lord disposes of Israel’s sins by throwing them into the waters of the sea (here symbolic of chaos).

[1:13]  ¹¹ sn The place name Lachish sounds like the Hebrew word for “team [of horses].”

[1:13]  ¹² tn Heb “she”; this has been translated as second person (“you”) in keeping with the direct address to the residents of Lachish in the previous line.

[1:13]  ¹³ sn The epithet Daughter Zion pictures the city of Jerusalem as a young lady.

[1:13]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “She was the beginning of sin for Daughter Zion.”

[1:13]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “for in you was found the transgressions of Israel.”

[6:7]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul.” The Hebrew term נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) is often translated “soul,” but the word usually refers to the whole person; here “the sin of my soul” = “my sin.”

[3:8]  ¹⁷ sn The prophet Micah speaks here and contrasts himself with the mercenaries just denounced by the Lord in the preceding verses.

[3:8]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “am full of power, the Spirit of the Lord, and justice and strength.” The appositional phrase “the Spirit of the Lord” explains the source of the prophet’s power. The phrase “justice and strength” is understood here as a hendiadys, referring to the prophet’s strong sense of justice.

[3:8]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “to declare to Jacob his rebellion and to Israel his sin.” The words “this enables me” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[7:18]  ²⁰ tn Heb “Who is a God like you?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “No one!”

[7:18]  ²¹ tn Heb “one who.” The prayer moves from direct address (second person) in v. 18a to a descriptive (third person) style in vv. 18b-19a and then back to direct address (second person) in vv. 19b-20. Due to considerations of English style and the unfamiliarity of the modern reader with alternation of persons in Hebrew poetry, the entire section has been rendered as direct address (second person) in the translation.

[7:18]  ²² tn Heb “pass over.”

[7:18]  ²³ tn Heb “of the remnant of his inheritance.”

[7:18]  ²⁴ tn Heb “he does not keep hold of his anger forever.”

[6:11]  ²⁵ tn Heb “Do I acquit sinful scales, and a bag of deceptive weights?” The rhetorical question expects an answer, “No, I do not,” and has been translated as a declarative statement for clarity and emphasis.

[6:11]  sn Merchants also used rigged scales and deceptive weights to cheat their customers. See the note at Amos 8:5.

[3:1]  ²⁶ tn Heb “heads.”

[3:1]  ²⁷ tn Heb “house.”

[3:1]  ²⁸ tn Heb “Should you not know justice?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “Of course you should!”

[2:1]  ²⁹ tn Heb “Woe to those who plan sin.” The Hebrew term הוֹי (hoy, “woe”; “ah”) was a cry used in mourning the dead.

[2:1]  ³⁰ tn Heb “those who do evil upon their beds.”

[2:1]  ³¹ tn Heb “at the light of morning they do it.”

[5:2]  ³² sn Ephrathah is either an alternate name for Bethlehem or the name of the district in which Bethlehem was located. See Ruth 4:11.

[5:2]  map For location of Bethlehem see Map5 B1; Map7 E2; Map8 E2; Map10 B4.

[5:2]  ³³ tn Heb “being small.” Some omit לִהְיוֹת (lihyot, “being”) because it fits awkwardly and appears again in the next line.

[5:2]  ³⁴ tn Heb “from you for me one will go out to be a ruler over Israel.”

[5:2]  ³⁵ tn Heb “his goings out.” The term may refer to the ruler’s origins (cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT) or to his activities.

[5:2]  ³⁶ tn Heb “from the past, from the days of antiquity.” Elsewhere both phrases refer to the early periods in the history of the world or of the nation of Israel. For מִקֶּדֶם (miqqedem, “from the past”) see Neh 12:46; Pss 74:12; 77:11; Isa 45:21; 46:10. For מִימֵי עוֹלָם (mimey ’olam, “from the days of antiquity”) see Isa 63:9, 11; Amos 9:11; Mic 7:14; Mal 3:4. In Neh 12:46 and Amos 9:11 the Davidic era is in view.

[5:2]  sn In riddle-like fashion this verse alludes to David, as the references to Bethlehem and to his ancient origins/activities indicate. The passage anticipates the second coming of the great king to usher in a new era of national glory for Israel. Other prophets are more direct and name this coming ideal ruler “David” (Jer 30:9; Ezek 34:23-24; 37:24-25; Hos 3:5). Of course, this prophecy of “David’s” second coming is actually fulfilled through his descendant, the Messiah, who will rule in the spirit and power of his famous ancestor and bring to realization the Davidic royal ideal in an even greater way than the historical David (see Isa 11:1, 10; Jer 33:15).