Micah 2
International Standard Version
God’s Warning to His People
2 “Woe to those who are crafting iniquity,
planning evil well into the night![a]
When morning’s light comes,
they carry out their plans[b] because they have the power to do so.
2 They covet fields and seize them;
they covet[c] houses, and grab them, too.
They harass the valiant man, along with his household,
an individual and his estate.
3 “Therefore this is what the Lord says,
‘I’m crafting evil against this family,
from which you can’t escape.[d]
You won’t strut around arrogantly,
because the times are evil.’
4 “When this happens,[e] someone will compose a proverb about you, lamenting sorrowfully,
‘We are completely ruined!
He has given my people’s heritage to others.[f]
How he has removed it from me,
dividing up our fields!’
5 “This is why there will not be left even a single person
to settle boundary disputes[g] in the Lord’s community.
6 To those who speak out, they will declare,
‘Don’t prophesy to anyone!’
so their shame won’t go away.
7 “It is said, house of Jacob,
‘The Spirit of the Lord is limited,
if he acts this way, is he not?’
“But my words benefit those who live righteously, do they not?
8 Lately my people have acted like an enemy—
you strip travelers who thought they were[h] as secure
as those who return from war.
9 You have evicted the wives of my people from their dream homes;
you have removed my majesty from their children permanently.
10 “Get up and go,
because there’s no rest for you here!
Since everything[i] is polluted, it can only cause destruction,
even heavy destruction.
11 Suppose a man who keeps company with a deceiving spirit prophesies like this:
‘Drink wine and strong drink!’
Won’t the people accept him as a prophet?”
The Coming Judgment
12 “Jacob, how I will surely gather all of you!
How I will gather the survivors of Israel!
I will gather them together like sheep in a pen,[j]
like the flock in the midst of the sheepfold.
There will be a great commotion because of all[k] the people.
13 God will stand up and break through[l] in their presence.
Then they will pass through the gate, going out by it.
Their king will pass in front of them
with the Lord at their head.”
Footnotes
- Micah 2:1 Lit. evil upon their beds
- Micah 2:1 The Heb. lacks their plans
- Micah 2:2 The Heb. lacks they covet
- Micah 2:3 Lit. can’t remove your necks
- Micah 2:4 Lit. In that day
- Micah 2:4 The Heb. lacks to others
- Micah 2:5 Lit. to stretch out a measuring line
- Micah 2:8 The Heb. lacks thought they were
- Micah 2:10 Lit. it
- Micah 2:12 Or sheep of Bozrah
- Micah 2:12 The Heb. lacks all
- Micah 2:13 Lit. The one who breaks through will arise
Micah 2
EasyEnglish Bible
God says that bad things will happen to the bad people
2 Micah continues:
People who prepare to do bad things should be afraid.
God will do bad things to them!
While they lie in bed, they think about bad things to do.
Then, when the morning comes, they do those bad things.
They have the authority to do whatever they want to do.
2 When they want fields, they take them from other people.
When they want houses, they take them.
These cruel people take other people's homes and fields;
then those people's families have nothing.
3 So the Lord says this to them:
‘I am against you.
You cannot save yourselves.
I will prepare trouble for you.
Then you will stop thinking that you are so very clever and important.
It will be a time of much trouble for you.
4 At that time, your enemies will laugh at you.
They will sing this sad song against you:
“God has completely destroyed us!
We no longer have any fields, because God has taken them away from us.
He has given them to our enemies, who have turned away from what is right.”
5 So, when the Lord's people measure the land again to give fields to everyone,
you will get none.[a]
You will have nobody to speak on your behalf.’
False prophets
6 The people say to me, ‘Do not prophesy against us![b]
Do not say that we will have trouble.
God will not make us ashamed!’
7 You should not talk like that, you who are descendants of Jacob.
Do you think that the Lord's Spirit will always be patient with you?
If you agree to do what is right, then you will accept that my message is good.
8 The Lord says:
‘You have become like enemies among my people.
You rob people of their coats when they pass by.
Even men who thought that they were safe now.
You even rob men who are returning home from war.
9 You rob the women among my people too.
You take away their happy homes.
So you take away what I want their children to enjoy.
10 Get up and go away!
You cannot remain in this place because you have made it bad.
It is so bad that it will completely destroy you.
11 When a person speaks false messages to you, then you believe them.
They might say that you would have plenty of wine and strong drink.
That is the message that you would like!’[c]
God promises to bring his people back together
12 ‘You people of Israel, I promise to bring all of you together.
I will bring back together all Israel's people who remain.
I will put all of you together like sheep in a field with a wall round it.
You will be like a field full of sheep.
There will be a loud noise because there will be so many of you.
13 The person who breaks open the way will go in front of you.
Then you will go out through the gate.
I am the Lord, your king, and I will lead you out.’
Footnotes
- 2:5 At certain times, the people measured their fields again. They used stones with marks on them to decide about the fields. Micah says that God is against the bad people. So God will never let them get any fields again in future times.
- 2:6 To prophesy means to speak (God's) messages, often about future events.
- 2:11 Micah spoke true messages from God. But other people were speaking false messages. They spoke words that made the bad people happy. In this verse, God is saying that the bad people should listen to Micah.
Micah 2
New King James Version
Woe to Evildoers
2 Woe to those who devise iniquity,
And [a]work out evil on their beds!
At (A)morning light they practice it,
Because it is in the power of their hand.
2 They (B)covet fields and take them by violence,
Also houses, and seize them.
So they oppress a man and his house,
A man and his inheritance.
3 Therefore thus says the Lord:
“Behold, against this (C)family I am devising (D)disaster,
From which you cannot remove your necks;
Nor shall you walk haughtily,
For this is an evil time.
4 In that day one shall take up a proverb against you,
And (E)lament with a bitter lamentation, saying:
‘We are utterly destroyed!
He has changed the [b]heritage of my people;
How He has removed it from me!
To [c]a turncoat He has divided our fields.’ ”
5 Therefore you will have no [d]one to determine boundaries by lot
In the assembly of the Lord.
Lying Prophets
6 “Do not prattle,” you say to those who [e]prophesy.
So they shall not prophesy [f]to you;
[g]They shall not return insult for insult.
7 You who are named the house of Jacob:
“Is the Spirit of the Lord restricted?
Are these His doings?
Do not My words do good
To him who walks uprightly?
8 “Lately My people have risen up as an enemy—
You pull off the robe with the garment
From those who trust you, as they pass by,
Like men returned from war.
9 The women of My people you cast out
From their pleasant houses;
From their children
You have taken away My glory forever.
10 “Arise and depart,
For this is not your (F)rest;
Because it is (G)defiled, it shall destroy,
Yes, with utter destruction.
11 If a man should walk in a false spirit
And speak a lie, saying,
‘I will [h]prophesy to you [i]of wine and drink,’
Even he would be the (H)prattler of this people.
Israel Restored
12 “I(I) will surely assemble all of you, O Jacob,
I will surely gather the remnant of Israel;
I will put them together (J)like sheep of [j]the fold,
Like a flock in the midst of their pasture;
(K)They shall make a loud noise because of so many people.
13 The one who breaks open will come up before them;
They will break out,
Pass through the gate,
And go out by it;
(L)Their king will pass before them,
(M)With the Lord at their head.”
Footnotes
- Micah 2:1 Plan
- Micah 2:4 Lit. portion
- Micah 2:4 Lit. one turning back, an apostate
- Micah 2:5 Lit. one casting a surveyor’s line
- Micah 2:6 Or preach, lit. drip words
- Micah 2:6 Lit. to these
- Micah 2:6 Vg. He shall not take shame
- Micah 2:11 Or preach, lit. drip
- Micah 2:11 concerning
- Micah 2:12 Heb. Bozrah
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
