Micah 5
The Voice
5 Eternal One: Now, muster your troops O daughter.[a] You have been besieged,
and they will strike the judge of Israel on the cheek with a rod.
This difficult passage recalls the judges who ruled God’s people in Canaan as it looks forward to the Redeemer from the insignificant town of Bethlehem.
2 But you, Bethlehem of Ephrathah,
of the clans of Judah, are no poor relation—
From your people will come a Ruler
who will be the shepherd of My people, Israel,[b]
Whose origins date back to the distant past,
to the ancient days.
3 So God will abandon Israel
only until the now-laboring mother gives birth,
And then those of His people who survive
will be gathered back together with the rest of Israel.
4 And he will stand and feed his flock in the power of the Eternal One,
with the majesty of the name of the Eternal, his True God.
And they will live in safety, for his greatness will extend to the farthest parts of the earth.
5 He will be our peace.
When the Assyrians invade us, set foot inside our strong palaces,[c]
We will raise up more than enough to conquer them—
seven shepherds and eight rulers of men.
The “seven shepherds and eight rulers” represent the whole leadership of the people.
6 They will rule over the country of Assyria with the sword,
and the country of Nimrod at its front gates.
He will save us from the Assyrians when they invade our lands
and tread in our borders.
7-8 Then what remains of Jacob will be like a dew from the Eternal,
like showers on the grass, which are beyond the control of humans.
He will be spread throughout many peoples and many nations.
Like a lion among beasts of the forest, a young lion among flocks of sheep,
He tramples and tears as he goes; no one will survive.
9 You will have victory over all your enemies,
and all who oppose you will be routed.
10 Eternal One: When that day comes, I will rip your horses from beneath you
and destroy your chariots and weapons of war;
11 I will rip the cities from your lands
and cast down all your fortresses.
12 I will tear all magic spells from your hands
and overthrow your magicians and fortunetellers.
13 And I will tear down the images and sacred pillars among you.
Never again will you worship these gods that your own hands have made.
14 I will uproot the sacred poles[d] in your communities
and tear down your towns.
15 And with anger and great wrath,
I will execute My vengeance against all the nations that have disobeyed Me!
Footnotes
- 5:1 Greek manuscripts read, “Now, you are walled in.”
- 5:2 Matthew 2:6
- 5:5 Greek manuscripts read, “on our land.”
- 5:14 Hebrew, Asherim
Micah 5
King James Version
5 Now gather thyself in troops, O daughter of troops: he hath laid siege against us: they shall smite the judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek.
2 But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.
3 Therefore will he give them up, until the time that she which travaileth hath brought forth: then the remnant of his brethren shall return unto the children of Israel.
4 And he shall stand and feed in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God; and they shall abide: for now shall he be great unto the ends of the earth.
5 And this man shall be the peace, when the Assyrian shall come into our land: and when he shall tread in our palaces, then shall we raise against him seven shepherds, and eight principal men.
6 And they shall waste the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod in the entrances thereof: thus shall he deliver us from the Assyrian, when he cometh into our land, and when he treadeth within our borders.
7 And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many people as a dew from the Lord, as the showers upon the grass, that tarrieth not for man, nor waiteth for the sons of men.
8 And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the Gentiles in the midst of many people as a lion among the beasts of the forest, as a young lion among the flocks of sheep: who, if he go through, both treadeth down, and teareth in pieces, and none can deliver.
9 Thine hand shall be lifted up upon thine adversaries, and all thine enemies shall be cut off.
10 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord, that I will cut off thy horses out of the midst of thee, and I will destroy thy chariots:
11 And I will cut off the cities of thy land, and throw down all thy strong holds:
12 And I will cut off witchcrafts out of thine hand; and thou shalt have no more soothsayers:
13 Thy graven images also will I cut off, and thy standing images out of the midst of thee; and thou shalt no more worship the work of thine hands.
14 And I will pluck up thy groves out of the midst of thee: so will I destroy thy cities.
15 And I will execute vengeance in anger and fury upon the heathen, such as they have not heard.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.