Micah 3

1 And I said: Hear, O ye princes of Jacob, and ye chiefs of the house of Israel: Is it not your part to know judgment,

And he shall say, Hear now these words, you heads of the house of Jacob, and you remnant of the house of Israel; is it not for you to know judgement?

2 You that hate good, and love evil: that violently pluck off their skins from them, and their flesh from their bones?

[who] hate good, and seek evil; [who] tear their skins off them, and their flesh off their bones:

3 Who have eaten the flesh of my people, and have flayed their skin from off them: and have broken, and chopped their bones as for the kettle, and as flesh in the midst of the pot.

even as they devoured the flesh of my people, and stripped their skins off them, and broke their bones, and divided [them] as flesh for the cauldron, and as meat for the pot,

4 Then shall they cry to the Lord, and he will not hear them: and he will hide his face from them at that time, as they have behaved wickedly in their devices.

thus they shall cry to the Lord, but he shall not listen to them; and he shall turn away his face from them at that time, because they have done wickedly in their practices against themselves.

5 Thus saith the Lord concerning the prophets that make my people err: that bite with their teeth, and preach peace: and if a man give not something into their mouth, they prepare war against him.

Thus says the Lord concerning the prophets that lead my people astray, that bit with their teeth, and proclaim peace to them; and [when] nothing was put into their mouth, they raised up war against them:

6 Therefore night shall be to you instead of vision, and darkness to you instead of divination; and the sun shall go down upon the prophets, and the day shall be darkened over them.

therefore there shall be night to you instead of a vision, and there shall be to you darkness instead of prophecy; and the sun shall go down upon the prophets, and the day shall be dark upon them.

7 And they shall be confounded that see visions, and the diviners shall be confounded: and they shall all cover their faces, because there is no answer of God.

And the seers of night-visions shall be ashamed, and the prophets shall be laughed to scorn: and all the people shall speak against them, because there shall be none to listen to them.

8 But yet I am filled with the strength of the spirit of the Lord, with judgment, and power: to declare unto Jacob his wickedness, and to Israel his sin.

Surely I will strengthen myself with the Spirit of the Lord, and of judgement, and of power, to declare to Jacob his transgressions, and to Israel his sins.

9 Hear this, ye princes of the house of Jacob, and ye judges of the house of Israel: you that abhor judgment, and pervert all that is right.

Hear now these words, you chiefs of the house of Jacob, and the remnant of the house of Israel, who hate judgement, and pervert all righteousness;

10 You that build up Sion with blood, and Jerusalem with iniquity.

who build up Sion with blood, and Jerusalem with iniquity.

11 Her princes have judged for bribes, and her priests have taught for hire, and her prophets divined for money: and they leaned upon the Lord, saying: Is not the Lord in the midst of us? no evil shall come upon us.

The heads thereof have judged for gifts, and the priests thereof have answered for hire, and her prophets have divined for silver: and [yet] they have rested on the Lord, saying, Is not the Lord amongst us? no evil shall come upon us.

12 Therefore, because of you, Sion shall be ploughed as a field, and Jerusalem shall be as a heap of stones, and the mountain of the temple as the high places of the forests.

Therefore on your account Sion shall be ploughed as a field, and Jerusalem shall be as a storehouse of fruits, and the mountain of the house as a grove of the forest.