Micah 5

1 Now shalt thou 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.

‘Now cut yourself in bitter grief, daughter besieged by soldiers. They have set a wall around you. They strike the ruler of Israel, in the face with a rod.

2 But thou, Beth-lehem Ephrathah, which art little to be among the thousands of Judah, out of thee shall one come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting.

‘Bethlehem in Ephrathah, small among the tribes of Judah, from you will come a king who will rule for me over Israel, whose family line goes back to the distant past.’

3 Therefore will he give them up, until the time that she which travaileth hath brought forth: then the residue of his brethren shall return unto the children of Israel.

So the Lord will only abandon Israel to its enemies until the woman in labour gives birth. Then the survivors will be reunited with their own people.

4 And he shall stand, and shall feed [his flock] 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.

And he will stand and shepherd by the strength of the Lord, In the exalted name of the Lord his God; And they will live in security, for now he will be great, even to the ends of the earth.

5 And this [man] shall be [our] 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.

This will be our peace: when Assyria comes into our land and treads on our soil, we will raise up against him seven shepherds, eight leaders of men.

6 And they shall waste the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod in the entrances thereof: and he shall deliver us from the Assyrian, when he cometh into our land, and when he treadeth within our border.

They will shepherd Assyria with a sword, and the land of Nimrod with bared blades. They will deliver us from Assyria, when they come into our land, and tread within our borders.

7 And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many peoples as dew from the LORD, as showers upon the grass; that tarrieth not for man, nor waiteth for the sons of men.

And the survivors of Jacob will be disbursed among the nations, in the midst of many peoples, like dew from the Lord, like showers on the grass, which don’t wait for people to come or linger for mortals.

8 And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the nations, in the midst of many peoples, as a lion among the beasts of the forest, as a young lion among the flocks of sheep: who, if he go through, treadeth down and teareth in pieces, and there is none to deliver.

And the survivors of Jacob will be disbursed among the nations, in the midst of many peoples, like a lion among the beasts of the forest, like a young lion among the sheep-folds, who, when he passes through, pounces. He savages his prey. There is no rescuer.

9 Let thine hand be lifted up above thine adversaries, and let all thine enemies be cut off.

Let your hand triumph over your adversaries, let all your enemies 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 will destroy thy chariots:

On that day, says the Lord: ‘I will slaughter your horses from your midst, and destroy your chariots.

11 and I will cut off the cities of thy land, and will throw down all thy strong holds:

I will devastate the cities in your land, and tear down your fortresses.

12 And I will cut off witchcrafts out of thine hand; and thou shalt have no [more] soothsayers:

I will destroy your magic charms, and you will have no soothsayers.

13 and I will cut off thy graven images and thy pillars out of the midst of thee; and thou shalt no more worship the work of thine hands.

I will cut down your idols and sacred pillars, and you will not worship any more the work of your hands.

14 and I will pluck up thine Asherim out of the midst of thee: and I will destroy thy cities.

I will uproot your sacred poles, and destroy your idols.

15 And I will execute vengeance in anger and fury upon the nations which hearkened not.

In my wrath and my anger I will seek vengeance on the nations that ignore me.’