1:13a

Harness your chariot horses, O dweller of Lachish: In this sentence, Micah spoke to the people who lived in the town of Lachish. It was an important town that King Rehoboam of Judah had fortified (see 2 Chronicles 11:5–12). That means that there were soldiers, horses, chariots, and other fighting equipment in the town.

There are two ways to interpret Micah’s words in this verse part:

(1) The inhabitants should prepare to flee from the enemy. They should ride in chariots to get away. For example:

Harness your chariot horses and flee, you people of Lachish. (New Living Translation (2004))

(New Living Translation (2004))

(2) The inhabitants should prepare to fight the enemy. For example:

Get the war chariots ready, you people of Lachish. (Contemporary English Version)

(Contemporary English Version)

Almost all commentaries clearly support interpretation (1). Most English versions are ambiguous. They say only that the people should harness the horses to the chariots. It is recommended that you leave the purpose for harnessing the horses implicit if possible. If that is not possible in your language, you should follow interpretation (1). The first two meaning lines in the Display will leave the purpose implied. The third meaning line will make it explicit.

Harness your chariot horses: In Hebrew, this clause is literally “Harness the chariot to the steed.” Most English versions reverse this order (“Harness the steeds to the chariots” (New Revised Standard Version)). Use whatever order is natural in your language.

Micah used the definite article “the” two times in this sentence: “Harness the steeds to the chariots.” He was referring to the horses and chariots that were in Lachish. In some languages, it may be better to use the pronoun your or to not use a definite article. For example:

People in Lachish! Tie horses to your(plur) chariots.

Another example is the New Living Translation (2004) (quoted above).

In Hebrew, “steed” and “chariot” are singular. Perhaps Micah used these singular words to refer to each horse or team of horses that pulled a chariot. For example:

harness the team to the chariot (New International Version)
-or-
Harness the chariot to the team of horses (New American Standard Bible)

Most versions uses plural forms. Use whatever is natural in your language.

Harness: This word means “to tie or fasten horses to the chariots.” People tied special ropes or straps on the horses and tied these ropes to the chariot. The horses pulled the chariot. Here is another way to translate this word:

hitch the horses to the chariots (NET Bible)

chariot horses: This phrase refers to a team of two or more horses that worked together to pull a chariot. See the New International Version, New American Standard Bible, and Good News Translation (quoted above) for some ways to translate this phrase.

chariot: The word chariot refers to two-wheeled carts pulled by one or more horses. One or more people rode in a chariot. In languages that do not use a specific word such as chariot, it may be possible to use a general term such as “carts” or “war carts.”

In some areas, people do not know about horses and chariots. If that is true in your area, you may want to translate the implied purpose in interpretation (1) without mentioning either of these words. For example:

You people in Lachish! Prepare to flee from your enemies.

horses…Lachish: Micah made a pun in this sentence. In Hebrew, the word translated as horses sounds like the name of the city Lachish.

You may want to use a footnote to help your readers understand this pun. For example:

Lachish sounds like the Hebrew term for “team of horses.” (New Living Translation (2004) footnote)

If you do not use footnotes, you may decide to include the meanings of the place and the pun in your translation. For example:

And you who live in Lachish, ⌊the name of your town sounds like “horses,” so⌋ fasten your horses to your chariots.

O dweller of Lachish: In Hebrew, these words are at the end of the sentence. In some languages, this may be the natural place to put these words. In other languages, it may be more natural to put this phrase at the beginning of the sentence. For example:

You who live in Lachish, harness the team to the chariot. (New International Version)

Put this phrase in a place that is natural in your language.

1:13b

You were the beginning of sin to the Daughter of Zion: In this sentence, Micah said that the people of Lachish were the beginning of sin to the people of Jerusalem.

You: In Hebrew, this pronoun is either “she” or “it.” The pronoun refers to Lachish in 1:13a.

the beginning of sin: Lachish was the beginning of sin to Jerusalem in the sense that the people of Lachish were the first ones to lead (encourage, influence) the people of Jerusalem to do a certain sin. Here are some other ways to translate 1:13b:

You were the first to lead the people of Zion into sin. (God’s Word)
-or-
Jerusalem’s sins started in you (New Century Version)
-or-
You influenced Daughter Zion to sin (NET Bible)

sin: Micah did not specify a particular sin. Almost all English versions leave the kind of sin implied. Commentaries interpret the nature of the sin in two main ways:

(1) The sin was idolatry, including the worship of Baal.

(2) The sin was relying on military power instead of God.

It is likely that some of the people were guilty of one or both of these sins. Commentaries slightly favor interpretation (1), but it is recommended that you use a general word for sin and leave the specific sin implied.

If your translation uses footnotes, you may want supply a footnote that summarizes the specific sins that were probably implied. For example:

The sin that Micah was talking about was probably the sin of worshiping idols, specifically Baal (see 1 Kings 16:26–32). But the sin may also have been that Lachish led the nation to trust the power of war chariots instead of the LORD.

the Daughter of Zion: This phrase is a poetic way to refer to the people who live in Jerusalem. Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

Jerusalem (Good News Translation)
-or-
the people of Jerusalem
-or-
the people of Zion (God’s Word)

If you use a translation like one of these, you may want to use a footnote to give the literal translation. For example:

Hebrew: the daughter of Zion (New Living Translation (2004) footnote)
-or-
1:13b “the people of Jerusalem.” What it says in Hebrew is: the daughter of Zion.

1:13c

for: This word (ki in Hebrew) is a conjunction that marks a reason. Micah used it here to give evidence for what he said in 1:13b. For example:

Because (New American Standard Bible)

Some versions leave the reason implied. For example:

the crimes of Israel can be traced to you (New Jerusalem Bible)

In some languages, it may be more natural to change the order of the clauses so that the reason precedes the result. For example:

You imitated the sins of Israel and so caused Jerusalem to sin. (Good News Translation)

the transgressions of Israel were found in you: This clause means that the people in Lachish rebelled against the LORD and broke his laws in the same way that the people of Israel did.

the transgressions of Israel: See the note on the word “transgression” at 1:5a for more information about the meaning of that word.

Israel: The name Israel refers here to the people in the northern kingdom. Lachish was a city in Judah, the southern kingdom. But the people in Lachish did the same kind of evil things.

were found: This is probably a figurative way of saying that the transgressions of Israel also occurred in Lachish. Here are some ways to translate this clause:

You imitated the sins of Israel… (Good News Translation)
-or-
you broke the same laws ⌊of God⌋ that the people of Israel broke
-or-
you imitated the people of Israel and broke ⌊God’s⌋ laws in the same way that they did

General Comment on 1:13b–c

In some languages, it may be clearer to reverse the order of 1:13b and c. For example:

c You people of Lachish are guilty of breaking ⌊God’s⌋ laws, just like the people of Israel did. b And so you were the first to cause the people of Jerusalem to sin.

Translate 1:13b–c in the order that is natural and clear in your language.

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