In verse 11 Micah sums up his accusations. The leaders of the nation, both the secular rulers and the religious priests and prophets, are all corrupt and have more interest in growing rich than in doing their jobs properly. Their corruption is all the worse because it is hidden behind an appearance of piety.

In more detail, the rulers used their position especially in the courts as a means of obtaining bribes (compare Isa 1.23; 5.23; Micah 7.3). If a language does not have a word for bribes, it is probably enough to say “for pay,” as long as the context makes it clear that this is a situation where pay should not be allowed to influence their decisions.

The main thing these leaders are accused of doing here is of accepting bribes to “give judgment” (Revised Standard Version) in the courts, Many translators will have difficulty trying to translate Good News Translation‘s govern, since this is something the leaders do anyway, whether they are paid or not. One may translate as “Rulers are making decisions in favor of the people who can pay them the most.”

The priests are mentioned only here in Micah. It was their duty not only to interpret the Law in general, but also to give decisions in the most difficult and delicate legal cases (Deut 17.8-13). They too were using these occasions as opportunities to increase their pay, and in this way they were allowing justice to be denied to the poor.

One of the key elements of the word priest is that he is a person with a clearly defined role in the religious system, and this is important in this passage. Translators often choose terms that refer to priests as the ones who offer the people’s sacrifices or make the people’s prayers, and if this type of term is well known, it is quite correct to use it here, even though the context is not talking about such duties. In this verse it may even be possible to simply call the priests the “religious leaders.” What these priests do for pay can be translated as “give decisions (or, rulings) about the Law (or, based on the Law).”

The prophets, as stated more fully in verse 5 above, do not give their revelations impartially to all, but only in return for money. As the recurrence of the term “divine” in Revised Standard Version indicates, the Hebrew word here is the same as that used in verses 6 and 7 above, and implies pagan forms of prediction. Give their revelations in Good News Translation means that the prophets claim to have received revelations from God but will only tell the people what these are when the people pay them. It can be expressed as “tell the revelations they have received” or “tell what God has shown them.”

All three groups overlook the sinful nature of their behavior and try to reassure themselves by the outward performance of religious rituals. The Hebrew expresses this in a metaphor, “they lean upon the LORD” (Revised Standard Version), which can no doubt be meaningfully retained in many languages. In languages where it cannot, translators can follow the plain meaning, given in Good News Translation, they all claim that the LORD is with them. Another way to understand the metaphor is “they all believe that the Lord will help them.” This line is not merely a statement of fact. It is assumed that the reader will realize that the Lord will not be with people who behave in these ways, and it may be that this will be obvious to readers in most languages. If it is not obvious, the translator may add something to explain it, such as “they mistakenly believe that the Lord will help them” or “they claim he is with them, but he is not.”

The last part of the verse gives the direct words of these leaders. The first sentence of the quotation in Hebrew, as in Revised Standard Version, is a rhetorical question expecting the answer “Yes.” In languages where such a construction is not natural, the meaning can be expressed as a positive statement, as in Good News Translation “The LORD is with us.” Because of this false confidence the leaders wrongly believed that “No harm will come to us.”

Good News Translation has translated the leaders’ words so that the second sentence gives the reason, while the first sentence gives the result. In Hebrew, the reason is stated first and the result second. In this way Good News Translation reverses the Hebrew order, though the logical relationship is not altered. Translators should follow the natural patterns of the receptor language in deciding whether the reason or the result is to be stated first. It will often be helpful to make the logical relationship explicit by means of conjunctions or other particles. One may thus say “No harm will come to us because the Lord is with us,” or “The Lord is with us, and therefore no harm will come to us.”

The expression No harm will come to us probably became a popular saying among the people, as Jeremiah accused them of saying the same thing a century later (Jer 5.12). The Hebrew word translated harm in this verse is the same as the word translated disaster in Micah 2.3. In 2.3 the Lord says specifically that he is going to bring disaster on the people, whereas in 3.11 the people deny that disaster can come on them. There is something to be said for using the same word in the receptor language in both verses, since it may help to emphasize to careful readers just how foolish these leaders are (Revised Standard Version and New American Bible use “evil” in both verses, and New English Bible and New International Version use “disaster”).

Quoted with permission from Clark, David J. et al. A Handbook on Micah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1978, 1982, 1993. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

In this verse, two more events are mentioned that show how the Lord had blessed and protected those he called My people. First, he bids them remember the story of King Balak of Moab and the prophet Balaam. Micah here takes for granted that his hearers are familiar with the story told in Numbers 22–24. Balak planned to have Balaam curse the people of Israel, but instead the Lord gave Balaam words of blessing to say, and he answered the king in a manner opposite to what the king wanted. The incident is seen as another example of the Lord’s intervention on behalf of his people. This event had taken place in the early history of the people of Israel, hundreds of years before the time of Micah. Remember of course does not mean remembering something that had happened directly to them, but rather it means remembering the story that they had heard many times. Similarly, when Good News Translation speaks of what Balak planned to do to you, or when the Lord speaks of what he did for you in verse 4, “you” must be understood as referring to the people of Israel as a group continuing over a long period. If “you” cannot be used in this way in some languages, “your ancestors” or some such expression should be substituted.

Translators using cross references should have one to Numbers 22–24 at this verse, but in some cases it may be necessary or at least helpful to add a little of the implicit information in the translation itself. For example, one may say “remember how King Balak of Moab wanted to harm you and how the prophet Balaam son of Beor told him that I would only do good to you.”

The second incident is mentioned in so few words that some scholars think there is something missing from the Hebrew (see Jerusalem Bible, for instance). The Hebrew merely says “from Shittim to Gilgal,” but it is fairly obvious that Micah is referring to “what happened from Shittim to Gilgal” (Revised Standard Version). Shittim was the last Israelite camp on the east bank of the Jordan (Josh 3.1), and Gilgal was their first camp in the promised land on the west bank (Josh 4.19). The event that took place between these two camps was of course the miraculous crossing of the river Jordan (Josh 3–4). This is what the prophet is referring to here as a further example of the Lord’s action in support of his people. Since the names of the two camps will not be familiar to most readers, it may be useful to add a footnote or to make explicit the reference to the crossing of the Jordan. Where Good News Translation has Remember the things that happened on the way from the camp at Acacia to Gilgal, a fuller translation base may be “Remember how you crossed the River Jordan on the way from the camp at Acacia to the camp at Gilgal.” Camp has been added by Good News Translation to show the significance of the place names. It refers to a place where the people put up their tents and stayed temporarily during their wanderings.

Note also that Good News Translation has translated the name Acacia rather than following the usual custom of transliterating place names. This is done here to avoid the unfortunate sound in English of the Hebrew name Shittim. Few other languages will need to do the same in this verse, but translators should be aware of the possibility that other Hebrew names may accidentally sound like bad words in their own language. If this happens, then the name should be translated or else altered slightly in spelling to avoid suggesting the bad word.

Good News Translation translates the end of the verse as a separate sentence that summarizes verses 4 and 5, Remember these things and you will realize what I did in order to save you. Note that Good News Translation has added the words Remember these things in order to make clear the meaning that is carried over from the previous sentences. In the Hebrew, the Lord refers to himself in the third person (“the saving acts of the LORD” Revised Standard Version), but Good News Translation turns this into a first person form (what I did) in order to produce natural English. Most translators will need to do the same. To save you could be translated “to help you.” The words translated what I did in order to save you could also be understood as “that all my actions toward you have been righteous” or “… faithful.”

Quoted with permission from Clark, David J. et al. A Handbook on Micah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1978, 1982, 1993. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

In Micah’s day, society was mainly agricultural, and wealth was therefore mainly in the form of land. Each family had its own ancestral land, which had originally been distributed by lot after the conquest under Joshua. It had been intended that this family land would never change owners but would remain in the possession of the family forever (see, for instance, Lev 25.23-28; Num 27.1-11; 33.54; 36.1-12). As long as each family did have its own land, the standard of living everyone enjoyed was about the same throughout the community. But after the monarchy was established, the people of the towns and especially of the court began to grow richer than the people of the rural areas. Farmers often did not have enough wealth to enable them to survive a series of bad harvests. They had to sell their ancestral land, which in this way would pass to the rich. It soon happened that the rich were no longer content to wait for misfortune to compel the poor people to sell their land; they would devise ways of forcing them to sell, and would even steal the land if necessary (see Isa 5.8). The courts were in the power of the same rich people (see Micah 3.11; 7.3), and there was no justice for the poor (Amos 5.10-12). The outstanding example of this kind of behavior is recorded in 1 Kings 21, where Ahab and Jezebel had Naboth murdered in order to take over his vineyard. This crime earned God’s judgment, proclaimed through the prophet Elijah.

This oracle of Micah opens quite abruptly with the announcement that those who do … evil to others will soon have the same thing done to them. If the rich could not sleep at night, they would lie awake and plan evil (compare Psa 36.4) instead of thinking about God as the psalmist did (Psa 63.6). During the daylight they would put their plans into effect as soon as they have the chance.

How terrible …: in Hebrew this word is used when expressing great sorrow because someone has died. The Good News Translation translation gives the meaning better than Revised Standard Version, because Revised Standard Version “Woe to” can easily be misunderstood as a wish that evil may come to someone. The Hebrew prophets took this expression, which was usually used at funerals, and used it to make their messages more vivid. God had showed them what was going to happen to the people who did evil. When the prophets cried out, using this word, they were acting as though this punishment had already happened and the sinners were already dead. Many languages have words that are used to express sorrow for someone who has died, and it may be very effective to use these words here. In other languages translators could try to find an expression like Good News Translation‘s How terrible, which will sound as though the prophet is crying out because he has just seen something very bad happen to the people.

The main reason these people are criticized is of course that they plan evil, and not that they lie awake. Their thoughts are so full of their evil plans that they cannot even sleep. Plan evil means to “think of bad things to do to other people.” In some languages it may be necessary to say that this is at night, during the time that they should be sleeping.

It may be necessary for some translators to describe these evil people first, and then to say “Woe to them” at the end of the sentence.

These people can hardly wait for morning to come, so they can do the evil they have planned. The Good News Translation clause as soon as they have the chance fits well into this meaning and is certainly not wrong. The idea is that they may not always be able to carry out their plans immediately. They may have to wait for just the right moment, but they will do these evil things as soon as they can.

However, this clause is translated by Revised Standard Version as “because it is in the power of their hand,” and most other English translations interpret this clause in basically this same way. This is probably a reference to the fact that these rich people are in a position to do whatever they want. No one can or will stop them. This may be translated as “because they can do whatever they want to do,” or as New English Bible says, “knowing that they have the power.”

Quoted with permission from Clark, David J. et al. A Handbook on Micah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1978, 1982, 1993. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

In verse 10 the prophet returns to the image of birth pains and tells the people of Jerusalem (literally “daughter of Zion,” Revised Standard Version) that they will indeed have to suffer pain like a woman giving birth to a child.

There are two points in these phrases where the Hebrew wording is the same as in an earlier verse, but where Good News Translation has translated slightly differently. In the Hebrew the prophet speaks to the “daughter of Zion” both here and in verse 8. In verse 8, where the city as a place is in focus, Good News Translation translates this as Jerusalem. Here, where we are told that the people will leave the city, “Jerusalem” alone would not make sense, and Good News Translation has people of Jerusalem. Also Good News Translation‘s two expressions, like a woman in labor (verse 9) and like a woman giving birth (verse 10), are translations of the same Hebrew expression. The two English expressions mean almost the same thing, and Good News Translation has probably used different expressions because it sounds better in English, rather than to suggest any difference in meaning. Translators may use the same or different expressions in these two verses, according to what sounds best in their languages.

The people are told to Twist and groan. Twist means to move one’s body back and forth because the pain is so great. This is of course figurative language to show the agony of the people, and the translator should feel free to use words in his own language that will convey the picture of the pains of the woman in childbirth.

The cause of this agony is that the people will have to leave the city. This is a plain reference to the exile. The reason that the people have to leave the city is that enemies will force them to leave. In some languages it may be necessary to make this clear in the translation. There will be severe hardships on the journey, as the people will have nowhere to stay but will live in the open country. The open country refers primarily to land that is away from the towns and villages, so that there is no place for shelter from the weather. It is also open in the sense of having few trees, but this is not particularly important in this context, and the translator will not need to stress this point if it is a problem in his language.

The destination of the people will be Babylon. Again, in some languages it may be clearer to say “you will be taken away to Babylon” or “your enemies will take you to Babylon.” Babylon is a very distant land, and their exile there might lead the people to suppose that they would be separated from the Lord. But the prophet assures them that this is not so. Even there the LORD will save you from your enemies, presumably the Babylonians themselves. Those whom the Lord saves will become the remnant with whom he will make the new beginning spoken of in verse 7.

Save in Good News Translation translates two Hebrew verbs, given as “rescued” and “redeem” in Revised Standard Version. The root of the verb “redeem” is the same as that used of Boaz in his responsibilities towards Naomi and Ruth in the Book of Ruth (see A Handbook on The Book of Ruth, page 41, for further details). If a language has a expression that implies helping a relative who is in great danger, such a term may be excellent here. In other languages it is probably best not to make a special effort to emphasize this point, as it is not especially emphasized in the Hebrew. When choosing the term or terms to translate what the Lord will do, one should imagine the situation. Some of your people are in the hands of your enemies, and you must save them by an act of strength. What would be the appropriate terms to describe this?

The word “redeem” (Revised Standard Version) in English sometimes implies that money will be paid to the enemies, as does “ransom,” used by Jerusalem Bible. But this is merely figurative language, and the translator should not suggest that God is going to pay the Babylonians to free his people.

The expression from your enemies is literally “from the hand of your enemies.” The more literal wording may sound more natural in some languages.

Quoted with permission from Clark, David J. et al. A Handbook on Micah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1978, 1982, 1993. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

This verse repeats the accusation that the people have been disloyal to God, and it also repeats the threat that God will punish them.

Here the people’s sin is stated in terms of a historical example. They had “kept the statutes of Omri, and all the works of the house of Ahab” (Revised Standard Version). Omri was politically one of the most important kings of the northern kingdom of Israel. He ruled from 885 to 874 B.C. and was followed by his son Ahab from 874 to 853 B.C. The family of Omri held the throne longer than any other family in the northern kingdom, yet they were outstanding for their wickedness. Ahab encouraged people to worship foreign gods because he was under the influence of his pagan wife Jezebel. He is condemned especially for this in 1 Kgs 16.23-24; 21.25-26.

Notice how Good News Translation has built into its translation some of the information that is only implicit in the Hebrew. The words This will happen because link this verse with those that precede. In the rest of the sentence, you have followed the evil practices of King Omri and of his son, King Ahab, the words evil, King, and his son are all added to make explicit to the modern reader information that was already known to the original hearers or readers. Most translators will find it helpful to their readers if they do the same. Followed means “to do the same thing that someone else does,” or “to copy.” Evil practices could be translated as “the evil things they did.”

On the other hand, Good News Translation has translated the literal “of the house of Ahab” as of his son, King Ahab. “The house of Ahab” means Ahab and the others of his family who became kings. Ahab was followed as king first by one son, Ahaziah, then by another son, Joram or Jehoram. These were the last kings of Israel who came from the family of Omri and Ahab. Both Ahaziah and Joram are called evil kings (see 1 Kgs 22.52 and 2 Kgs 3.2). The whole line can be restructured as “you have done the same evil things that King Omri and his son King Ahab and the others of their family did.” Or it may be easier in some languages to say “… and his son King Ahab and his sons did.”

The people of Micah’s day, about 150 years later than Omri and Ahab, had followed the bad example of these kings and could thus be said to have continued their policies. Policies means “their usual way of acting.” Because of their evil deeds, the Lord would bring these people to ruin. This can be translated as “destroy your country.” The prophets probably thought that this would happen by sending an enemy army to conquer them. When this happened, all the neighboring nations would despise them. This is the meaning of the expression “make … your inhabitants a hissing” (Revised Standard Version). In places where hissing is used as a sign of scorn, translators may be able to mention hissing, but even then they will probably need to expand the sentence and say “I will make the people of other nations hiss at you.”

The last sentence of the verse repeats the sense of the previous one. Good News Translation has restructured the literal translation of Revised Standard Version into simple and natural modern English: People everywhere will treat you with contempt. People everywhere refers to “the people of other nations.” If this group has just been mentioned in the previous line, translators could just refer to them with a pronoun, “they,” or perhaps one could even combine the last two lines of this verse, since the meaning of the two is so similar.

As the footnotes in Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation show, the reading “peoples” or People everywhere follows the ancient Greek translation. If the Hebrew text is followed, the meaning of the final line is as in Good News Translation‘s second footnote. The thought is then that the people of Israel deserve to be scorned by other nations, even though they are God’s people, because they have disobeyed him.

Quoted with permission from Clark, David J. et al. A Handbook on Micah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1978, 1982, 1993. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .