Micah 5

1 Now you shall gather yourself in troops, daughter of troops. He has laid siege against us. They will strike the judge of Israel with a rod on the cheek.

Now you will give yourselves deep wounds for grief; they will put up a wall round us: they will give the judge of Israel a blow on the face with a rod.

2 But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, being small among the clans of Judah, out of you one will come out to me who is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings out are from of old, from ancient times.

And you, Beth-lehem Ephrathah, the least among the families of Judah, out of you one will come to me who is to be ruler in Israel; whose going out has been purposed from time past, from the eternal days.

3 Therefore he will abandon them until the time that she who is in labor gives birth. Then the rest of his brothers will return to the children of Israel.

For this cause he will give them up till the time when she who is with child has given birth: then the rest of his brothers will come back to the children of Israel.

4 He shall stand, and shall shepherd in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. They will live, for then he will be great to the ends of the earth.

And he will take his place and give food to his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the glory of the name of the Lord his God; and their resting-place will be safe: for now he will be great to the ends of the earth.

5 He will be our peace when Assyria invades our land and when he marches through our fortresses, then we will raise against him seven shepherds, and eight leaders of men.

And this will be our peace: when the Assyrian comes into our country and his feet are in our land, then we will put up against him seven keepers of the flocks and eight chiefs among men.

6 They will rule the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod in its gates. He will deliver us from the Assyrian, when he invades our land, and when he marches within our border.

And they will make waste the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod with the edge of the sword: he will give us salvation from the Assyrian when he comes into our country, when his feet come inside the limit of our land.

7 The remnant of Jacob will be among many peoples like dew from the LORD, like showers on the grass, that do not wait for man nor wait for the sons of men.

And the rest of Jacob will be among the mass of peoples like dew from the Lord, like showers on the grass, which may not be kept back by man, or be waiting for the sons of men.

8 The remnant of Jacob will be among the nations, among many peoples, like a lion among the animals of the forest, like a young lion among the flocks of sheep; who, if he goes through, treads down and tears in pieces, and there is no one to deliver.

And the rest of Jacob will be among the nations, in the middle of the mass of peoples, like a lion among the beasts of the woods, like a young lion among the flocks of sheep: if he goes through, they will be crushed under foot and pulled to bits, and there will be no saviour.

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

Your hand is lifted up against those who are against you, and all your haters will be cut off.

10 “It will happen in that day”, says the LORD, “that I will cut off your horses from among you and will destroy your chariots.

And it will come about in that day, says the Lord, that I will take away your horses from you, and will give your war-carriages to destruction:

11 I will cut off the cities of your land and will tear down all your strongholds.

I will have the towns of your land cut off and all your strong places pulled down:

12 I will destroy witchcraft from your hand. You shall have no soothsayers.

I will put an end to your use of secret arts, and you will have no more readers of signs:

13 I will cut off your engraved images and your pillars from among you; and you shall no more worship the work of your hands.

And I will have your images and your pillars cut off from you; and you will no longer give worship to the work of your hands.

14 I will uproot your Asherah poles from among you; and I will destroy your cities.

I will have your Asherahs pulled up from among you: and I will send destruction on your images.

15 I will execute vengeance in anger and wrath on the nations that did not listen.”

And my punishment will be effected on the nations with such burning wrath as they have not had word of.