Michaeas 3

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

And I said, Hear, I pray you, ye heads of Jacob, and princes of the house of Israel: Is it not for you to know judgment?

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

Ye who hate the good, and love evil; who pluck off their skin from them, and their flesh from off their bones;

3 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 caldron, and as meat for the pot,

and who eat the flesh of my people, and flay their skin from off them, and break their bones, and chop them in pieces as for the pot, and as flesh within the cauldron.

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

Then shall they cry unto Jehovah, but he will not answer them; and he will hide his face from them at that time, according as they have wrought evil in their doings.

5 Thus saith 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:

Thus saith Jehovah concerning the prophets that cause my people to err, that bite with their teeth, and cry, Peace! but whoso putteth not into their mouths they prepare war against him:

6 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.

therefore ye shall have night without a vision; and it shall be dark unto you, without divination; and the sun shall go down upon the prophets, and the day shall be black over them.

7 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 hearken to them.

And the seers shall be ashamed, and the diviners confounded; and they shall all cover their lips, for there will be no answer of God.

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

But truly I am filled with power by the Spirit of Jehovah, and with judgment and with might, to declare unto Jacob his transgression, and to Israel his sin.

9 Hear now these words, ye chiefs of the house of Jacob, and the remnant of the house of Israel, who hate judgment, and pervert all righteousness;

Hear this, I pray you, ye heads of the house of Jacob, and princes of the house of Israel, that abhor judgment, and pervert all equity,

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

that build up Zion with blood, and Jerusalem with unrighteousness.

11 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 among us? no evil shall come upon us.

The heads thereof judge for reward, and the priests thereof teach for hire, and the prophets thereof divine for money; yet do they lean upon Jehovah, and say, Is not Jehovah in the midst of us? no evil shall come upon us.

12 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.

Therefore shall Zion for your sake be ploughed [as] a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest.