Micah 5

1 Yet now gather yourselves in troops, O people of troops! They lay siege against us; With a rod they smite the cheek of the judge of Israel.

“But now, [you people of Jerusalem, gather your troops together, ] [because even though] you have a wall [around your city to protect it], [enemy soldiers] are surrounding the city. And [soon] they will strike your leader on his face, with a rod.”

2 But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, Who art small to be among the thousands of Judah, Out of thee shall he come forth for me to be ruler in Israel, Whose origin is from the ancient age, from the days of old!

But you [people of] [APO] Bethlehem in Ephrathah [district need to know that] even though your [town] is a very small one among all the towns in Judah, someone who will rule Israel will be born in your town. [He will be] someone whose family has existed a very long time ago [DOU].

3 But He [[Jehovah]] shall deliver them up, Until she that bringeth forth hath brought forth; Then shall the residue of his brethren return to the children of Israel.

[But now] you people of Israel will be conquered by your enemies; [but it will be for only a short time], like [MET] [the short time that] women have great pain while their babies are being born. After that, your fellow-countrymen who were (exiled/forced to go to other countries) will return to their own country.

4 He shall stand and rule in the strength of Jehovah, In the majesty of Jehovah, his God; And they shall dwell in security, For he shall be great even to the ends of the earth.

And that man who will be ruling [there in Jerusalem] will stand and lead his people well, because Yahweh, his God, will cause him to be strong and greatly honored. Then the people whom he rules will live [in Jerusalem] safely; he will be greatly honored by people all over the earth, [so no one will dare to attack Jerusalem].

5 And he shall be peace. When the Assyrian shall come into our land, To trample upon our palaces, Then shall we raise against him seven shepherds, And eight leaders of the people,

And he will cause things to go well [for his people]. When [the army of] Assyria attacks our country and breaks though our fortresses, we will appoint (seven or eight/several) leaders [to lead our army] to fight against them.

6 And they shall devour the land of Assyria with the sword, The land of Nimrod within her gates. Thus shall he deliver us from the Assyrian, when he cometh into our land, And treadeth in our borders.

With their swords [our army] will defeat the [army of] Assyria, [whose capital was founded by] Nimrod [long ago]. So our army will rescue us from the Assyrian [army] when they invade our country [DOU].

7 The residue of Jacob shall be in the midst of many nations As the dew which cometh from Jehovah, As drops of rain upon the grass, Which tarrieth not for man, Nor waiteth for the sons of men.

The (descendants of Jacob/Israelis) who survive will be [a blessing] to the people of other nations, like [SIM] dew and rain sent by Yahweh do good to the grass. The Israelis will not trust in humans [to help them]; instead, they will rely on Yahweh.

8 The residue of Jacob shall be among the nations, In the midst of many kingdoms, As a lion among the beasts of the forest, As a young lion among flocks of sheep, Who, when he assaulteth, treadeth down and teareth, and none can deliver.

In the midst of [their enemies in] many people-groups [DOU], the descendants of Jacob who remain alive will be like [SIM] a lion among the [other] wild beasts of the forest, like [SIM] a young lion who goes among a flock of sheep and pounces [on one] and (mauls it/tears it to pieces), and no one will be able to rescue [that sheep].

9 Thy hand shall be lifted up over thine adversaries, And all thine enemies shall be destroyed!

You Israelis will defeat [MTY] all your enemies and completely destroy them.

10 It shall come to pass in that day, saith Jehovah, That I will destroy thy horses from the midst of thee, And I will consume thy chariots;

Yahweh says, “At that time, I will destroy [you Israeli people’s] horses [that your soldiers use in war] and your chariots.

11 I will destroy the fortified cities of thy land, And throw down all thy strongholds;

I will tear down your city [walls] and destroy all your fortified cities.

12 I will destroy sorceries from thy borders, And soothsayers shall not be with thee.

I will get rid of all those among you who practice magic and the (fortune-tellers/those who say that they can predict what will happen in the future).

13 I will destroy thy graven images and thy statues from the midst of thee, And thou shalt no more bow down to the work of thine hands;

I will destroy [all] your idols and [sacred stone] pillars, and then you will no longer bow down [and worship] things that you yourselves [SYN] have made.

14 I will root out thy Astartes from the midst of thee, And I will destroy thy fortified cities;

I will get rid of your poles [that represent the goddess] Asherah, and [I will also] destroy all your idols.

15 And I will execute vengeance in anger and in fury Upon the nations which have not hearkened to me.

And because I will be very angry, I will [also] punish [the people of] all the nations who have not obeyed [me].”