Micah 5

1 Now shalt thou gather thyself in troops, O daughter of troops: he hath laid siege against us: they shall smite the judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek.

Gather your troops together, Jerusalem! An enemy is besieging us. They will strike Israel's leader on the cheek with a rod.

2 But thou, Beth-lehem Ephrathah, which art little to be among the thousands of Judah, out of thee shall one come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting.

But from you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, (though you are only a small place in Judah), will come a ruler of Israel to do my will. His existence is from the ages of eternity past.

3 Therefore will he give them up, until the time that she which travaileth hath brought forth: then the residue of his brethren shall return unto the children of Israel.

So the Lord will give up on them until the woman in labor has given birth. Then the rest of his brothers will return to the people of Israel.

4 And he shall stand, and shall feed [his flock] in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God: and they shall abide; for now shall he be great unto the ends of the earth.

He will stand up and feed his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. They will live in safety because his greatness is recognized all over the world.

5 And this [man] shall be [our] peace: when the Assyrian shall come into our land, and when he shall tread in our palaces, then shall we raise against him seven shepherds, and eight principal men.

He will be our source of peace when the Assyrians invade our land and destroy our fortresses. Then we will appoint many strong leaders,

6 And they shall waste the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod in the entrances thereof: and he shall deliver us from the Assyrian, when he cometh into our land, and when he treadeth within our border.

and they will rule Assyria with their swords, the land of Nimrod with drawn swords. He shall rescue us from the Assyrians when they invade our land, marching across our borders.

7 And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many peoples as dew from the LORD, as showers upon the grass; that tarrieth not for man, nor waiteth for the sons of men.

Then those who are left of the people of Jacob shall be in the center of many nations, like dew from the Lord, like showers on the grass, which wait for no one, and which no one can delay.

8 And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the nations, in the midst of many peoples, as a lion among the beasts of the forest, as a young lion among the flocks of sheep: who, if he go through, treadeth down and teareth in pieces, and there is none to deliver.

Those who are left of the people of Jacob shall be among many nations, in the center of many peoples. They will be like a lion among the wild animals of the forest, like a young lion among flocks of sheep, clawing and tearing as it passes through, with no one to come to the rescue.

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

Lift your hand in triumph against your enemies; all of them will be destroyed.

10 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD, that I will cut off thy horses out of the midst of thee, and will destroy thy chariots:

On that day, says the Lord, I will kill your horses and break your chariots.

11 and I will cut off the cities of thy land, and will throw down all thy strong holds:

I will tear down your city walls and demolish your fortresses.

12 And I will cut off witchcrafts out of thine hand; and thou shalt have no [more] soothsayers:

I will stop the witchcraft you practice; there will be no more fortune-tellers for you.

13 and I will cut off thy graven images and thy pillars out of the midst of thee; and thou shalt no more worship the work of thine hands.

I will smash down the idols and stone pillars that stand among you: you shall not bow down and worship idols that you make with your own hands any more.

14 and I will pluck up thine Asherim out of the midst of thee: and I will destroy thy cities.

I will pull up the Asherah poles that you have and destroy your pagan places.

15 And I will execute vengeance in anger and fury upon the nations which hearkened not.

In anger and fury I will execute vengeance on those nations that do not obey me.