Micah 6:5-15

5 O My people, remember, I pray you, What counsel did Balak king of Moab, What answer him did Balaam son of Beor, (From Shittim unto Gilgal,) In order to know the righteous acts of Jehovah.'

6 With what do I come before Jehovah? Do I bow to God Most High? Do I come before Him with burnt-offerings? With calves -- sons of a year?

7 Is Jehovah pleased with thousands of rams? With myriads of streams of oil? Do I give my first-born [for] my transgression? The fruit of my body [for] the sin of my soul?

8 He hath declared to thee, O man, what [is] good; Yea, what is Jehovah requiring of thee, Except -- to do judgment, and love kindness, And lowly to walk with thy God?

9 A voice of Jehovah to the city calleth, And wisdom doth fear Thy name, Hear ye the rod, and Him who appointed it.

10 Are there yet [in] the house of the wicked Treasures of wickedness, And the abhorred scanty ephah?

11 Do I reckon [it] pure with balances of wickedness? And with a bag of deceitful stones?

12 Whose rich ones have been full of violence, And its inhabitants have spoken falsehood, And their tongue [is] deceitful in their mouth.

13 And I also, I have begun to smite thee, To make desolate, because of thy sins.

14 Thou -- thou eatest, and thou art not satisfied, And thy pit [is] in thy midst, And thou removest, and dost not deliver, And that which thou deliverest, to a sword I give.

15 Thou -- thou sowest, and thou dost not reap, Thou -- thou treadest the olive, And thou pourest not out oil, And new wine -- and thou drinkest not wine.

Micah 6:5-15 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO MICAH 6

This chapter contains reproofs of the people of Israel for their sins, threatening them with punishment for them. The prophet is bid to tell them of the controversy the Lord had with them, which he did, Mic 6:1,2; and the Lord calls upon them to declare if they had any thing to object to his attitude towards them, Mic 6:3; and then puts them in mind of the favours they had received from him, in bringing them out of Egypt, and giving them such useful persons to go before them, lead and instruct them, as he had, Mic 6:4; and also reminds them of what passed between Balak, king of Moab, and Balaam the soothsayer; the questions of the one, and the answer of the other; whereby the designs of the former against them were frustrated, Mic 6:5-8; but since the voice of the Lord by his prophet was disregarded by them, they are called upon to hearken to the voice of his rod, Mic 6:9; which should be laid upon them for their fraudulent dealings, injustice, oppression, lies, and deceit, Mic 6:10-12; and therefore are threatened with sickness and desolation, and a deprivation of all good things, the fruit of their labours, Mic 6:13-15; and that because the statutes of Omri, the works of Ahab, and their counsels, were observed by them, Mic 6:16.