1A message from the Lord came to Micah. He was from the town of Moresheth. The message came while Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah were kings of Judah. This is the vision Micah saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem. Here is what he said.
2Listen to me, all you nations!
Earth and everyone who lives in it, pay attention!
The Lord and King will be a witness against you.
The Lord will speak from his holy temple in heaven.
The Lord Will Judge Samaria and Jerusalem
3The Lord is about to come down
from his home in heaven.
He rules over even the highest places on earth.
4The mountains will melt under him
like wax near a fire.
The valleys will be broken apart
by water rushing down a slope.
5All this will happen because
Jacob’s people have done what is wrong.
The people of Israel
have committed many sins.
Who is to blame
for the wrong things Jacob has done?
Samaria!
Who is to blame for the high places
where Judah’s people worship other gods?
Jerusalem!
6So the Lord says,
“I will turn Samaria into a pile of trash.
It will become a place for planting vineyards.
I will dump its stones down into the valley.
And I will destroy it
down to its very foundations.
7All the statues of Samaria’s gods
will be broken to pieces.
All the gifts its people gave to temple prostitutes
will be burned with fire.
I will destroy all the statues of its gods.
Samaria collected gifts that were paid to temple prostitutes.
So the Assyrians will use the gifts
to pay their own temple prostitutes.”
Micah Weeps Over His People
8I will weep and mourn because Samaria will be destroyed.
I’ll walk around barefoot and naked.
I’ll bark like a wild dog.
I’ll hoot like an owl.
9Samaria’s plague can’t be healed.
The plague has spread to Judah.
It has spread right up to the gate of my people.
It has spread to Jerusalem itself.
10Don’t tell the people of Gath about it.
Don’t let them see you weep.
People in Beth Ophrah, roll in the dust.
11You who live in the town of Shaphir,
leave naked and in shame.
Those who live in Zaanan
won’t come out to help you.
The people in Beth Ezel will mourn.
They won’t be able to help keep you safe any longer.
12Those who live in Maroth will groan with pain
as they wait for help.
That’s because the Lord will bring trouble on them.
It will reach the very gate of Jerusalem.
13You who live in Lachish,
get your fast horses ready to pull their chariots.
You trust in military power.
Lachish was where sin began
for the people of Zion.
The wrong things Israel did
were also done by you.
14People of Judah, you might as well say goodbye
to Moresheth near Gath.
The town of Akzib won’t give any help
to the kings of Israel.
15An enemy will attack
you who live in Mareshah.
Israel’s nobles will have to run away
and hide in the cave of Adullam.
16The children you enjoy so much
will be taken away as prisoners.
So shave your heads and mourn.
Make them as bare as the head of a vulture.
11:1 Yer 26:18; 2Pet 1:21; 1Nya 3:12-13; Hos 1:1; Isa 1:1Neno la Bwana lilimjia Mika, Mmoreshethi, wakati wa utawala wa Yothamu, Ahazi na Hezekia, wafalme wa Yuda; ufunuo aliouona kuhusu Samaria na Yerusalemu.
21:2 Kum 4:26; 32:1; Yer 6:19; Mwa 31:50; Za 11:4; Isa 1:2Sikieni, enyi mataifa, enyi nyote,
sikilizeni, ee dunia na wote mliomo ndani yake,
ili Bwana Mwenyezi ashuhudie dhidi yenu,
Bwana kutoka Hekalu lake takatifu.
Hukumu Dhidi Ya Samaria Na Yerusalemu
31:3 Isa 18:4; 64:1; 26:21; Eze 3:12; Ebr 12:18, 19; Amo 4:13Tazama! Bwana anakuja kutoka mahali pake;
anashuka na kukanyaga
mahali palipoinuka juu pa dunia.
41:4 Za 46:2-6; Hes 16:31; Nah 1:5Milima inayeyuka chini yake
na mabonde yanagawanyika
kama nta mbele ya moto,
kama maji yatiririkayo kasi
kwenye mteremko.
51:5 Amo 8:14; Hos 5:5; Yer 2:18-19Yote haya ni kwa sababu ya kosa la Yakobo,
ni kwa sababu ya dhambi za nyumba ya Israeli.
Kosa la Yakobo ni lipi?
Je, sio Samaria?
Je, mahali pa juu pa Yuda pa kuabudia miungu ni nini?
Je, sio Yerusalemu?
61:6 Kum 20:6; Amo 5:11“Kwa hiyo nitaufanya Samaria kuwa lundo la kokoto,
mahali pa kuotesha mizabibu.
Nitayamwaga mawe yake katika bonde
na kuacha wazi misingi yake.
71:7 Eze 6:6; Kut 32:20; Kum 9:21; 23:17-18Sanamu zake zote
zitavunjwa vipande vipande;
zawadi zake zote za Hekalu
zitachomwa kwa moto;
nitaharibu vinyago vyake vyote.
Kwa kuwa alikusanya zawadi zake
kutokana na ujira wa kahaba,
nazo zitatumika tena
kulipa mishahara ya kahaba.”
Kulia Na Kuomboleza
81:8 Isa 15:3; 20:2Kwa ajili ya hili nitalia na kuomboleza;
nitatembea bila viatu na tena uchi.
Nitabweka kama mbweha
na kuomboleza kama bundi.
91:9 Yer 46:11; 10:19; 2Fal 18:13; Isa 3:26Kwa sababu jeraha lake halitibiki;
limekuja Yuda.
Limefika hasa kwenye lango la watu wangu,
hata Yerusalemu kwenyewe.
10Usiliseme hili huko Gathi;
usilie hata kidogo.
Huko Beth-le-Afra
gaagaa mavumbini.
111:11 Eze 23:29Piteni mkiwa uchi na wenye aibu,
ninyi mkaao Shafiri.
Wale waishio Saanani
hawatatoka nje.
Beth-Eseli iko katika maombolezo;
kinga yake imeondolewa kwako.
121:12 Yer 14:19; 40:2Wale waishio Marothi wanagaagaa kwa maumivu
wakingoja msaada,
kwa sababu maangamizi yamekuja
kutoka kwa Bwana,
hata katika lango la Yerusalemu.
131:13 Yos 10:3; Za 9:14Enyi mkaao Lakishi,
fungeni farasi kwenye magari ya vita.
Mlikuwa chanzo cha dhambi
kwa Binti Sayuni,
kwa kuwa makosa ya Israeli
yalikutwa kwako.
141:14 2Fal 16:8; Yos 15:44; Yer 15:18Kwa hiyo utaipa Moresheth-Gathi
zawadi za kuagana.
Mji wa Akzibu utaonyesha wazi udanganyifu
kwa wafalme wa Israeli.
151:15 Yos 15:44; 12:15Nitawaleteeni atakayewashinda
ninyi mnaoishi Maresha.
Yeye aliye utukufu wa Israeli
atakuja Adulamu.
161:16 Law 13:40; Ay 1:20; 2Fal 18:13; Amo 5:27; Kum 4:27Nyoeni nywele zenu katika kuomboleza
kwa ajili ya watoto wenu mnaowafurahia;
jifanyieni upara kama tai,
kwa kuwa watawaacha
na kwenda uhamishoni.