OET interlinear MIC 1:9

1:9a

For her wound is incurable: Micah used the word For to introduce the reason for his loud weeping in 1:8a–c. He mourned because the wound that the LORD would soon cause the city of Samaria to suffer is incurable. Here are some other ways to translate this line:

because Samaria’s wound cannot be healed (NCV)

for Samaria’s disease is incurable (NET)

For my people’s wound is too deep to heal. (NLT)

The nation is fatally wounded. (CEV)

wound: In Hebrew, this word is plural. It refers to injuries caused by beating someone, either with fists or with a weapon like a club.

Micah used the word wound as a metaphor. It refers figuratively to punishment from the LORD. This punishment is compared to wounds that cannot be healed.

is incurable: When Micah said that Samaria’s wound was incurable, he meant that the city’s disaster would be certain and severe. The punishment would be so terrible that the people would not recover.

Here are some ways to translate this verse part without using a metaphor:

• Change the metaphor to a simile. For example:

  For the terrible things that will happen to Samaria will definitely take place. The people will not escape. It will be like a severe wound that cannot be healed.

• Translate without using a figure of speech. For example:

  For the LORD will punish the inhabitants of Samaria, and they will not survive.

1:9b–c

In 1:9b–c, Micah gave an additional reason for his sorrow in 1:9a. The reason was that the LORD would not only punish the northern kingdom of Israel with its capital Samaria. He would also punish the land of Judah, including the city of Jerusalem.

The two parallel lines in 1:9b–c are similar in meaning:

^9bit has reached even Judah;

^9cit has approached the gate of my people, as far as Jerusalem itself.

Both lines refer to the southern kingdom of Judah. The second line refers specifically to the capital city, Jerusalem, the center of worship and government.

1:9b

In Hebrew, this portion of the verse begins with the same word (“For”) that was used in 1:9a. Since it is an additional part of the same reason, many English versions, including the BSB, do not translate this word. The connection is clear without an explicit conjunction. For example:

it has come to Judah (NIV)

In some languages, the connection will be clearer with a specific word such as “for” or “and.” For example:

for it has come to Judah (NASB)

and Judah is about to suffer in the same way (GNT)

it has reached even Judah: This means that Samaria’s incurable wound will also come to the land of Judah. The LORD will certainly punish the people who live there. In some languages, it is not natural to say that punishment or disaster reaches a place. It may be more natural to say that it happens in a place or arrives at a place.

Micah spoke as if this disaster had already happened to Judah. He spoke like this to emphasize that the terrible things that will happen to Samaria will also certainly happen in the land of Judah.The Hebrew verb is a qal perfect. In Hebrew, perfect verbs usually refer to past events. But prophets often used perfect verbs to talk about something that was certain to happen in the future.

In many languages, it may be clearer to use a future expression here. For example:

Judah is about to suffer in the same way (GNT)

It will spread to Judah (NCV)

1:9c

it has approached the gate of my people, as far as Jerusalem itself: This line means that even the capital city of Judah, Jerusalem, will experience disaster along with other towns in Judah that will be mentioned in 1:10–16.

The verb tense used here is the same as in 1:9b. See the note and footnote there. Micah used it to emphasize that something would happen in the future. Here are some ways to indicate this future meaning:

It will reach the gates of my people in Jerusalem. (GW)

Jerusalem will fall. (CEV)

the gate of my people, as far as Jerusalem itself: There are two main ways to interpret the connection between the phrase the gate of my people and the phrase as far as Jerusalem:

1. Micah used the word gate as a metaphor. It represents the city of Jerusalem itself. For example:

   It falls on the gateway of my people, on Jerusalem itself. (NJB) (BSB, ESV, KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NJB, NRSV, REB)

2. Micah used the word gate literally. The disaster will reach the gate of Jerusalem itself.According to interpretation (2), Micah’s words refer to what happened in 701 B.C. In 721 B.C. the Assyrian army destroyed Samaria. Then in 201 B.C., the Assyrian army invaded Judah. They captured many towns in Judah. They surrounded Jerusalem and came right up to the city gate. But they did not conquer or destroy Jerusalem. For example:

   destruction has reached the gates of Jerusalem itself, where my people live (GNT) (GW, NCV, NLT, GNT)It is possible that NET refers here to the literal gate, although it gives “gate” a figurative meaning. It has “to the leadership of my people,” and adds a footnote that the word “gate” is used “by metonymy to refer to the leadership who would be present at the gate.”

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1) along with most versions and commentaries.Commentaries that support interpretation (1) include UBS, NICOT, KD, A&F, and Hillers. UBS (page 139) says that the phrase “the gate of my people” “is a picture of the capital city as the center and focus of national life.” A&F (page 198) comments in greater detail: “Targum has the more familiar “gates,” but the other ancient versions support the singular of MT. If the intention was to report the investiture of Jerusalem in siege one might have expected “city gate” (2 Kgs 23:8); compare Isa 14:31, where the construct phrase “the gate of…the city” is broken and distributed over two colons of poetry. It is more likely, in the larger context of the chapter (especially if we read vv 2–9 as a unit) that the goal of the theophany announced in v 3 is “Yahweh’s triumphal entry into the temple precincts of the holy city Jerusalem” (Hanson 1975: 375).” Commentaries that support interpretation (2) include ABC and JFB. JFB (page 688) says: “The foe came to the gate of Jerusalem but did not enter.” ZIBBC (page 126) supports aspects of both interpretations. It says: “In one sense, the gate can stand for the whole city. Assyrian kings often set up memorial stones or impaled kings in front of the gate in order to reach the whole population in the most public terms possible, and they summarized times of siege by noting control over the ability to enter or exit the gate.” The TN editor could not determine which interpretation was followed by Waltke 2007 or NAC.

gate: This word refers to the large gate or doorway in the fortified wall of a city. The city gate was an important place in a city. The city leaders met there to listen to disputes and to make decisions, and people did their buying and selling there also.

In some languages, it may be clearer to translate this metaphor without using a figure of speech. For example:

This terrible thing will happen in the most important place among my people, in Jerusalem itself.

my people: This phrase refers to the people who were part of the same country as Micah. Micah was from Moresheth, a small town in Judah, about 35 kilometers from Jerusalem. (see 1:1a). Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

my fellow citizens

my fellow people from Judah

people of my tribe/country

Use a word or phrase in your language that refers to someone who is from the same country, ethnic group or language group as you, but not necessarily the same village or town.

Jerusalem itself: The name Jerusalem is emphatic in this verse. The BSB marks this with itself. Express this emphasis in a natural way in your language.