OET interlinear MIC 4:5

4:5a–b

In 4:1–4, Micah spoke about the future. But here in 4:5, he spoke about the situation in his own time. Notice the parallel lines that contrast in meaning:

^5aThough each of the peoples may walk in the name of his god,

^5byet we will walk in the name of the LORD our God forever and ever.

Though…yet…: There is a Hebrew conjunction at the beginning of this verse that introduces a reason for the promise of a peaceful life in 4:4.EBC (page 526). According to KD (page 311), “If, therefore, Israel rejoices for ever and ever in the strength of its God, the heathen nations cannot disturb the peace which He will create for Israel and all who accept His word. In this way is the promise in vv. 3 and 4 explained in v. 5.” This conjunction is often translated as “for” (see NRSV). But 4:5 also makes a clear contrast between the nations who still worship their own gods (Though) and the Jews who will worship the true God forever (yet). There are several ways to express this combination of reason and contrast:

• Use explicit conjunctions such as “for” and “but” to introduce both the reason and the contrast. For example:

  ^5a For all the peoples walk, each in the name of its god,

  ^5b but we will walk in the name of the Lord our God forever and ever. (NRSV)

• Leave the reason implied, but use an explicit conjunction to express the contrast, as the BSB does. For example:

  ^5aAll other nations may follow their own gods,

  ^5b but we will follow the Lord our God forever and ever. (NCV)

  ^5a Though all the peoples walk each in the name of his god,

  ^5bas for us, we will walk in the name of the Lord our God forever and ever. (NASB) Notice that the NASB adds to the contrast by using the phrase “as for us.”

• Leave both the reason and the contrast implied. For example:

  ^5aAll the nations may walk in the name of their gods;

  ^5bwe will walk in the name of the Lord our God for ever and ever. (NIV)

4:5a

each of the peoples may walk in the name of his god: In Hebrew, the words “each…his” are singular. They imply that each of the other nations worships its own god. Some versions use plural pronouns here, because many of the other nations worshiped more than one false god or idol. For example:

Other peoples may be loyal to their own deities (REB)

Though the nations around us follow their idols (NLT)

All the nations live by the names of their gods (GW)

See also the NCV and NIV (quoted above in 4:5a–b).

You may use either singular or plural forms in your language.

walk in the name of his god: This phrase is a figure of speech. It means to worship a particular god in a way that is consistent with that god’s requirements and attributes. The REB “be loyal to” and NLT “follow” (quoted above) are two ways to express this idea.

4:5b

we: The pronoun we here is emphatic. If your language distinguishes between inclusive and exclusive pronouns, you should probably use the inclusive form here. Micah assumed that he and his audience will all worship the true God.

will walk in the name of the LORD our God forever and ever: To walk in the name of the LORD…forever and ever may imply that the Jewish people persevere in following the LORD by using the strength that is one of his attributes.According to KD (page 311), walking in the name of God means “walking in the strength of God, in which the nature of this God is displayed.” EBC (page 526) says: To “walk in the name” is to enjoy the strength expressed in God’s attributes. NAC (pages 87–88) also mentions “walk in the strength of” as a possible meaning. If it is appropriate to make this implication explicit in your translation or to mention it in a footnote, you may do so.

You may decide to leave the figurative expression name of implied. For example:

we will follow the Lord our God forever (NET)

forever and ever: This phrase is an emphatic way to say “forever.” Some languages may have a way to emphasize the word “forever.” Otherwise, you may follow the example of versions such as the NET (quoted above).