MIC 3:4 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=none Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

OET (OET-RV) Then they’ll call out to Yahweh for help,
⇔ but he won’t answer them.
⇔ ≈ He’ll hide himself from them at that time,
⇔ because they’ve done evil things.”

Key: khaki:verbs, red:negative, green:YHWH.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the OET-RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

BrLXX οὕτως κεκράξονται πρὸς τὸν Κύριον, καὶ οὐκ εἰσακούσεται αὐτῶν· καὶ ἀποστρέψει τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ ἀπʼ αὐτῶν ἐν τῷ καιρῷ ἐκείνῳ, ἀνθʼ ὧν ἐπονηρεύσαντο ἐν τοῖς ἐπιτηδεύμασιν αὐτῶν ἐπʼ αὐτούς.
(houtōs kekraxontai pros ton Kurion, kai ouk eisakousetai autōn; kai apostrepsei to prosōpon autou apʼ autōn en tōi kairōi ekeinōi, anthʼ hōn eponaʸreusanto en tois epitaʸdeumasin autōn epʼ autous. )

BrTr thus they shall cry to the Lord, but he shall not hearken to them; and he shall turn away his face from them at that time, because they have done wickedly in their practices against themselves.

ULT Then they will cry out to Yahweh,
⇔ but he will not answer them.
⇔ He will hide his face from them at that time,
⇔ because they have done evil deeds.”

UST Then, when you have troubles, you plead to Yahweh to help you,
⇔ but he will not answer you.
⇔ At that time, he will turn his face away from you
⇔ because of the evil things that you have done.”

OEB ⇔ ‘Then they will cry out to the Lord,
⇔ but he will not pay attention to them.
⇔ He will hide his face from them at that time
⇔ because they have committed such crimes.’

WEBBE Then they will cry to the LORD,
⇔ but he will not answer them.
⇔ Yes, he will hide his face from them at that time,
⇔ because they made their deeds evil.”

WMBB (Same as above)

NET Someday these sinners will cry to the Lord for help,
⇔ but he will not answer them.
⇔ He will hide his face from them at that time,
⇔ because they have done such wicked deeds.”

LSV Then they cry to YHWH,
And He does not answer them,
And hides His face from them at that time,
As they have made evil their doings.

FBV Then they'll cry out to the Lord, but he won't answer them. He will turn away[fn] from them at that time because of the evil things they have done.

3:4 Literally, “hide his face.”

T4T Then, when you have troubles, you plead to Yahweh to help you,
⇔ but he will not answer you.
⇔ At that time, he will turn away from you
⇔ because of the evil things that you have done.”

LEB • Then they will cry to Yahweh, but he will not answer them.
• He will hide his face from them at that time,
• when they have made their deeds evil.

BBE Then they will be crying to the Lord for help, but he will not give them an answer: yes, he will keep his face veiled from them at that time, because their acts have been evil.

Moff One day they shall cry to the Eternal,
⇔ but he will never heed them;
⇔ he will hide his face from them,
⇔ for the crimes they have committed.
¶ 

JPS Then shall they cry unto the LORD, but He will not answer them; yea, He will hide His face from them at that time, according as they have wrought evil in their doings.

ASV Then shall they cry unto Jehovah, but he will not answer them; yea, he will hide his face from them at that time, according as they have wrought evil in their doings.

DRA Then shall they cry to the Lord, and he will not hear them: and he will hide his face from them at that time, as they have behaved wickedly in their devices.

YLT Then do they cry unto Jehovah, And He doth not answer them, And hideth His face from them at that time, As they have made evil their doings.

Drby Then shall they cry unto Jehovah, but he will not answer them; and he will hide his face from them at that time, according as they have wrought evil in their doings.

RV Then shall they cry unto the LORD, but he will not answer them: yea, he will hide his face from them at that time, according as they have wrought evil in their doings.
(Then shall they cry unto the LORD, but he will not answer them: yea, he will hide his face from them at that time, according as they have wrought/done evil in their doings. )

SLT Then shall they cry to Jehovah and he will not answer them, and he will hide his face from them in that time, as their doings were evil.

Wbstr Then shall they cry to the LORD, but he will not hear them: he will even hide his face from them at that time, as they have behaved themselves ill in their doings.

KJB-1769 Then shall they cry unto the LORD, but he will not hear them: he will even hide his face from them at that time, as they have behaved themselves ill in their doings.

KJB-1611 Then shall they cry vnto the LORD, but he will not heare them: he will euen hide his face from them at that time, as they haue behaued themselues ill in their doings.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above)

Bshps Then shall they crye vnto the Lorde, but he wyll not heare them: he wyll euen hide his face from them at that time, because they haue done wickedly in their workes.
(Then shall they cry unto the Lord, but he will not hear them: he will even hide his face from them at that time, because they have done wickedly in their works.)

Gnva Then shall they crye vnto the Lord, but he will not heare them: he wil euen hide his face from them at that time, because they haue done wickedly in their workes.
(Then shall they cry unto the Lord, but he will not hear them: he will even hide his face from them at that time, because they have done wickedly in their works. )

Cvdl Now the tyme shall come, that when they call vnto the LORDE, he shall not heare them, but hyde his face from them: because that thorow their owne ymaginacios, they haue dealte so wickedly.
(Now the time shall come, that when they call unto the LORD, he shall not hear them, but hide his face from them: because that through their own imaginations, they have dealt so wickedly.)

Wycl Thanne thei schulen crie to the Lord, and he schal not here hem; and he schal hide hise face fro hem in that tyme, as thei diden wickidli in her fyndingis.
(Then they should cry to the Lord, and he shall not here hem; and he shall hide his face from hem in that time, as they did wickedly in her fyndingis.)

Luth Darum wenn ihr nun zum HErr’s schreien werdet, wird er euch nicht erhören, sondern wird sein Angesicht vor euch verbergen zur selbigen Zeit, wie ihr mit eurem bösen Wesen verdienet habt.
(Therefore when you(pl)/their/her now for_the LORD’s scream/cry/shout(v) become, becomes he you not hear, rather becomes be face before/in_front_of you hide to/for same time/period, as/like you(pl)/their/her with yours(pl) evil beings deserves have.)

ClVg Tunc clamabunt ad Dominum, et non exaudiet eos, et abscondet faciem suam ab eis in tempore illo, sicut nequiter egerunt in adinventionibus suis.
(Then they_will_cry to the_Master, and not/no will_listen them, and abscondet face his_own away to_them in/into/on at_the_time that/there, like nequiter they_did in/into/on adinventionibus to_his_own. )

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 3:1–12: Micah rebuked the leaders of Israel

In this section, Micah is the speaker. He spoke to the leaders of the Jews and to the prophets. He rebuked (scolded) them for their wicked deeds. He also told them that God would punish the nation because of them.

The Notes will divide this section into three paragraphs:

In 3:1–4, Micah rebuked the judicial leaders.
In 3:5–8, Micah rebuked the wicked prophets.
In 3:9–12, Micah rebuked all the leaders: judges, prophets, and priests.

In each paragraph, Micah used the word “justice” (3:1, 8, 9). In each paragraph, he first rebuked the leaders for their evil deeds. Then he described what would happen as a result of their wickedness. Some versions begin a new paragraph at verse 4 or verse 8. It is recommended that you follow the paragraphs used in the Notes.

Here are some other examples of section headings:

Micah Denounces Israel’s Leaders (GNT)

Leaders and Prophets Rebuked (NIV)

Israel’s Sinful Leaders—Rulers, Prophets, and Priests (GW)

Wicked Rulers and Prophets (NRSV)

Paragraph 3:1–4

In this paragraph, Micah first spoke to the judicial leaders of Israel. He accused them of doing evil and cruel things (verses 1–3). Then he spoke about them. He said that the LORD would punish them (verse 4).

3:4

Here Micah began to speak about the leaders instead of to them, so he used the pronoun “they” instead of “you.” He described the way that the LORD would punish them in the future.

^4aThen they will cry out to the LORD,

^4bbut he will not answer them.

^4cAt that time He will hide His face from them

^4dbecause of the evil they have done.

3:4a

Then they will cry out to the LORD,

The time will come when those wicked leaders will call out to Yahweh for help.
Sometime in the future, when trouble comes, those wicked leaders will pray earnestly to Yahweh. They will say loudly, “Help us^(excl) please!”

Then they will cry out to the LORD: The word Then refers to a time in the future when disaster will come upon the nation. (See 2:3–4.) Here are some other ways to translate this word:

Someday…. (NET)

The time is coming when…. (GNT)

they: The pronoun they refers to the evil leaders that Micah spoke to in 3:1–3. It does not refer to the poor people whom the leaders mistreated. If this pronoun reference is not clear to your readers, you may want to use a more explicit phrase. For example:

Someday these sinners will cry to the Lord for help (NET)

will cry out to the LORD: This phrase means that they will call out loudly to the LORD. They will plead with him to help them, because they are in distress.Waltke 2007 (page 151) says that the phrase used here indicates earnest prayer to God for help in which a person expresses strong emotion. Here is another way to translate this phrase:

In a coming day, they will pray earnestly for the LORD’s help

In some languages, it may be more natural to use a direct quote here. For example:

In the future, those wicked leaders will cry out to the LORD, saying, “Please help us^(excl)!”

3:4a–d

(combined/reordered)

You^(plur) leaders have done very wicked deeds, so in the future, you will plead loudly with Yahweh to rescue/help you, but he will turn his back on you and ignore you.

3:4b

but He will not answer them.

But he will not respond.
But he will not help them.

but He will not answer them: This line implies that the LORD will not respond to their prayers. In other words, he will not help them. Here are some other ways to translate this line:

but he will just ignore them

but he will do nothing

but he will turn a deaf ear to them

The last suggestion is a figurative expression. In some languages, there are similar figures of speech that will effectively communicate the meaning.

Notice that there is a different figure of speech with a similar meaning in the parallel line in 3:4c.

3:4c

At that time He will hide His face from them

When that time comes, he will hide/turn his face from them,
He will absolutely ignore them,

At that time He will hide His face from them: The figurative expression hide His face and the parallel phrase in 3:4b both mean that the LORD will refuse to help them.

Here is a similar figure of speech that also occurs in some other languages:

he will turn his back on them

At that time: This phrase refers to the same time as the word “Then” in 3:4a. Some versions use only one time phrase. See the GNT and CEV in the General Comment on 3:4a–d.

3:4d

because of the evil they have done.

because of the evil deeds they have done.
because of their wicked behavior/actions.

because of the evil they have done: The reason that the LORD will refuse to help the wicked leaders is that they have done evil deeds.

General Comment on 3:4a–d

Some versions translate 3:4a–d using the pronoun “you” instead of “they.” They do this so that the pronoun “you” will be used consistently in 3:1–4. For example:

Then you will cry to the Lord, ^bbut he will not answer you. ^cHe will hide his face from you at that time because you have done evil things. (GW)

The time is coming when you will cry out to the Lord, but he will not answer you. He will not listen to your prayers, for you have done evil. (GNT)

Someday you will beg the Lord to help you, ^b-dbut he will turn away because of your sins. (CEV)

Notice that the GW uses separate time phrases for 4a and 4c. The CEV combines 4b–d into one line.

If it is clearer or more natural in your language to use “you” pronouns in 3:4 as well as 3:1–3, you may do so.

Parallel MIC 3:4