Micah 6:1–16

The Indictment of the Lord

6^qHear what the Lord says:

Arise, plead your case before the mountains,

and let the hills hear your voice.

^2rHear, you mountains, ^sthe indictment of the Lord,

and you enduring foundations of the earth,

for the Lord has an indictment against his people,

and he will contend with Israel.

³“O my people, ^twhat have I done to you?

^uHow have I wearied you? Answer me!

⁴For ^vI brought you up from the land of Egypt

and ^wredeemed you from the house of slavery,

and I sent before you Moses,

Aaron, and ^xMiriam.

⁵O my people, remember ^ywhat Balak king of Moab devised,

and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him,

and what happened from ^zShittim to Gilgal,

that you may know ^athe righteous acts of the Lord.”

What Does the Lord Require?

^6b“With what shall I come before the Lord,

and bow myself before ^cGod on high?

Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,

with calves a year old?

^7dWill the Lord be pleased with¹ thousands of rams,

with ten thousands of rivers of oil?

^eShall I give my firstborn for my transgression,

the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”

⁸He has told you, O man, what is good;

and ^fwhat does the Lord require of you

but to do justice, and to love kindness,²

and to ^gwalk humbly with your God?

Destruction of the Wicked

⁹The voice of the Lord cries to the city—

and it is sound wisdom to fear ^hyour name:

“Hear of ⁱthe rod and of him who appointed it!³

¹⁰Can I forget any longer the treasures⁴ of wickedness in the house of the wicked,

and the scant measure that is accursed?

¹¹Shall I acquit the man ^jwith wicked scales

and with a bag of deceitful weights?

¹²Your⁵ rich men are ^kfull of violence;

your inhabitants ^lspeak lies,

and ^mtheir tongue is deceitful in their mouth.

¹³Therefore I strike you with a grievous blow,

ⁿmaking you desolate because of your sins.

^14oYou shall eat, but not be satisfied,

and there shall be hunger within you;

you shall put away, but not preserve,

and what you preserve I will give to the sword.

^15pYou shall sow, but not reap;

you shall tread olives, but not anoint yourselves with oil;

you shall tread grapes, but not drink wine.

¹⁶For you have kept the statutes of ^qOmri,⁶

and all the works of the house of ^rAhab;

and you have walked in their counsels,

that I may make you ^sa desolation, and your⁷ inhabitants ^sa hissing;

so you shall bear ^tthe scorn of my people.”