Micah 6:9–14

9 Listen! The Lord is calling to the city—

and to fear your name is wisdom—

“Heed the rod and the One who appointed it.

10 Am I still to forget your ill-gotten treasures, you wicked house,

and the short ephah, which is accursed?

11 Shall I acquit someone with dishonest scales,

with a bag of false weights?

12 Your rich people are violent;

your inhabitants are liars

and their tongues speak deceitfully.

13 Therefore, I have begun to destroy you,

to ruin you because of your sins.

14 You will eat but not be satisfied;

your stomach will still be empty.

You will store up but save nothing,

because what you save I will give to the sword.

9 The Lord’s voice crieth unto the city,

And the man of wisdom shall see thy name:

Hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it.

10 Are there yet the treasures of wickedness in the house of the wicked,

And the scant measure that is abominable?

11 Shall I count them pure with the wicked balances,

And with the bag of deceitful weights?

12 For the rich men thereof are full of violence,

And the inhabitants thereof have spoken lies,

And their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.

13 Therefore also will I make thee sick in smiting thee,

In making thee desolate because of thy sins.

14 Thou shalt eat, but not be satisfied;

And thy casting down shall be in the midst of thee;

And thou shalt take hold, but shalt not deliver;

And that which thou deliverest will I give up to the sword.

9 Fear the Lord if you are wise!

His voice calls to everyone in Jerusalem:

“The armies of destruction are coming;

the Lord is sending them.

10 What shall I say about the homes of the wicked

filled with treasures gained by cheating?

What about the disgusting practice

of measuring out grain with dishonest measures?

11 How can I tolerate your merchants

who use dishonest scales and weights?

12 The rich among you have become wealthy

through extortion and violence.

Your citizens are so used to lying

that their tongues can no longer tell the truth.

13 “Therefore, I will wound you!

I will bring you to ruin for all your sins.

14 You will eat but never have enough.

Your hunger pangs and emptiness will remain.

And though you try to save your money,

it will come to nothing in the end.

You will save a little,

but I will give it to those who conquer you.

9 The Lord’s voice cries to the city—

Wisdom shall see Your name:

“Hear the rod!

Who has appointed it?

10 Are there yet the treasures of wickedness

In the house of the wicked,

And the short measure that is an abomination?

11 Shall I count pure those with the wicked scales,

And with the bag of deceitful weights?

12 For her rich men are full of violence,

Her inhabitants have spoken lies,

And their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.

13 “Therefore I will also make you sick by striking you,

By making you desolate because of your sins.

14 You shall eat, but not be satisfied;

Hunger shall be in your midst.

You may carry some away, but shall not save them;

And what you do rescue I will give over to the sword.

9 The voice of the Lord calls to the city,

and the wise person honors him.

So pay attention to the rod of punishment;

pay attention to the One who threatens to punish.

10 Are there still in the wicked house

wicked treasures

and the cursed false measure?

11 Can I forgive people who cheat others

with wrong weights and scales?

12 The rich people of the city

do cruel things.

Its people tell lies;

they do not tell the truth.

13 As for me, I will make you sick.

I will attack you, ruining you because of your sins.

14 You will eat, but you won’t become full;

you will still be hungry and empty.

You will store up, but save nothing,

and what you store up, the sword will destroy.

9 The voice of Jehovah crieth unto the city, and the man of wisdom will see thy name: hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it. 10 Are there yet treasures of wickedness in the house of the wicked, and a scant measure that is abominable? 11 Shall I be pure with wicked balances, and with a bag of deceitful weights? 12 For the rich men thereof are full of violence, and the inhabitants thereof have spoken lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth. 13 Therefore I also have smitten thee with a grievous wound; I have made thee desolate because of thy sins. 14 Thou shalt eat, but not be satisfied; and thy humiliation shall be in the midst of thee: and thou shalt put away, but shalt not save; and that which thou savest will I give up to the sword.

9 Jehovah’s voice crieth unto the city, and wisdom looketh on thy name. Hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it. 10 Are there yet treasures of wickedness in the house of the wicked, and the scant measure which is abominable? 11 Shall I be pure with the unjust balances, and with the bag of deceitful weights? 12 For her rich men are full of violence, and her inhabitants speak lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth. 13 Therefore also will I make thee sick in smiting thee; I will make thee desolate because of thy sins. 14 Thou shalt eat, and not be satisfied, and thine emptiness shall remain in the midst of thee; and thou shalt take away, and not save; and what thou savest will I give up to the sword.

9 The voice of the Lord calls out to the city. 

(The fear of your name is wisdom.) 

“Listen, you tribe assembled in the city.

10 I have cursed all the wicked people who use their money for evil 

and use inaccurate weights and measures. 

11 I cannot tolerate dishonest scales 

and bags filled with inaccurate weights. 

12 The rich people in the city are violent. 

Those who live in the city speak lies, 

and their tongues speak deceitfully. 

13 I have begun to strike you with heavy blows 

and to ruin you because of your sins. 

14 You will eat, but you won’t be full. 

So you will always be hungry. 

You will put things away, but you won’t save them. 

Anything you save I will destroy. 

9 The voice of Yahweh calls out to the city

(and it is wise to fear Your name):

“Pay attention to the rod

and the One who ordained it.

10 Are there still the treasures of wickedness

and the accursed short measure

in the house of the wicked?

11 Can I excuse wicked scales

or bags of deceptive weights?

12 For the wealthy of the city are full of violence,

and its residents speak lies;

the tongues in their mouths are deceitful.

13 “As a result, I have begun to strike you severely,

bringing desolation because of your sins.

14 You will eat but not be satisfied,

for there will be hunger within you.

What you acquire, you cannot save,

and what you do save,

I will give to the sword.

9 The voice of the Lord cries to the city

(and he shall save those who fear his name):

Hear, O tribe and assembly of the city!

10 Can I forget the treasures of wickedness in the house of the wicked

and the despicable false measure?

11 Can I tolerate wicked scales

and a bag of dishonest weights?

12 Your wealthy are full of violence;

your inhabitants speak lies

with tongues of deceit in their mouths.

13 Therefore I have begun to strike you down,

making you desolate because of your sins.

14 You shall eat but not be satisfied,

and there shall be a gnawing hunger within you;

you shall put away but not save,

and what you save, I will hand over to the sword.

9 The voice of Yahweh calls to the city

(it is sound judgment to fear your name):

“Hear, O staff! Now who has appointed it?

10 Is there any longer a man in the house of the wicked

treasures of wickedness,

and the ephah of scarcity which is accursed?

11 Shall I regard as pure the one with scales of wickedness,

and with a bag of deceitful weights?

12 Because her rich are full of violence,

and her inhabitants speak lies,

and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.

13 And I also have made you sick by striking you down,

making you desolate because of your sins.

14 You yourself will eat but not be satisfied;

your hunger will be in your midst,

and you will put away, but you will not save,

and what you save I will hand over to the sword.

9 The Lord is calling out to Jerusalem.

And it would be wise to pay attention to him.

He says, “Listen, tribe of Judah

and you people who are gathered in the city.

10 You sinful people, should I forget

that you got your treasures by stealing them?

You use dishonest measures to cheat others.

I have placed a curse on that practice.

11 Should I forgive you who use dishonest scales?

You use weights that weigh things heavier

or lighter than they really are.

12 The rich people among you harm others.

You are always telling lies.

You try to fool others by what you say.

13 So I will strike you down.

I will destroy you

because you have sinned so much.

14 You will eat. But you will not be satisfied.

Your stomachs will still be empty.

You will try to save what you can.

But you will not be able to.

If you do save something,

it will be destroyed in battle.

9 The voice of the Lord will call to the city—

And it is sound wisdom to fear Your name:

“Hear, O tribe. Who has appointed its time?

10 “Is there yet a man in the wicked house,

Along with treasures of wickedness

And a short measure that is cursed?

11 “Can I justify wicked scales

And a bag of deceptive weights?

12 “For the rich men of the city are full of violence,

Her residents speak lies,

And their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.

13 “So also I will make you sick, striking you down,

Desolating you because of your sins.

14 “You will eat, but you will not be satisfied,

And your vileness will be in your midst.

You will try to remove for safekeeping,

But you will not preserve anything,

And what you do preserve I will give to the sword.