⁶What shall I bring to the Lord, the God of heaven, when I come to worship him? Shall I bring the best calves to burn as offerings to him? ⁷Will the Lord be pleased if I bring him thousands of sheep or endless streams of olive oil? Shall I offer him my firstborn child to pay for my sins? ⁸No, the Lord has told us what is good. What he requires of us is this: to do what is just, to show constant love, and to live in humble fellowship with our God.

⁹It is wise to fear the Lord. He calls to the city, “Listen, you people who assemble in the city!^j ¹⁰In the houses of evil people are treasures which they got dishonestly. They use false measures, a thing that I hate.^k ¹¹How can I forgive those who use false scales and weights? ¹²Your rich people exploit the poor, and all of you are liars. ¹³So I have already begun^l your ruin and destruction because of your sins.

Read in Logos

Micah 6:8: He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?

Footnotes

jProbable text who assemble in the city; Hebrew and who appointed it. Yet.
kVerse 10 in Hebrew is unclear.
lSome ancient translations begun; Hebrew made ill.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

“With what shall I come before the Lord,

and bow myself before God on high?

Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,

with calves a year old?

Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,

with ten thousands of rivers of oil?

Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression,

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

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

and what does the Lord require of you

but to do justice, and to love kindness,

and to walk humbly with your God?

The voice of the Lord cries to the city—

and it is sound wisdom to fear your name:

“Hear of the rod and of him who appointed it!

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

and the scant measure that is accursed?

Shall I acquit the man with wicked scales

and with a bag of deceitful weights?

Your rich men are full of violence;

your inhabitants speak lies,

and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.

Therefore I strike you with a grievous blow,

making you desolate because of your sins.

NIVNew International Version (2011)

With what shall I come before the Lord

and bow down before the exalted God?

Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,

with calves a year old?

Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,

with ten thousand rivers of olive oil?

Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression,

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

He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.

And what does the Lord require of you?

To act justly and to love mercy

and to walk humbly with your God.

Listen! The Lord is calling to the city—

and to fear your name is wisdom—

“Heed the rod and the One who appointed it.

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

and the short ephah, which is accursed?

Shall I acquit someone with dishonest scales,

with a bag of false weights?

Your rich people are violent;

your inhabitants are liars

and their tongues speak deceitfully.

Therefore, I have begun to destroy you,

to ruin you because of your sins.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

What should I bring before the Lord

when I come to bow before God on high?

Should I come before him with burnt offerings,

with year-old calves?

Would the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams

or with ten thousand streams of oil?

Should I give my firstborn for my transgression,

the offspring of my body for my own sin?

Mankind, he has told each of you what is good

and what it is the Lord requires of you:

to act justly,

to love faithfulness,

and to walk humbly with your God.

The voice of the Lord calls out to the city

(and it is wise to fear your name):

“Pay attention to the rod

and the one who ordained it.

Are there still the treasures of wickedness

and the accursed short measure

in the house of the wicked?

Can I excuse wicked scales

or bags of deceptive weights?

For the wealthy of the city are full of violence,

and its residents speak lies;

the tongues in their mouths are deceitful.

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

bringing desolation because of your sins.

NLTNew Living Translation

What can we bring to the Lord?

Should we bring him burnt offerings?

Should we bow before God Most High

with offerings of yearling calves?

Should we offer him thousands of rams

and ten thousand rivers of olive oil?

Should we sacrifice our firstborn children

to pay for our sins?

No, O people, the Lord has told you what is good,

and this is what he requires of you:

to do what is right, to love mercy,

and to walk humbly with your God.

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.

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?

How can I tolerate your merchants

who use dishonest scales and weights?

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.

“Therefore, I will wound you!

I will bring you to ruin for all your sins.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

With what shall I approach Yahweh,

and bow down to God on high?

Shall I approach him with burnt offerings,

with bull calves a year old?

Will Yahweh be pleased with thousands of rams,

with myriads of rivers of oil?

Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression,

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

He has told you, O mortal, what is good,

and what does Yahweh ask from you

but to do justice, and to love kindness,

and to walk humbly with your God?

The voice of Yahweh calls to the city

(it is sound judgment to fear your name):

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

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

treasures of wickedness,

and the ephah of scarcity which is accursed?

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

and with a bag of deceitful weights?

Because her rich are full of violence,

and her inhabitants speak lies,

and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.

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

making you desolate because of your sins.

KJV 1900King James Version

Wherewith shall I come before the Lord,

And bow myself before the high God?

Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,

With calves of a year old?

Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,

Or with ten thousands of rivers of oil?

Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression,

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

He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good;

And what doth the Lord require of thee,

But to do justly, and to love mercy,

And to walk humbly with thy God?

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.

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

And the scant measure that is abominable?

Shall I count them pure with the wicked balances,

And with the bag of deceitful weights?

For the rich men thereof are full of violence,

And the inhabitants thereof have spoken lies,

And their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.

Therefore also will I make thee sick in smiting thee,

In making thee desolate because of thy sins.

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