A Prophet's Lament and Trust in God
Micah 7:1-7
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Mic.7.1 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- אללי: INTJ
- לי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- כי: CONJ
- הייתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,sg
- כאספי: PREP+NOUN+PRON,m,sg,1,sg
- קיץ: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- כעללת: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- בציר: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אין: PART,neg
- אשכול: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לאכול: VERB,qal,inf
- בכורה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אותה: PRON,dem,3,f,sg
- נפשי: NOUN,f,sg,abs+1cs
Parallels
- Amos 8:1-2 (verbal): Uses the image of a basket of summer fruit to convey harvest imagery and impending loss—parallels Micah’s ‘like summer fruit’ lament.
- Habakkuk 3:17 (thematic): Speaks of fig trees not blossoming and loss of crops; both verses use failed fruit/harvest imagery to express desperate loss.
- Joel 1:10-12 (thematic): A communal lament over ruined fields, vines and figs—shares the theme of desolation of produce and mourning for lost sustenance.
- Ezekiel 15:1-8 (thematic): Declares a vine’s uselessness when it bears no fruit and consequent judgment—echoes Micah’s emphasis on fruitlessness as a sign of disaster.
- Isaiah 6:5 (verbal): The prophet’s exclamation “Woe is me!” parallels Micah’s opening cry of distress, linking prophetic self-lament in the face of judgment.
Alternative generated candidates
- Alas for me! I am like the gleanings of the summer, like the last clusters of the vintage; there is no cluster to eat, no early fig that my soul desires.
- Alas for me! I am like the summer gleaning, like the last cluster of the vintage—there is no bunch to eat; my soul longs for the earliest fig.
Mic.7.2 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- אבד: VERB,qal,infabs
- חסיד: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- מן: PREP
- הארץ: NOUN,f,sg,def
- וישר: CONJ+ADJ,m,sg,abs
- באדם: PREP
- אין: PART,neg
- כלם: PRON,3,m,pl
- לדמים: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- יארבו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- איש: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- את: PRT,acc
- אחיהו: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יצודו: VERB,qal,impf,3,pl
- חרם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Psalm 14:1-3 (thematic): Declares that no one is righteous and all have turned aside—echoes Micah's lament that the faithful are gone and no upright person remains.
- Proverbs 1:11-12 (verbal): Speaks of companions saying 'Let us lie in wait for blood' and ambushing the innocent—language and imagery closely parallel Micah's 'they lie in wait for blood' and 'each hunts his brother.'
- Isaiah 59:7-8 (verbal): Describes feet running to evil and making haste to shed innocent blood, with deceit and violence pervasive—a thematic and verbal catalogue of communal violence like Micah's.
- Ezekiel 22:6-7 (structural): Accuses the land of reports of bloodshed and conspiracies among inhabitants; both passages present a communal indictment for violence and betrayal of kin.
Alternative generated candidates
- The faithful have perished from the earth; upright among mankind there is none. They all lie in wait for blood; each man hunts his brother with a net.
- The faithful have perished from the earth, and there is no upright man among mankind; they all lie in wait for blood; each hunts his brother with a net.
Mic.7.3 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- על: PREP
- הרע: ADJ,m,sg,def
- כפים: NOUN,f,du,abs
- להיטיב: VERB,qal,inf
- השר: NOUN,m,sg,def
- שאל: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- והשפט: CONJ+VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- בשלום: PREP
- והגדול: CONJ+ADJ,m,sg,def
- דבר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- הות: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- נפשו: NOUN,f,sg,abs+PRON,3,m,sg
- הוא: PRON,3,m,sg
- ויעבתוה: VERB,qal,perf,3,pl+PRON,3,m,sg
Parallels
- Deuteronomy 16:19 (verbal): Both condemn perversion of justice and the acceptance of bribes; Deut. explicitly forbids taking a bribe because it blinds the eyes of the wise, parallel to Micah's critique of corrupt rulers and judges.
- Isaiah 1:23 (thematic): Isaiah rebukes leaders who 'love bribes and chase after gifts' and fail to defend the vulnerable, closely echoing Micah’s portrait of corrupt officials and perverted justice.
- Jeremiah 5:26-28 (verbal): Jeremiah charges the people with being 'skilled in doing evil' and with leaders who do not plead for orphans and widows—language and themes that closely mirror Micah 7:3.
- Amos 5:12 (thematic): Amos condemns those who afflict the righteous, accept bribes, and turn aside the needy—a prophetic denunciation of judicial and social corruption akin to Micah’s complaint.
- Proverbs 17:23 (verbal): Proverbs states that the wicked accepts a bribe to pervert justice, directly paralleling Micah’s focus on bribery and the distortion of right judgment.
Alternative generated candidates
- Both hands are practiced in doing evil; the ruler demands gifts, the judge accepts bribes, and the great man speaks what his soul desires—so they conspire.
- Their hands are trained for evil; the ruler demands a bribe, the judge seeks a reward, and the great man utters what pleases him—so they scheme together.
Mic.7.4 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- טובם: NOUN,m,sg,abs+3mp
- כחדק: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ישר: ADJ,m,sg
- ממסוכה: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- יום: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- מצפיך: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs+2ms
- פקדתך: NOUN,f,sg,abs+2ms
- באה: VERB,qal,perf,3,f,sg
- עתה: ADV
- תהיה: VERB,qal,imperfect,3,f,sg
- מבוכתם: NOUN,f,sg,abs+3mp
Parallels
- Judges 9:14-15 (verbal): Uses the bramble/brier (bramble bush) image to depict worthless leadership—parallels Micah's simile of the 'best' as a brier.
- Psalm 14:1-3 (verbal): Declares universal corruption ('there is none who does good'), echoing Micah's indictment that few if any are upright.
- Romans 3:10-12 (quotation): Paul quotes Psalm 14/53 ('None is righteous') to state human depravity—the New Testament reiteration of the same theological claim found in Micah.
- Ezekiel 33:6-7 (thematic): Develops the 'watchman' motif and corporate responsibility for warning/judgment, resonating with Micah's 'day of your watchmen' and coming visitation.
- Jeremiah 12:2 (thematic): Complains about the prosperity and security of the treacherous; thematically parallels Micah's denunciation of pervasive deceit and the announcement of judgment.
Alternative generated candidates
- Their best is like a thorn, the most upright like a hedge. The day of your watching, the day of your reckoning, will come—then they shall be ashamed.
- The best of them is like a thornbush, the most upright like a hedge of thorns. The day of your watchmen—your visitation has come; now they will be ashamed.
Mic.7.5 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- אל: NEG
- תאמינו: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,pl
- ברע: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אל: NEG
- תבטחו: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,pl
- באלוף: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- משכבת: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- חיקך: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- שמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- פתחי: NOUN,m,pl,const
- פיך: NOUN,m,sg,abs+2ms
Parallels
- Psalm 41:9 (verbal): Speaks of betrayal by a close companion—'even my close friend in whom I trusted'—paralleling Micah's warning not to trust a neighbor or one in your bosom.
- Psalm 55:12-14 (thematic): Complains of betrayal by an intimate companion and fellow traveler, echoing Micah’s theme of distrust toward close associates.
- Proverbs 25:19 (verbal): Warns against trusting an unfaithful person in trouble (likened to a broken tooth), resonating with Micah’s injunction not to rely on a neighbor or leader.
- Jeremiah 9:4-6 (thematic): Contains explicit admonitions to beware of neighbors and not trust brothers or friends because of deceit and betrayal, closely paralleling Micah’s counsel.
- Job 19:19 (thematic): Describes relatives and close friends turning away and failing the sufferer, reflecting Micah’s concern about treachery within intimate relationships.
Alternative generated candidates
- Do not trust a neighbor; put no confidence in a friend. Guard the doors of your mouth from the woman who lies in your bosom.
- Do not trust a neighbor; put no confidence in a friend; keep the doors of your mouth from the woman who lies in your bosom.
Mic.7.6 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- כי: CONJ
- בן: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- מנבל: PREP+NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אב: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- בת: NOUN,f,sg,cs
- קמה: VERB,qal,perf,3,f,sg
- באמה: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- כלה: ADV
- בחמתה: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs+3f
- איבי: NOUN,m,sg,abs,poss=1s
- איש: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אנשי: NOUN,m,pl,cons
- ביתו: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Matthew 10:35-36 (quotation): Jesus quotes Micah nearly verbatim to explain that his coming will provoke division even within families—'a man's foes will be those of his own household.'
- Luke 12:53 (quotation): Luke records the same saying of Jesus as in Matthew, directly echoing Micah's image of sons, daughters and in‑laws turning against kin.
- Matthew 10:21 (verbal): Jesus predicts close kin betraying one another ('a father his child; children rise against parents'), a parallel verbal/thematic continuation of Micah's motif of familial breakdown.
- Psalm 55:12-14 (thematic): The psalmist laments betrayal by an intimate companion and friend—a thematically related complaint about trust and hostility within close relationships or one's household.
- 2 Samuel 13:1-22 (thematic): The narrative of Amnon's assault of Tamar and the ensuing family violence (Absalom's revenge) exemplifies the motif of family members harming and turning against one another, resonant with Micah's portrait of domestic enmity.
Alternative generated candidates
- For a son disgraces his father, a daughter rises against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law—one’s enemies are the members of his own house.
- For a son insults his father, a daughter rises against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; a man's foes are the members of his own house.
Mic.7.7 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ואני: PRON,1,sg
- ביהוה: PREP+PN,sg
- אצפה: VERB,qal,impf,1,sg
- אוחילה: VERB,qal,impf,1,sg
- לאלהי: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,const
- ישעי: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ישמעני: VERB,qal,impf,3,sg
- אלהי: NOUN,m,sg,cons
Parallels
- Isaiah 8:17 (verbal): Uses the same language of waiting/looking to the LORD (’I will wait for the LORD / I will hope in him’), closely paralleling Micah’s resolution to trust Yahweh.
- Psalm 130:5 (verbal): ’I wait for the LORD; my soul waits, and in his word I hope’ — similar first‑person language of waiting and hoping in the LORD as the speaker’s salvation.
- Lamentations 3:24-26 (thematic): Affirms personal trust and hope in the LORD (‘The LORD is my portion… therefore I will hope in him’) and highlights the goodness of waiting quietly for God’s salvation, echoing Micah’s trust.
- Psalm 40:1 (thematic): ’I waited patiently for the LORD, and he inclined to me and heard my cry’ connects Micah’s waiting with the assurance that God hears and responds.
- Psalm 62:5-8 (thematic): Calls the soul to wait silently and hope in God alone and to trust him at all times, reflecting Micah’s emphasis on waiting and reliance on Yahweh as savior who hears.
Alternative generated candidates
- But as for me, I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation—my God will hear me.
- But as for me, I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation—my God will hear me.
Alas for me! I am like the summer gleaning, like the last cluster of the grape—there is no bunch to eat; no first ripe fig that my soul desires.
The faithful have perished from the land; there is no one upright among mankind. They all lie in wait for blood; each hunts his brother with a net.
Their hands are deft at doing evil; the ruler demands, and the judge takes a bribe. The great man utters what his heart desires, and they all act together.
The best of them is like a thornbush; the most upright among them is sharper than a hedgerow of thorns. 'The day of your watchmen, your visitation, has come'—now shall they be put to shame.
Do not trust a neighbor; do not put confidence in a close friend; keep the doors of your mouth from the woman who lies in your bosom.
For a son dishonors his father, a daughter rises up against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; a man’s enemies are the men of his own house. But as for me, I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation. My God will hear me.