1 In the last days, the mountain where the Lord's Temple stands will be recognized as the highest of all mountains, rising above other hills. Crowds of people from many places will travel to it. 2 Many nations will come and say, “Let's go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the Temple of the God of Jacob. There God will teach us his ways and we will follow his directions.” God's teachings will spread out from Zion, his word from Jerusalem. 3 The Lord will decide the cases of the nations, he will settle arguments between distant powerful nations. They will hammer their swords and turn them into plow blades, and their spears into pruning hooks. Nations will not fight against each other anymore; they will no longer learn methods of warfare. 4 Everyone will be able to sit under their own vine and their own fig tree, for there will be no one to make them afraid. I, the Lord Almighty, have spoken! 5 Even though all the other nations follow their gods, we will follow the Lord our God forever and ever. 6 On that day, declares the Lord, I will gather those who are lame, I will bring together those who have been scattered in exile, those whom I punished. 7 I will make those who remain, crippled and driven far away, into a strong nation, and the Lord will rule them from Mount Zion forever and ever. 8 And as for you, Jerusalem, watchtower of the flock, your former royal rule and power will be returned to you: the kingdom will be given back to Jerusalem. 9 So why are you screaming aloud? Don't you have a king? Has the king who advises you died so that pain has gripped you like a woman in childbirth? 10 Thrash around in agony like a woman giving birth, people of Zion—for you will be expelled from the city, forced to camp out in the open, and exiled to Babylon. But the Lord will bring you back, and rescue you from the power of your enemies. 11 Right now many enemies are gathered against you, saying, “Let us attack and violate her, so we can look with gloating over Zion!” 12 But they don't know what the Lord is thinking, and don't understand what he is planning. He has brought them together like bundles of grain to the threshing floor. 13 People of Zion, get up and start threshing, for I will make for you iron horns and bronze hooves so you can break many nations into pieces. You will present their stolen plunder to the Lord, their wealth to the Lord of all the earth.
Micah 4 Free Bible Version
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
Cross references (13)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 Isaiah 2:1–4; Jeremiah 3:17; Zechariah 14:16–21; Psalm 22:27; Acts 2:17
- 2 Isaiah 2:3; Jeremiah 31:6; Isaiah 54:13; Acts 1:8; Psalm 25:8–9
- 3 Isaiah 2:4; Joel 3:9–16; Matthew 25:31–32; Hosea 2:18; Acts 17:31
- 4 Zechariah 3:10; 1 Kings 4:25; Ezekiel 39:26; Isaiah 54:14; Isaiah 1:20
- 5 Zechariah 10:12; Colossians 3:17; Joshua 24:15; Isaiah 2:5; Psalm 48:14
- 6 Zephaniah 3:19; Isaiah 56:8; Ezekiel 34:12–17; John 10:16; Isaiah 35:3–6
- 7 Daniel 7:14; Luke 1:33; Micah 2:12; Micah 5:7–8; Isaiah 24:23
- 8 Isaiah 1:26; Zechariah 9:10; Revelation 22:5; Daniel 2:44; Genesis 35:21
- 9 Jeremiah 8:19; Isaiah 3:1–7; Lamentations 4:20; Hosea 3:4; Hosea 13:10–11
- 10 Isaiah 48:20; Hosea 2:14; Hosea 13:13; Isaiah 52:9–12; Isaiah 43:14
- 11 Obadiah 12; Isaiah 5:25–30; Micah 7:10; Lamentations 2:15–16; Isaiah 8:7–8
- 12 Isaiah 55:8; Jeremiah 29:11; Romans 11:33–34; Luke 3:17; Zechariah 14:1–3
- 13 Isaiah 41:15–16; Daniel 2:44; Isaiah 18:7; Isaiah 23:18; Romans 15:25–28
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
… "For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem; and He shall rebuke many people; and they shall break down their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks, and they shall no longer learn to fight." If therefore another law and word, going forth from Jerusalem, brought in such a [reign …
And He shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off." This prophet predicts the very place in which Christ was born, saying, "And thou, Bethlehem, of the house of Ephratah, art the least that can be reckoned among the thousands of Judah; out of thee shall come forth unto me a leader, to be the prince in …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 2 (1887)
Where, O Grave, is thy sting?" And another again, declaring glad tidings of the most profound peace, said, "They shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning hooks." And while one calls on Jerusalem, saying, "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Sion, for lo!
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 10 (1888)