1 I am Micah from Moresheth. And this is the message about Samaria and Jerusalem that the Lord gave to me when Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah were the kings of Judah.
Judgment on Samaria
2 Listen, all of you!
Earth and everything on it,
pay close attention.
The Lord God accuses you
from his holy temple.
3 And he will come down
to crush underfoot
every pagan altar.
4 Mountains will melt
beneath his feet
like wax beside a fire.
Valleys will vanish like water
rushing down a ravine.
5 This will happen because of
the terrible sins of Israel,
the descendants of Jacob.
Samaria has led Israel to sin,
and pagan altars at Jerusalem
have made Judah sin.
6 So the Lord will leave Samaria
in ruins—
merely an empty field
where vineyards are planted.
He will scatter its stones
and destroy its foundations.
7 Samaria's idols will be smashed,
and the wages
of temple prostitutes
will be destroyed by fire.
Silver and gold from those idols
will then be used by foreigners
as payment for prostitutes.
Judah Is Doomed
8 Because of this tragedy,
I go barefoot and naked.
My crying and weeping
sound like howling wolves
or ostriches.
9 The nation is fatally wounded.
Judah is doomed.
Jerusalem will fall.
10 Don't tell it in Gath!
Don't even cry.
Instead, roll in the dust
at Beth-Leaphrah.
11 Depart naked and ashamed,
you people of Shaphir.
The town of Bethezel mourns
because no one from Zaanan
went out to help.
12 Everyone in Maroth
hoped for the best,
but the Lord sent disaster
down on Jerusalem.
13 Get the war chariots ready,
you people of Lachish.
You led Jerusalem into sin,
just as Israel did.
14 Now you will have to give
a going-away gift
to Moresheth.
Israel's kings will discover
that they cannot trust
the town of Achzib.
15 People of Mareshah,
the Lord will send someone
to capture your town.
Then Israel's glorious king
will be forced to hide
in Adullam Cave.
16 Judah, shave your head
as bald as a vulture
and start mourning.
Your precious children
will be dragged off
to a foreign country.
© Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®) © 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.