American King James Version - AKJV - 1999
Micah 7
1
Woe is me! for I am as when they have gathered the summer fruits, as the grape gleanings of the vintage: there is no cluster to eat: my soul desired the first ripe fruit.
Reference
2
The good man is perished out of the earth: and there is none upright among men: they all lie in wait for blood; they hunt every man his brother with a net.
Reference
Blood
Isaiah 59:7
Proverbs 1:11
Parallel theme
Psalm 12:1
Isaiah 57:1
Jeremiah 5:26
Jeremiah 16:16
1 Samuel 24:11
3
That they may do evil with both hands earnestly, the prince asks, and the judge asks for a reward; and the great man, he utters his mischievous desire: so they wrap it up.
Reference
4
The best of them is as a brier: the most upright is sharper than a thorn hedge: the day of your watchmen and your visitation comes; now shall be their perplexity.
Reference
5
Trust you not in a friend, put you not confidence in a guide: keep the doors of your mouth from her that lies in your bosom.
Reference
6
For the son dishonors the father, the daughter rises up against her mother, the daughter in law against her mother in law; a man's enemies are the men of his own house.
Reference
Parallel theme
Psalm 41:9
Ezekiel 22:7
Proverbs 30:11
Luke 21:16
Resurrection
Matthew 10:21
Word
Luke 12:53
John 13:18
7
Therefore I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me.
Reference
Parallel theme
Psalm 109:4
Psalm 65:2
References Lord
Psalm 37:7
Psalm 130:5
Isaiah 8:17
Salvation
Isaiah 45:22
Isaiah 25:9
Psalm 25:5
Isaiah 12:2
Genesis 49:18
8
Rejoice not against me, O my enemy: when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD shall be a light to me.
Reference
Light
John 8:12
Isaiah 9:2
Psalm 27:1
2 Corinthians 4:6
Revelation 22:5
Parallel theme
Obadiah 1:12
Psalm 38:16
References Lord
Psalm 84:11
Resurrection
Psalm 112:4
Amos 9:11
9
I will bear the indignation of the LORD, because I have sinned against him, until he plead my cause, and execute judgment for me: he will bring me forth to the light, and I shall behold his righteousness.
Reference
10
Then she that is my enemy shall see it, and shame shall cover her which said to me, Where is the LORD your God? my eyes shall behold her: now shall she be trodden down as the mire of the streets.
Reference
Parallel theme
Psalm 35:26
Psalm 18:42
2 Samuel 22:43
Micah 4:11
References God
Psalm 42:10
Joel 2:17
Revelation 18:20
Psalm 79:10
References Lord
Zechariah 10:5
Jeremiah 51:51
11
In the day that your walls are to be built, in that day shall the decree be far removed.
Reference
Parallel theme
Nehemiah 2:8
12
In that day also he shall come even to you from Assyria, and from the fortified cities, and from the fortress even to the river, and from sea to sea, and from mountain to mountain.
Reference
13
Notwithstanding the land shall be desolate because of them that dwell therein, for the fruit of their doings.
Reference
14
Feed your people with your rod, the flock of your heritage, which dwell solitarily in the wood, in the middle of Carmel: let them feed in Bashan and Gilead, as in the days of old.
Reference
Parallel theme
Isaiah 49:10
Micah 5:4
Isaiah 37:24
Isaiah 40:11
Psalm 28:9
Psalm 100:3
Psalm 95:7
Amos 9:11
15
According to the days of your coming out of the land of Egypt will I show to him marvelous things.
Reference
16
The nations shall see and be confounded at all their might: they shall lay their hand on their mouth, their ears shall be deaf.
Reference
17
The flesh of my people, and flay thpent, they shall move out of their holes like worms of the earth: they shall be afraid of the LORD our God, and shall fear because of you.
Reference
18
Who is a God like to you, that pardons iniquity, and passes by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retains not his anger for ever, because he delights in mercy.
Reference
Grace
Jeremiah 3:12
Psalm 86:15
Parallel theme
Jeremiah 32:41
Psalm 89:6
References God
Exodus 15:11
Psalm 89:8
Sin
Isaiah 43:25
Isaiah 44:22
Jeremiah 50:20
Psalm 65:3
19
He will turn again, he will have compassion on us; he will subdue our iniquities; and you will cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.
Reference
20
You will perform the truth to Jacob, and the mercy to Abraham, which you have sworn to our fathers from the days of old.
Summary of Micah 7
Micah 7 begins with a bleak description of a society where faithfulness, justice, trust, and family relationships have almost disappeared, but the prophet gradually moves from grief over corruption toward confidence in God, ending with a powerful celebration of divine forgiveness, mercy, covenant faithfulness, and the restoration He promises for His people.
Micah compares himself to someone searching for the last fruit after the harvest and finding nothing worthwhile.
The image expresses his disappointment because the righteous and faithful people he hoped to find seem to have disappeared.
Instead, society is filled with violence, deception, bribery, and selfish ambition.
Leaders manipulate justice for personal gain, judges accept rewards, and powerful people use their positions to accomplish whatever they desire.
The corruption has become so widespread that even people who appear respectable are compared to thorn bushes.
Micah then describes the collapse of ordinary trust.
People cannot confidently trust neighbors, friends, or even close family members because deception has entered relationships that should normally provide security.
Parents and children are divided against one another, demonstrating that the nation's moral breakdown has reached the deepest levels of society.
Yet Micah refuses to conclude that corruption has the final word.
He declares that he will look to the Lord and wait for God to save him.
Although he acknowledges the reality of sin and accepts that judgment is deserved, he remains confident that God will eventually defend His cause and bring him from darkness into light.
The prophet then looks beyond the immediate crisis toward restoration.
Jerusalem's walls will be rebuilt, scattered people will return from distant lands, and God will once again shepherd His people like a flock.
The language deliberately recalls the Exodus because Israel's future rescue will demonstrate the same divine power that once delivered the nation from slavery.
The nations that once appeared powerful will eventually recognize God's authority.
They will be humbled and astonished when they see what He does for His people.
The final verses provide the theological climax of the book.
Micah asks who is like the Lord, a God who forgives sin, does not remain angry forever, and delights in showing mercy.
God will have compassion on His people and completely remove their sins, symbolically casting them into the depths of the sea.
The book therefore ends not with destruction but with mercy.
The God who judges injustice is also the God who forgives repentant people.
The God who allows His people to experience consequences for their rebellion is also the God who remembers His covenant promises.
The central message is that Micah 7 moves from the painful reality of widespread corruption and broken relationships toward confidence in God's justice, protection, restoration, and mercy, showing that even when society appears morally ruined, faithful hope can remain firmly grounded in God's character and promises.
The book ends by emphasizing that God's ultimate response to His people is not defined only by judgment, because He delights in mercy, forgives sin, restores those who turn back to Him, and remains faithful to the promises He made to Abraham and Jacob, making divine compassion the final note of Micah's message.
Micah compares himself to someone searching for the last fruit after the harvest and finding nothing worthwhile.
The image expresses his disappointment because the righteous and faithful people he hoped to find seem to have disappeared.
Instead, society is filled with violence, deception, bribery, and selfish ambition.
Leaders manipulate justice for personal gain, judges accept rewards, and powerful people use their positions to accomplish whatever they desire.
The corruption has become so widespread that even people who appear respectable are compared to thorn bushes.
Micah then describes the collapse of ordinary trust.
People cannot confidently trust neighbors, friends, or even close family members because deception has entered relationships that should normally provide security.
Parents and children are divided against one another, demonstrating that the nation's moral breakdown has reached the deepest levels of society.
Yet Micah refuses to conclude that corruption has the final word.
He declares that he will look to the Lord and wait for God to save him.
Although he acknowledges the reality of sin and accepts that judgment is deserved, he remains confident that God will eventually defend His cause and bring him from darkness into light.
The prophet then looks beyond the immediate crisis toward restoration.
Jerusalem's walls will be rebuilt, scattered people will return from distant lands, and God will once again shepherd His people like a flock.
The language deliberately recalls the Exodus because Israel's future rescue will demonstrate the same divine power that once delivered the nation from slavery.
The nations that once appeared powerful will eventually recognize God's authority.
They will be humbled and astonished when they see what He does for His people.
The final verses provide the theological climax of the book.
Micah asks who is like the Lord, a God who forgives sin, does not remain angry forever, and delights in showing mercy.
God will have compassion on His people and completely remove their sins, symbolically casting them into the depths of the sea.
The book therefore ends not with destruction but with mercy.
The God who judges injustice is also the God who forgives repentant people.
The God who allows His people to experience consequences for their rebellion is also the God who remembers His covenant promises.
The central message is that Micah 7 moves from the painful reality of widespread corruption and broken relationships toward confidence in God's justice, protection, restoration, and mercy, showing that even when society appears morally ruined, faithful hope can remain firmly grounded in God's character and promises.
The book ends by emphasizing that God's ultimate response to His people is not defined only by judgment, because He delights in mercy, forgives sin, restores those who turn back to Him, and remains faithful to the promises He made to Abraham and Jacob, making divine compassion the final note of Micah's message.