Tell it not in Gath, Weep not at all; In Beth Aphrah Roll yourself in the dust.
Parallel translations
- WEB Don’t tell it in Gath. Don’t weep at all. At Beth Ophrah I have rolled myself in the dust.
- KJV Declare ye it not at Gath, weep ye not at all: in the house of Aphrah roll thyself in the dust.
- BSB Do not tell it in Gath; do not weep at all. Roll in the dust in Beth-leaphrah.
- NASB Do not tell it in Gath, Do not weep at all. At Beth-le-aphrah roll yourself in the dust in mourning.
- NLT Don’t tell our enemies in Gath; don’t weep at all. You people in Beth-leaphrah, roll in the dust to show your despair.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Micah begins a series of laments over Judah's towns, telling them not to broadcast the disaster to enemies but to mourn in the dust. It opens a poetic dirge using wordplay on town names.
Overview
Echoing David's lament ('Tell it not in Gath'), Micah grieves over the invasion sweeping through Judah's lowland villages. Many verses here pun on town names, so 'Beth Ophrah' (house of dust) fits 'rolling in the dust.' The passage personalizes judgment, naming the very communities Micah knew and loved.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- 2 Sam 1:20Don’t tell it in Gath. Don’t publish it in the streets of Ashkelon, lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph.
- Jer 6:26Daughter of my people, clothe yourself with sackcloth, and wallow in ashes! Mourn, as for an only son, most bitter lamentation; for the destroyer shall suddenly come on us.
- Amos 6:10“When a man’s relative carries him, even he who burns him, to bring bodies out of the house, and asks him who is in the innermost parts of the house, ‘Is there yet any with you?’ And he says, ‘No;’ then he will say, ‘Hush! Indeed we must not mention Yahweh’s name.’
- Josh 18:23Avvim, Parah, Ophrah,
- Lam 3:29Let him put his mouth in the dust, if so be there may be hope.
- Job 2:8He took for himself a potsherd to scrape himself with, and he sat among the ashes.
- Amos 5:13Therefore a prudent person keeps silent in such a time, for it is an evil time.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Micah names the town — 'But you, Bethlehem... from you shall come forth one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose origins are from of old' — the birthplace of the eternal King.
How Micah 1:10 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.