For behold, the Lord is coming forth from His place. He will come down and tread on the high places of the earth.
Parallel translations
- WEB For, behold, Yahweh comes out of his place, and will come down and tread on the high places of the earth.
- KJV For, behold, the LORD cometh forth out of his place, and will come down, and tread upon the high places of the earth.
- BSB For behold, the LORD comes forth from His dwelling place; He will come down and tread on the high places of the earth.
- NKJV For behold, the Lord is coming out of His place; He will come down And tread on the high places of the earth.
- NLT Look! The Lord is coming! He leaves his throne in heaven and tramples the heights of the earth.
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
God is pictured leaving His dwelling and coming down to judge, treading on the heights of the earth. It portrays the LORD's terrifying intervention in history.
Overview
This theophany language depicts Yahweh descending in power to judge sin, trampling even the 'high places' where idolatry was practiced. The imagery recalls Sinai and other appearances of God in might. Such comings in judgment foreshadow the ultimate coming of the Lord, when He will set all things right.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Amos 4:13For, behold, he who forms the mountains, and creates the wind, and declares to man what is his thought; who makes the morning darkness, and treads on the high places of the earth: Yahweh, the God of Armies, is his name.”
- Isa 26:21For, behold, Yahweh comes out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity. The earth also will disclose her blood, and will no longer cover her slain.
- Deut 32:13He made him ride on the high places of the earth. He ate the increase of the field. He caused him to suck honey out of the rock, oil out of the flinty rock;
- Ps 115:3But our God is in the heavens. He does whatever he pleases.
- Hab 3:19Yahweh, the Lord, is my strength. He makes my feet like deer’s feet, and enables me to go in high places. For the music director, on my stringed instruments.
- Deut 33:29You are happy, Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by Yahweh, the shield of your help, the sword of your excellency? Your enemies will submit themselves to you. You will tread on their high places.”
- Job 40:12Look at everyone who is proud, and humble him. Crush the wicked in their place.
- Hos 5:14–15For I will be to Ephraim like a lion, and like a young lion to the house of Judah. I myself will tear in pieces and go away. I will carry off, and there will be no one to deliver.
- Isa 2:10–19Enter into the rock, and hide in the dust, from before the terror of Yahweh, and from the glory of his majesty.
- Ezek 3:12Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me the voice of a great rushing, saying, “Blessed be Yahweh’s glory from his place.”
- Isa 25:10For in this mountain Yahweh’s hand will rest. Moab will be trodden down in his place, even like straw is trodden down in the water of the dunghill.
- Isa 64:1–2Oh that you would tear the heavens, that you would come down, that the mountains might quake at your presence.
- Isa 63:3–4“I have trodden the wine press alone; and of the peoples, no one was with me: Yes, I trod them in my anger, and trampled them in my wrath. Their lifeblood is sprinkled on my garments, and I have stained all my clothing.
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 1:3 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.