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“Arise and thresh, daughter of Zion, For I will make your horn iron, And I will make your hoofs bronze, So that you may pulverize many peoples, And dedicate to the Lord their unjust profit, And their wealth to the Lord of all the earth.
Micah 4:13 · New American Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB Arise and thresh, daughter of Zion; for I will make your horn iron, and I will make your hoofs brass; and you will beat in pieces many peoples: and I will devote their gain to Yahweh, and their substance to the Lord of the whole earth.
  • KJV Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion: for I will make thine horn iron, and I will make thy hoofs brass: and thou shalt beat in pieces many people: and I will consecrate their gain unto the LORD, and their substance unto the Lord of the whole earth.
  • BSB Rise and thresh, O Daughter of Zion, for I will give you horns of iron and hooves of bronze to break to pieces many peoples. Then you will devote their gain to the LORD, their wealth to the Lord of all the earth.
  • NKJV “Ariseand thresh, O daughter of Zion; For I will make your horn iron, And I will make your hooves bronze; You shall beat in pieces many peoples; I will consecrate their gain to the Lord, And their substance to the Lord of the whole earth.”
  • NLT “Rise up and crush the nations, O Jerusalem!” says the Lord. “For I will give you iron horns and bronze hooves, so you can trample many nations to pieces. You will present their stolen riches to the Lord, their wealth to the Lord of all 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 calls Zion to thresh her enemies with iron horns and bronze hoofs, devoting their gain to the LORD. It promises victory and the consecration of the spoil to God.

Overview

Equipped by God Himself, Zion crushes the gathered nations like grain under a threshing ox. The plunder is 'devoted' to Yahweh, acknowledging that the victory and its fruits belong to Him. This triumph of God's people over their foes anticipates the final overthrow of all that opposes God's kingdom.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 20

  • Isa 41:15–16Behold, I have made you into a new sharp threshing instrument with teeth. You will thresh the mountains, and beat them small, and will make the hills like chaff.
  • Dan 2:44In the days of those kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed, nor shall its sovereignty be left to another people; but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.
  • Isa 23:18Her merchandise and her wages will be holiness to Yahweh. It will not be treasured nor laid up; for her merchandise will be for those who dwell before Yahweh, to eat sufficiently, and for durable clothing.
  • Isa 18:7In that time, a present will be brought to Yahweh of Armies from a people tall and smooth, even from a people awesome from their beginning onward, a nation that measures out and treads down, whose land the rivers divide, to the place of the name of Yahweh of Armies, Mount Zion.
  • 1 Cor 16:2On the first day of the week, let each one of you save, as he may prosper, that no collections be made when I come.
  • Rev 2:26–27He who overcomes, and he who keeps my works to the end, to him I will give authority over the nations.
  • Zech 6:5The angel answered me, “These are the four winds of the sky, which go out from standing before the Lord of all the earth.
  • Rom 15:25–28But now, I say, I am going to Jerusalem, serving the saints.
  • Rev 21:24–26The nations will walk in its light. The kings of the earth bring the glory and honor of the nations into it.
  • Ps 72:10The kings of Tarshish and of the islands will bring tribute. The kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts.
  • Mic 5:8–15The remnant of Jacob will be among the nations, among many peoples, like a lion among the animals of the forest, like a young lion among the flocks of sheep; who, if he goes through, treads down and tears in pieces, and there is no one to deliver.
  • Jer 51:33For Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel says: “The daughter of Babylon is like a threshing floor at the time when it is trodden. Yet a little while, and the time of harvest shall come for her.”
  • Ps 68:29Because of your temple at Jerusalem, kings shall bring presents to you.
  • Zech 4:14Then he said, “These are the two anointed ones who stand by the Lord of the whole earth.”
  • Josh 6:19But all the silver, gold, and vessels of brass and iron, are holy to Yahweh. They shall come into Yahweh’s treasury.”
  • 2 Sam 8:10–11then Toi sent Joram his son to king David, to greet him, and to bless him, because he had fought against Hadadezer and struck him; for Hadadezer had wars with Toi. Joram brought with him vessels of silver, vessels of gold, and vessels of brass:
  • Isa 5:28whose arrows are sharp, and all their bows bent. Their horses’ hoofs will be like flint, and their wheels like a whirlwind.
  • Zech 9:13–15For indeed I bend Judah as a bow for me. I have filled the bow with Ephraim; and I will stir up your sons, Zion, against your sons, Greece, and will make you like the sword of a mighty man.
  • Deut 33:25Your bars will be iron and brass. As your days, so your strength will be.
  • Isa 60:6–9A multitude of camels will cover you, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah. All from Sheba will come. They will bring gold and frankincense, and will proclaim the praises of Yahweh.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (2)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Micah videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Micah 4:13YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on MicahMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    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 4:13 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.