Hear ye now what the LORD saith; Arise, contend thou before the mountains, and let the hills hear thy voice.
Parallel translations
- WEB Listen now to what Yahweh says: “Arise, plead your case before the mountains, and let the hills hear what you have to say.
- BSB Hear now what the LORD says: “Arise, plead your case before the mountains, and let the hills hear your voice.
- NKJV Hear now what the Lord says: “Arise, plead your case before the mountains, And let the hills hear your voice.
- NASB Hear now what the Lord is saying, “Arise, plead your case before the mountains, And let the hills hear your voice.
- NLT Listen to what the Lord is saying: “Stand up and state your case against me. Let the mountains and hills be called to witness your complaints.
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 summons His people to plead their case before the mountains and hills as witnesses. It opens a covenant lawsuit between the LORD and Israel.
Overview
Micah calls the people to a courtroom scene where the enduring mountains serve as witnesses to God's controversy with Israel. This 'covenant lawsuit' form invites the people to consider whether God has any fault in His dealings with them. It sets up the LORD's gracious appeal and the famous call to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly that follows in this chapter.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 17
- Jer 22:29O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD.
- Deut 32:1Give ear, O ye heavens, and I will speak; and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth.
- Mic 1:2Hear, all ye people; hearken, O earth, and all that therein is: and let the Lord GOD be witness against you, the LORD from his holy temple.
- Ezek 36:1Also, thou son of man, prophesy unto the mountains of Israel, and say, Ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the LORD:
- Ps 50:4He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that he may judge his people.
- Deut 4:26I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto ye go over Jordan to possess it; ye shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed.
- Isa 1:2Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: for the LORD hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me.
- Ezek 36:8But ye, O mountains of Israel, ye shall shoot forth your branches, and yield your fruit to my people of Israel; for they are at hand to come.
- Ps 50:1The mighty God, even the LORD, hath spoken, and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof.
- Luke 19:40And he answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.
- Mic 1:4And the mountains shall be molten under him, and the valleys shall be cleft, as wax before the fire, and as the waters that are poured down a steep place.
- Ezek 37:4Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the LORD.
- Jer 13:15Hear ye, and give ear; be not proud: for the LORD hath spoken.
- Isa 2:12–14For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low:
- Amos 3:1Hear this word that the LORD hath spoken against you, O children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up from the land of Egypt, saying,
- 1 Sam 15:16Then Samuel said unto Saul, Stay, and I will tell thee what the LORD hath said to me this night. And he said unto him, Say on.
- Heb 3:7–8Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice,
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 6:1 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.