Micah 4:9

Micah 4:9 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Now why dost thou cry out aloud? is there no king in thee? is thy counsellor perished? for pangs have taken thee as a woman in travail.
• New International Version (NIV)Why do you now cry aloud— have you no king? Has your ruler perished, that pain seizes you like that of a woman in labor?
• English Standard Version (ESV)Now why do you cry aloud? Is there no king in you? Has your counselor perished, that pain seized you like a woman in labor?
• New King James Version (NKJV)Now why do you cry aloud? Is there no king in your midst? Has your counselor perished? For pangs have seized you like a woman in labor.

Context of Micah 4:9

7I will make the lame into a remnant, those far removed into a strong nation. Then the Lord will reign over them in Mount Zion from this time on and forever. 8And you, watchtower for the flock, fortified hill of Daughter Zion, the former rule will come to you; sovereignty will come to Daughter Jerusalem. Now, why are you shouting loudly? Is there no king with you? Has your counselor perished so that anguish grips you like a woman in labor? 10Writhe and cry out, Daughter Zion, like a woman in labor, for now you will leave the city and camp in the open fields. You will go to Babylon; there you will be rescued; there the Lord will redeem you from the grasp of your enemies! 11Many nations have now assembled against you; they say, “Let her be defiled, and let us feast our eyes on Zion.”

Micah 4:9 word by word

עַתָּ֕ה לָ֥מָּה תָרִ֖יעִי רֵ֑עַ הֲמֶ֣לֶךְ אֵֽין־בָּ֗ךְ אִֽם־יוֹעֲצֵךְ֙ אָבָ֔ד כִּֽי־הֶחֱזִיקֵ֥ךְ חִ֖יל כַּיּוֹלֵדָֽה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Now why dost thou cryרוּעַrûa‛ · to shoutH7321
• out aloudרֵעַrêa‛ · shoutingH7452
• no kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
• in thee? is thy counsellorיָעַץyâ‛ats · to adviseH3289
• perishedאָבַד'âbad · to perishH6
• for pangsחִילchîyl chîylâh · agonyH2427
• have takenחָזַקchâzaq · to strengthen: holdH2388
• thee as a woman in travailיָלַדyâlad · to begetH3205

Cross-references for Micah 4:9

• Jeremiah 4:21How long must I see the signal flag and hear the sound of the ram’s horn?
• Jeremiah 8:19Listen — the cry of my dear people from a faraway land, “Is the Lord no longer in Zion, her King not within her?” Why have they angered me with their carved images, with their worthless foreign idols?
• Jeremiah 30:6Ask and see whether a male can give birth. Why then do I see every man with his hands on his stomach like a woman in labor and every face turned pale?
• Isaiah 3:1Note this: The Lord God of Armies is about to remove from Jerusalem and from Judah every kind of security: the entire supply of bread and water,
• Lamentations 4:20The Lord’s anointed, the breath of our life, was captured in their traps. We had said about him, “We will live under his protection among the nations.”
• Hosea 3:4For the Israelites must live many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred pillar, and without ephod or household idols.
• Hosea 10:3In fact, they are now saying, “We have no king! For we do not fear the Lord. What can a king do for us?”
• Hosea 13:10Where now is your king, that he may save you in all your cities, and the rulers you demanded, saying, “Give me a king and leaders”?
• Isaiah 13:8They will be horrified; pain and agony will seize them; they will be in anguish like a woman in labor. They will look at each other, their faces flushed with fear.
• Isaiah 21:3Therefore I am filled with anguish. Pain grips me, like the pain of a woman in labor. I am too perplexed to hear, too dismayed to see.
• Isaiah 26:17As a pregnant woman about to give birth writhes and cries out in her pains, so we were before you, Lord.
• Jeremiah 22:23You residents of Lebanon, nestled among the cedars, how you will groan when pains come on you, agony like a woman in labor.
• Jeremiah 50:43The king of Babylon has heard about them; his hands have become weak. Distress has seized him — pain, like a woman in labor.

Commentaries on Micah 4:9

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 9Is there no King in thee? - None. And why? Because thou hast rejected Jehovah thy king. Is thy counsellor perished? - No: but thou hast rejected the words and advices of the prophets. Pangs have taken thee - He is speaking of the desolations that should take place when the Chaldeans should come against the city; and hence he says, "Thou shalt go to Babylon;" ye shall be cast out of your own land, and sent slaves to a foreign country, He represents the…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 9Now - The prophet places himself in the midst of their deepest sorrows, and out of them he promises comfort. “Why dost thou cry out aloud? is there no King in thee? is thy Counsellor perished?”. Is then all lost, because thou hast no visible king, none to counsel thee or consult for thee?. Very remarkably he speaks of their “King and Counsellor” as one, as if to say, “When all beside is gone, there is One who abides. Though thou be a captive, God will not…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 9-13Verses 9-13 Many nations would assemble against Zion to rejoice in her calamities. They would not understand that the Lord had collected them as sheaves are gathered to be threshed; and that Zion would be strengthened to beat them to pieces. Nothing has yet taken place in the history of the Jewish church agreeing with this prediction. When God has conquering work for his people to do, he will furnish them with strength and ability for it. Believers should…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 9Israel's king and wise people were meant to lead and live by the Lord's instructions and covenant (Deuteronomy 17:18–20). Now, however, the people would lack godly leadership (compare Judges 17:6; 18:1; 21:25).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 99. Addressed to the daughter of Zion, in her consternation at the approach of the Chaldeans. is there no king in thee?--asked tauntingly. There is a king in her; but it is the same as if there were none, so helpless to devise means of escape are he and his counsellors [Maurer]. Or, Zion's pains are because her king is taken away from her (Jr 52:9; La 4:20; Eze 12:13) [Calvin]. The former is perhaps the preferable view (compare Jr 49:7). The latter…Read the comment

Topics related to Micah 4:9

• Israel, Prophecies Concerning

In the dictionaries

• Micah (2)
• Take

Commentaries on Micah 4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings