Micah 7:3

Micah 7:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)That they may do evil with both hands earnestly, the prince asketh, and the judge asketh for a reward; and the great man, he uttereth his mischievous desire: so they wrap it up.
• New International Version (NIV)Both hands are skilled in doing evil; the ruler demands gifts, the judge accepts bribes, the powerful dictate what they desire— they all conspire together.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Their hands are on what is evil, to do it well; the prince and the judge ask for a bribe, and the great man utters the evil desire of his soul; thus they weave it together.
• New King James Version (NKJV)That they may successfully do evil with both hands— The prince asks for gifts, The judge seeks a bribe, And the great man utters his evil desire; So they scheme together.

Context of Micah 7:3

1I am very sad! I am like someone who comes to trees with no fruit on them. Other people have picked the fruit already. So I am like those people who can only pick the last grapes. Those are the grapes that other people leave behind. Really, there are no grapes there to eat. There are none of the first figs that I like so much. 2There are no longer any people here who obey God. There are no good, honest people. Everyone is waiting to kill someone else. They are all like hunters, who try to catch each other. They know very well how to work together to do bad things. Rulers demand gifts and judges ask for money. Powerful bad people always get what they want. All these people work together to do what is bad. 4The best of them are dangerous like wild plants with thorns. The most honest of them are worse than thorn bushes. The bad time that your prophets told you about is coming. Soon God will punish you, and you will be confused. 5Do not believe anyone, even somebody that you know well. You cannot be sure that your friend will always be honest with you. Be careful what you say to your wife. Be careful even when you are hugging her.

Micah 7:3 word by word

עַל־הָרַ֤ע כַּפַּ֙יִם֙ לְהֵיטִ֔יב הַשַּׂ֣ר שֹׁאֵ֔ל וְהַשֹּׁפֵ֖ט בַּשִׁלּ֑וּם וְהַגָּד֗וֹל דֹּבֵ֨ר הַוַּ֥ת נַפְשׁ֛וֹ ה֖וּא וַֽיְעַבְּתֽוּהָ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• That they may do evilרַעra‛ râ‛âh · bad: evilH7451
• with both handsכַּףkaph · palmH3709
• earnestlyיָטַבyâţab · be goodH3190
• the princeשַׂרώar · rulerH8269
• askethשָׁאַלshâ'al shâ'êl · to askH7592
• and the judgeשָׁפַטshâphaţ · to judgeH8199
• for a rewardשִׁלּוּםshillûm shillûm · recompenseH7966
• and the greatגָּדוֹלgâdôl gâdôl · great: largeH1419
• he utterethדָבַרdâbar · to speak: speakH1696
• his mischievousהַוָּהhavvâh · desireH1942
• desireנֶ֫פֶשׁnephesh · soul: appetiteH5315
• so they wrap it upעָבַת‛âbath · to weaveH5686

Cross-references for Micah 7:3

• Proverbs 4:16Wicked people have to do evil things. They cannot go to sleep unless they have been cruel to someone that day.
• Jeremiah 3:5Surely you will not always be angry with me! You cannot continue to be angry for ever.” Those are the things that you say. But you continue to do as many evil things as you can.’
• Ezekiel 22:6Each ruler of Israel that lives in you, Jerusalem, has been a murderer. Each one has used his power to kill people.
• Micah 3:11You are the city's rulers, but you accept bribes. Then you do not judge people in a fair way. You priests teach people only if they pay you. You prophets speak about what will happen in future times. But you only speak if you receive money. But you still say that you trust the Lord. You say, ‘The Lord is with us, so nothing bad will happen to us.’
• Isaiah 1:23Your rulers have turned against God. They are friends of robbers. They all accept bribes and they love to receive gifts. But they do not help widows or children who have no family. They do not make sure that they receive justice.
• Jeremiah 8:10I will give their wives to other men. Their fields will belong to other men. They all cheat other people to get what they want. Important people and ordinary people do that. Prophets and priests do that. They love to deceive people.
• Ezekiel 22:27The officers in the land are like wolves that catch other animals and tear them into pieces. They use their power to murder people so that they can take their money for themselves.
• Hosea 4:18After they have drunk enough wine, they are happy to sleep with prostitutes. They enjoy doing things that should make them ashamed.
• Amos 5:12I, the Lord, know all the wrong things that you have done. They are very many and they are very bad. You are cruel to good people. You take bribes to tell lies. Sometimes a person gives money to you to make you tell lies. As a result, poor people do not receive justice.
• Matthew 26:15and he asked them, ‘How much money will you give me if I help you to take hold of Jesus?’ The priests gave Judas 30 silver coins.
• 1 Kings 21:9This is what she wrote in those letters: ‘Choose a day for everyone to fast. Give Naboth a seat where the people can see him.
• Isaiah 26:21Look! Now the Lord is coming from the place where he lives. He is coming to punish the people who live on the earth for their sins. The earth will clearly show the blood that murderers poured out on it. Murderers will no longer be able to hide the people that they have killed.
• Luke 12:1While all this was happening, many thousands of people had come together near that place. The crowd was so big that people were almost walking over each other. Jesus began to talk first to his disciples. He said, ‘Be careful! Do not accept the yeast of the Pharisees. Do not be hypocrites like they are.
• 1 Corinthians 4:5So you should not decide about things before the time is right. Wait until the Lord comes again. He will show everything clearly. He will show the bad things that people have done secretly. He will show the secret purpose of people's thoughts. Then God will praise each person in a way that is right for them.

Commentaries on Micah 7:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3That they may do evil with both hands - That is, earnestly, greedily, to the uttermost of their power. The Vulgate translates: Malum manuum suarum dicunt bonum; "The evil of their hands they call good." The prince asketh - A bribe, to forward claims in his court. The judge asketh for a reward - That he may decide the cause in favor of him who gives most money, whether the cause be good or evil. This was notoriously the case in our own country before the…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3That they may do evil with both hands earnestly - (Literally, upon evil both hands to do well,) that is, “both their hands are upon evil to do it well,” or “earnestly”, as our translation gives the meaning; only the Hebrew expresses more, that evil is their good, and their good or excellence is in evil. Bad men gain a dreadful skill and wisdom in evil, as Satan has; and cleverness in evil is their delight. Jerome: “They call the evil of their hands good.”…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3skilled at evil: That is, they had learned how to do evil very well. the prince and the judge demand a bribe: The law forbade rulers and judges from accepting bribes or turning justice in the wrong direction (Exodus 18:19–22; Deuteronomy 16:18–20). Because of this, Israel’s legal system no longer worked in a fair way.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. That they may do evil with both hands earnestly--literally, "Their hands are for evil that they may do it well" (that is, cleverly and successfully). the great man, he--emphatic repetition. As for the great man, he no sooner has expressed his bad desire (literally, the "mischief" or "lust of his soul"), than the venal judges are ready to wrest the decision of the case according to his wish. so they wrap it up--The Hebrew is used of intertwining cords…Read the comment

Topics related to Micah 7:3

• Bribery
• Character
• Court
• Covetousness
• Depravity of Man
• Despondency
• Judge
• Justice
• Rulers
• Sin
• Wicked (People)

In the dictionaries

• Light
• Mouth
• Net
• Blindness, Judicial
• Diligence; Diligent; Diligently
• Judge
• Micah (2)
• Ready
• Reward

Commentaries on Micah 7

• 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