Micah 1:8

Micah 1:8 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Therefore I will wail and howl, I will go stripped and naked: I will make a wailing like the dragons, and mourning as the owls.
• New International Version (NIV)Because of this I will weep and wail; I will go about barefoot and naked. I will howl like a jackal and moan like an owl.
• English Standard Version (ESV)For this I will lament and wail; I will go stripped and naked; I will make lamentation like the jackals, and mourning like the ostriches.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Therefore I will wail and howl, I will go stripped and naked; I will make a wailing like the jackals And a mourning like the ostriches,

Context of Micah 1:8

6“So I, the Lord, will make the city of Samaria a heap of ruins. Her streets will be plowed up for planting vineyards. I will roll the stones of her walls into the valley below, exposing her foundations. 7All her carved images will be smashed. All her sacred treasures will be burned. These things were bought with the money earned by her prostitution, and they will now be carried away to pay prostitutes elsewhere.” Therefore, I will mourn and lament. I will walk around barefoot and naked. I will howl like a jackal and moan like an owl. 9For my people’s wound is too deep to heal. It has reached into Judah, even to the gates of Jerusalem. 10Don’t tell our enemies in Gath; don’t weep at all. You people in Beth-leaphrah, roll in the dust to show your despair.

Micah 1:8 word by word

עַל־זֹאת֙ אֶסְפְּדָ֣ה וְאֵילִ֔ילָה אֵילְכָ֥ה שׁוֹלָ֖ל וְעָר֑וֹם אֶעֱשֶׂ֤ה מִסְפֵּד֙ כַּתַּנִּ֔ים וְאֵ֖בֶל כִּבְנ֥וֹת יַעֲנָֽה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Therefore I will wailסָפַדsâphad · to mournH5594
• and howlיָלַלyâlal · to wailH3213
• I will goיָלַךְyâlak · to walkH3212
• strippedשׁוֹלָלshôlâl shêylâl · barefootH7758
• and nakedעָרוֹם‛ârôm ‛ârôm · nakedH6174
• I will makeעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to makeH6213
• a wailingמִסְפֵּדmispêd · mourningH4553
• like the dragonsתַּןtannîyn tannîym · jackalH8577
• and mourningאֵ֫בֶל'êbel · mourningH60
• as the owlsיַעֲנָהya‛ănâh · ostrichH3284
• as the owlsבַּתbath · daughterH1323

Cross-references for Micah 1:8

• Isaiah 16:9So now I weep for Jazer and the vineyards of Sibmah; my tears will flow for Heshbon and Elealeh. There are no more shouts of joy over your summer fruits and harvest.
• Isaiah 21:3My stomach aches and burns with pain. Sharp pangs of anguish are upon me, like those of a woman in labor. I grow faint when I hear what God is planning; I am too afraid to look.
• Isaiah 22:4That’s why I said, “Leave me alone to weep; do not try to comfort me. Let me cry for my people as I watch them being destroyed.”
• Jeremiah 4:19My heart, my heart—I writhe in pain! My heart pounds within me! I cannot be still. For I have heard the blast of enemy trumpets and the roar of their battle cries.
• Jeremiah 9:1If only my head were a pool of water and my eyes a fountain of tears, I would weep day and night for all my people who have been slaughtered.
• Jeremiah 48:36My heart moans like a flute for Moab and Kir-hareseth, for all their wealth has disappeared.
• Isaiah 20:2the Lord told Isaiah son of Amoz, “Take off the burlap you have been wearing, and remove your sandals.” Isaiah did as he was told and walked around naked and barefoot.
• Job 30:29Instead, I am considered a brother to jackals and a companion to owls.
• Psalms 102:6I am like an owl in the desert, like a little owl in a far-off wilderness.

Commentaries on Micah 1:8

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 8I will make a wailing like the dragons - Newcome translates: - I will make a wailing like the foxes, (or jackals), And mourning like the daughters of the ostrich. This beast, the jackal or shiagal, we have often met with in the prophets. Travellers inform us that its howlings by night are most lamentable; and as to the ostrich, it is remarkable for its fearful shrieking and agonizing groanings after night. Dr. Shaw says he has often heard them groan as if…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8Therefore I will - Therefore I would Wail - (properly, beat, that is, on the breast). And howl - “Let me alone,” he would say, “that I may vent my sorrow in all ways of expressing sorrow, beating on the breast and wailing, using all acts and sounds of grief.” It is as we would say, “Let me mourn on,” a mourning inexhaustible, because the woe too and the cause of grief was unceasing. The prophet becomes in words, probably in acts too, an image of his…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 8-16Verses 8-16 The prophet laments that Israel's case is desperate; but declare it not in Gath. Gratify not those that make merry with the sins or with the sorrows of God's Israel. Roll thyself in the dust, as mourners used to do; let every house in Jerusalem become a house of Aphrah, "a house of dust." When God makes the house dust it becomes us to humble ourselves to the dust under his mighty hand. Many places should share this mourning. The names have…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 8-16In response to the Lord’s predicted judgment, Micah walked barefoot and naked to show mourning (see Isaiah 20:2; Lamentations 2:10; Ezekiel 24:17). This act vividly showed what would happen to Samaria (Israel) and Jerusalem (Judah). They would lose their wealth, power, and population. A jackal and an owl make sad sounds and live in deserted wilderness areas (see Isaiah 34:13; Jeremiah 50:39).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 88. Therefore I will wail--The prophet first shows how the coming judgment affects himself, in order that he might affect the minds of his countrymen similarly. stripped--that is, of shoes, or sandals, as the Septuagint translates. Otherwise "naked" would be a tautology. naked--"Naked" means divested of the upper garment (Is 20:2). "Naked and barefoot," the sign of mourning (2Sa 15:30). The prophet's upper garment was usually rough and coarse-haired (2Ki…Read the comment

Topics related to Micah 1:8

• Dragon
• Idolatry
• Ostriches
• Owl

In the dictionaries

• Dragon
• Heir
• Lie
• Naked
• Owl
• Roll
• Wail
• Barefoot
• Micah (2)
• Naked; Nakedness

Commentaries on Micah 1

• 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