Discovery BoxMicah 2:4 
Context2:4 In that day people will sing this taunt song to you –
they will mock you with this lament: 1
‘We are completely destroyed;
they sell off 2 the property of my people.
How they remove it from me! 3
They assign our fields to the conqueror.’ 4
Micah 7:4
Context7:4 The best of them is like a thorn;
the most godly among them are more dangerous than a row of thorn bushes. 5
The day you try to avoid by posting watchmen –
your appointed time of punishment – is on the way, 6
and then you will experience confusion. 7
1 tc The form נִהְיָה (nihyah) should be omitted as dittographic (note the preceding וְנָהָה נְהִי vÿnahah nÿhiy).
tn Heb “one will lament [with] a lamentation [and] say.”
2 tn Or “exchange.” The LXX suggests a reading יִמַּד (yimmad) from מָדַד (madad, “to measure”). In this case one could translate, “the property of my people is measured out [i.e., for resale].”
3 tn Heb “how one removes for me.” Apparently the preposition has the nuance “from” here (cf. KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).
4 tc The Hebrew term שׁוֹבֵב (shovev, “the one turning back”) elsewhere has the nuance “apostate” (cf. NASB) or “traitor” (cf. NIV). The translation assumes an emendation to שָׁבָה (shavah, “captor”).
tn Heb “to the one turning back he assigns our fields.”
5 tn Heb “[the] godly from a row of thorn bushes.” The preposition מִן (min) is comparative and the comparative element (perhaps “sharper” is the idea) is omitted. See BDB 582 s.v. 6 and GKC 431 §133.e.
6 tn Heb “the day of your watchmen, your appointed [time], is coming.” The present translation takes “watchmen” to refer to actual sentries. However, the “watchmen” could refer figuratively to the prophets who had warned Judah of approaching judgment. In this case one could translate, “The day your prophets warned about – your appointed time of punishment – is on the way.”
7 tn Heb “and now will be their confusion.”
