Micah 2:6

‘Don’t preach with such impassioned rhetoric,’ they say excitedly. ¹  ‘These prophets should not preach of such things; we will not be overtaken by humiliation.’ ² 

"Do not prophesy," their prophets say. "Do not prophesy about these things; disgrace will not overtake us."

‘Do not speak out,’ so they speak out. But if they do not speak out concerning these things, Reproaches will not be turned back.

"Don’t say such things," the people say. "Don’t prophesy like that. Such disasters will never come our way!"

"Don't preach," say the preachers. "Don't preach such stuff. Nothing bad will happen to us.

Let not words like these be dropped, they say: Shame and the curse will not come to the family of Jacob!

"Do not preach" —thus they preach—"one should not preach of such things; disgrace will not overtake us."

"Do not prattle," you say to those who prophesy. So they shall not prophesy to you; They shall not return insult for insult.

‘Don’t preach with such impassioned rhetoric,’ they say excitedly. ¹  ‘These prophets should not preach of such things; we will not be overtaken by humiliation.’ ² 

¹ tn Heb “‘Do not foam at the mouth,’ they foam at the mouth.” The verb נָטַף (nataf) means “to drip.” When used of speech it probably has the nuance “to drivel, to foam at the mouth” (HALOT 694 s.v. נטף). The sinful people tell the Lord’s prophets not to “foam at the mouth,” which probably refers in a derogatory way to their impassioned style of delivery. But the Lord (who is probably still speaking here, see v. 3) sarcastically refers to their impassioned exhortation as “foaming at the mouth.”

² tc If one follows the MT as it stands, it would appear that the Lord here condemns the people for their “foaming at the mouth” and then announces that judgment is inevitable. The present translation assumes that this is a continuation of the quotation of what the people say. In this case the subject of “foam at the mouth” is the Lord’s prophets. In the second line יִסַּג (yissag, a Niphal imperfect from סוּג, sug, “to remove”) is emended to יַסִּגֵנוּ (yassigenu; a Hiphil imperfect from נָסַג/נָשַׂג, nasag/nasag, “to reach; to overtake”).

tn Heb “they should not foam at the mouth concerning these things, humiliation will not be removed.”