Micah 4:9

Jerusalem, why are you ¹  now shouting so loudly? ²  Has your king disappeared? ³  Has your wise leader ⁴  been destroyed? Is this why ⁵  pain grips ⁶  you as if you were a woman in labor?

Isa 3:1-7; Isa 13:8; Isa 21:3; Isa 26:17; Jer 4:21; Jer 8:19; Jer 22:23; Jer 30:6,7; Jer 30:6; Jer 50:43; La 4:20; Ho 3:4; Ho 10:3; Ho 13:10,11

¹ tn The Hebrew form is feminine singular, indicating that Jerusalem, personified as a young woman, is now addressed (see v. 10). In v. 8 the tower/fortress was addressed with masculine forms, so there is clearly a shift in addressee here. “Jerusalem” has been supplied in the translation at the beginning of v. 9 to make this shift apparent.

² tn Heb “Now why are you shouting [with] a shout.”

³ tn Heb “Is there no king over you?”

⁴ tn Traditionally, “counselor” (cf. KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV). This refers to the king mentioned in the previous line; the title points to the king’s roles as chief strategist and policy maker, both of which required extraordinary wisdom.

⁵ tn Heb “that.” The Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) is used here in a resultative sense; for this use see R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 73, §450.

⁶ tn Heb “grabs hold of, seizes.”